Ryan Kluk CIEE Perth, Australia Summer 2016 Blog 8: Goodbye Perth Five weeks comes and goes in the blink of an eye. Just thirty-six days ago, I boarded a plane in Charlotte, North Carolina and headed west for Perth. I have truly enjoyed my time here in Australia and the lifelong friends that I have made during my study abroad experience. I’ll never forget the fourteen hour ride from Perth to Yardie, throwing quadrat after quadrat, begging to be in Paul’s car, the cold water of Rockingham to scuba dive, the rainy rugby match, or all the time spent in […]

Ryan Kluk CIEE Perth, Australia Summer 2016 Blog 7: Sanctuary Zones in Ningaloo A marine sanctuary zone is an area in the ocean that is specifically set aside for conservation. All marine life, corals and fish, and the habitat if completely protected from human impacts and pollution. There is a total of twenty-one sanctuary zones along the Ningaloo Reef. The sanctuary zones allow for humans to look, but not take. These zones are one of the most effective ways of protecting the species that live in the reef and conserving the true nature and beauty of the reef. The Ningaloo […]

Ryan Kluk CIEE Perth, Australia Summer 2016 Blog 6: Coral Reef Protection Ningaloo Reef has been a protected World Heritage Site (WHS) since 2011. A WHS is listed by the UNESCO as having important cultural or physical significance that is special just to one area of the world. Other World Heritage Sites include: the Great Barrier Reef, Amazon Rain Forest, and the Great Pyramids of Egypt. UNESCO listed Ningaloo as a WHS because of its abundant marine life, vast majority of megafauna, cave fauna, and the contrast in colors from the water to the Cape Range Mountains. Being a WHS […]

Ryan Kluk CIEE Perth, Australia Summer 2016 Blog 5: Cows (Mother Humpbacks) vs. a Hungry Pack of Killer Whales Killer whales (orcas) are apex predators that work as a pack to attack their prey. The same is true for the killer whales that predate on humpback calves in the Ningaloo Reef. Humpback cows (mother) and calves (child) migrate from Antarctica up the western coast of Australia, past Ningaloo Reef to their final destination-the Timor Sea in northern Australia. During their migration, killer whales will follow and hunt the humpback calves to feed the entire pack. John Totterdell (the guest lecturer […]

Ryan Kluk CIEE Perth,  Australia Summer 2016 Blog 4: Clams! Clams! And more Clams! While in Ningaloo Reef, we conducted research on clams, specifically the Tridacna maxima and the Tridacna Ningaloo. These two species are both part of the giant clam family and are very similar with the only difference being a genetic difference. These giant clams live all along the coast of Western Australia, not just Ningaloo Reef. The giant clams obtain food through two separate processes: filter feeding and photosynthesis. To undergo photosynthesis, the clams have a mutualistic relationship with zooxanthellae, a microscopic algae that lives in the […]