The Aquarium team has joined the shallow water expedition early this morning and have already made two dives. In spite of enduring a 13 hour flight that departed SFO at 11PM and arrived in Manila at 3 AM and a 2 hour drive south to the CAS field station, the aquarium team of Bart Shepherd, Matt Wandell and Richard Ross were suited up and ready for their first dive in Balayan Bay only hours after arriving.

Breakfast

Loading the boats

CAS videographer David McGuire preparing video equipment

Dr VanSyoc ready to go

Dito, Healy, Elliott, Terry and Beth motoring to dive sites.

Chrissy Piotrowski sampling something from the sand, probably some kind of worm

Sea Pen

Beth Moore searching for seahorses and pipefish

snowflake moray eel (Echidna nebulosa)

Very cute puffer fish

A little and big tunicate (a.k.a. urochordates or sea squirts)

this big puffy sea star (Choriaster granulatus) is about the size of a dinner plate

Dr Rich Mooi sharing one of his finds with Beth and Elliott

Dave Catania of CAS and Joseph of the Philippines National Museum processing samples from today’s dives

Terry Gosliner processing todays specimens.

The expedition is proceeding well with many new species being discovered every week,