Marine Biology Classes explore Morro Bay

Samo’s Marine Biology students explored the natural life and wonders of Morro Bay, near the San Luis Obispo County, through a weekend field trip earlier this year in April. Led by Benjamin Kay, Samo Marine Biology teacher, along with Santa Monica College professors, students went on this weekend camping trip in order to reconnect with nature and spend some time away from the city. In a time where students are constantly on their phones, tablets and computers, the trip provided for a change of pace.Alexis Lopez (’17) enjoyed the learning experience and trip, speaking highly of the adventures that she went on with fellow classmates on the past Marine Biology trip.“The trip was awesome! It was an amazing experience to be able to converse with all of my classmates and see everything we had been learning in class with our own eyes,” Lopez explains.The trip is semi annual, one near the end of April and one mid October, in order to have a Spring trip and a Fall trip. Though it is mainly targeted for Marine Biology students, every single student and community member is encouraged to go the exploration. Typically there are 30 to 50 Samo students that go, and 100 to 150 people total. It is a community event hosted by Santa Monica College.“I’m trying to get everybody at Samohi to go with me,” Kay said. “We go to a number of different places on the weekend. We caravan and carpool around to these places, give some information, and allow time for personal exploration.”On this trip, students can explore the tidal pools, go on hikes, stargaze, and experience the nature. Mini seminars are taught by Kay and other SMC professors. Students can learn about the physiology of elephant seals, sea otters, falcons, and much more relating to the Morro Bay wildlife. The talking role is shared throughout the trip between Kay and the other professors, so the students get to learn from multiple perspectives.“Everything I learned was relevant to what we were learning so it was definitely worth it,” Lopez says. She believes the exploration was valuable to her learning experience in every aspect.People who go on the trip head up to Morro Bay on Friday afternoon, to camp Friday night and Saturday nights and spend the day time adventuring. Camps are set up at the state park campground and events during the day are held in many different areas. The group tours around the Morro Bay area to see sights and learn about the wildlife there. The goal of the trip is to get people to appreciate what they have around them. They are meant to revisit the nature and reconnect with the Earth.“Sometimes we don’t realize that nature is very fragile and is being degraded right now,” Kay said. “We only protect what we love, we only protect what we understand.”“Students can develop their understanding for nature so that they can help restore what is currently being ruined,” Kay says. He hopes for students to reconnect and grow their love for nature from this trip.Kay believes that the students benefit by learning more about nature and being plugged into nature and things that aren’t artificial. He believes that they get to learn more about marine biology, spend time with friends and sightsee the Morro Bay area while on this trip. When arriving at the different areas, they are given information about the nature, and then are allowed to explore on their own will. They are helped with identifying wildlife and their surroundings.