​​Becoming a mother automatically enters a person into a sisterhood unimaginable to the rest of us that have not kissed a booboo better, slipped a toonie under a pillow in exchange for a tooth, been covered in another human’s poop, or had the experience of being called Mom. From discussions with my own mother, the force that draws people into this international sisterhood is the knowledge that another person feels the same levels of inexplainable joy and endless love. The cementing force however, is realizing that other mothers have gone through the same hardships, overwhelming responsibility, and exhaustion that comes with raising a child.
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This truth and cementing bond transverses the animal kingdom and reaches a selflessness epicentre with a small, deep-sea, and lonely female octopus. Perhaps lonely isn’t completely accurate, she is surrounded by hundreds of lives but they just happen to be of the cemented, milky, and of the not-hatched variety. She spends her days and nights guarding these precious egg capsules from predators by splaying her body over them while also keeping them clean of debris and oxygenated. With so many lives dependant on her, the female octopus rarely has opportunities to move away from her egg capsules and feed – another transcending truth. 

This routine of constant vigilance has been documented to have occurred in one species of deep-sea octopus, Graneledone boreopacifica, for four and half years after the egg capsules were laid. Read that again. If you prefer, that equates approximately to 54 months or 1647 days or 39, 528 hours of guarding, fanning, and starving for this 9-cm long miraculous mother. Why would any organism do this? Well, I wish I could paint a picture of an unparalleled love magnified by the fact that octopuses have three hearts but, in actuality, it has to do with setting up their offspring for success. The longer that a young octopus stays within its egg capsule, the more time they have time to develop so that by the time they hatch they are capable of surviving and hunting on their own. The exceedingly long brooding period that the G. boreopacifica endures is thought to be a product of the cold surrounding waters that cause octopus egg capsules to develop slower than they would in shallow, warmer habitats. The finish line for this marathon of maternal care is marked by the egg capsules hatching followed by the death of the mother octopus. A truly selfless mother.
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Whether your mother has 2 arms or 8 arms, their dedication to your being is truly a miracle and one that deserves celebration. Mother’s Day provides us with the perfect opportunity to dedicate some time to thank them for the support they have provided and the love they have given. I for one am going to tell my mom about the little deep-sea octopus and let her know how much the egg capsule appreciated it. 

​It doesn’t happen regularly, but every once in a while, you will come across an animal that leaves you truly perplexed. There are animals that hold hands, throw punches, mimic leaves, change sexes, have two jaws, regenerate limbs, and have cube-shaped poop. If we were to rank* the perplexities that exist in the animal kingdom however, the top spot would belong to the cuTTlefish**. Not only do they have three hearts and can mimic the shape and texture of their surroundings, but they can also count better than human babies! For these reasons alone, cuTTlefish deserve to be a top contender for the prestigious Perplexity Prize but they have another surprising trick up their tentacle that really sets them apart.

​Male cuTTlefish compete with one another to catch the attention of females in the hopes of mating with them. These competitions can be very aggressive and often involve barrel rolls, squirts of black ink, and an exchange of bites using hardened beaks. As is the case in many similar debacles, the larger male generally wins the fight. Ironically however, their efforts and injuries may not lead to a successful mating opportunity with observing females. This is because small male cuTTlefish are able to sneak past the fighting males by disguising as a female. The steps to doing so are pretty straightforward, (1) mimic muted female colours, (2) tuck in their tentacles to appear as if they are carrying eggs, and (3) rely on their smaller size. Once they get past the larger competitive males, the smaller males will reveal themselves to the females by turning on a colourful display and, well, you know what happens next.

So, there you have it, an animal whose perplex, peculiar, and puzzling abilities are worthy or recognition and celebration. I challenge you to embody the cuTTlefish – the ultimate trickster – on this special day. I myself, am looking forward to challenging babies to counting contests.
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* Every animal is beautiful and unique in its own way
** Although I cannot comment about whether these animals like cuddling, I can confirm that these animals are not referred to as cuddlefish 

​​When it is raining, I take out my boots and jacket. When it is snowing, I add a scarf and some mittens. When it is windy, I increase my layers and quicken my steps. It is safe to say, that since I moved to the Maritimes, I have adapted to the changing – often unexpected – weather conditions.

​My usual response to downpours, blizzards, and wind storms is to stay inside with a bag of storm chips and peak out the window to see how nature is fairing. My view consists of trees, buildings, and the unfortunate person that didn’t reach shelter in time. What I can’t see from my window during these weather events is the ocean, but I can envision the swell and the crashing waves. What is harder to imagine is how our beloved ocean organisms survive – animals and algae alike!

​​​The intertidal zone in Nova Scotia is characterized by things like crabs, snails, mussels, barnacles, and rockweed. These animals are not often described as being hardy, but they should be, as their adaptations allow them to survive in a very volatile environment. The environment is difficult because not only do these animals have to deal with stressors that originate in the ocean, but they also must worry about what comes from the land and atmosphere – eek! Some animals, like crabs, find protection by hiding in cracks or under boulders while others, like snails, carry protection on their back. 

​​If we were to move deeper into the subtidal, not only would the organisms change, but so would the impact of weather events. If the seabed is further from the ocean surface, it is less impacted by the weather – think of the depth as a kind of buffer zone. Since the organisms are less impacted, they do not dedicate as much energy into weather-protective adaptations. You still see adaptations however; sea stars don suction cup-like tube feet and other benthic invertebrates remain streamlined. The organism’s primary concern in the subtidal, unlike the intertidal, is not to adapt to weather but instead put energy into fleeing predators and finding food – how cool!

​If we were to go deeper in the ocean you may notice some differences that exist between that ecosystem and the one that exists in the intertidal and the subtidal. First off, it is dark, I mean no-sun-is-penetrating dark, and it is cold. What you will not notice however, is sloshing water caused from overhead weather events. Other than debris falling from surface waters, there would be no evidence of a weather event because wave energy does not attenuate deep enough to impact the organisms that live there.

So, my advice to you is if you really want to escape Maritime weather events you should hop, skip, and jump to the bottom of the ocean.

​Happy splashing!
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This Valentine's Day, our Communications Committee members came together to let their favourite ocean animals know just how much they care for them. Read on for some pun-filled entertainment and fun facts! 
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Before my time at Back to the Sea I worked for the Petty Harbour Mini Aquarium. ​For my first interview there, I was told to bring a prop and talk about an ocean animal. I knew I couldn’t bring a live octopus, so I settled for its North Atlantic cousin - the squid! From that moment forward, it was an inky love affair. As highly intelligent creatures, cephalopods continually amaze scientists with their ability to understand, learn and even go so far as to escape their tanks! We love to do squid dissections to not only feed our animals, but also to teach our visitors all about these slimy (and at times smelly) creatures. I have been known to write squid ink letters, and maybe if you are so lucky at the Touch Tank Hut you can have one too! ​

​- Leah

Perhaps it was your colours, or maybe your jiggle,
But seeing you swim fills my mouth with a giggle,
It started off slow, with a quick glimpse of you fluttering,
But before I knew it, I heard myself uttering,
“How can anyone think you are simply a sea slug,
As if you were just another beetle, cricket or pill bug,
No, you are so much more than that, a work of art,
Something that so quickly captures my heart."
I looked at the creature once more as it bobbed and twisted,
And thought that its great qualities needed to be listed,
Firstly, unlike us it has no back bone,
Allowing it to move like a thread that has not been sewn,
Secondly, it gets its bright colours from the food that it eats,
Munching on corals, sponges, and anemones – how neat,
Thirdly, it has a foot and leaves a slimy path,
You can always find where it has been by its aftermath,
Fourthly, they can change between being female or male,
Reducing the likelihood of a reproductive fail,
And to wrap it up, a fact that is short and sweet,
One that makes seeing this animal such a wonderful treat,
The truth is that it only lives a few weeks, maybe a year,
But do not be sad, do not shed a tear,
For the facts that you learned have made you smart,
​And the love of a NUDIBRANCH will stay in your heart!

​- Kaitlin

One of my first loves has always been the ocean. Initially, as I’m sure is the case for most of us ocean-lovers, it was the faces and personalities of creatures like dolphins, whales, and turtles that caught my attention. Now, my love of ocean creatures extends past the traditionally adorable and focuses more on the absurd and unique. One species of fish that has captured my heart are lumpsuckers, specifically Pacific spiny lumpsuckers. I mean, have you seen these before? 

Whale, Valentine’s Day confession: I have a really hard time talking about just one marine creature. I mean, there are thousands upon thousands of species in the sea, many of which, we have yet to discover. One animal that I have always found particularly fascinating is the whale shark. Whale sharks are the biggest fish in the ocean. They are up to three times the size of a great white shark, yet the majority of their diet is made up of microscopic organisms, plankton! Unfortunately, these majestic creatures are endangered and are in need of a little extra love. In order to learn more about these animals and to help protect them, researchers can track and identify individuals based on their unique spotting pattern. To do this, researchers use a similar technology to that used by NASA to identify constellations in the sky. Whaley neat, isn’t it?

- Meghan

Thank you to Leah, Kaitlin, Natasha and Meghan for sharing their love for the ocean this Valentines Day. Now it's your turn, comment below to tell us which ocean animal is your favourite! 

 by Magali Grégoire

2017 was another successful year for Back to the Sea! While it was only our second year of operation as a society, we increased our impact exponentially. We participated in more events, recruited multiple volunteers, added to our core team of Board Members and launched our very own miniature marine interpretive centre - the Touch Tank Hut!

Here's a recap of the significant moments of 2017. 

As you know, we operate our permanent and portable touch tanks on a seasonal basis.  We began and ended the season with partnering events. Kicking off during Oceans Week HFX, we had a great time at The Ocean and You and An Ocean of Discovery events (click on the links to read blog posts from our volunteers). Then, a little later in the summer, we enjoyed a day at the Canadian Sea Turtle kiosk. 

The fall kept us just as busy with the You, Me and the Sea program (part of the Sustainable Oceans Conference) and the Bedford Institute of Oceanography Open House - all on the same weekend! Over 22,000 people came through the open house!

We also participated in the Halifax Oyster Festival and had our team members volunteer their time to hand out water to the participants of the Maritime Race Weekend. 

Sandwiched between all those events is our biggest accomplishment to date, the Touch Tank Hut! 

In just five weekends we had over 1,800 visitors!

​The Touch Tank Hut is truly proof that you can be mini and mighty all at once. 

​We are grateful to have captured the interest of visitors, locals and the media with this initiative. See our media page for all Touch Tank Hut coverage. 

​Thank you to the dozens of volunteers who helped make this achievement possible. This includes everyone on our Board, our staff, our Communications Committee, our Advisory Board, our volunteer interpreters and all our friends and family members who got their hands dirty and picked up a paintbrush, collected animals, cleaned, did plumbing, electrical and construction work. It's one long list and are hearts are full! 

A huge thank you as well to all those who donated to the cause. Thanks to over 70 contributors, we surpassed our crowdfunding goal and raised $5150! 

We are also grateful to our top sponsors and want to give a special shout out to Alderney Landing who donated the use of the space to us.
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Thanks to Alderney Landing's continued support, we will be able to open this coming summer! 

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That's not all! We are also very happy that our Founder was able to present at the See Change, Tides of Environmental Learning Conference hosted by the Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication. And finally, we had a blast during our Goodwill Bot event, a fundraiser put on by Good Robot Brewing Co.

Before we sign off, we'd like to introduce you to our newest Board member who joined our team last year, Jonathan Primack. Jonathan is a Project Manager at Noble Grape and a father of two young children who are already among the Touch Tank Hut's number one fans! We're happy to have his energy and passion on our Board. 

We would also like to thank Lisanne Jacklin who also joined our Board last year, however had to end her term early due do unforeseen circumstances. We thank her for her contributions and for remaining an important part of our team as our law advisor. 

Thank you to our founding Board members Maggie, Rodrigo, Courtenay and Greg who have been with us from the start and continue to work on all of Back to the Sea's initiatives, including the eventual construction of a permanent space.

​While we remain a Society that is ran in most part with volunteer efforts, we were proud to hire our first staff last year. With Maggie stepping in as Board President, our Founder Magali stepped off the board and was able to take on a new staff leadership position as Executive Director. Leah and Kim were are first Interpreter and Aquarists and did a fantastic job inspiring all our Touch Tank Hut visitors. 

​Here's to another great year and we look forward to opening our doors and welcoming you to the Touch Tank Hut on June 2nd! 
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- 2017 Touch Tank Hut visitor

​by Meghan Borland

With the holiday season upon us, love is in the air. Recently, the same has been said about the ocean depths, and it is all because of a shark named Hilton. Hilton is a 600-kilogram great white shark that has been cruising his way around the east coast waters. In fact, last weekend he was said to have passed by the Father Christmas Festival in Mahone Bay. Hilton has successfully sought Twitter fame, but scientists are wondering if he was actually searching for love off Canada’s east coast. 

​Hilton was tagged by the research group Ocearch in March in Hilton Head, South Carolina. He first appeared on Nova Scotia’s south shore in early August, and now appears to be heading southward, saying farewell to Nova Scotia. During Hilton’s stay, he sparked curiosity amongst several scientists and Nova Scotia residents. 
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​​While more research is needed, the water surrounding Nova Scotia may be a mating hotspot for sharks. This is exciting given that the mating habits of sharks are currently a mystery. A multi-year project to investigate potential mating sites in Nova Scotia has been proposed by the Ocearch research group. Hilton is not the first great white shark that has been tracked in Nova Scotian waters. A 300-kilogram great white shark named Pumpkin was detected in the Minas Basin in July, and a 900-kilogram great white named Lydia was spotted around Sable Island in 2013 and 2016. If Nova Scotia is found to serve as an important mating area for great white sharks, this may explain Hilton’s stay, as well as Lydia’s and Pumpkin’s.
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​After an unsuccessful love encounter, people often say, “there are lots of fish in the sea.” Unfortunately for Hilton, shark populations across the globe are in big trouble. The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy reported that the population of great white sharks in the North Atlantic has dropped by 75 per cent in the past 15 years, and is now listed as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This not only provides Hilton with fewer prospects, but it poses a problem to the entire ocean.

​Sharks are essential to healthy ocean ecosystems, and have been for over 450 million years. Sharks are referred to as apex predators, meaning that they are at the top of the food chain. Essentially, they keep ocean ecosystems balanced and in check. If future research reveals mating hotspots within Nova Scotia, protecting these areas would offer conservation benefits for great white sharks. An ocean without Hilton and his friends (or lovers) would be disastrous. For the love of Hilton and for the entire ocean we need to do all we can to protect sharks. The truth is, humankind needs healthy oceans, and healthy oceans need sharks.
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​Over the past year I’ve had an amazing experience volunteering with the Back to the Sea Society. Starting off Oceans Week 2017 at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic’s Oceans and You event was the metaphorical cherry to top off my Back to the Sea experience!
 
Leading up to Oceans Week, I was feeling busy and stressed and the thought of another thing on my to do list was daunting. From the moment I stepped onto the waterfront, all of my worries were washed away in a tide of Ocean Optimism. Passing the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ preserved fish specimens, the World Wildlife Federation's Panda mascot and the excited participants, it was clearly going to be a whale of a day.

​​Over 30 ocean-loving organizations came together to share their passion, using exhibits, activities and displays, attracting hundreds throughout the day. From making ‘fish prints’ with Afishionado, to learning about how innovation can improve our oceans sector with the COVE (Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship), opportunities to witness the ocean's wonders were as far as the eye can sea.
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People of all ages enjoyed Back to the Sea’s touch tanks, including locals, visitors from away and one very special guest, Raina the Halifax Mermaid! Looking at the ocean, with the many possibilities it holds, inspires all sorts of emotions, from curiosity to awe. At Back to the Sea, we are able to provide a peak at the many species who call our ocean home, right here in Halifax. I personally have never encountered an unsatisfied visitor while working with Back to the Sea. Even if a spiky green sea urchin may seem a little scary at first, learning about their way of life on the ocean floor always seems to satisfy!
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​​Volunteering with the Back to the Sea Society has opened up an ocean of possibilities for me. We are lucky to exist in Canada’s Ocean City, within a network of amazing organizations and individuals working to care for our marine environment. All over the world, the ocean connects us through not only physical boundaries, but also in the way that it makes people feel. The Oceans and You event truly captured this connection, lending hope for a future of healthy oceans and seaside smiles all around!

After recently volunteering with Back to the Sea at the Discovery Centre’s An Ocean of Discovery during Oceans Week HFX on June 10th, I wanted to share some of my experiences and recap my three favourite things about touch tanks as an ocean education tool.  

1. Accessibility
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We are, of course, lucky to live alongside the beautiful North Atlantic Ocean, but accessing our cold waters enough to really get to know the plants and animals found there is not always easy. Touch tanks bring the ocean to us, making the opportunity to learn about, observe, and appreciate our local marine life an experience that is accessible to all.

During three hours of volunteering at An Ocean of Discovery, over 150 people came by the touch tanks to scope out our sandy and rocky habitats and to meet the sea critters in each. That means, more than 150 adults and children were able to participate in this amazing and unique learning opportunity. That's not counting the additional 100 people  who visited the touch tanks in the afternoon portion of the day.

​​2. Experience
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Touch tanks are a hands-on and multi-sensory learning experience. This may include touching the suction-like tube feet of a common sea star, watching a hermit crab hide in its shell, seeing and hearing a soft-shelled clam squirt water out through its siphon, smelling the scents of the sea, feeling the coldness of the tank water, and so much more! 

​3. Connection
As a volunteer with Back to the Sea, I have had the privilege of not only meeting and connecting with people of all ages and backgrounds, but I also get to help facilitate connections between people and our cold water marine life. Seeing people touch a green sea urchin for the first time and going from apprehension to wonder in a matter of seconds will never get old to me! It is such an incredible connection to watch people form.

This list could go on! If you have not had a chance to visit a touch tank yet and have your own close encounters with marine life, then keep an eye on news and events for any upcoming opportunities.

Thank you to the Back to the Sea team for welcoming me as a volunteer – looking forward to many more Touch Tank Days in the future!

There’s lots to see while SCUBA diving the North Atlantic coast; long-toothed wolffish, scowling eelpouts, graceful winter skates, fields of magenta coralline algae, and if you’re lucky, a glimpse of a humpback whale in the distance. In all that diversity, the sea urchins are some of my favourites – and it’s all about the hats.

​The most common urchin in Newfoundland, and throughout the Maritimes, is Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis,  a bit of a mouthful for the unassuming green urchin. We see hundreds of green urchins on every dive, and in the shallows, we find them covered with anything they can get their tube feet on: rocks, shells, even the odd golf ball.
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​​Echinodermata refers to the phylum of animals that includes seastars, sea cucumbers, sand dollars, crinoids, and our hat-wearing urchins. Echinoderms share a few key features, including a couple that sound like superheroes: Wolverine’s regeneration and Spiderman’s ability to scale smooth surfaces at any angle. We’ll get back to regeneration later on.
 
Echinoderms move around the seafloor (or simply move food to their mouth) using hundreds of sticky tube feet. These feet are part of the water-vascular system, a network of seawater-filled tubes. Urchins move using the tube feet on their ventral side by contracting small muscles that force water into the  tubefoot to take each step. The end of each tube foot is very, very sticky. They are often described as suction cups, however recent research[1] indicates that echinoderms likely use a bio-adhesive, rather than suction, to achieve their Spiderman-like climbs.

Urchins also use these sticky tube feet to pick up and hold onto rock, shells, golf balls, and other treasures.
 
But why? 

Behavioural ecologists call urchin hats “covering behaviour”. That name is related to the first and most prevalent hypotheses about the phenomena: the urchins are covering themselves to provide shelter from sunlight, predators, or both.

​Experiments conducted on Paracentrotus lividus, the purple sea urchin common to the Eastern Atlantic Ocean, confirmed the light hypothesis. Researchers in Ireland found that when the urchins were exposed to full spectrum UV light, more individuals would pick up their hats and/or move to the shady corners of their tanks to avoid harmful UV radiation[2].

​Around the same time, another scientist in California was studying covering behaviour of Pacific rose flower urchins, Toxopneustes roseus[3]. The rose urchin study wasn’t conducted in a lab; instead urchin behaviour was observed in their natural habitats. What they found was that at the sample site with the greatest wave energy, there was also the most covering behaviour among the urchins.

So which is it? Sun safety? Or are these hats more like seat belts and kneepads, weighing urchins down and protecting them from wave damage?

On this side of the Atlantic, researchers tested several factors simultaneously to trace the covering behaviour to it’s source. In a laboratory, green urchins were exposed to common predators, wave surge, waving algae blades, and sunlight[4]. As it turns out, the predators were a bust: their presence had no significant impact on the rate of covering behaviour.

​The hats are not camouflage.

Like the Irish purple urchins, green urchins exposed to UV light were found to cover up more. However, UV exposure wasn’t the most important factor. This study found that green urchins on the east coast of Canada, like rose urchins in California, wore more hats when they were exposed to wave surge, and/or in contact with moving algae blades.

Not all urchins wear hats though; the Canadian study found that smaller urchins were more like to cover up. 
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​Seastars can regenerate lost arms, sometime many at a time (see? I told you we’d get back to this). Though it’s less dramatic, urchins are constantly regenerating lost and broken spines. But regeneration takes energy. It may be a safer bet, particularly for a small urchin who is vulnerable to dislodgement and damage, to pick up some extra weight and a little sun protection at the same time. 

Emilie is a marine conservation biologist and PhD candidate at the Memorial University of Newfoundland. She is also the Chair of the Biology Graduate Student Association at Memorial. Emilie knows all about catch-and-release aquariums as she has been a volunteer scientific diver for the Petty Harbour Mini Aquarium for the past four years. t: @maptheblue

​Thanks so much for writing this post Emilie. We can only hope you'll be able to join us on a Back to the Sea dive one day! 

P.S. Another thing we love about Emilie are her awesome pictures, like this one of an urchin's mouth, known as Aristotle's Lantern. 

This month we wrote a blog post for the Canadian Network for Ocean Education. Click below to read it!