At 5:45am it was off with Dr. Bill Krebs (a literature/history prof) and Dr. Sonia Tidemann (and ecology prof/ornithologist) and a car full of sleepy undergrads to fly to Lady Elliott Island, one of the southern most coral reef quays along the Great Barrier Reef. I am joining them halfway through their four week experience; a three-credit adventure into the environment of Australia.

The small 12 seater flew over glorious ocean and curving beach. When the pilot said “look over there, that’s the first view of Lady Elliott!”, I strained to see what he was seeing. Soon, I saw an irregular spot of brown in the blue. A polka dot on a corpulent auntie’s sea of a dress. Land’s insignificance.

Lady Elliott Resort
The plane landed on the long stripe of cut weed (read: airstrip) that makes up the entire center of the island. The resort itself is simple and educationally-focused, a marine research station for the University of New South Wales. There’s a small pool, a sand volleyball court, tent-like bunk rooms with outdoor latrines and showers, and more luxurious accommodations that have a double bed, bunkbed, and small shower/toilet area. Palm trees and white coral walkways weave in and out of the one-story buildings. The island is surrounded by beach and by coral reefs, home to hundreds of species of fish. In the education center, there’s information on fish, coral, mollusks, manta rays, turtle and sharks.

Tidbits on the history of Lady Elliott
Lady Elliott was so named for the ship of the same name, a whaling vessel named for the wife of the Governor of India at the time that wrecked on this reef in 1816.

There’s a ghost on the island. Suzannah McKee, wife of a lighthouse keeper, was so lonely that she drowned herself by walking offshore in her Sunday best in 1896. She roams the lighthouse to this day.

In the 1800’s, the island was a site for guano mining. Yep, those seabirds left behind a goldmine of phosphorus rich poo (in high demand as fertilizer at the time).

Academics
Dr. William Loh, a marine biologist, is the main academic leader of this short course. During the evening, we heard a short lecture on the different types of fish we’re likely to see on the reef, and how to differentiate them (size, color, tail/fins, location, mouth). Oh, and which families undergo sex changes and why. Good preparation for tomorrow when we’ll all hit the water with gusto (The resort rents full wetsuits, snorkels and fins). The course is structured as a mix of lectures pertaining to what students will be experiencing, on-site conversations, as well as reflection/journaling. Students are assessed through participation as well as short papers due every 3-4 days, with the professors giving feedback so that the learning can be built upon for the next session.