A newsletter from the Prince William Sound Science Center

September 5, 2023

Summer camp participants canoeing down Alaganik Slough. Photo credit: PWSSC.

Dissecting Juvenile Salmon Stomachs

Lydia Shaw identifying and tallying the contents of a juvenile salmon. Photo credit: PWSSC.

Welcome to Sharktember!

Sharks are a type of fish in the class Chondrichthyes. All fish in this class have skeletons composed of cartilage – a flexible, but strong, connective tissue (just like your ears and the tip of your nose).

What do you see if you zoom in on shark skin? Sharks do not have traditional fish scales. Instead, they have dermal denticles or placoid scales. The word denticle may sound familiar to you. That is because it means a small tooth or tooth-like projection. Dermal encompasses things relating to the skin. So, dermal denticles are tooth-like projections on the skin. Like other species of fish, if you ever have a chance to pet a shark, they are very smooth when running from head to toe, but rough in the opposite direction. That is because their placoid scales help to reduce friction in the water.

Follow along on our social media channels this month as we learn more about sharks and shark research in Alaska. Our in-person programming on sharks includes Fun Friday: Sharks on September 15 from 2:30-3:30 pm. On September 26, from 7:00-8:00 pm, Sabrina Garcia, salmon shark researcher with ADF&G, will speak at Tuesday Night Talk, to discuss her salmon shark studies in the Bering Sea.

Placoid scales (dermal denticles). Photo credit: Kevin Tang U of M Flint.

An avid tinkerer of things, Reuben Brown has had an eclectic career as a commercial fisherman, engineer, maintenance tech, machinist, and sales rep throughout Oregon, Alaska, and Colorado. Reuben enjoys the great outdoors; a passion that dates back to attending Science Center summer camps as a kid growing up in Cordova. He is excited to continue to develop his skills while furthering the capabilities of the new PWSSC facilities as the Facilities Manager.

With a new and spacious facility, PWSSC has opened its doors to some additional occupants. Cordova Electric Cooperative is leasing offices in our south wing of the building for seven of their in-house employees. Residents of Cordova who need to pay a visit to CEC can follow the signs to their upstairs location.

The Prince William Sound Economic Development District is leasing one of the shared offices for their two employees. And an employee of the Bureau of Land Management is renting desk space in a shared office.

Our Fall Online Auction will be October 15-19, 2023. We will also host an open house on October 19 where you can peruse auction items, mingle with staff and board members, and take a tour of the building. More details coming soon.

If you are interested in donating to the auction or becoming an event sponsor, please email Signe Baumann.

A sampling of auction items from last year's online auction.

We hope you can join us this month for some educational fun! Different programs are intended for certain ages, noted below. Younger participants need to be accompanied by a caregiver. All are welcome to attend. A calendar of events can be found on our website. If you would like to receive email notifications for upcoming community education programs, subscribe here.

September 7-11 (all day) Shroomy Scavenger Hunt at Crater Lake Trailhead

An interactive scavenger hunt lets you choose your own adventure while learning about fungus and the role it plays in our forest. Grab a scavenger hunt sheet out of the box below the Crater Lake trail sign and head out to find some fungus! 

September 7 (6:30-9:00 pm) Nature Journaling: Forest Finds

Meet at the PWSSC. This is an introduction to nature journaling for all Fungus Festival nature journaling needs. Learn about fungus anatomy, practice new nature journaling techniques, and more. Co-hosted with The Net Loft.

September 8 (2:30-4:00 pm) Discover Cordova: Fungus Among Us

Meet at Nirvana Park for fungus dissection, arts and crafts, and button making. Designed for children ages pre-K through elementary. 

September 10 (7:00-8:00 pm) Nature Yoga: Mushrooming Mindfulness  

Open to all.

September 11 (10:00-11:00 am) Sea Squirts: Silly Salmon 

Meet at the PWSSC to explore salmon and their migration. Designed for kids ages 3-5.

September 15 (2:30-3:30 pm) Fun Friday: Sharks 

Meet at the PWSSC for a fin-tastic time learning about sharks through games, crafts, and hands-on demonstrations. The intended audience is kids in grades K-4.  

September 15, 5:00 pm: Nature Journaling Exhibit Due

Bring your best nature journaling entry to the Science Center for our nature journaling exhibit. All entries are welcome. Contact Cristina Reo at PWSSC with questions. The exhibit will be on display at the Science Center starting Wednesday, September 20. 

September 19 (7:00-8:00 pm) Tuesday Night Talk : PWS Audubon Society

At the PWSSC. This is the first Tuesday Night Talk of the season and will be a meeting of the Prince William Sound Audubon Society. Open to the public; topic of discussion is TBD.

September 26 (7:00-8:00 pm) Tuesday Night Talk: Salmon Shark Biology 

Presented by Sabrina Garcia, Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Sabrina will discuss an overview of salmon shark biology, how they tag sharks and what they learn from tag data, and what they have learned from their salmon shark tagging project in the Bering Sea.

September 29 (3:00-5:00 pm) Creatures of the Dock 

Who has been lurking beneath the boats? Join us at the South Harbor to investigate the invertebrates that live on the buoys. Our staff will be on one of the floats with guidebooks and educators who will highlight cool critters you can find in the harbor. There will be touch tanks as well as free exploration. All ages.

October 2 (10:00-11:00 am). Sea Squirts: Balance 

Meet at the PWSSC. Designed for kids ages 3-5.

Discover Cordova was held at Fleming Creek. We searched for salmon in the final stage in their life cycle and explored salmon adaptations, played games, and made crafts.

Nature Journaling was also held at Fleming Creek to explore the spawning salmon. We prompted our participants to journal in the style of “species profile.” Our summer Nature Journaling series is hosted in partnership with The Net Loft.

We are currently seeking submissions for a nature journaling exhibit that will be displayed at the Prince William Sound Science Center. Please email Cristina with questions and submissions. 

We hosted three camps in the month of August:

Science Superheroes focused on animals and their awesome adaptations. Campers learned about camouflage, sensory adaptations, and more while exploring some of the hidden gems of Cordova.

Inverts Camp prompted our young explorers to look a little deeper, as there is more than meets the eye. They learned how some creatures survive without any bones. A hike along Haystack Trail introduced campers to many terrestrial invertebrates, while tidepools and freshwater ponds revealed the adaptations of aquatic invertebrates. 

Mini-DRT Camp, for campers in 6th and 7th grade, was an all-encompassing overnight camp where kids learned about outdoor careers. They met with our partners at the U.S. Forest Service and learned how to maintain recreation sites and manage wildlife populations. With the Copper River Watershed Project, they learned about invasive species management. Campers also enjoyed a 27-mile picnic, explored caves along the roadside, and canoed down Alaganik Slough.

Campers playing a game with Esa, our AmeriCorps member, during Mini-DRT Camp. Photo credit: PWSSC.