American Cetacean Society -- Monterey Bay Chapter PO Box H E, Pacific Grove, CA 93950 December Meeting at Hopkins Marine Station Monterey Boat Works Building (Across from the American Tin Cannery Outlet Stores) Meeting is open to the public Meeting Date: Thursday, December 4, 2014 Time: 7:30 p.m. PLEASE JOIN US AT 7:00 FOR REFRESHMENTS Speaker: Dr. Tierney Thys, National Geographic Explorer Dr. Tierney Thys has been studying ocean sunfish, Mola mola, for 14 years to learn about life in the open ocean. She uses satellite tags and DNA testing to track their movements and feeding patterns to understand how they thrive with their odd shape and diet comprised of mainly jellies. She told National Geographic her fascination with mola started with a photograph she saw in graduate school. “When it comes to fishes, the mola really pushes the boundary of fish form. It seems a somewhat counterintuitive design for plying the waters of the open seas – a rather goofy design – and yet the more I learn about it, the more respect and admiration I have for it,” she explained. Dr. Thys is a National Geographic Explorer who mentored under the pioneering Sylvia Earle, spent 10 years as director of research for Sea Studios Foundation in Monterey and became a member of the TED braintrust. She earned her doctorate from Duke University in 1998 with a dissertation on the mechanics of swimming muscles in fish, then expanded her research and devotion to marine education. While at Sea Studios, she directed research for National Geographic’s “Strange Days on Planet Earth.” Please join us for refreshments before the program begins. More information is available on our Web site, acsmb.org, or Dr. Thys’ Web site, oceansunfish.org.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 16:48:17 +0000