Conclusion

As you leave any tidepool trip take only memories; leave the critters and leave the shells (they are shelter and home to some species even though the original owners may be dead). If you have moved a rock, always return it to its original position so the thousands of critters that call this special place home will have their correct habitat. Know that there are California State laws governing what you can take, and you must have a license to do this. Read and obey the laws if you choose to take from the ocean. It is a unique and wonderful place if we all respect it.

Last year Dr. MacDougall sent me an article from the Chronicle of Higher Education (April 13, 2001 issue), entitled "Saving the Earth's Oceans" by Colin Woodard. It had both positive and negative aspects, but what I liked about it was the reminder that we humans have always considered the oceans "as simply too big to damage," but we have learned differently in the last few decades with the understanding of how much the oceans influence Earth (not just locally, but the entire planet's climate and atmosphere). The conclusion was that our ultimate goal should be "the creation and maintenance of thriving marine ecosystems that can produce the resources our increasingly crowded planet will need in this century." You can do your part by understanding more about your local shoreline and being an advocate for its protection each time you are there.

My life would not be the same without the ocean and all those who kept telling me I could do anything I wanted my entire life. So many women hit glass ceilings or are steered away from male-dominated areas because of their gender, but my life has been a series of doors constantly opening because I was a woman (even though I went to school in the '50s and early '60s when math and science were not 'girl' subjects). Throughout my life, I have been supported by my parents, teachers and colleagues. As a college student and graduate student I was again encouraged at every turn (even when I attempted some things that were beyond my physical abilities, I was supported by my friends and colleagues who would work out ways so we could all be successful). So, I have tried to be a female role model for women in science and marine biology. My dreams of living a happy and fulfilling life have come to reality. Now I hope to mentor the next generation in the same way that I was mentored. In the words of Helen Reddy … "I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar … I can do ANYTHING." This is how I feel.

Favorite References

Behrens, David W. Pacific Coast Nudibranchs,
Sea Challengers, 1991

Morris, Robert H., Donald P. Abbott, and Eugene C Haderlie, Intertidal Invertebrates of California,
Stanford University Press, 1980

Ricketts, Edward F., Jack Calvin and Joel W. Hedgpeth, Between Pacific Tides,
Stanford University Press, 1985

MacGinitie, G. E., and Nettie MacGinitie, Natural History of Marine Animals,
McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1968