Life, properly tended to, goes on, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Even in a school district shut down for the longest spring break in its history, a longer one than anyone wants.
Tuesday morning the tanks in the Marine Biology & Aquarium Science labs on the 3rd floor at Central Campus were teeming with life, as usual, in an otherwise eerily vacant, quiet building.
A colorful school of clownfish played underwater tag, blissfully oblivious to the crisis going on at the top of the food chain. In another tank, sea anemones swayed like balletic spaghetti dancing to music only they could hear.
The only humans present were Marine Bio instructor Greg Barord, Aquarium Science instructor Kirk Embree and a couple of observers trying to stay out of their way so the teachers could keep the 120 species living in the facility’s 140 tanks fed.
Normally, those duties are handled by students, but they cannot perform them until further notice. At least the nationally known program was able to make its annual spring field ecology trip, which this year took 28 students to the Baltimore area.
“Yes, we got our trip in last week,” said Dr. Barord. “That’s where we were when the announcement was made about closure of the district, touring the campus at the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. We’d been working out our spring break feeding schedules when we found out the students wouldn’t be able to do it. Believe me, they wish they could.”
One big tank under construction was to house an exhibit of the nautilus species that Barord specializes in and helped save. Slated to open this spring, that now will be delayed.
“We’ll still have the exhibit, but not this year; not now,” said Barord, who’s keeping in touch with students via social media and a discussion board he set up through the DMPS Canvas app.
“I want to make sure our students come back to the animals they care about and a lab that is ready for students again,” he added. “While they are away, I’m hoping this is a means to stay connected to their peers in the lab and stay engaged.”
In lieu of students, the species that’s their primary responsibility, Barord and Embree have a lot of work to do that’s normally done by others, indefinitely.
“That’s okay with us,” said Embree. “This is what we signed up for as aquarists. We’re happy to have all of this to do. Not everyone is so lucky right now.”
In addition to keeping up with feeding schedules and stocking up on program supplies like the shipment of bleach that Barord received Tuesday morning to disinfect the lab facilities and equipment, he and Embree are networking with area counterparts to support one another. For instance, a shark at Central Campus is being readied for transfer to Blank Park Zoo, which is currently in a better position to care for it.
Life, like “the show,” must go on, even when the district is “gone fishin’” until further notice.
