INDIAN RIVER LAGOON — Middle and high school students recently traded classroom lessons for hands-on research, collecting scientific data across the Indian River Lagoon as part of an annual effort to better understand the estuary's health.
The Ocean Research & Conservation Association, known as ORCA, hosted its ninth annual A Day in the Life of the Indian River Lagoon on Oct. 22. Students from Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Brevard and Volusia counties worked alongside scientists and environmental partners to collect samples and observations for ongoing research.
Courtney Brooks, an ORCA research assistant who led this year's effort, said the program gives students a chance to experience the work of scientists firsthand while learning the importance of collecting reliable data.
"One of the things I really love about the program is that students aren't just learning about science, they're actually doing it. So we give them the tools and the protocols that our ORCA scientists use so they learn how to use that equipment and follow those protocols to collect data very carefully and also understand why that data quality is so important," she said.
This year's research focused on biodiversity and environmental toxicity, giving scientists an opportunity to examine how biological communities may be affected by environmental stressors at different locations throughout the lagoon.
The information gathered during the fieldwork will help researchers look for patterns that could reveal more about the estuary's condition.
"It helps us understand the bigger picture of what's happening in the lagoon. So the field day is just one part of the process. The data, the samples, the observations that were all collected at each site provide the information for further analysis," Brooks said. "And looking at that biodiversity and environmental toxicity data, we expect to see lower biodiversity at sites with higher environmental toxicities."
With fieldwork complete, the next step is analyzing the samples collected by students and researchers.
Some samples will go to laboratories for additional testing, while students and citizen scientists will help with other parts of the process.
"The environmental DNA gets sent off to a lab. The students at the sediment composition, and we do the toxicity analysis on that sediment. So we actually have citizen scientists that will come in and do the sediment testing for us and help us out with that," she said.
Once the analysis is complete, ORCA plans to share the findings with students, teachers and environmental partners. The results will also contribute to other research efforts focused on the lagoon.
That includes Eyes on Seagrass, a citizen science program run by the University of Florida and Florida Sea Grant that assesses seagrass conditions.
Brooks said sharing the findings across organizations helps expand the reach of the students' work beyond the locations where they collected data.
"So not only is the data being added to ORCA's database once that's analyzed and the testing is done, but we're also sharing that with all of these other organizations and they can add that to their databases as well," she said.
Beyond the scientific findings, Brooks said the experience can help students develop a lasting connection to the lagoon and the environment around them.
She hopes participating in real-world research encourages students to see themselves as part of the effort to protect local ecosystems.
"But one of the biggest takeaways, I would say, is encouraging that environmental stewardship in these next generations. So we work with middle and high school students from Volusia to Martin counties. Having them get out there and get that hands-on experience is so much different than them sitting and learning it in a classroom," she said.