Expedition Journal Nerina Holden 15 August 10:30 pm

Today was an excellent day on the reef. The surface team headed out of base after a few false starts (last minute co-ordination with the Habitat, fiddling with gear to make it work better, forgetting a key piece of equipment resulting in a U-turn in the channel). I think the long hours are starting to tell. If it wasn't for the infinite patience of and advice from Otto, sometimes I wonder if we would ever leave base at all. Even after the late start, we had a very fulfilling day. We achieved everything we planned - collect fish, collect coral and "repair" coral from which we had previously taken samples.

The fish work that we are doing is lead by Justin - The Aquanaut, with Uli taking the lead on the surface. Uli definitely excels at fish catching, armed with a small hand net she always returns triumphant from her forays. Back at the lab the light transmitting properties of the fish's eyes are measured. This is all part of the mission's aim to look at light and vision on reefs. Uli spent all yesterday in the lab with her fish and was worried about smelling continually like her specimens and being unable to remove scales from her hands. I think Uli is turning into a fish.

We collected our final coral samples (hurrah) and set about to repair the small damage we had done in taking some corals. The repair involves filling any holes with a marine cement that looks and feels like plasticene. The cement stays pliable for about an hour, the usual length of our dives, and is simply pushed onto the holes to seal them up and prevent further damage to the coral. I haven't used this stuff before and was worried that I would somehow stick Ania or myself to the reef. All went well, however, and the corals were all mended.

Our sea lice infections have started to clear up, but the surface team has acquired other miscellaneous mission injuries, all of which are affectionately termed "Lumpy Joe." Lumpy Joe includes sea lice, but also encompasses fire coral stings (which always make contact on the one tiny piece of flesh that you haven't covered), sand fly bites, mosquito bites and other indeterminate abrasions, scratches and bumps. When you are diving day after day any cuts and sores just don't heal. I'm sure it is nothing compared to the "funk" experienced by the Aquanauts, but it does make you realize how important healthy skin is and what happens when you are wet for extended periods of time.

Each day we return from our diving excursions utterly exhausted, but talking excitedly about the observations we made on the reef. Although I am thoroughly tired now, I know I will be itching to get back out on the reef tomorrow.