Soils and biogeochemistry are my favorite things to work on, but I rarely work in coastal and marine systems. They are a whole other level in terms of difficulty to work on; they are salty, mucky, smelly, sharp, rugged, shark, and alligators among the many problems to deal with.
However, a good biogeochemistry question will push me to grow into new areas, even ones I have avoided as much as possible: coastal salty marshlands.
Fortunately I was not alone on this endeavor. I was lucky enough to connect with Dr. Levi Vonk (who is moving/has moved from University of Virginia to City University of New York up in NYC). He is a local and happy to show me the way of the pluff mud.
Pictured right: Dr. Levi Vonk disembarking his kayak straight into waist deep pluff mud.
