Jessica in Italy
Jessica Werot, a student of the Sam Ratulangi University, is doing a study experience at the University of Bologna, under the supervision of Prof. Massimo Ponti and Eva Turicchia
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Date:
12 JULY-25 JULY 2026
On the first day, we participated in a campus orientation led by a benthos lab assistant, who introduced us to the equipment in the lab and the facilities on campus. We were shown how to use the 3D scanner and tried scanning a crab. Then we were guided through taking images of samples using a microscope; we photographed several samples collected in 2024–2025 that had not yet been photographed.
The next day, we learned how to identify samples prepared by one of the students there—specifically, samples comparing recruitment on plates treated with antifouling paint versus those without. We identified the animals and algae that were attached to, carried on, or entangled in the plates. We found several organisms, including polychaetes, bryozoans, Spirorbinae, and others. We also found two genera of algae: Ulva spp. and Cladophora spp.
Then we helped identify organisms in the sediment using sieves with three mesh sizes: 500 microns, 1,400 microns, and 6,000 microns. There were many polychaetes, bivalves, foraminifera, arthropods, copepods, and others.
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