Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
they were transferred to a commercial flight to San Francisco. This was
my first experience in shipping aquatic animals by air in plastic bags
and Styrofoam boxes. It would also be my first lesson in how not to
do it.
Concerned about the length of time the animals would be in the
bags, I filled the bags with as much oxygen as possible before sealing
them. This was a big mistake. The unpressurized plane flew at an al-
titude of several thousand feet, where the air pressure was much lower
than at sea level. The laws of physics being what they are, the oxygen
expanded and many of the bags with their precious live cargo burst
and collapsed. A number of fish died from lack of oxygen because of
this error. It was heartbreaking to lose these beautiful animals, and it
was a mistake I never made again.
Strong bonds of friendship resulted from the sharing of adventures
in the wilds. When I recall this expedition I have especially fond mem-
ories of Dusty Chivers. Plagued by alcoholism in his middle years, our
friend Dusty eventually managed to lick it and become a positive force
in the San Francisco Alcoholics Anonymous. The memorial at the Acad-
emy following his death from cancer in 1995 was attended by people
from many walks of life, including quite a number who owed their so-
briety—and literally their lives—to Dusty. It was very moving to see
how his life had touched others and how he would be missed by so
many.
MAKING WAVES
Working with Earl Herald was a bit of a challenge. He had strong opin-
ions, and rarely could he be swayed to believe di¤erently. As the re-
construction of the aquarium progressed, we reached a point where we
needed to figure out what kind of background should go into each newly
poured concrete tank. These were the days before naturalistic fiberglass
or gunite aquarium interiors, and so it was decided to line the tank
walls with various types of natural rock obtained from decorative rock
yards.
Herald was a fish person and firmly believed that the purpose of an
aquarium was to display fish—the more fish the better. When I was
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