Proud Mama

Boat day was cancelled today! Sadness. It was thunderstorming most of the morning, so it was a smart decision. I was kind of happy since I knew I wouldn't be sea sick. That's a positive. 

Instead, we stayed indoors and got through some more lecture and lab on anatomy. We had just as much to do. Today we learned about the circulatory, respiratory, and digestive systems. Pretty cool stuff. A lot of information, but cool.

Even cooler, we got to love on Sebastian some more! He was a very good boy today. He showed us exactly what we needed to see. He even became a model for part of the circulatory system today! Momma is so proud! 

This is what the inside of a shark looks like! Just on case you've ever wondered, like I have. If you want to know what everything is, I could tell you...but that could take a while. I'll just highlight something really cool real quick for you geeks out there. 

Do you see those two long gray lobes on either side of Sebastian's body cavity? That's his liver! A shark's liver has 3 lobes, 2 really long lobes and 1 small one in the middle. It can make up to 25% of a shark's body weight! Their livers are so large because they store lipids, which are lighter than seawater and help the shark stay afloat. Most fish have swim bladders that aid in buoyancy, but sharks don't. So their crazy huge liver helps instead. 

Sebastian says hello! Yes, that's actually his mouth. We cut the sides so we could see his heart and esophagus and other stuff. This was also to see a part of the circulatory system pertaining to blood flow through the gills. Our little Sebastian was a class model for the circulatory system. 

Once again, proud mama right here!