Dr. Birkenbach and two master’s in Environmental Science and Management students, Lannis Dodge and Kayla Rexroth, traveled to Woods Hole, Massachusetts this week as part of their research on black sea bass (Centropristis striata). There they met with collaborators at NOAA Fisheries and visited the Woods Hole Aquarium, home to one black sea bass and its two new octopus neighbors, one of whom has gotten very good at making an upside-down Cape Cod with its arm. Despite the rain and some emotional setbacks (chief among them being Duke’s absurd loss in the Final Four), the team was able to collect valuable information for the next steps of their project, which explores how state-specific regulations can help or hinder fishermen as they seek to follow black sea bass north amid changing environmental conditions. The brief trip concluded with a visit to Maison Villate and a wish to return in sunnier times.