MLK Spotlight - Peter: Marine Biology & Sharks in the Bahamas

This post is part of the MLK Spotlight, a regular feature on our blog. The goal is to highlight MLK student (or staff) stories, experiences, and perspectives. Have something you'd like to share? Send an email to mlkdesk@umn.edu, or ask your adviser!

My name is Peter Xiong and I am a sophomore in the College of Liberal Arts Martin Luther King Jr. Program.  When I first came into the University of Minnesota, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.  All I knew was that I had a passion for science and animals.  I particularly liked marine organisms such as the elusive and horrific moray eel. But being so far from the oceans I thought of this more of a hobby than a career. But spending my freshmen year at the College of Liberal Arts I was able to take some classes related to my interests and continue to build on that interest. With the help of my academic adviser I was pointed in the right direction.

My intended major is Fisheries and Wildlife B.S. in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences with an emphasis on conservation biology. I also plan on minoring in marine biology through CFANS as well.

My interests in marine biology led me to go study abroad in the Bahamas for one very short but adventurous week. The Tropical Marine Biology and Shark Ecology course I took in the Bahamas was an amazing once in a life time experience.  I was also able to swim with a ten foot tiger shark, feed baby lemon sharks, feed stingrays, and saw the pristine untouched ecosystems. I also got bit by a squid, stepped on a sea urchin, and got stung by upside down jellyfishes!  

We stayed for one week at the Shark Lab and received two lectures a day with an identification lab. This was also my first time traveling outside of the country and even riding an airplane! I also have never swam in water where I could not feel the bottom; when we were given the green light to jump in with the tiger shark I immediately jumped into five hundred feet deep waters! I have overcome so many fears and accomplished so many personal achievements. I now am planning to attend another study abroad trip by the University of Minnesota, the Biology of the Galapagos and hopefully the study abroad trip down to the Honduras as well next winter.

It has been such a privilege to go down to the Bahamas and have such hands on experience with the kind of work that I hope to be doing in the near future.