Worth it?

The other day I was shopping with a friend of mine and in the third shop, we realized we got looted badly by the first shop! Then we thought of playing smarter and got into the real game of Bargaining; who said it was easy? Sometimes it was even embarrassing because I never knew the right price to ask?! How do people know what is the price to pay? I thought it automatically came to you as you grew up. Do I not qualify to be a grown-up? Because I spend according to how much I have in my account. If I have just gotten my salary, I don’t mind paying a couple of extra hundred, but if my budget is tight, I’ll even postpone the buy unless it’s essential.

Oh, quick life update, I completed my M.Tech – yey me! I experienced being unemployed and the whole process of applying to various positions, telling why I want to work there, getting rejected, giving interviews, some good, some worth remembering, teaching as a guest lecturer, and now am working as a Research Assistant in South Goa for 2 months! I’m not just working with a knowledgeable and super cool Patrao but also getting to meet interesting people, interacting with the locals, and enjoying every bit of this fieldwork-based job! I’ve been here for just two weeks, and the time is flying by, yet I’ve had so many new experiences and lived stories worth telling that I feel I’ve been here for a very long time! Is that normal ?!

I see the fisherwoman negotiating while buying the daily catch. I have seen them selling it to their customers and deciding a reasonable price, but I’m still unable to figure out how they know what’s a good price?! The whole process is quite interesting. Did you know? Not all fish though dead or alive, have the same value? In fact, some fish are not even bought. They are just chucked on the shore or thrown back into the water. Some fish belong to the elite group that gets kept away for their Patrao. He takes it home and enjoys the delicious meal. There’s chaos, but there is a very organized system, they all seem to know this very well, and everyone works accordingly. We’ve been observing this for days, yet unclear about many things. I’ll explain it in detail some time, it’s exciting and super interesting!

The other morning, we were waiting, as usual, to survey the morning catch, take measurements and weigh the species that we were interested in. Now that the locals are familiar with us and know what we are looking for, they excitedly call us when they come across it! A man handed us a fish and returned to what he was busy with – pulling the net. That was a Guitarfish. My very first Guitarfish and I was holding it in my hand. It was alive!! We took the measurements, and it was a female, still capable of growing. We didn’t weigh her hoping to release her back into the water. We took that man’s permission and let her into the water alive. She swam away with the wave. Oh! What joy it was to watch her glide in glee!!

We found 2 more of these in the same net. One was a mature male, and the other an adult female. Guitarfish is not preferred by everyone, it has little economic value here, but some enjoy this meat. A man claimed the male Guitarfish and took it home in his bag with a huge crab – he seemed to know the worth of the hard work he put in early in the morning to catch that day’s fish. We had asked them and taken measurements of both, and looking to find the owners of these fish, we figured we could buy it from them and release them alive. It wasn’t possible with the male Guitarfish fish, but we did not give up on the female. A kind fisherman had claimed the female Guitarfish, but he gave it to another lady. He saw us interested in it and told us to take it if we wanted. We bought it from the lady, paying her the price she quoted – 200 rupees. We examined some conditions, let her swim away, and hoped she would survive and give birth to young ones sometime in the future. So, was that life worth just 200 rupees?

With my first ever Guitarfish!

Let me give you a little context: Guitarfish are also called Shovelnose rays, belonging to the Glaucostegidae family of rays. They’re known to be a part of this creation for millions of years and are somewhat in between the sharks and rays. They swim like sharks but breathe like rays and eat crabs and other crustaceans. They glide on the sand, sometimes bury themselves and camouflage to ambush their prey. Not much is known about them, but they have many different local names in these coastal regions. They come to the shallow waters and swim away with the waves. They are critically endangered, the most threatened Marine species. An almost extinct species might be worth much more in the ecosystem, don’t you think?

Now that is making me wonder, what’s the trend? The other day there was a massive catch of fresh Bangudey (mackerel). Because the yield was more, the price came down. Sharks are generally sold at very good rates. If the shark numbers in the sea become less and the catch declines, would the rates increase, making more people catch sharks and their numbers go even lower? Is it really worth it?

What is the price to pay?

It’s a spiral. Let’s not go there now.

It’s nice to see juvenile sharks being released back into the water alive, it’s nice to see Guitarfish swim away, and that gives me hope. I don’t think there can be conservation without protecting the livelihood of locals. I guess we’ve to find a way that works for the fish and people who fish!

But Avanthika, where did the question of this worth come from? I came across a promotional email from a job listing website, it read, ‘Should you be earning more, know your worth, Avanthika’. I chuckled as I looked outside the window of my temporary home in beautiful Canacona. How can I put a price on the meaningful interactions I’m having with interesting people? The life lessons I’m learning through cooking and living? The refreshing scooter rides through scenic roads? The beautiful everyday experiences?! Money is important. You need it to lead a comfortable life. But I don’t think it is the only important thing! Don’t get me wrong, I am being given a good salary, but I’m getting much more than that, and I just cannot believe I’m worthy of all this. Haha, who decides one’s worth anyway?

I hope this was worth your time.

Until next time, don’t worry about your worth, honey, it’s not really worthwhile to worry!

A letter to my ocean!

Dear Ocean,

I have always thought of all this but never written it as a letter to you; I know you know how I feel about you, but unless it’s on paper, it ain’t official, so here’s my little attempt!

Thank you! Thank you for existing; if not for you, we wouldn’t have this beautiful blue planet to call home; who am I kidding? We are because you are!
Don’t you find it funny? You’ve watched and helped me grow – from when I could barely comprehend the vastness of you to the present day, where I wish and hope to make everyone feel like they are a part of you; my obsession with you is now socially accepted as ‘Passion’, I am even trying to cross oceans, visit coastal lands, talk to the children of the sea and of course, make a career out of studying you and your resources! With you, life comes one full circle.

Working up my hunger for the Brunch at Goa!

I don’t remember the first time we met, but I remember many moments where having you was simply the best! Remember? As a kid, I would build sand tunnels and castles and even get buried under the sand on your shore, play catching games with my friends, and jump at every wave that came my way; I would sit and watch the setting sun with my Akka and wait for my parents who would go walking along your shore. When I was old enough to visit you alone, I would simply sit on the coast, watch your waves and look at the different people. When I started my professional studies, visiting you helped me process what was going on. Do you remember? One morning I came with my five other hostel friends, it was a very special moment for us because it was almost a goodbye for the gang! Oh! Do you remember those night beach visits where all of us organizing a college fest would sit in peace and forget about everything just by listening to your waves? The other night on the Gokarna beach, where we stayed in tents and gazed at the sky in the middle of the night? Speaking of spending the night, the celebration of my sister passing her CA exam was also done by spending a night on your shore. The beach races with my Annu attempts to catch crabs, making fishermen friends on my own, watching the setting sun while talking about life with my Amma, and many more! Don’t want to go on a nostalgic ride now because there are so many significant events in my little life that you’ve witnessed.

A morning with a fisherman in my Mangaluru

How are you so noisy yet so peaceful? How are you so restless yet so still? How are you so damn huge but still hold your essence in every drop? You have the power to destroy everything in minutes, yet you are the embodiment of love. I am glad I feel connected to you in my own way, and I promise to always respect and take care of this strong bond we share.

It took me 22 years to realize I wanted to study you and the life you host, but I’ve learned so much from you. The little things I know about you greatly inspire me, and I aspire to have the same vibe that you do! I am truly fortunate I got to glance at the underwater world, Maanhh!! It is a beauty I can not describe in words. Many people scuba dive for different reasons; for some, it is an escape for others, a chance to explore. Me? I see it as a way of getting to know you better, and I will always have those feelings to remind me how awesome it is to live! Don’t get me wrong; I have seen and learned from you that death is also a part of the cycle and a totally normal – natural phenomenon. I come to you with a sense of belonging, and I surrender.

From my First Ocean Dive!!
with The Under Water Monk at Netrani Island in Murudeshwar

Sea, there is no competition when it comes to listening; you are the champion. But I wish we humans learned the art and patience to listen to you and what you’ve to say; maybe then we wouldn’t have to sign pacts and make policies to protect you, the very base for all things living! But another thing that I’ve also learned from you is hope and perseverance. So, I continue doing my bit with a hope of a better tomorrow for you and the life you hold!

Alright, I know you’re busy, but please get us that rain already! This World Ocean Day, I wanted to tell you all of this and some things more.
I asked a few people what it is that they like about you.
One said it was your infiniteness. One said it was the sheer power you behold. Some said they earn their daily bread from you. Others said you were a source of energy. Some appreciated your beauty. Some were fans of the sunset show you play. Some built a unique relationship by catching and riding your waves on their surfboards, while others loved your company as they flew kites. Some transcended into another dimension by meditating on your sound, while others simply liked sleeping on your shore. Don’t get too cocky – some did not like the mess you create with sand grains everywhere, while quite a few were afraid of you. Some enjoyed a bit of all of this, and some didn’t like any of it.

An evening at the Karwar beach

You do know you are so many things to so many people, right? Not just people but all living and non-living things!
You make the earth habitable, manage the temperature, capture the carbon, and control the weather. Thank you for all that you do. I don’t know what I would do without you. Personally, as a general question – I am never able to pin down the one most best thing about you; you have something for everyone, you make everyone a part of you, and you are a part of everyone; it is just that we need to try a bit to realize that. You have so much space, there are so many experiences, and you’ve so many stories to tell! Just like your changing tides, people’s perception of you keeps changing. This time, I wish we humans look at you as the source of life that you truly are and take responsibility for our actions; please give us a chance to learn from our mistakes and to let you take care of yourself!

Dear Ocean, I am sorry for the pain my actions are indirectly causing you.
I love that you are simply there. Always.

Your little being,
Avanthika, from out of the blue

LRFF

“It was just another day; I was minding my business and visiting my neighbor. There was an unusual visitor, and an odd taste accompanied him. Suddenly I felt dizzy, and before I could get a sense of my surrounding, I was in an unfamiliar place with unknown creatures, as we recovered, we were shifted from one water to another finally, it stopped. I was now in an area that was big enough to hold my body but small enough not to let me move freely, for someone who knew no boundaries, this was terrifying. I did not like the water, the light was unusual, there was no food, and there were many like me!! One weird creature would grab hold of us, and that was it. I don’t know what happens next” – From the mouth of a reef fish that never got a chance to outgrow its market size.

A bustling market, a wet market that is the richest in value. Where people come to close their business deals over meals, where delicacies are savored as part of festivities and traditions – The Live Reef Food Fish Market (LRFF).
For centuries, fish have played an important role in the culture and cuisine of China. Mainland China and Hong Kong imports live reef fish from various parts of the world for these wet markets. These Live Reef Food Fish are a symbol of status. They are part of traditional cuisines and are eaten to mark several occasions. They are even eaten to signify the closing of business deals. The larger and more expensive the fish, the higher and better the deal is! These fish are captured alive and kept in tanks at the market. The restaurants let customers pick the fish of their choice and cook them. This ensures the freshness of the fish! Because there is high demand and hefty pricing, Southeast Asian countries export live fish, mainly Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. The fish are often caught in the wild – Reef fish are slowed down using Cyanide solutions and easily caught by the fishermen. Fish are then transported through water or air. This chemical harms the coral and smaller fish, ruining the health of the entire reef. Now there are mariculture practices that catch some species of wild reef fish and grow them in cage culture until they attain market size. The increase in aquaculture practices is also harming the ecosystem. Overfishing, unfair fishing practices, and habitat loss have diminished the population size of many reef fish that were once abundant. Right! The government has brought many species under protection. There are special rules and laws in CITES, a restriction on the size of the fish that can be traded, a ban on seasonal fishing, and many other regulations. However, illegal trading still exists, and a substantial black market supply exists for the ever-growing demand.

Is there a solution to this? Of course.
Just like farming – where we need to give time for the crop to grow before we harvest, the fish need time to grow too! Sustainable sourcing of seafood is crucial. Reef fish are generally large. They grow slowly, which means they mature late as well. When they are just in marketable size, they are yet to attain maturity. If they are overfished, there is no way the population can continue to sustain itself. There needs to be intervention, stringent rules, incentives and subsidies, better management of fisheries, and mitigation at every step of the transit. From catching to transport to export/import to markets and, finally, the most critical piece of this act – the Humans. We need to be aware of the source of our food and try to avoid it. If impossible, we need to at least choose sustainable options so we can continue to eat for years to come!

PS: Let me know if you would like a detailed report and updates on this trade market and its impact on the reefs.

Walrus

A giant with two tusks, masters of rolling around and scratching are social mammals with very particular hierarchy!
They grow upto 1.5 metric tonnes, the fatty layer below the skin – Blubber helps them adapt to the cold climate. The their tusks help them climb, predate and protect themselves ; trust me, those ivories are much more valuable to them than us humans.
The whiskers – very sensitive and help in finding the food.
Yes! These shellfish loving marine animals feed on over 2-3000 molluscs to maintain their body weight. They also eat seals, sea urchins, sea cucumber and do not like to be disturbed while eating!
They are special – they can dive to the depth of 100m in about 25 minutes and have the ability to slow down the heart rate. They can even cut off oxygen supply to most of their muscles providing oxygen to only heart and brain during the dives to find food – how cool is that ?!
They conserve energy hence mostly found sleeping on the ice bergs or on the beaches.
Right,
The females mature at a very young age – 5 years while males take about 10 years but they take another 5 years to fight some battles among their own herd to attain a social hierarchy – to impress the ladies in order to mate.
They give birth to one young one in 3 years, feed and take care of them upto 2 years.
Mostly found in the Arctic Circle,
There are two subgroups
The Atlantic walrus and Pacific walrus both Endangered!
Now they are under protection and the hunting for ivory tusks and oil extraction is controlled. Poisonous algal blooms can pose a threat to these huge beings! also, climate change is obviously having an effect on them and guess what ?
Their predators, the Polar bears are almost on the verge of extinction.

Damnit! Dear Odobenus rosmarus you should have done a cameo in some mythological event or a movie maybe then I would have known about you much earlier!

I’ll let you chill in peace because like you, all I wish for is to eat and sleep 🙂