Creep into the Deep^{™
Virtual Research Mission to the Deep-Sea}

Deep Sea Scientist Bios: Frank Parrish

Hey Kids,

Jake, the SeaDog here, I caught up deep-sea scientist and explorer, Frank Parrish to ask a few questions.  Frank is a Research Biologist and Interim Chief of Protected Species Division  of the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service/National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NMFS/NOAA).

Here's what else I discovered

Frank, what is your favorite animal?   Mantis shrimp are cool, they can get as large as a cat and burrow in the mud out of sight and then when a fish they want to eat swims by they have "kungfu" claws that reach out to catch the fish is less than a second.

What do you study in the deep? I mostly study the seafloor to see how it helps shelter and feed animals

How did you get interested in the deep-sea?  Some work attaching satellite tags to monk seals showed that the seals were really interested in certain spots of the deep sea. We then used the sub to visit those areas and found there was a lot of neat coral and fish that the seals were visiting.

What's your most amazing experience with an ocean animal or in the ocean?  Recently I was in the submarine sitting on the seafloor at the top of an underwater cliff watching big cook sharks swim around us when one of the large sharks swam behind the sub and pushed us off the cliff. The sub is real light underwater and can be easily moved so maybe the sharks were trying to play with the sub like a beach ball.

What is the coolest animals you've seen in the deep-sea? The deep sea crabs are fun! They walk around the bottom of the sea and pick up things that they wear like a hats. Once I was placing a small sampling instrument on the bottom and one of the crabs came over and picked it up for a hat! We got it back - the crab was not happy.

What are you hoping to learn/discover on this research cruise? I would like to know why there is such a nice deep mesophotic coral reef on the islands slope and why there are so few  fish.

What are two things do you do in your home to help the environment? Keep all the lights and other types of electrical devices off when they are not being used and so the same with water.