#floatingwetlands

Last week was the Ambassadors last week of Riverways Exchanges. On the 15th, they had the opportunity to host the other groups from Bartram’s Gardens and Urban Promise here at the Seaport Museum. 

During the exchange, everyone went out onto to the basin to row, kayak, and pedal a swan boat. Afterwards, they were split off into four groups. The first group joined some of our Ambassadors to water test over by our WWI Ship, Olympia. The second group helped pick up trash from the basin and looked after our wetlands. The third joined Melania in cleaning up and measuring our freshwater mussels, and the fourth group joined Mayci to talk about species biodiversity in the basin and identify the fish caught (they were later released!) in our minnow traps. 

Jayla talks about her experience hosting and checking out the minnow traps below!

“Last week, on the 15th, the River Ambassadors hosted the ISM exchange at the museum and taught the other Riverways groups about our job as ambassadors and how we help keep the Delaware River clean, as well as inform the public about the importance of the River. We were split up into groups and we explained the history of the river, why we have freshwater mussels and wetlands in the basin, and why we test the water everyday. We then took them out on the docks to show them a bit of what we do on a daily basis, because seeing something for yourself is better than hearing about it from someone else...”

“...My group went out to the minnow traps, which are small fish traps that have of two funnel-shaped entrances at either end of a mesh box or cylinder, while there we took out the fish we caught and classified them by their looks (no fish were harmed in this process) then carefully released them back into the water. The ISM exchange was very eventful and I had fun a lot of fun hosting it with my fellow ambassadors.”

Brianna also enjoyed her time hosting and had a chance to come out of her shell!

“Recently, the River Ambassadors held a nice exchange and it was interesting to me, being as though I never hosted anything before. There was a lot of responsibility on the Ambassadors, because we had to make sure everyone was happy, that everyone was safe and learning a lot from us and our experiences being here. My group was rowing boats and teaching some of our peers that came to our exchange how we usually do water tests. They seemed interested at first, but then started to get bored. So, it was my responsibility to make sure they were content, which is why I started to make small talk with them all, keeping them engaged. I’m glad I had this experience, because it proved I was responsible and was able to do something I didn’t know I had in me, with me being so shy and all.”

Two weeks ago, the Ambassadors had a pretty calm week before venturing northeast to the border of Bucks County to visit Glen Foerd, a historic estate that overlooks the Delaware River and Poquessing Creek. They wrapped up their week on Saturday by cleaning up our river basin at ISM. Taniyah provides some insight into their week below!

“This week at Independence Seaport museum (ISM), it has been a very fun, relaxing week. Tuesday was a regular teaching day. However, no one came into learn about plant dissections that day. My coworker and I ended up leaving work early because we finished everything early. The next day, we went to Glen Foerd. That day was fun due to being able to row boats out into the Delaware River. It was different from being at ISM due to the open space. Thankfully, we got to do a competition to see which team filtered the best water. My team won!!! This day was my favorite. Thursday, was another regular day. Adding on, Saturday was Basin cleanup day. We cleaned up the River, and Mayci found a giant pipe! Lastly, that day we left earlier than ever. I'm excited to see what the next week holds!”

Ivan also seemed to enjoy his trip on the 8th! He provides his perspective of their trip, as well as his experience in the program so far, below!

“So far, my experience as a River Ambassador at the Independence Seaport Museum has been absolutely wonderful. This youth program is definitely a space where one is able to be who they are and connect with their peers. No one is left behind. When us Ambassadors aren't busy teaching the public about the importance of our interactions with the environment, we do various exchanges with youth organizations like us...”

“...One of the places I actually went to was named Glen Foerd, which is located near the division of Northeast Philadelphia and Bucks County. To start off the exchange, I was pretty happy that we didn't have to reintroduce ourselves. Instead, we all partook in a team challenge to create a water filtration device out of bottles and other, natural materials. Later on, we rowed boats in the river nearby. My group went near the shore to collect rocks and shells as souvenirs! I was also very mesmerized by the interior of the mansion on the property. Plus, Amber was a great guest as always...”

”...Like every week or so, all Ambassadors have to participate in Wetland Maintenance where we rid the basin of as much trash as possible. We find many unpleasant things there. You could find a 3 meter branch, a dead bulgy rat, and even a mutilated fish. Any dead animals and large pieces of debris can stay; however, all plastics have to go in a trash bag. The Delaware River will always have trash in it, so it makes sense to only remove the inorganic material...”

”...Speaking of Wetlands, during a thunderstorm, one of our floating Wetlands had flipped over. Me and another Ambassador, who goes by the name of Romeo, decided to jump into kayaks and flip it back over. It was a very inconvenient process because the material used as a flotation device gathered a lot of water. So, to fix the problem, a kind museum staff member had the ingenious idea of placing one cinder block on each side of the of the wetland to keep it balanced while the water left from inside. So as you can see, this job requires a lot of hands on action. And honestly, that's why I love it so much.”