Not Just Another Day at the Beach

Some of you have wondered aloud what our visit to Italy had to do with John's research.  We had a wonderful time playing tourists, but we also got a great deal of work accomplished.  We spent many hours going through Daniele's fossil samples and taking pictures. We also did some field work collecting recently living examples from the same species as the fossils.  I have to admit, I love this part of John's job.  It is by no mistake that I am married to a scientist who has to collect samples on a beach.  Here are some pictures from our last day in Italy on the beaches of the Adriatic Sea and Po River Delta.