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I can't believe another TBFC season has already come to an end! As is tradition for our club, the Officers, Directors and Editor will take a much needed break for the Summer. New members of TBFC should note that the Chronicles are not printed in the months of June July and August. Also, our monthly meetings are suspended for those same months. We will, however, be back together again for our first meeting of the 2003-2004 season on September 6th. Though there is no monthly meeting in June, please plan to attend our End-of-the-Season Banquet on June 14th. We will meet at Sam Seltzers' Steakhouse on North Dale Mabry Highway near Raymond James Stadium. Seating begins at 5PM with dinner at 6PM. The banquet will feature a guest speaker, a benefit auction, and the chance to spend a great evening with your fossil friends. If you just joined TBFC at our recent FossilFest, the banquet is a great opportunity to meet other Club members and participate in some fossil chitchat all night long. As this issue of the Chronicles is the last of the season, this will be your last reminder for TBFC's banquet. Be sure to put it on your calendar! Dr Phil Motta was our guest speaker for the April meeting and we had a full house on hand to greet him. Dr. Motta's lecture, slide show, and video presentation explained how he and his crew at USF are studying the mechanics of a modern shark bite. You might think that sort of research isn't going to save the world, but it just might. Dr. Motta and crew are working with the U.S. Navy. They are trying to understand why a submarine's towed array sonar system is being routinely attacked by sharks. Most subs carry two arrays. Once an array is bitten, it becomes useless. The result is a half a billion dollar submarine that is blind in the water. Dr. Motta has been able to identify the various sharks and fishes that have bitten the sonar arrays.Now he just needs to figure out how to get the sharks to stop. It was a very interesting presentation and Dr. Motta was certainly enthusiastic about his research. I want to thank Dr. Motta for taking the time to spend the evening with us. To keep with our "shark" theme, TBFC gave away a five inch megalodon as our raffle grand prize. The winner was a brand new member attending her very first meeting. (I'm sorry I didn't get her name). Talk about beginners luck! Julie Meachen from the University of Florida will be our guest speaker for the last meeting of the season on May 3rd. Ms. Meachen tells me that her topic will be on the Reconstruction of Paleoecology. Our Field Trip Coordinator Fred Hendershot has three great field trips lined up for May. Be sure to check out the field trip section in this issue of the Chronicles for more information. Since the last issue of the Chronicles our country has waged war with Iraq. Many of TBFC's members serve in our Nation's armed forces and many more have family members who serve. As I write this article for the Chronicles, one of our Board members and past Presidents, Dr. Bob Sinibaldi, prepares to send his only son Dominique to the U.S. Marine Corps. Long time members of TBFC have seen Dominique grow from a shy 10 year old boy into the mirror image of his father. Our best wishes and prayers go out to Dominique and all of our Nation's military personnel during these troubled times. We all look forward to Dominique's return to his family and TBFC. For all of the Officers and Directors of TBFC, I want to offer sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to another successful season. It has been a pleasure serving as your president. I hope to see everyone at the May meeting, the various field trips, and also at the June banquet. Have an enjoyable and safe summer! Good Hunting, Michael Searle |
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