Hannah Vander Zanden

@hanvanzan

Associate professor. Academic mama. Sea turtles, animal migration, stable isotopes, ecology, and spatial processes. Comments are my own. she/her

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Ist das dein Profil?Übernimm es — dann gehört dir hanvanzan.dirty.social.Profil übernehmen

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· May 19

A sign like this just makes me curious.

A temporary sign (wood post in a bucket of concrete) in front of a UF building states: Caution nesting hawks may attack.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 8

Quick visit to Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park today. On my way back to Gainesville.

View of Nāhuku lava tube light with orange colored lights.

Kīlauea Iki crater trail. I am posed next to a large cairn.

Ōhi’a lejua bloom. This plant is adapted to grow on lava rock.

View from Kīlauea Overlook of steaming caldera.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 7

I made a quick trip to Honokohau Beach this afternoon to see green turtles grazing on algae in shallow water and the endangered Hawaiian monk seal.

I am posing next to the water with three green turtles visible in the water.

Three green turtles feed on algae in shallow water very close to the shore.

An endangered monk seal rests on the sand.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 3

A lovely welcome social and opening ceremonies at #ISTS2026.

Participants mingle at tables on a lawn with a dark sky, palm trees, and hotel in background.

Hawaiian dancers dressed in red on a covered stage with a band behind them.

A man with fire sticks spinning and drummers behind him. ISTS participants look on.

Dr. Alexander Gaos gives opening remarks.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 2

Excited to have arrived to Kailua-Kona to attend #ISTS2026 in a gorgeous setting!

View of pool, resort building, and the ocean in the background.

View of Keauhou Bay from the Outrigger Resort.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Feb 2

We finally saw an olive ridley nesting last night! I used the long exposure setting to take photos under the full moon. Today, we went to Copalita National Park before heading to the beach.

Long exposure photo of students sitting on the beach, facing the water and watching an olive ridley nest just after midnight.

Long exposure photo of an olive ridley returning to the water after nesting.

Students take turns digging up the nest to relocate the olive ridley eggs. We worked with red light, but the sky looks lighter due to a long exposure shot.

The group gathers for a photo in front of a strangler fig in Copalita National Park, Mexico.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Feb 1

The learning continues. Night time nest relocation, a leatherback track after we saw the female false crawl, revegetation, and triangulation.

Two students rebury Pacific green turtle nests in a hatchery.

A student poses next to a leatherback track. It was a false crawl: she didn’t lay.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jan 29

Yesterday afternoon, we learned about the history of sea turtle conservation from local cooperative members as well as government employees. This morning, we rescued hatchlings on the beach.

Students sit in a half circle as a cooperative member tells his story and our local coordinator translates.

A student has found a nest of turtles emerging and gets ready to place them in her bucket.

Two student students tip their buckets with hatchlings toward the camera.

A student has emptied her bucket near the water’s edge.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jan 28

We saw our first olive ridley hatchlings last night. This morning, we cleaned a large tank and helped handle green turtles for vitamin injections at Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga.

Students watch a nest of olive ridley hatchlings emerge under red light.

Students line up to move turtles during the tank cleaning.

A student walks among stones in the tank with a turtle in her hands. Other students scrub the tank with scrubby sponges under their feet.

Two student students prepare a turtle for a vitamin injection.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jan 27

Before heading to the coast this afternoon, we toured Monte Albán to learn about some Mesoamerican archaeological history.

View of the site from highest point looking southwest.

Carved jaguar was a symbol of the nobility.

View of from south platform looking north. Yours truly is posing.

Silk tree and “guaje” trees next to stone platform.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jan 27

I have the privilege of taking students to Mexico for just over a week for my Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation Course this semester. Despite the travel complications yesterday, all but one arrived to Oaxaca. Some scenes from the city.

The back of a large mannequin with traditional braids.

Mini tourist market with colorful flags waving above.

Two blue painted cats sit on either side of a shop entrance flanked by green walls.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jan 8

Maybe this is my sign to tone down my perfectionism this year.

Take a screenshot of this GIF, and whichever new word you land on is your word for 2026. Let’s. Go.

Your 2026 word: sloppy.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Nov 9

I ran a slow half marathon this morning…it was 75F by the end. This afternoon, I did some grocery shopping and made a double batch of enchiladas to take a pan to our neighbors with a newborn. #WorkfreeWeekend

Selfie of me just after running 13.1 miles with a finish line in the background.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jun 25

I celebrated some good news yesterday with sidra and chorizo.

A letter from my provost. The key sentences say: I am pleased to inform you that the University of Florida Board of Trustees has approved your tenure. Your tenure and promotion to Associate Professor will be effective as of August 16, 2025.

I am holding a glass of Spanish cider. Another glass and bottle, plus a plate of chorizo and crackers sit on the table.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jun 16

We celebrated #WorldSeaTurtleDay with a trip to the Seville Aquarium.

My 6- and 9-year-old boys sit in front of a large tank with a loggerhead swimming by.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Jun 10

A healthcare worker in our local ER refused my husband the post-exposure prophylaxis because there was no known bite after finding a bat in our home. Thank goodness the pediatric hospital was willing to start the series for both of us adults plus the kids.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· May 7

We have neglected to clean our solar panels for a while. I finally invested in a water fed brush and put in some elbow grease. After doing so, you can see that the day's production was 25% higher than any day so far this month.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Apr 30

We saw lots of otters, including this one that popped up next to my kayak (video) and one defecating out of the water (no video).

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Apr 30

Today was the return of the annual lab paddle! This year we tried the Rainbow River. And as a bonus, I now have a recommendation for a great Mexican restaurant if you ever find yourself in Dunnellon, FL.

Chris Nolte, Aileen Lavelle, me, Liz Hurtado. Unfortunately, we missed Kate Davis and Ariadna Arnau.

Launching down river. The tip of a yellow kayak points ahead.

Two wood ducks (male and female) plus a yellow-bellied slider share a log.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Apr 22

I taught Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation for the first time this spring. In such challenging times, hearing the thoughtful insights of my students was a bright spot every week.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Apr 22

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Apr 21

A graduate student who worked on a project with me created a sea turtle mug with clever details, including the carapace, plastron, flipper, and marginal scutes. I am delighted to start drinking my tea from such a thoughtful and original gift.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 28

We also honored Wallace J. Nichols with a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award. All attendees received blue marbles in his memory. #ISTS43

J’s picture next to red text that says, “Hey girl, I dig sea turtles too.”

ISTS attendees hold blue marbles up their eyes to emulate looking through water.

A blue marble in my palm. J used to hand these out to show that this is what our planet looks like from a million miles away.

Friends of J accept the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 28

Yesterday, we remembered Tony Tucker and honored him with a posthumous ISTS Lifetime Achievement Award. #ISTS43

Andrea Phillot, on behalf of nominees who could not be present, honors Tony Tucker who is pictured on the screen behind her.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 28

I have eaten these two traditional dishes multiple times this week because I liked them so much. #ISTS43 L: Red red (Ghanaian bean stew) with plantains R: Okra stew with banku (fermented maize and cassava dough that is boiled)

A square plate containing fried plantains on the left and red red (bean stew) on the right.

A bowl of stew containing okra and meat on the left with two bulb-shaped chunks of banku on the right. Traditionally, the banku was wrapped with leaves, not plastic.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 24

Levels this high are unhealthy but also severely increase the risk of airborne disease transmission. Extrapolating from this image means that about 1 in 5 breaths has already been in someone else’s lungs.

At 5000 ppm, 1 in 8 breaths is rebreathed.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 24

I am in the MTSG meeting at #ISTS43 and experiencing the worst indoor CO2 values I think I have ever measured. We peaked >8000ppm. After opening some windows that connect to an indoor hallway, we are starting to drop.

High of 8080 ppm on my Aranet4 CO2 monitor.

For context ASHRAE recommends indoor CO2 levels below 1000.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Mar 24

I still find it interesting to travel with a CO2 monitor. Here is a view of the air quality on my flights to ATL, JFK, and ACC yesterday. High points occurred just before takeoff but stayed consistently in orange or red zones (above 1000 ppm), which is not ideal.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Feb 26

I am appreciating my new office mates.

A gray cat sits on a window sill, and a tabby sits above her on a cat tree, with his paw hanging over to rest on her shoulder.

Hannah Vander Zanden@hanvanzan· Feb 25

Who says you can’t mask while working out? 5:15am HIIT the bells class…trying to stay healthy.