Nightly turtle walks begin in Akumal

From the Web site of Centro Ecológico Akuaml (CEA):

We will be conducting our Turtle Talks and Walks Monday through Friday throughout turtle season. In order to make your reservations, please stop by the CEA Center during the day and sign up in person. The Turtle Walks are limited to 10 people each night and we ask for a $10 USD donation per person, which goes directly to the Turtle Protection Program.

The Turtle Talk begins at 9 PM at the CEA Center; following the presentation the volunteers will take you on the Walk. These talks are very informative and will help you to know exactly what to look for and how to protect the turtles better.

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Aruba students survey local reef

A newsletter article by Reef Check Coordinator Sue Hieter:

On April 16, 2008, the International School of Aruba Oceanography class led by Reef Check Aruba coordinator Sue Hieter went to Baby Beach, Seroe Colorado, Aruba to survey its shallow reef. The class consisted of twelve students, 15-18 years old. They surveyed two sections of the channel area around Baby Beach. In 2004 this area was hit by the tail end of Hurricane Ivan, which destroyed most of the shallow reef (1-5m). It is also an area that tourists visit to snorkel.

As a result of our survey, we noticed that some of the coral is returning and fish populations are increasing slowly, but the invertebrate species are still next to nothing. The team plans to survey this channel every year and hopes to see an increase in the populations of these organisms.

Photos here.

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Caribbean nations plan marine parks to aid economy

From a Reuters article by Alister Doyle:

OSLO, May 27 (Reuters) - Caribbean islands will create new protected areas for fish and coral reefs under a $70 million plan announced on Tuesday that will help safeguard tourism-backed economies.

"This is a trust fund for the future benefit of society," Bahamas Minister of Works and Transport Earl Deveaux told Reuters of the project. "Our economy is based on tourism and our greatest natural resource is our environment."

Inspired by a 2006 plan to protect part of the Pacific Ocean and a "Coral Triangle" project launched in 2007 for southeast Asia, nine Caribbean nations agreed to extend protected areas to 10 percent of their marine and coastal habitats by 2012.

The Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines aim to set aside about (32,000 square km (12,500 sq miles), according to the U.S.-based Nature Conservancy which is advising Caribbean governments.

That area is roughly the size of Belgium or the U.S. state of Maryland. The Bahamas will be the largest contributor of protected areas under the "Caribbean Challenge" and aims to set aside 20 percent of marine habitats by 2020.

"In many Caribbean nations at least 50 percent of gross domestic product is derived from tourism," said Rob Weary of the Nature Conservancy. "Countries are realising the need to invest in protected areas so tourism can remain the economic engine. . . ."

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Call for photos for ReefBase

A post on NOAA's Coral-list listserve:

The ReefBase Web site would like to extend a request for photo contributions for its website's gallery.

The gallery is part of ReefBase's objective to develop a relational database and information system for structured information on coral reefs.

These resources will serve as a computerized encyclopedia and analytical tool for supporting reef management, conservation and researches around the world.

Hence our photos in the gallery is freely accessible to our registered users and the public strictly for non-commercialized purposes only.

If you have a collection of relevant photos concerning:

* coral reefs (fisheries, biology, bleaching, etc)

* mangroves and coastal ecosystems

* community based management/ participation and resource management

* coral reef monitoring, survey and evaluation,

... please forward it to me (in high definition, JPEG format) with the following details:

* Photo caption

* Date of photo taken

* Latitude and longitude (if possible)

* Locality

* Country

Please ensure that you possess the ownership of the copyrights to the photos that you will contribute.

Should you have a website or email if you wish to be contacted, we will have your photos linked back to you - ensuring that you have the full credit of those photos.

ReefBase will be selecting a photo each month to be featured in our monthly newsletters and also on the website.

Currently ReefBase is on the lookout for photos from the Pacific Islands; however photos from other regions are also welcomed.

Please email me personally the photos that you wish to submit and also if there are any questions or suggestions for the ReefBase website.

Many thanks for your kind assistance and looking forward to hear from you soon.

Cheers,
Evelyn Teh
L.Teh@cgiar.org
Research Assistant
ReefBase Project
The WorldFish Center
www.reefbase.org

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Sea turtle slaughter on CARRIACOU /Grenada

From a post on the CTURTLE listserve:

From divers we are receiving information about turtle slaughters on the beaches of Carriacou Island/Grenada.

A video can be seen on youtube (video).

We don’t have detailed information until now, but to whom short term measures seem to be useful the PETA website delivers an address.

According to people who know Grenada a little bit nature conservation is not an easy job there. On the other hand almost everything on the island depends on tourism.

So telling them that many potential visitors to Grenada will be repelled by certain habits on their beaches might have consequences.

Regards,
Eberhard Meyer
TURTLE FOUNDATION (Germany)
Ammerlander Hauptstr. 1
D-82541 Münsing
GERMANY
Tel +49 8177 926038
Fax +49 8177 8439
meyer@turtle-foundation.org
www.turtle-foundation.org

The PETA website:
http://www.peta.org/actioncenter/ActionAlerts-item.asp?id=2517

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Blocking and using the sun in Akumal

From the April/May newsletter of Centro Ecologico Akumal (CEA):

We at CEA are grateful for the donation of solar-powered heaters [pictured above on the roof] from Sunrain and recommend their use. What are you waiting for to take care of the environment? Install yours now!

The solar water heaters significantly reduce the need to heat water with electricity, propane or natural gas, thus reducing greenhouse gases.

CEA staff and voluneers built treleses and planted the bougainvillea vines to provide cooling shade from the sun that previously baked the volunteers' dormitory behind the planting. The shade cuts the use of air conditioners and their resulting green house emissions from electrical generation at a central generation plant or from a gas-, diesel-, or gasoline-powered generator.

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Spectacular Squid Found Off Little Cayman; 'The Best Preserved Specimen To Date'

From an article distributed by the Underwater Times news service:

George Town, Cayman Islands (May 21, 2008 15:40 EST) A rare squid found floating on the surface of the ocean about 5 miles south of Little Cayman this weekend has been positively identifed as Asperoteuthis.

Local fisherman Derren Burlington, who was taking part in the Brac Jackpot Fishing Tournament, discovered the 24lbs 4oz creature, which is over 7 feet (2.5m) long, on Saturday 18 May at around 9:00 am, and transported it to the Little Cayman Research Centre operated by the Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI).

Dr. Clyde Roper, Emeritus Zoologist at the Smithsonian Institution, has confirmed that it is only the fourth specimen known in the entire Atlantic Ocean. He said all other specimens known of this species – a dozen or so – have been found in the Indo-Pacific waters.

"This does not mean that we are suddenly being inundated by an Indo-Pacific species. It merely emphasizes something perhaps more interesting – it shows how little we know about the oceans that surround and sustain us, especially about the deep sea and its magnificent, though strange, inhabitants," said Dr. Roper.

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