Tag Archives: Piscivorous fish

D-7 Lion Fish Ceviche, Finally!

Hi everyone!

Today marks our last full day at Glover’s and our last day of snorkeling!


Being our last day of Glover’s means that we have to begin packing and be ready to become immersed in a completely different ecosystem: the rainforest. Yet, I am getting ahead of myself, before we can start something new we have to finish our older projects. This was precisely the goal of today’s snorkel. We visited another non-marine protected area to collect our fourth data set. At first I was a bit skeptical about whether we would be able to collect the data with the weather conditions as it looked fairly windy. Yet, thankfully our skills have highly improved! After having gathered our data for the remaining site we all got to enjoy a fun snorkel.

It was during this second snorkel that I got to see a grey triggerfish. It was hiding behind a large patch of coral and it only came out after I swam by. It was a bit larger than I had anticipated, yet its approximate size fits between the size range I encountered during my earlier research on piscivorous fish of Belize. I am glad that I got to see another fish on my taxon ID card, and I hope to get to see the remainder on my next trip to Belize!

Our team also managed to catch yet another lion fish during our leisure snorkel. We see this piscivorous fish nearly at every patch we visit; after all, that seems pretty fitting of an invasive species! This time the lion fish was very small. After dinner we made use of all three fish that were captured during our time here. Yet before eating them we dissected them, gendered them, and removed any contents such as fat, liver and stomach that are commonly not eaten in ceviche.



Then Chef Solomon took over to make the ceviche. Here is a photo of the lion fish ceviche that was made!

D-6 Fossils, trash, & a naked crab?

Hi everyone!

Much like other days today was great! Early in the morning we got to go to the fore reef which was a little intimidating at first but also super cool! There we got to see a green turtle at the bottom and many, many sea walnuts (which were beyond adorable.) I am so glad we visited although we were only able to stay for a short while due to the weather conditions of the atoll at this time of the year. Even though I loved the experience I will say one thing: I am so grateful I decided to take Dramamine during breakfast. I think I would have felt seasick if I had decided to tough it out!

After we got back to Glover’s we all did a group clean-up of the beach. Together we picked up around 65kg of trash; I’m pretty proud of us! In the process, we also collected data on how much of the trash could be disposed of here at Glover’s and how much would have to be shipped to the mainland to be disposed of. Yet, perhaps the coolest part of our findings is that different areas of the island allow for different efficiency in collecting said trash, therefore if there is limited man power, we found that there are certain areas were effort should be a priority! While cleaning the coast, one member of our team found something that kind of shocked us all:

We are still unsure of how this level of preservation happened but it is so pristine that we were able to identify it as a type of box fish. During this trip I had heard about box fish, yet I didn’t know too much about them as they are omnivores and therefore not part of my taxa, piscivorous fish. Yet, seeing this little guy prompted me to learn a lot more about these fish, and honestly they are really cool!

Making today even better, before dinner we saw a hermit crab switch shells; I thought I would never get to see this, but this trip truly is full of surprises at every turn!

D-5 Barracuda:1, Maggy:0

Hi everyone!

I’m so glad to say that our team has actually gotten so much better at using our tools out in the field! We went out today to two more coral reef patches and were able to collect data the first time it took 40 minutes and the second time it took 30 minutes, both of which are a great improvement from yesterday’s hour long data collection at a single patch! I was also super glad to see some of the Tunicates Sophie talked about in her taxon lecture last night. Considering how small they are I thought I wouldn’t spot them, but the second patch we visited actually had a ton laying around in many of the corals. Our group also saw and captured a second lionfish today. This one was much smaller than the one collected yesterday. But mostly everyone in the group seems very excited to have lionfish “ceviche.” Regarding our sea urchin collecting we were able to find a lot more than at the patch we visited yesterday! That either means we were at patches today with lots more, or that we are getting better at finding their hiding spots. Today I also happened to (for the first time) slightly rub against some fire coral. It hurt a bit right after I came in contact with it but it got a little more painful once I was out of the water. Thankfully the burning sensation subsided in about half an hour! Another new experience I had today was seeing a barracuda for the first time! It was actually huge and really intimidating. I was kinda shocked by its behavior as well, but I could see how it is fitting of a piscivorous fish! While most fish I have encountered so far on this trip tend to see any of us and turn and swim the other way, when the barracuda and I made eye contact instead of swimming away it began swimming towards me. Let me tell you as soon as I saw that I started swimming the other way! After seeing that barracuda I had no idea I would see another one, but I happened to see yet another at the Glover’s reef gift shop!

D-4 Impaling my taxa :’(

Today the day started pretty wonderful, we got to bring many organisms from the local coast to the wet lab and have the many experts in our class identify them and tell us a little about each species. From this activity I really liked looking at things under the microscope, specially I got to look at a cool coral fragment that someone found! I also got to see a mantis shrimp for the first time!

Later in the day, we came up with a new question and went out to test it on different corals than those we had explored earlier in the week. With our research we want to understand if there is some sort of correlation between the amount of sea urchins observed and the amount of live coral. Our question originates from how sea urchins burrow into the corals which may weaken the coral and leave them more susceptible to disease. During our time on the reef patch we collected enough data, yet collecting that data was sure an adventure. The waves were way stronger than we had anticipated and we were constantly pushed into corals or our partners before we got to get the information we needed. Yet thankfully we were able to get data and also collect some urchins which we later examined back in the lab. (Don’t worry, we are taking good care of the sea urchins and will return them home tomorrow!)

We then went to a second patch this time not to work but to do some relaxing snorkeling. It was during this second snorkeling that I was shocked to see a lionfish flopping mid air on a stick. I was sad to see a member of my taxa of interest (piscivorous fish) that way, yet I also know that these can be really damaging to biodiversity, so I am glad that our team could contribute to improving the probability of many other species to survive via this kill of an invasive species. Also I am glad that some member of our group who really really want to try them will have a great dinner tomorrow(?)!

Also regarding tomorrow, I’m nervous but I also can’t wait to continue researching our question about corals and sea urchins to see what we discover!

D-3 Marine Quadrats and a Coral Gravesite?

Hi everyone!

Today was pretty great, we got to do a bunch of new things as a group! For example today we worked with transects and quadrats under water for the first time. At first it was a little challenging, specially with two new devices and a clipboard to carry while swimming yet working as a team definitely helped. With a little bit of practice it got easier for me and my partner to place the quadrats correctly and then assess the amount of green algae in that patch. Although we were all able to gather data, our data ended up not proving our initial hypothesis. Originally we predicted that we would see a decrease in green algae as we moved further from shore, yet the opposite appears to be true. Although we do not know why, we infer that it could be due to over-competition from the sea grasses.

Later on in the day we went to what Dr. Correa called the coral graveyard. I thought it was so amazing how well preserved so many corals were after being fossilized. We had a small learning activity there in which we learned to pair some corals with their species name. Although many people got the names down quite quickly I can’t say I was one of them. Yet, I took photos of them and their respective names and plan to study them! I really enjoyed everything we did, yet I think working on our poster to present our data was my favorite part!

Regarding my taxa, I didn’t get to see any of them today. I am sure I will have a greater chance of seeing piscivorous fish whenever we go to greater depths!

D-2 The mangroves of death

Hey everyone!

Today the day began fairly early for all of us, with breakfast at 7. The breakfast was so great, I specifically loved the banana pancakes! Then we suited up and got ready for our first dive. It was great to finally get into the water, specially because it was so refreshing and because we got to see so many amazing species. I got specially excited when I saw a Highhat (a piscivorous fish, my taxa) eat another smaller fish! Sadly I didn’t have the camera with me on the first swim so I didn’t get to take a photo (yet, even if I had the camera I am not sure I would have been fast enough!)

After swimming for a while we came back onto land and got lunch. As always the food was great, I got some french fries, cole slaw, and two raisin cookies. After lunch we went for another swim, yet this time it was a completely different experience: we went through the mangroves of death. There, we all got aggressively bitten by the blood thirsty mosquitoes. We all ran into the water hoping it would stop, yet they followed us in. Thankfully, as we moved further in they left us alone and we were at peace to take photos (and attempt to complete the scavenger hunt!) I personally did not finish the scavenger hunt yet I got to see so many cool fish, sponges, and many hard and soft corals. After a while we got asked if we wanted to run back through the mangroves of death or swim a much longer route. Without a second thought we all chose to swim back. After we got back many of us took the chance to shower. Then we watched two presentations about hard corals and soft corals. Afterwards we got a much needed break before dinner. Later at dinner we got really tasty rice and cheesecake! To conclude our day, after dinner we all listened to a few more presentations, this time about coral reef framework and growth, sponges, ctenophores, and jellyfish. Today was very fun and also a little tiring, yet I’m more than sure that we will all be ready tomorrow morning after a well deserved 10 hour nap.

D-1 Our Belizean adventure begins

Hi everyone!

Today went pretty smoothly in terms of travel!

We all met pretty early at Rice and traveled to the IAH to board our flight which departed at 10:07am and arrived in Belize at 11:30am. We then got picked up by our tour guides who took us to a local supermarket where we all stocked up on a variety of things. I got bug spray, a local brand of chips and also a bag of cookies that seemed tasted really great! Then we were sent off by our guides on our next adventure: a boat ride that would take us to our final destination for the week: Glover’s reef. Yet before that we got some lunch from our guides which included tortillas, chicken, cheese and vegetables. During our boat ride, some of our team felt a bit sick due to the constant movement of the boat, particularly once we left the safety of the reef and were in open ocean. Thankfully once we reached land it appeared that the symptoms subsided for most people affected. Once we all reached the Glover’s reef, beyond a doubt we were all very exhausted. Yet even when exhausted we were all mesmerized by the beautiful sunset we got to see! Although I really liked the sunset (and even attempted to take a photo), my favorite part was dinner! The food was amazing! I remember during our first meeting we were told the food was great, at the time I remained skeptical, but that was not an overstatement. The mash potatoes and rice were so delectable! I also really appreciate how Hortence and Ashley cared about my vegetarian dietary restrictions, it was super nice of them! Before the night ended we all reconvened and met our three safety officers: Claudius, Adrian, and Ruth and also captain Eli.
Although today was tiring for all of us, it was also really exciting. I can’t wait to see what is in store for us tomorrow! Although I did not get to see any piscivorous fish today, I hope that tomorrow I get to encounter some of these!

D-0 Belize here we come!

Hello everyone!

My name is Maggy, and I am a rising senior at Rice!

Coming into this trip I am so excited to get to learn even more about Belize’s biodiversity. I learned about this class my freshman year, yet due to Covid-19 I thought I wouldn’t be able to participate during my time at Rice, yet thankfully I was wrong! Going to a whole new country and getting to learn about its great biodiversity seems like a dream come true.

One of my goals of this trip is to become much more acquainted with both of my taxon groups: piscivorous fish and bees! Both of these groups have so many amazing organisms, I hope our group gets to see at least some of them up close.

I can imagine that this trip, in addition to being fun, will also be challenging at times, yet I’m looking forward to working with my classmates to overcome these challenges, just like researchers do out in the field! One personal challenge that I am a bit nervous about is swimming. I have never been a very fast swimmer, yet I hope that a few days in the water will help me improve my speed! Another personal challenge is working out in the field and putting to use my research skills. To me this is a challenge because most of my research has been lab-based, with me spending lots of time working with my laptop or at the bench. I believe that with just a bit of practice I’ll be able to quickly adjust! I think some of the classes I’ve taken at Rice will definitely help, for example I took a Conservation biology lab in which we worked with transects to estimate the biodiversity of the Harris Gully Natural Area at Rice. Another class I think can come in handy is a Plant Diversity course I took; since this course took place a few semesters ago I am not too sure how much I remember, yet I think seeing things first hand will help jog my memory. 

Regardless of the challenges all of us will probably encounter, as a group or as individuals, I am sure that this trip will be a success and that we will all learn a lot more about the great biodiversity of Belize!

Post-Belize Reflection

Wow! What an amazing experience! Our class of 11 was constantly at work hiking, setting up pit fall traps, collecting data with transects, snorkeling, collecting data with quadrads, interpreting data, putting together poster presentations among other activities. In total, we accomplished 6 research projects with poster presentations for each of them. For each research project, we learned something new and interesting about the unique environment that we were living in for half a month. The experience involved a lot of hard work both physically and mentally, but it rewarded me with knowledge, fun, friends, and a lasting appreciation for the beauty of this world. It is nice to be home, where there’s air conditioning, WiFi, warm showers, less mosquitoes, no sandflies, but I will be thinking about Belize and my experience there for a long time to come. Thank you Dr. Solomon, Dr. Shore, Las Cuevas Research Station, and Glover’s Reef Research Station—for this one-of-a-kind opportunity!

Lepidoptera:

  • Eurytides marcellus, Zebra Swallowtail
  • Morpho peleides, Blue Morpho
  • Ascalapha odorata, Black Witch Moth
  • Sphingidae genus, Sphinx Moth
  • Heliconius hecale, Tiger Longwing
  • Eacles imperialis, Imperial Moth
  • Papilio polyxenes, Black Swallowtail

Piscivorous Fish

  • Ocyurus chrysurus, Yellowtail Snapper
  • Pterois volitans, Red Lionfish
  • Sphyraena genusBarracuda
  • Halichoeres bivittatus, Slippery Dick Wrasse
  • Hemiramphus brasiliensis, Ballyhoo
  • Ginglymostoma cirratum, Nurse Shark

Above is a list of the different species I saw from my taxons while on the trip. Below is a picture of a different species that I see at home. Glad to be reunited with my house cat (Felis catus) pictured below in his natural habitat!

27/05/19 I’m not lion…I had fun.

Today is our last full day of class since tomorrow is just traveling! We began the morning with a fun activity—cleaning up the island! We took trash bags out, geared up with long pants tucked in socks, shirts tucked in pants, jackets tucked in rubber gloves, and picked up garbage at four different sites around Middle Caye—the mangroves of death, the coral graveyard,  the Glover’s Reef dock, and the touch tank. I, along with Pierce and Keegan, picked up trash at the coral graveyard for 30 minutes. My hands pruned up with sweat, but the coverage was worth the mosquito protection.

 

Some interesting garbage found:

-lots of plastic bottles, lots of plastic bottle caps

-plastic utensils

-many sole-mate less sandals (ha!)

-Crocs

-baby doll leg

-stuffed animal

-LEGO

-toothbrushes

-rope

-2 hyperdermic needles

-a crab using a round bottle as a shell! Trash Crab!

Then, we had some coconut water, coconut meat, and lionfish ceviche—just doing our part to remove invasive species. The lionfish that I dissected was a 79.1g virgin male, and we found a whole, un-digested juvenile slippery dick wrasse in his stomach! The wrasse itself was at least 3 centimeters, maybe even 4. What a cool find!

Lionfish of genus Pterois beside the slippery dick wrasse (Halichoeres bivittatus) found in its stomach

We had our last lectures for the course on annelids and the history and culture of Belize given by our wonderful guides Herby and Javier—they were excellent and they will be missed so much!

Thank you Glover’s Reef Research Station for a fantastic week! Now, I’m prepared to head on home.