From our last snorkel to lionfish ceviche, today was a great day overall. We started off by heading to our final patch reef to finish collecting data on the relationship between coral cover and sea urchin abundance. The wind and waves were strong, but overall, it was a fairly smooth experience. However, the boat ride was more akin to a rollercoaster. The relationship between urchins and live coral was an interesting concept to investigate. Our data reliability may be a bit questionable (as we are far from experienced in this type of research) but the patch reefs we visited all had significant growth of brown algae, which colonizes the dead stony coral skeletons along with a multitude of other organisms. The battle between stony corals and macroalgae is constant, yet it’s clear that human-driven environmental factors have swayed many reef regions in favor of more prolific algae growth at the detriment of stony reef builders. In theory, this may bolster the local urchin population because of an increase in available algal food.

That doesn’t mean these reefs aren’t teeming with life though. I was able to see several colonies of Orbicella faveolata (some with small fish resting on the surface), tons of Porites, and even several Caribbean reef squids.

We ended the night by dissecting the invasive lionfish we caught over the past few days and then turning them into ceviche. A tasty snack to end a wonderful time on the island. I look forward to the forest, and hopefully the opportunity to spot an amphibian or two.