Category Archives: 2017

2017

I will walk 3000 miles for… camera traps! (May 26th)

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I woke up today at 5:00am for birding! There were only a few birds actually flying in the clearing. However, the bird calls were so loud and beautiful! Then, we had breakfast and began planning our experiment for the day. Today, we were laying camera traps in order to test the abundance of large cats and their prey on paths and in densely forested areas.

Around 9:40am, we left for our first hike of the day! It was a pretty good hike! There were a lot of steep hills, but the downs were really fun. We got to go off trail in order to lay our camera traps. I was completely convinced the whole time that I was going to grab a vine and it would turn out to be a snake! We saw a Mexican porcupine at the top of one of the hills. I think it was sleeping in a hollowed out tree. When he heard our group, he scampered up the tree. We saw a scorpion eater snake and a few large centipedes. I also saw the Blue morpho butterflies.

After lunch, we went on our second hike of the day! We hiked the Monkey Tail trail. A few trees had fallen over in the last hurricane and were blocking the path. It was a lot of fun to scamper over them! On the hike, I didn’t see too many organisms because I was focused on the camera traps. However, we did see lots of signs of the large cats. We saw a few pieces of scat and some large cat scratches. Hopefully, we will be able to catch some on our cameras. We got slightly turned around on our way out of the forest after the last camera trap. We ended up making it out of the forest thanks to Scot and a GPS! We ended up making it back to the station after dark. When we turned on our headlamps, we could see all of the spider eyes staring back at us. There are a surprising number of spiders!

On the last hike, I finally saw a amphibian. It was a Smilisca baudinii (Mexican treefrog)! While we were handling the frog, it turned a dark brown color, and we could see the characteristic dark lines on the frog’s back and legs.

2017

Dad, I ate a termite! (May 25th)

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Today, we left Crystal paradise and started our trek to Las Cuevas research station. On the way, we stopped at Rio-On Pool. The Rio-On river forms large pools of water over these large granite slabs. There were really pretty waterfalls! It was a lot of fun scrambling over the large boulders. After about an hour, we continued on our way to Las Cuevas. We played card games in the van on the way. The 2-hour drive passed very quickly. We played B.S for most of the drive.

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After we got to Las Cuevas, we quickly unpacked and ate lunch! Surprisingly, I am not tired of chicken, rice and beans. Then we went on a hike! We hiked the Mayan trail and got to see a lot of Mayan ruins. I was so surprised when Scott told me that the “hill” I was standing on was a Mayan temple covered in trees. We also got to see the ball court where they used to play the Mayan ball game. Supposedly, the prize for winning the game was a sacrificial death!

While hiking through the rainforest, I did not see any amphibians. Sad Face. I really expected to see a frog our toad on our hike, because it was sprinkling. I will search more in the leaf litter tomorrow! However, I did see lots of wolf spiders, epiphytes, and grasshoppers. We looked at a giant leaf cutter ant nest. I also saw oropendulm,a black bird with yellow tail feathers. After the hike, there were a lot of termites flying around the station. I got to eat a termite! Dad, they were not minty, but I will try to find a minty one!

2017

Well I probably have a Mayan curse now… but it was worth it!

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We woke up early and began our trek to the Actun Tunichil Muknal caves. The ATM caves were used by the Mayan’s for blood lettings and human sacrifices. When we arrived at the entrance to the historical site, we had to hike to the cave. We got to make three river crossings! It was really fun to swim across the rivers fully dressed in a hard hat. Unfortunately, they did not let us bring cameras on this expedition in order to protect the artifacts in the cave.

When we got to the cave, we swam into the entrance throughout the cave. The water was so cold! We had to squeeze through tiny spaces, scamper down waterfalls, and climb giant rock walls in order to get to the old relics. I honestly don’t believe that we could do this in the United States. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done!

After a wet trek into the cave, we reached a large cavern and had to scale a giant rock wall. Then, we entered the giant open space that contained the majority of the relics. We saw allot of old pots that were used by the Mayans for sacrifices to the gods! There were also a few skeletal remains in the cave. One of them, had an alien shaped head that was caused by Hydrocephalus! We also got to see the crystal princess aka the crystal prince after forensic scientists discovered that the skeleton was male. The crystal prince is a complete skeleton of a sixteen-year-old Mayan.

As we were leaving the ATM caves, it began to rain. On the hike back, I saw Smilisca baudinii ( The mexican tree frog) hoping across the path. This frog had the characteristic light brown and black blotches on its back. A little while later, I saw the tiniest frog I have ever seen. It was about the size of my finger nail. I am pretty sure it was a juvenile Mexican tree frog. Later on the way to dinner, I saw a Incilius valliceps (Gulf coast toad) which has a characteristic white stripe on its back. ‘

2017, Uncategorized

Day 8: Authenticity (05/23/2017)

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There we were, with flashlights in hand, meandering through the darkness of the Belize Zoo. The site was sprawling with tall tropical trees, including the Santa Maria tree (Calophyllum brasiliense) and the gumbo-limbo (Bursera simaruba), spectacular sights on their own. The Santa Maria trees, not very common and interspersed between shorter trees, had branches high up on the trunk and were some of the tallest trees at the zoo. The gumbo-limbo trees were also fairly uncommon and were shorter with bark that was peeling in fleshy-looking pinkish layers. I was unable to see any animal activity in the trees because we visited the zoo at night.

The trees were unscathed by the human activity necessary for the zoo’s survival; enclosures were constructed around established trees to preserve the integrity of the site. All of the zoo’s animals are native to Belize, and the zookeeper addressed each and every animal by name – Carlos the puma, Junior the jaguar, Maggie the frigatebird, Brutus the American crocodile.

Carlos the Puma

One could feel the zoo’s authenticity. The zoo lacked kitsch. It lacked glamour. It was about people learning about the animals of Belize.

Earlier in the day, my class departed from Glover’s Reef, our home for the past week. Partway through our boat ride to the Belize mainland, we hiked and snorkeled through the Belize mangroves. At a glance, the area would not have looked appealing, with its sediment-filled water, knotted overgrown tree roots, and an absence of colors other than browns and corrupted greens.

However, the mangrove housed a wide variety of creatures. Today’s sightings covered the whole spectrum –red cushion sea stars (Oreaster reticulatus) to sun anemones (Stichodactyla helianthus) to a seahorse (Family Syngnathidae). The red cushion sea stars were amotile and were about six-inches in diameter. The most memorable sighting was a manatee (Genus Trichechus). Although I got little more than a glimpse of shimmery gray with chestnut speckles, it felt a sense an overwhelming sense of awe being in the present of a creature as majestic as a manatee.

Ecologically, mangroves are essential to the survival of many types of animals, including coral-residing species, as the shallow waters and networks of plant materials protect growing animals from predators. Despite not being the most popular image to send home on a postcard, mangroves are a necessity for the survival of countless living things.

That is authenticity.

2017

Day 8 – A Day of Change

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Hi friends,

Today we bid farewell to Glover’s Reef. It was amazing while it lasted. And I got to see the sunrise in the morning which was beautiful!

Sunrise in Middle Caye.

After leaving Glover’s Reef, we visited a neighboring field station run by the Smithsonian Institute on Carrie Bow Cay. The station manager didn’t expect us there and was supposedly busy so he was going to turn us away but Adrienne convinced him otherwise. And we got a really long tour in the end which turned out well. It was interesting to have another field station to compare with, and I could definitely see myself volunteering to be a station manager when I retire in the future.

We then went to the mangrove nearby for our last ever snorkel in the class. It felt kind of bittersweet but it was exciting too being in a different environment. The feather dusters over there were as magnificent as they come by, as seen in the picture:

Magnificent Feather Duster (Sabellastarte magnifica) in the mangroves.

It was definitely eye-opening to observe the schools of fishes hiding in the mangrove roots and how they would weave in and out of the roots. There were also a variety of organisms that I saw more abundantly here than in the reefs, such as echinoderms and anemones. Below are some cool pictures of organisms I saw:

Seahorse! Apparently a rare find.
Sea star on the seafloor.

We then sailed to Belize City and ate a meal at a local restaurant which was a fun change of surroundings. We travelled to TEC after and settled in, and as a bonus, my friend and TFB alumnus Lucrecia happened to be at TEC today too, as she was on her way to a Belizean forest to do her independent field study. It was great seeing her as she had been studying abroad at Tanzania and it was fun catching up after so long. After dinner, we went to the Belize Zoo! Apparently, as we were seeing the zoo at night, there were animal activities that we wouldn’t have seen if we had visited in the morning, and so it was certainly fascinating. I saw 10 species of mammals out of the 21 on my taxon ID chart, so that was fun. The ocelot was especially interesting as it was making totally unexpected noises when feeding, saying “NOM NOM” in a really low growling voice like a lead singer of a metal band. I was surprised at how tame most of the animals in the zoo are, with the jaguar even trained to do several tricks. I got to feed a tapir which had a really fuzzy nose that goes haywire as food approaches it. All in all, the Belize zoo was a fascinating short look into the variety of creatures in the Belizean land, and it has helped prepare me to face the Las Cuevas forest.

Jaguar (Panthera onca) in the zoo.

Till next time,

Damien

2017

NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM

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This morning Jordan, Isaac, Damien, and I woke up at the ungodly hour of 4:45am to watch the sunrise. Although waking up was a little difficult, the sunrise was worth it. The sun was very large and red as it crested over the horizon.

Today, we left Glover’s reef and that was very sad. But I am excited for our week in the rainforest. As we were boating back to Belize, we stopped at Carrie Bow Cay, the Smithsonian research station just inside the Great barrier reef. Clyde the station manager gave us a quick tour.

Then, we were off to swim in the mangroves. WE SAW A MANATEE ON OUR WAY INTO THE GROVE!!!!! Then, we got out and walked around the mangrove and got sufficiently covered in peat. We then snorkeled up the mangroves. I saw a baby Banded Butterfly fish and a few bright orange starfish. At the end of the mangroves, we found a bright yellow seahorse! It was a great way to end the marine portion of our trip. We then continued our trek back to Belize city and ate at a restaurant called Calypso. There lime juice was amazing!

Seahorse!

We then got back in the bus and drove to TEC! After checking in, we went for a short hike around the station. I did not see any amphibians on the hike but we saw a ridiculous number of epiphytes!

After dinner, we went to the Belize Zoo for a night tour. While waiting for all the groups to arrive, but it hopped away before I got a closer look! Inside the zoo, I got to feed a Tapir! It was really cool. We also got to see four out of the five large cats of Belize. My favorites were the Ocelot and the Jaguar. The Ocelot, Rayburn, was really cool because when the zoo keeper gave him a piece of chicken he made an adorable NOM NOM NOM sound! The Jaguar, Junior, was raised by hand from a cub. When we arrived at the cage, he did multiple somersaults for treats! It was really cool to see all the animals at night in a semi natural environment! After we got back from the zoo, Scott brought me a large cane toad!

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2017, Uncategorized

Day 7: Introspection (05/22/2017)

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Today began with at 4:45 with a sunrise – the first I’ve actively watched in years. I watched it alone, some much needed time to reflect. I felt sheer gratitude to witness such a glorious sight at such a special location.

Later in the morning, my class and I boated out to three different reefs. The boatrides were spectacular, displaying discrete shades of blue. There was a crisp turquoise above sand patches, a deep muted turquoise above patch reefs, a dark royal blue across the horizon, and an electric, almost synthetic looking cerulean a short distance from the boat.

Each reef we visited had it’s own character and noteworthy residents. The first (“The Channel”) had mounds of corals in deeper water. A notable sighting was a cluster of three large gray angelfish (Pomacanthus arcuatus) that moved in tandem.

The second reef (“The Aquarium”) consisted of shallow depths and very active fish. Two noteworthy sightings were a flounder under sand and a stoplight parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) that burped up algae.

Today’s final reef was the same patch reef we visited yesterday and on our fist day snorkeling. The reef appeared more visible and felt easier to navigate. The most unusual animal seen there was a pufferfish (Family Tetraodontidae).

I searched all three reefs for echinoderms. On the seafloor, I found a couple urchin skeletons, maxing at about two-inches in diameter, but nothing significant. Today’s lack of echinoderm encounters is likely because I did not overturn any rubble to look for them.

The afternoon was spent dissecting lionfish our instructors caught during earlier reef visits. It was interesting learning about how invasive species, like the lionfish, have had such harmful effects on ecosystems. It is truly astounding how many ecological and environmental issues humans have created.

Pterois spp. about to be dissected

The world is so big, and I am just one of seven billion humans, which belong to one of six million animal species. Gazing at the sun inch its way across the horizon compels me to think about my place in the world. What issues do I regularly encounter? Do I choose to intervene? How?

Only time will tell how I will respond to the world’s future issues, but until then, I can take time to think. Today, it took a sunrise to force my to take time to introspect. Ordinarily, I constantly look and listen and study, but it is rare that I pause and think critically about the world’s issues and my role in their causations and solutions.
That is something that I want to change.

2017

Day 7 – It’s already the last night here???

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Hi friends,

Wow, and one week has past. It’s a weird feeling of sadness knowing that I’ll leave this place at the same time I’m pretty excited to be checking out the rainforest. What to feel?

We started the day checking out three different reef types: one on the channel, one called The Aquarium and a deep patch reef off Middle Caye. I was expecting The Aquarium to be the prettiest one with the most organism variety but apparently not. The channel reef was the one that impressed me the most, with magnificent stacked coral reefs that looked like mountains underwater. It was fun swimming around and through it observing all the organisms in their natural habitat. I finally got to see a full nurse shark and followed it for a little bit. It exuded silent charisma as it swam about slowly and menacingly. I followed a school of blue tang around for a bit and that was fun too, picking out the non-blue tang species swimming with them.

Nurse shark just chilling on the reef.

In The Aquarium, I was slightly disappointed as the standard was set too high from the first reef. I guess the lack of species variety was due to the shallowness of the area, which prevented the corals from forming intricate structures where species can live in. It was still cool finding new organisms around, and there were many more of my taxon species there compared to the channel reef. I saw a lot more Christmas Tree Worms (Spirobranchus giganteus) and some hugeee Magnificent Feather Dusters (Sabellastarte magnifica). And apparently another nurse shark was hanging out around sipping tea but I wasn’t there to see it.

The Aquarium is pretty shallow as seen here.

In the last deep patch reef, there were only a few patches, but there were similar to the channel reef in that they were very tall and the corals were all big. There was one particularly big one which looked like a comfortable bean bag which everyone took turns taking pictures with.

After lunch, we did presentations and then dissected the Lionfish. It smelled like a fish market for a little bit and I gutted fish for the first time which was fun. We rushed through making the poster to report our findings on the Lionfish measurements as we really wanted to visit a neighboring island, which was the reward for finishing the poster quickly. Eventually we did visit the other island which was a chill time and we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon and enjoyed the last day here. I’m gonna miss the quaint little village which has been my home for the past few days, the relaxed vibes of sun, beach and snorkeling, and last but not least, Clivus. It’s been an unforgettable time for sure. Here I come, Las Cuevas!

Till then,

Damien

2017

Last Full Day in Glovers!

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Today was an incredible day! We spent the morning snorkeling and doing reef zonation. We started the day in the Channel. Immediately, I almost ran head into a nurse shark. I was diving down to look at some cool coral and a nurse shark came around the corner about a foot away from me. A little later, we saw a sun spotted eel hiding in the coral.

Then, we went to the aquarium. It was super shallow compared to the channel, but was still really fun. We saw a blue irradescent flounder and a few more nurse sharks free swimming around the reef. Then, we went to a patch reef off Middle Caye. I saw lots of puffer fish and a huge brain coral.

I saw lots of herbivorous fish today! I saw a new parrot fish munching on the coral. I think it was a Red banded parrot fish. Today, was the first day that I could hear the parrot fish’s teeth scraping the algae off the coral. I also saw a huge school of Acanthurus coeruleus (Blue tang surgeonfish).

After lunch, we dissected the lion fish that Scott and Javi caught throughout the week! It was really cool. Mine and Tian Tian’s fish was a large male! After collecting physical measurements of the fish, we made ceviche. It was the best ceviche I have ever had! We took ceviche to one of the other islands and watched the sun set.

2017, Uncategorized

Day 6: Perspective Shift (05/21/2017)

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It can take very little to shift a perspective.

Five days ago when I snorkeled for the first time, I felt overwhelmed with the entire situation. My mind was overloaded – unable to find the balance between managing my fins and mask, observing my surroundings, staying afloat, and not getting water in my snorkel tube at the same time.

Each day marked an increased fluidity in the water, but this morning, I felt much more capable than ever before. I could focus less on the technical and more on the experience. This, in addition to the abundance of lively fish at the backreef, created an extremely rewarding explorative experience.

Today’s reef was shallow with large mounds of coral, saturated with brightly colored fish swimming in every direction. The fish were juveniles and adults, swimming individually or in schools, and represented every shade of color imaginable.

I encountered many noteworthy creatures today at the reef – two more donkey dung sea cucumbers (Holothuria Mexicana) covered in algae, as well as urchins (Class Echinoidea) and many brittle stars (Class Ophiuroidea) underneath rubble. The sea cucumber and urchins were sedentary, but the brittle stars scrambled to conceal themselves as soon as they were exposed. Size-wise, the urchins were on the small side, hovering about two inches in diameter, while both sea cucumbers were over a foot long. The brittle stars ranged from two-inches in diameter to about seven inches in diameter.

Holothuria mexicana and Homo sapiens

I spotted another porcupine fish (Diodon hystrix) concealed under a rocky ledge. There were also many yellow-tail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) swimming around in groups. Today’s most vivid sighting was a scorpionfish (Genus Scorpaena), cryptically colored in shades of brown and beige to assimilate into the seafloor.

Today, I realized my own perspective shift. Snorkeling no longer felt foreign to me, and I could fully immerse myself in the rich aquatic life surrounding me, creating my most fulfilling experience yet.

I am more excited than ever to see what tomorrow will bring.