This post contains student writing.
July 7
On Friday, we had a day packed with fun in the form of 4 snorkels! Our first two snorkels of the day were at different coral reefs where our knowledgeable guides taught us about the biodiverse life present in the reefs. We saw many different types of fish, coral, and even more including nurse sharks! We stopped at a small island for lunch and to relax by tanning, swimming off the dock, and chilling in hammocks before our next snorkel off the island, and oh, there was a trampoline! We snorkeled in a shallow reef and experienced things even more up close. After returning to Tobacco Caye, we held a competition to see who could name the most species that we had seen out on the reef during our snorkels.
We then got ready for our amazing night snorkel! After separating into small groups, our expert snorkelers guided us off of the dock into the dark. We triggered bioluminescence in the water by turning off our lights and flipping our fins really hard in the water. Bioluminescence is triggered by motion so the harder we kicked, the more the blue lights showed up. We then stopped looking at the “stars” below us to the actual stars above us. On that snorkel, we also saw two nurse sharks that crept up on us, some lobsters, a couple octopus, and even the friendly local eels, Derreck and Kyle! Swimming in the dark was a wonderful way to end our day and get in touch with the nocturnal side of the wonderful Meso-American Coral Reef!
July 8
Our last full day in Tobacco Caye was filled with fun. We started off our morning with a coral study, which consisted of snorkeling the barrier of the island and collecting data on the coloration and condition of coral in the area. The data we collected contributed to the study researchers are doing on the coral right now. After lunch, we dissected Lion Fish! don’t worry, they are an invasive species that devastates ecosystems all around the Caribbean. Students spent their afternoons immersing themselves in lion fish knowledge as well as ocean conservation efforts, such as picking up nurdles on the beach, which are little plastic pellets manufacturers use to make plastic products, detrimental to the ocean and its living creatures. although we are all sad to say goodbye, we had a wonderful time at Tobacco Caye, and really took advantage of all the education and fun opportunities this place had to offer.
