Data collection began as usual (early!) – with our water taxi trek to Bailey’s Key and prepping for getting in the water to collect observations. The young boys were enamored of Kathleen’s fins! But she is resourceful! Kathleen laid on the platform to hold the MVA in the water for a few minutes before sliding into the water (left, below) and staying in the shallow area (right, below).
Buzz got a tad rambunctious with his mom who decided he would swim with her for the morning. Rocky and Sandy were playing chase, so it was just Tank who had to circle swim and get close to Kathleen. You can see him next to her in the featured photo! Another screengrab of Tank is below – but he is VERY close … it’ll be hard to do behavior when just his side is visible on screen!
The rest of our group split up to either dive or snorkel for the morning. The snorkel boat went East up to the mangroves and the wreck and then offered a second snorkel on the way back to AKR. You can see some of our group in the water on that second entry below. The water was clear and warm!
Everyone got back in time for a yummy lunch followed by another talk from Jennifer. This one was on sea turtles. Let’s hope the talk is lucky for sea turtle sightings on one of our next water entries! Afternoon dives were had by several folks, as were a few short power naps! They were needed to rest up for Fiesta Night! The Garifuna were fun to watch.
The ribs and other food (including brownies!) were delicious! It’s hard to believe our week is more than half-way over!
Cheers
DCP’s May 2026 Ecotour Team
P.S. Thanks to Christine, DCP’s streak is ALIVE! She won the dance contest! Woohoo!