Bahamas Summary ... with a few other tidbits. Well, I must say thank you for all your patience in waiting for the summary of my field research in the Bahamas. This past month has been crazy busy but I finally have been able to review the slides and video taken while at sea.
We saw some familiar faces (dolphin faces, that is) and two or three new additions to the study population of Atlantic spotted dolphins. It was a joy to get re-acquainted with these dolphins after my time in Japan.
Dolphins, turtles, sharks and fish. We had 25 sightings this week - 13 of spotted dolphins, 5 just bottlenose dolphins and 2 with both species involved. We also had 4 turtle sightings and a few nurse sharks seen, and swum with! We spent 53 hours on effort/on watch looking for dolphins and about 85 minutes underwater with dolphins during 10 encounters and 10 short encounters. We even had a four minute swim with 7 bottlenose dolphins! They seem to be getting a bit less aloof with us up here on the banks.
The sunrise was colorful and the breeze slight. Yesterday afternoon brought us to anchor just north of Sandy Cay. About 14 feet deep and clear visibility with no current. We went in search of conch and lobster for supper. But also it was fun just to observe the critters underwater. We did see a 6 foot nurse shark pass by within 10 feet of two of us while snorkeling. This morning brought more snorkeling and glassy seas. Almost mirror like - it was amazing.