The dolphins were quietly social – not much activity at the surface but some interactions underwater. We brought our gear to the session because we had a quick breakfast then went on the snorkel boat at 8:30 AM. (Activity starts early on Roatan!) We went to “Mandy’s Eel Garden” which is affectionately called the Aquarium. It felt like we were snorkeling in an aquarium among the fishes. Our afternoon included…
Tag: RIMS
Thursday – Dolphins, Birds, Iguanas, & Turtles
An animal-filled day is what we all had! Of course, it began with dolphins and data collection – underwater video by Kathleen and surface observations and space use data by our student teams. Tank, Lenca, Buzz and Stan swam circles around Kathleen a few times this morning. Shereen did some bird watching, several of us watched the iguanas on the key…
In the water with dolphins
The morning was filled with dolphins! We had our morning data collection and did a full set of space use data collection while Kathleen was in the water collecting video data. Then, after breakfast, we encountered and swam with dolphins. We met Bailey during our encounter, and Tank swam by and around us also. The swim with the dolphins was insightful …
Dawn to Dusk (and beyond) in and on the water!
A bright sunny sky greeted us this morning as we boarded the water taxi for Bailey’s. The dolphins were VERY vocal and playful. Champ, Lenca, Stan, Tank, Rocky, and Sandy all enjoyed playing with Kathleen’s fins, much to her chagrin! Poli’s calf was observed nursing. Ronnie played with seagrass and Gracie and Trixie played with seagrass together. After a yummy breakfast, we had lectures from Kristin and Richard to set the academic stage for the week. Then Kathleen and Manon…
Dolphins!
Our first full day began early! We met at the water taxi at 6:15 AM for our brief ride to Bailey’s Key where we were met by nearly all the dolphins! They whistled and postured and played. It was a great first morning, despite the rain drops. We had a brief introduction to the dolphins, the Key, and the research and peppered Kathleen and Manon with LOTS of questions.
Breakfast was followed by our delayed orientation talk by Jen Keck…
Arrived Safely! One group on time, one very delayed.
First, Happy Mother’s Day!
Second, we arrived in two groups on two different flights. Kathleen, Manon, Kristin, Poppy, Liz, and Marriah came through Miami and arrived on time – it was the first time Kathleen and Manon were 3rd in the immigration line! We actually had to wait for our bags to come out! Richard, Giulia, Katariina, Shereen, Anna, Daniel, and Amalia flew in from Houston and had about a 5+ hour delay … for a variety of reasons. But they all made it safely and in time for a yummy first dinner together.
A Weird Version of Groundhog Day – not quite the movie!
Packing. Reviewing my lists (yes, I’m a list person). And, confirming everything is ready for the field.
We (Manon and I) will be at Anthony’s Key Resort (AKR) for four weeks with three groups to study the dolphins and learn about our research, the environment, and lots of other related stuff.
The first group is a new field program from York University in Toronto, Canada, with Dr. Kristin Andrews. The second is a Colorado State University (CSU) group with Dr. Shane Kanatous. The third group is a mini-ecotour.
Travel Home and Trip Summary
Everyone got home safely on Saturday! And, I think everyone took Sunday to rest up … and maybe do some laundry and get caught up on mail and … maybe play with a puppy or other furry family member (I know I did!).
Our program was a success with students learning and….
Got your Green on Today?!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Our last day began well with a great data collection session on the dolphins. They were quieter today than previous days. They perked up as did we after breakfast when we had our encounter and swim. We met Gracie and Alita during the encounters and then got to swim with a dozen dolphins with Poli and her calf making tight passes by us and Sandy, Trixie, and Buzz trying to get us to play with seaweed. After our swim, we…
Monkeying Around!
Thursday was jam-packed with a tide-pool observation and flora by the sea assessment before Kathleen’s data collection! And the underwater visibility was SPECTACULAR! Such good long focal follows of the dolphins and even we could begin to ID some of the dolphins from the surface and close swim-by’s.
The late morning was…
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