Today we journeyed to a part of Cat Cay that is under construction. It intrigued us to snorkel on this part of the island because we were unsure as to the affect that the construction had upon the natural habitats. Jumping into the water, we began surveying the area and were shocked to see that as we drew nearer to the alleged shore, we could barely see any signs of life at all. We also noticed that the shallow water was quite foggy, which made it hard to see. As we got closer to the shore line we began to notice that dredging that had already occurred from construction. Recognizing this, we were able to decipher from the apparent dredging that most animal life had vanished from the area.
This Cassiopia was one of the few animals living in the dredged area.
Snorkeling along we noticed cement and rocks that had been placed there during the period, which was meant to stop erosion from the already dredged sands. However, once we turned the corner, and were clear of the foggy waters, a whole world of natural life flashed before our eyes. We were able to see on the grassy bottom a lot of fish, urchins, anemone, rocks bottoms, several seashells, and natural habitat. After our snorkel Captain John explained that before the dredging the most of the shoreline looked like the undisturbed area around the corner. During our snorkel we learned that development can be quite destructive, but nature can survive along side progress.
Megan and TyvaeAnswers to some of your questions:
Question:
It's great that you've seen all those species! I had some questions
about the loggerhead turtles - why are they named that way? How big do
they grow? What is their average lifespan out in the wild? I
understand that they can hibernate....can you tell me more about that?
Answer:
The loggerhead gets its name because it resembles your typical deep woods loggerman. It is big and built like a linebacker with hardly any neck between its head and shoulders. They typically grow to sizes of up to 4 feet long as adults that weigh in at 200 to 350 pounds. They have been know to live between 15 to 30 years on average but can potentially live much longer. Loggerheads will take regular naps but they are not known to hibernate. They're kind of like a dad after a football game. They need to rest every now and then, but never completely relax.
Question:
Where are the photos of the barracudas and nurse sharks? Show some love
for the people who aren't cool enough to be there, post more pics!
Answer:
We have seen many barracudas along with a few nurse sharks. The reason we don't have many pictures of barracudas is because they tend to blend in with their environment and don't turn out well in the photos.
Question:
What is your favorite animal? What fish to you see the most?
Answer:
Marty's favorite fish is the blue head wrasse. Chris' favorite fish is the porcupine fish. The fish we tend to see the most are the sergeant majors.
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