Programs Blog

November 4, 2024 

Location: Dominica 

Weather: 88˚ F, and I have AC now so I can sleep comfortably 

Hi, I’m Claire, and I’m back again on the blog to tell you about science stuff we did in Anguilla. If you don’t remember me (because you’re a prospective student clicking through the past blog entries of programs to see what the people doing in them experienced, and randomly chose this one (bad choice, I stink at writing), I’m a Junior at Macalester College in Minnesota doing Biology and Environmental Studies, and I’m originally from DC. That out of the way, let’s do science! 

A few days ago we went out to do reef surveys at Sandy Hill Bay in Anguilla. It was hot out of the water, cold in the water, and the waves were rough enough that we called it quits after the third of four planned transects (which are just the things we put down and take data on stuff nearby), but, hey, that’s better than Isaac Bay in St. Croix where we only got two done. Anyways, this was our first location on this island, and it’s a snapshot into what reefs around Anguilla look like. For one, it’s bigger than the others we have seen. There’s more coral, but it’s actually bleaching in a weird order. Along with that, on our recon day the day before, we went out to try to see the seagrass bed that was right next to the reef where our professors had come down this summer to check out the reefs to study and people to connect with, but the seagrass wasn’t where we expected it. It was empty sand. 

So what did I learn from Sandy Hill Bay? Science is weird. We try to describe our surroundings as best we can and explain the phenomena we see, but we don’t really know what’s going on at every place all the time. Corals that normally bleach first are sticking around, corals that normally stick around are bleaching fast, and the seagrass that was thriving just next door a few months ago is gone. Then again, we could’ve got it all wrong, and we looked in the wrong spot and it wasn’t there in the first place. Either way, oh well, science isn’t an exact science. Sandy Hill bay was still a lot of fun despite somewhat rough conditions the day we did our survey. It was uncomfortable, but I’m really proud of all the work we were able to get done and the effort we are all putting into these reef surveys. 

Sending love to everyone back home wherever my home happens to be, and shout out to all the people here, I’m loving our travels together. Technically I’m finishing up this writing from Dominica, so goodbye Anguilla, you were a lot of fun, and I may never end up returning, but I had a great time, and I hope I do return at some point. Thanks to all, see you soon.