Wild Tobago

Shivonne Peters, marine scientist and consultant, writes about her recent visit to Barbados and suggests what Tobago might take from that island’s efficient hospitality industry   Countries around the world are attempting to restart economic activities as Covid-19 is becoming more manageable. In the Caribbean, tourism, the region’s main economic driver, is on the uptick as many visitors, especially from North America   and Europe, are   starting to travel. My recent trip to Barbados was more than a vacation as I was curious to see why tourism was thriving in that beautiful island; and what best practices we might adopt in Tobago to make our product more attractive and competitive on a regional and global scale. One may wonder if the tourism products on these two islands are so different. In my view, it seems to come down to three things: the treatment and care of the marine environment; customer service; and the mindset of tourism operators. Tiami...

  Faraaz Abdool returns to Tobago’s Main Ridge Forest Reserve. Birds are everywhere. Who knows what we might find in these easily accessible forests, with a knowledgeable guide? (All photos courtesy Faraaz Abdool)   An adult male Blue-backed Manakin at the lek. Squelching through one of the many muddy trails leading into the Main Ridge Forest Reserve, I drew in a sharp, deep breath. The crisp, cool mountain air rushed into my lungs, satisfying my soul on so many levels. The pandemic had brought a months-long separation between me and Tobago’s lush rainforest. Finally, this spell was broken, and I was back. Blooming side by side, the vivid vermilion flowers of the invasive immortelle almost overshadowed the Olympic torch-like flowers of the native bois flot tree. Both species of trees provided a banquet to countless nectar and fruit seekers. From oropendolas to honeycreepers, the canopy was abuzz with activity. The raucous calls of the Rufous-vented Chachalacas were inter...

  Clicks and buzzes on coral reefs suggest that there is communication by sound under the sea. Who is speaking? And what might they be saying? Dr Anjani Ganase discusses research on sounds emitted by fish. For life in the ocean, water becomes the ideal medium for communicating by sound compared to air. Sound travels five times faster and much further distances in water compared to air. When it comes to other communication methods, by comparison, the use of smell (olfactory) or sight is limited to much smaller spaces. While this may not be obvious on the brightly lit shallow, buzzing coral reefs, for most of the ocean that is in low light or no light conditions, sound becomes very important. Most studies of sound communication listen to large marine mammals, who use sophisticated sounds patterns to communicate with each other and to navigate distances of hundreds of kilometres. Less understood are the sounds used by fish to communicate with each other at close range, or whether th...

  Dr Anjani Ganase considers the lessons learned from fossil fuels as we shift to renewables, and urges a shift from continuous growth to an ideal of wellbeing.   COP26 called for rapid transitions over the next decade to keep global temperature rise below 1.5 C for the benefit of humankind. But the need to transition our energy sources away from fossil fuels to renewable alternatives in the face of climate change brings different risks. And unless the lessons learnt from the rampant expansion and exploitations of the fossil fuels industry are not applied (through regulations) to the development of the renewable industry, we will continue to experience significant losses in biodiversity through habitat loss and degradation. Scientists have estimated that the Anthropocene – era of humankind - has produced the sixth mass extinction with a range of 150,000 – 260,000 species lost over the last 500 years which is about 100 - 1000 times higher than backgroun...