Wild Tobago

Scientists are finding out more about the creatures in the ocean even as they continue to be threatened by human-induced global warming, Dr Anjani Ganase looks at recent research on coral reefs, dolphins, whale sharks and jellyfish. How will they survive human traffic and warmer oceans?   Sharks thrive in the Marine Protected Area off Cuba, Jardines de la Reina. Credit: Philip Hamilton / Ocean Image Bank Protected coral reefs mean more fish Marine Protected Areas (MPA), according to scientific studies, account for about 10% of global fish stocks. Existing MPAs make up just 8.4% of the ocean and merely 3% are fully protected and equivalent to 1244 reefs around the world. A study led by the University of Sydney in Australia has estimated the amount of fish biomass in the world’s ocean that results from the presence of no-take, marine protected areas. The study reveals the importance of MPAs to boosting fish productivity especially when associated with cora...

Carnival is over. And we may be proud of the clean streets on Ash Wednesday. But where does it all go: the glitter, the beads, mylar strips, armbands, feathers, zippers and flag poles, plastic and metallic supports? Dr Anjani Ganase suggests we take a sober look at waste generated by Carnival, and make better plans for the next one. Carnival is rags, flags, beads, feathers and bumsies set in motion to a soca beat. It is symbolic of excess in every way but an integral part of our culture. While the drinking, wining and waving can be put away for another year, the materials in the costumes, the single use plastic containers, cups and cutlery used to water and feed people on the road used on two days of masquerading, as well as at the fetes happening in the two months leading up to carnival can amount to more than a hill of garbage. Hundreds of thousand masqueraders and revellers generate a huge amount of plastic waste. The majority of this will end up in land fills, in our drains a...