Wild Tobago

Anjani Ganase reflects on the effects of devastating hurricanes on human communities and wonders if we can adapt before catastrophes force change   “I remember Flora. I was 12 years old. Schools were dismissed early. But my father still was not able to pick us up until the usual time. We went from Port of Spain through Maraval and into Santa Cruz on roads without traffic – everyone was home already.   The sky was gray and the streets slippery with driving rain. It was my earliest remembered experience of howling wind and bending trees. This impression of powerful nature has never left me; and Trinidad was on the periphery of Flora. I learned of the devastation to Tobago, the destruction of the cocoa plantations and the people who died only after I was old enough to find out.”    My mother’s memory of Flora is vivid and forceful.   I have lived in proximity to hurricanes all my life, though I have never felt the full force. I’ve only he...

Although the ocean occupies more area than the land, land-based species are impacting the ocean in untold ways.   Dr Anjani Ganase looks at some findings from current research in ocean science. Deep ocean impacts from hurricanes Scientists from New Zealand discovered that some cyclones in the Pacific Ocean may leave behind a biological marker in the ocean that is stored in the sediments of the ocean. Scientists observed a large phytoplankton (micro-organisms living suspended in the water) bloom following Cyclone Oma off the coast of Vanuatu. Cyclones form as the ocean surface heats up. The cyclone cools any area in its path by churning up the water and at times even drawing cold and nutrient rich waters up from the deep. The phytoplankton take the opportunity to feed on the nutrients and multiply. In nearshore environments, cyclones ejected large amounts of water over land masses resulting in significant run off of land-based nutrient that results in algal ...

Faraaz Abdool is looking for the Abaco Parrot; and though the prognosis appears bleak, he is hoping that these ground-nesting birds found cover on other islands of the Bahamas during the long rain of Dorian. All photos by Faraaz Abdool Hurricanes are massive rotating weather systems packed with howling winds and torrential rain. Birds are tiny, feathered creatures, some weighing no more than a few grams. It’s almost unfathomable that many birds are able to weather storms which flatten entire habitats. The truth is the ability of a bird to survive one of these mega-storms depends on a few factors. Firstly, let’s consider how different birds deal with an approaching weather system. Some prefer to hunker down while others take to the sky in last-ditch attempts to escape. A particular species’ predisposition to stay or flee is crucial in determining how well it fares in extreme weather conditions. As a hurricane forms over the open ocean, seabirds are the firs...

How will climate change impact Trinidad and Tobago? What will sea level rise mean for settlements on coastal fringes, including Trinidad’s Port of Spain and Tobago’s bayside communities? Dr Anjani Ganase, marine scientist, spells out predictions of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) Special Report 1.5, and makes an urgent call to action.   Since the beginning of the industrial era (1880-1900), just over a hundred years ago, humans have put enough carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to raise the global temperature by nearly one degree Celsius. This is rapid accelerated warming; before that, historical changes in the planet’s temperature occurred over several hundred-thousands of years. Even then it was associated with mass extinction events. Today, the global community is treading a dangerous path, almost past the point of no return. Our future will be hotter and more extreme; temperatures will continue to rise because of what we’ve already pumped into the atm...

Anjani Ganase, marine biologist, looks at how hurricanes affect coral reef ecosystems Coral reef ecosystems are shaped by their surroundings. The amount of light they receive, the temperature of the water column, even the movement of the water (currents) all govern whether a coral species can survive and reproduce. As corals are only mobile during their larval phase, the spot where they choose to settle and grow becomes a very important choice; not too hot or cold, just enough light and shelter. As a result, we find shifts in coral reef types as environments change. However, despite a coral’s ability to adapt to long-term environmental conditions, similar to us on land, coral reefs can also be devastated by large disturbances that bring destruction or death. One example is hurricanes. Hurricane force winds uproot trees and damage infrastructure on land. These same winds drive intense wave surges along coastlines, causing violent and irregular water movement that can b...