One of our activities on the coast was snorkeling with a guide. Our guides were very knowledgeable about the area and the organisms that we saw. One of them was even a professional photographer and shared the underwater pictures he took with us. My favorite sight during the excursion was a green sea turtle.
Our guides explained some of the symbiotic relationships within the marine habitats we observed. Our first snorkeling spot was covered in sea urchins, and we saw many damselfish swimming around. Our guides explained how the fish and urchins eat the same type of algae but have different methods. The urchins move around and eat free growing algae from the sand and rocks. The damselfish build small algae gardens under rocks and in small caves. They grow these gardens and use them as their food source. This has made the fish very territorial, and they can often be found protecting their homes from other fish trying to enter.
Another cool sighting was a moray eel. Later we learned a good bit about these eels from another student’s species report. We learned that they are elongated, scale-less fish with a mucus layer to protect from the salt. They can get up to 10 feet long and can live 36 years. They also have two sets of jaws to help with eating.
On this excursion we also explored and learned about mangroves. There we saw an adolescent crocodile. We also went to an aquaculture site where they were researching certain fish. They were looking at tank size and the species and how it related to how much they grow. They wanted to find the best way to cultivate certain species so we do not have to fish for them.
