We started our day this morning with a very loud and early 6AM alarm. After eating breakfast, we got ready to do our first dives. We went out to the boat and drove to our first site, where we were briefed about what to expect on the dive. This dive was at a location called the “School House” and it was a 35 minute dive where we reached a maximum depth of 60 feet. Even at the deep depths, the water was warm enough to be comfortable without a wetsuit. After this dive, we took a 45 minute break and then went to do our second dive. This dive also had a 60 foot maximum and it was planned to be an hour long dive. During these dives I saw dozens of species of fish. I saw a sergeant major, a small (less than a foot in length) fish that is fairly round. It is white with vertical black stripes and it has a slight yellow color at the top near the dorsal fin. We also saw this fish in Hawaii. The biggest fish I saw on these dives were the Mutton Snapper. I had never heard of a Mutton Snapple before, so I wasn’t able to identify it in the water. However, I will be able to identify it in the future because of its distinct traits and behavior: it only swam in the open water, as it was too big to fit in many of the smaller holes. They were always at least a little over a foot long, they were very round on the top and very flat on the bottom, their mouth is very low on its head, and their color faded from silver at the top to a light read near its belly. This dive was also our first encounter with the wide variety of Caribbean coral. One of my favorite corals that I saw on this dive was the Colpophyllia natans, also know as the Giant Brain Coral. It is a hermatypic coral, meaning that it is a hard coral that builds reefs by depositing hard calcareous material for its skeleton. It is a large and round coral that has a yellowish color. It got its name the ‘Brain Coral’ because of the patterns on the corals surface resemble the patterns of brain matter. The coral receives its yellow color from the zooxanthellae, a microscopic algae that lives within the coral polyps. The zooxanthellae and coral polyps work together in a symbiotic relationship. The zooxanthellae provides the polyp with food through photosynthesis by using the sunlight in the water to convert the CO2 and H2O molecules in the polyp tissue into oxygen and carbohydrates. In return, the polyp gives the zooxanthellae protection, a home, nutrients, and CO2. After these dives, we came back for some much needed lunch and rest. We then divided into two groups to debate whether or not stingray city is ‘good’. At Stingray City, thousands of tourists each day are invited in the water to feed and hold stingray. I said that stingray city was harmful for the stingrays because of all of the noise pollution and chaos that causes stress, the inability for the stingray to leave because of their dependence on humans for food, the study that shows stingrays at Stingray City having weaker immune systems, and the fact that human interaction makes stingrays more aggressive towards each other. However, the opposing side made it clear how essential Stingray City is economically for the island.
