Welcome to Cayos Cochinos!

Today, June 29, 2015, we arrived at the Turtle Bay Eco resort on one of the Bay Islands called Cayos Cochinos. This island is located south of Roatán off of the coast of La Ceiba. We were introduced to snorkeling and spent about an hour and a half exploring one of the reefs near the shore. During this time I was given a glimpse at a portion of the diversity of the coral reefs that are around the Cayos Cochinos Island. On this excursion we did not exceed depths of about fifteen feet. Professor Gilchrist supplemented our snorkel with short lectures about the reef we were snorkeling in and informed us of species we would commonly see and those that posed a danger to us that should be avoided. Additionally, she spoke about snorkeling etiquette, emphasizing the importance of not disturbing any species in the coral reef by stirring up the soot with our flippers while trying to remain stationary. Overall, today served as a great orientation for what we will be doing for the next three weeks. We were given time to unwind from the long hours spend traveling earlier in the day and had a chance to meet everyone on the island. I was pleasantly surprised that we got to spend time in the water and exploring the island today!

Cushion Sea Star (Oreaster reticulatus)