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Eleuthera Ponds

14 images Created 10 Dec 2015

Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas has almost 200 in-land ponds and blue holes. Some of these hold amazing treasures like a yet-to-be described cave shrimp. One pond hosts the the highest density of seahorses in the world. Some are already altered and degraded from human activities. All of the ponds are under threat from development, invasive species and pollution. Protections are desperately needed.

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  • A blue hole is a collapsed cave that, cut off from the ocean, often holds unique species and rare archological finds. This is an un-named blue hole on Eleuthera Island in The Bahamas.
    Bahamian Blue Hole
  • An almost blind Bahamas Cave Fish (Lucifuga) survives just fine in the darkness of deep blue hole.
    Bahamas Cave Fish.jpg
  • Three lined seahorses (Hippocampus erectus) feed on plankton at night.
    Seahorse Pond.jpg
  • A red cave shrimp feasting on a dead crab that has fallen into an in-land pond on Eleuthera, Bahamas. Directly under the opening is a silty plain that is covered in the shrimp. When a possible food source falls into the pond the lucky shrimp will swim up off the bottom to avoid competition.
    Scavenger
  • An inland pond on Eleuthera with an especially high density of shrimp. This pond is currently under threat of development as trees surrounding the area have been chopped down. Plans are highly secret. Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas has almost 200 in-land ponds. Some of these hold amazing treasures like a yet-to-be described cave shrimp. One pond even holds the record for the highest density of seahorses in the world. All of the ponds are under threat from development, invasive species and pollution. Protections are desperately needed.
    ShrimpDensity
  • Researcher Rob Drummond uses nets to catch red cave shrimp in an unnamed pond for biological analysis.
    Scientist
  • The Ocean Hole is an inland pond or blue hole located on Eleuthera Island, Bahamas. It is believed to be over 600 feet deep and is located directly behind a school. A long time ago fish from the ocean were brought into the pond. It is likely these introduced species ate all the native species. Now the introduced fish rely heavily on food from locals and tourists alike. The Ocean Hole park is a major tourist attraction for this Bahamian out island.
    Dependence
  • Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas has almost 200 in-land ponds. Some of these hold amazing treasures like a yet-to-be described cave shrimp. One pond even holds the record for the highest density of seahorses in the world. All of the ponds are under threat from development, invasive species and pollution. Protections are desperately needed.
    Eleuthera Inland Ponds005.jpg
  • Once blue holes are discovered they become human-infested garbage bins.
    BlueHoleStory07.jpg
  • A Caribbean reef octopus (Octopus briareus) hunting in an alkaline pond in The Bahamas.
    Dinner Time
  • Dr. Heather Mason-Jones of the University of Tampa uses a syringe to tag the tiny seahorse.
    BlueHoleStory09.jpg
  • Dr. Heather Mason-Jones uses a black light to check whether the seahorse has been tagged. The yellow and pink splotches near the top of the fish indicate this is a tagged seahorse.
    Tagged Seahorse
  • Large channel clinging crabs (Mithrax spinosissimus) form a small fishery in The Pond. The fisherman only take a single claw from a crab. The claw will grow back and because the crab survives it has a good chance of remaining sustainable.
    Fishery
  • Scuba diving tourism is a possible way for islanders to gain income from a non-destructive use of the ponds.
    Explore
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Shane Gross

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