All posts tagged: cayman islands sharks and rays sanctuary

Spotted: Shark Conservation in Action

In 2009, the Cayman Islands Department of Environment (DOE), in partnership with Marine Conservation International (MCI), began studying Cayman’s sharks.  This initiative was originally sponsored by a UK Darwin Plus grant and by CayBrew’s, Whitetip Fund.  The Darwin Plus project has recently concluded and subsequently, since the beginning of the year, the project is now fully supported locally by CayBrew’s Whitetip Fund and continues to focus on improving shark research and conservation efforts in Cayman. In recent developments and in part due to the hard work and efforts of both DOE and MCI, sharks and rays were included as totally protected species in the December 2013, National Conservation Law the provisions of that law effectively make the waters of the Cayman Islands a shark and ray sanctuary, since April 2015.  Shark research continues in order to monitor Cayman’s shark populations.  The research helps to better understand our sharks and the threats they face which results in better informed management decisions and ultimately more effective protection and conservation.  Providing a safe haven is key to effective …

Best Blog Posts of 2016

  The Best of 2016 Just a few days into the new year, I thought it might be nice to reflect a little on the past.  Most importantly, I would like to thank all of you wonderful readers.  Your support means the world to me.  I am so grateful that you have enjoyed reading my environmental blog.  It has been a journey finding my voice and writing articles for my blog.  I have met some incredible people along the way.  I am very thankful for the amazing contributors to my blog: guest writers and photographers— your contributions have been incredible, thank you.  Collaboration is a wonderful thing.  The biggest milestone for me this year, was the privilege to be published in Mission Blue’s Ocean Stories.  It was an absolute honor. I look forward to writing new posts.  I hope that you will enjoy reading future articles. Here are the Top 5 Blog Posts of 2016 (Please click the links below to read the full article.)   1. The Cayman Islands: A Haven for Sharks & Rays  This article was …

The Cayman Islands: A Haven for Sharks & Rays

Photo Credit: Ellen Cuylaerts The Cayman Islands has built its name and reputation primarily on being a renowned diving destination.  Pioneers in our local diving community over the last few decades contributed to building our diving industry into the premier operation that it is today.  They recognized the exquisite beauty our underwater landscape had to offer and have since then made it accessible for locals and tourists to recreationally experience and explore the beauty that lies below the surface for themselves.  With a desire to showcase our natural resources comes with a commitment to preserve them.  Our duty towards conservation for both land and the ocean is beneficial not just from an environmental perspective but also an economic one.  Our tourism industry is strongly tied to our island’s natural resources.  Ergo, an obvious reason to ensure that our natural resources are protected.  Last year on Earth Day (2015), the Cayman Islands officially became a Sharks and Rays Sanctuary.  The sanctuary expands across all three islands.  This is a positive step towards ecotourism as many tourists …