St. Martiners know all about changing landscapes. Ponds are filled, bush is cleared, roads are cut into the hills. But people aren’t the only ones changing the landscape. As the Christmas winds push the swell in different directions, the beach in Grand Case fills up and disappears. Ponds expand and contract between the wet and …
Sometimes it seems like the whole island is on fire these days: a warehouse in Cole Bay, the hillside above French Cul-de-Sac, piles of yard waste, and St. Martin’s Olympic torch, the Philipsburg landfill. Fire is part of nature—we certainly didn’t invent it. It has also been part of land management in the Caribbean for …
Each island in the Caribbean is both unique and connected to its neighbors. The sea between islands forms a barrier between them that limits movement from island to island, but it isn’t an absolute barrier. The balance between separation and connection keeps our wild spaces in constant change. Major events, like hurricanes, can break down …
Gaïac, Lignum Vitae, Guayacán—there are many names for the tree of life. This tree is a Caribbean original, found only the islands of the West Indies and the Caribbean coast of South America. It is one of the most beautiful and precious trees on the island. It has survived Irma and many trials before. The …
Gaïac, Lignum Vitae, Guayacán—there are many names for the tree of life. This tree is a Caribbean original, found only the islands of the West Indies and the Caribbean coast of South America. It is one of the most beautiful and precious trees on the island. It has survived Irma and many trials before. The …
As we begin a new year, memories of Hurricane Irma are still fresh. On the island, there are still a million reminders of the destruction, big and small. But we’re also moving on. As we turn toward the future, we should try to make it a better one. St. Martin faces many challenges, but at …
2017 was a pretty amazing year for Les Fruits de Mer. Here are a few of the highlights. Our year started strong, with the relaunch of our pop-up natural history museum, Amuseum Naturalis. We remade all our exhibits with big, bright signage and added many new attractions. Special exhibits, including original whale paintings and the …