Category Archives: Antillean Field Journal

Masters of the Ghaut

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week we find out who rules the streams and rivers of St. Kitts. In nature, every habitat needs an animal at the top of the food chain. Often these animals are called an apex predators. They play crucial role in the health …

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Filters of the Ghaut

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week we dive into the freshwater ecosystems of St. Kitts and Nevis to see who keeps the water clean. Ah, the ghaut! Is there any better place to be on St. Kitts or Nevis? The bottoms of these steep ravines are cool …

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Into the Ghaut

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week we dive into the freshwater ecosystems of St. Kitts and Nevis. Ghaut, ghut, gut: however you spell it, it refers to the steep ravines that link hills and mountains to the sea. Nestled in the bottom of some, we find streams …

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A Monkey to Blame?

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, how do you know if something’s wrong in the local ecology, and how do you know what it is? During a February 2017 field visit to St. Kitts and Nevis, I marveled at the forests. There were huge trees, hanging vines, …

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A Night with the Bat People

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, join the bat people to study these furry flying critters on St. Kitts. The bat people don’t have a lot of time to rest. Scientists studying these flying mammals spend their days scouting good locations to catch them and their evenings …

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A Night with the Bat People

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, join the bat people to study these furry flying critters on St. Kitts. The bat people don’t have a lot of time to rest. Scientists studying these flying mammals spend their days scouting good locations to catch them and their evenings …

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A Night with the Bat People

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, join the bat people to study these furry flying critters on St. Kitts. The bat people don’t have a lot of time to rest. Scientists studying these flying mammals spend their days scouting good locations to catch them and their evenings …

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By the Light of the Headlamp

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, we shine a light into a world of darkness in the field on St. Kitts. Beyond the narrow beam of the headlamp, the world is dark. There are no streetlights here, and the forest canopy blocks out the moon and stars …

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Dipping for Diversity

Get an inside look at science as it happens in the Caribbean. This week, we dip into freshwater habitats as part of a biodiversity survey of St. Kitts and Nevis. Take a medium-sized mesh strainer and use some duct tape to secure it to the end of an old broomstick. Voilà, you just made a …

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Into the Field

There are plenty of biologists in the world working in university laboratories and museum basements. In many ways, these indoor environments might be considered the primary natural habitat of the modern biologist. Some, however, are only truly at home when out in the field. In biology, fieldwork is essentially any research that is done outside …

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