CaymANNature

03/09/2024

01/09/2024

Neoregnellia - Neoregnellia cubensis is a Critically Endangered shrub.
Leaves Alternate
Flowers – crimson petals, calyx dark brown
Fruit a 5-lobed capsule
Flora of the Cayman Islands by George R. Proctor 2012 p.295, Pl.18
Neoregnellia is a monotypic genus endemic to the Greater Antilles
Native range - Cuba to Hispaniola, Cayman Islands (Grand Cayman).

The native range of this species is Cuba to Hispaniola, Cayman Islands. It is a shrub and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

30/08/2024

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipomoea_imperati

Ipomoea imperati, the beach morning-glory (a name it shares with Ipomoea pes-caprae), is a species of flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae. Like Ipomoea pes-caprae, its seeds disperse by floating in seawater. It has been found on the sandy shores of every continent except Antarctica.[2]

30/08/2024

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipomoea_pes-caprae

Ipomoea pes-caprae, also known as bayhops, bay-hops, beach morning glory, railroad vine,[3] or goat's foot, is a common pantropical creeping vine belonging to the family Convolvulaceae. It grows on the upper parts of beaches and endures salted air. It is one of the most common and most widely distri...

30/08/2024

Ipomoea imperati - Beach Morning Glory white flowers - open in the morning, grows on the beach. Not common.

25/08/2024

The endemic Grand Cayman curly-tailed lizard (Leiocephalus carinatus varius), also known as the “lion lizard

The endemic Grand Cayman curly-tailed lizard (Leiocephalus carinatus varius), also known as the “lion lizard,” is a common sight on Grand Cayman. This is a West Indian family of lizards, native to the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Cuba. It was introduced intentionally in Palm Beach, Florida, in the 1940s in an attempt to control sugar cane pests.

Lion lizards prefer isolated beach areas where they bask in the sun. They can be recognised by their characteristic curly tail which is often arched over their back. Scientists think that they use tail curling as an antipredator measure when being chased. This behavior is usually seen when the predator is distant, as it is an attempt to intimidate would-be pursuers, but when the predator is close, the lizard seeks immediate refuge in a burrow or cavity. These cute little lizards seem as brave as lions until you get too close when they will scurry away to their favourite hiding spot. We love our Cayman endemic species!


Photo: Jeff Mitton

19/08/2024

A dark body stealthily swims through a lake with only a snakelike head poking above the surface. What may sound like the Loch Ness monster is actually an Anhinga, swimming underwater and stabbing fish with its daggerlike bill. After every dip, it strikes a regal pose on the edges of shallow lakes an...

19/08/2024

Anhinga, Snake bird

We’re seeing more Anhingas in Cayman than ever before! The name means “devil bird” in Brazil, but it is also called "water turkey" for its turkey-like tail, or “snake bird” because of its flexible neck. They’re large birds with a wingspan of about 4 ft and can be found in shallow, slow-moving, sheltered waters with nearby perches and banks for drying and sunning. Ordinarily, they only occasionally pay us a visit, but this year we’ve seen quite a few and some appear to have even settled down to raise their young.

Anhingas have unique characteristics to help them catch fish. In order to dive down and stay for prolonged periods to catch their prey, they don’t have waterproof feathers, unlike almost all other water birds. Instead, their wet feathers and dense bones help them slowly submerge their bodies where they use their wings to glide through the water to stalk unsuspecting fish. They may swim with just their neck and head above the water resembling a small Loch Ness monster, or glide underwater for extended periods using their spear-like beak to stab and eat fish. Their very flexible neck is due to loosely connected vertebrae that give them the flexibility to quickly dart to catch their fast prey. It’s a great hunting technique, but their feathers become waterlogged so they must spread their wings and sit in the sun to dry off - a distinguishing characteristic of this species.

Photo by Denny Swaby

27/07/2024

https://www.unesco.org/en/days/mangrove-ecosystem-conservation

26 July

05/07/2024

Hurricane Beryl barrels through Cayman Islands after battering Jamaica

Category 3 storm with wind speeds of up to 120mph continues to wreak ‘utter devastation’ in Caribbean

05/07/2024

A rare, powerful early season storm, Hurricane Beryl, skirted the Cayman Islands, Thursday, bringing heavy rain and storm surge.

23/06/2024

Birds that swoop or dart to catch bugs in flight are called aerial insectivores—and they need your help.

10/06/2024

Cayman Sage comes back from the brink

Cayman Sage is a flowering herb native exclusively to Grand Cayman. Originally described in 1900 under a different name, and then published as a unique species by Proctor in 1986, it was suspected to have become extinct until rediscovered growing in the road verge on the Queen’s Highway in 2007.

Although this wild population has apparently died out, seeds collected from it and grown in the QE II Botanic Park have now generated multiple generations of this plant in very large numbers, planted out in the Botanic Park and elsewhere.

This species is classed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List, and is protected under the National Conservation Act (“NCA”), Schedule 1 Part 1 as protected at all times.

The objective of this Conservation Plan is to restore a self-sustaining population of Cayman Sage in the wild, and to ensure an abundant population in cultivation protects the genetic diversity of the species and serves as a reserve during the restoration phase and beyond.

Strategies include propagating large numbers of the plant in collaboration with QEII Botanic Park and allow the park to sell Cayman Sage plants to the public on Grand Cayman only. The public are also encouraged to plant it in gardens and diverse habitats throughout Grand Cayman.

Public Consultation – May 30th – June 30th 2024

The public are invited to submit comments on a plan to conserve Salvia caymanensis, known locally as Cayman sage and submit comments through an online survey available at:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RKLDZ9D

A copy of the proposal may be downloaded from https://conservation.ky/2024/05/29/salvia-caymanensis-cayman-sage/ or a hard copy may be picked up from the Department of Environment offices at Environmental Centre 580 North Sound Road.

The public may also send questions or comments in writing by email to [email protected], by hand delivery to DoE offices (per the address above), or by mail to PO Box 10202, Grand Cayman KY1-1002.

19/04/2024

Great Southern White butterflies (Ascia monuste) nectaring on Logwood flowers, April 17, 2024.

13/04/2024

Blechum and Malachite