et newsletter june 2013

En viron men t TO BAGO n ewsl etter

ET President receives Euan P. McFarlane Environmental

Leadership Award

E nvironment TOBA-

GO (ET) is a non-government, non-profit, vol-unteer organisation , not

subsidized by any one group, corporation or government

body.

Founded in 1995, ET is a proactive advocacy group that campaigns against negative environmental activities

throughout Tobago. We achieve this through a variety of community and environ-

mental outreach programmes.

Environment TOBAGO is funded mainly through grants

and membership fees. These funds go back into implement-ing our projects. We are

grateful to all our sponsors over the years and thank

them for their continued

support

W hat’s inside

ET’s News 1

Ecology Notes 8

Articles 9

Book Review 13

Community

Announcements 16

What’s Happening @ ET 17

Notes to contributors 18

June 2013 Environment TOBAGO

Island Resources Foundation announces that Patricia Turpin is the winner of the

2013 Euan P. McFarlane Environmental Leadership Award. This award recognizes over

forty years of continuous service by Turpin to the cause of environmental conservation

and sustainable development on the island of Tobago, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago,

culminating with her service as founding director (1996) and later President of the NGO

“Environment Tobago” (2000). As Managing Director of the Turpin-family -owned Charlotteville Estates in

northeastern Tobago (renowned for generations of high quality environmental stew-

ardship) she has been able to achieve enhanced livelihoods for local residents, while

continually upgrading the quality of environmentally sustainable management of the

Estate. Finally, in addition to her local leadership and her demonstration of the eco-

nomic value of the sustainable use of local resources, Pat Turpin has been a powerful

voice for the special conditions, resilience, and requirements for ecosystem protection

on the small island Tobago, in distinction to its large-island, petro -producing partner,

Trinidad. She has served as President of the national Council of Presidents of the Envi-

ronment (COPE), various national councils and advisory boards, and serves as an Hon-

orary Game Warden for the Cabinet of Trinidad and Tobago. She has also served on

regional United Nations groups, and as a director of the Caribbean Conservation Asso-

ciation. On being notified of the McFarlane Award, Ms. Turpin said, “Through Envi-

ronment Tobago and my work with other groups, we have positively influenced local

and national ecosystem protection practices, the creation of critical national biodiver-

sity legislation, and so much more. I see my role as a steward, empowering others to

protect what is critical to our health and livelihoods — our environment. “ “It has been a privilege working with so many like-minded colleagues in this

arena, locally, nationally and regionally. I intend to continue with this work as long as I

am needed and am capable.” In advancing that agenda, Pat Turpin is currently working

on an on-going reforestation project, the Tobago element of the new Trinidad and To-

bago National Spatial Development Strategy, and an assessment and adaptation plan for

climate change effects for North East Tobago. The selection committee for the Euan P. McFarlane Environmental Leadership

Award offer our sincere congratulations and best wishes to Patricia Turpin for her fu-

ture efforts on behalf of the people and environment of Tobago.

The Euan P. McFarlane Award for Outstanding Environmental Leadership in the Insular Carib-

bean is a cash award, established in 1987, by Laurance S. Rockefeller to provide recognition for

persons demonstrating initiative, resourcefulness and leadership in promoting conservation and

June 2013

Editor:

Jo-Anne Nina Sewlal

Assistant Editor:

Christopher K. Starr

Design & Layout:

Jo-Anne Nina Sewlal

Technical Support:

Jerome Ramsoondar

Enid Nobbee

Contributors:

Jo-Anne Nina Sewlal


Bertrand Bhikkary

Ian Lambie

Environment

TOBAGO

Photographs:

Environment

TOBAGO

Board of Directors

2012-2014

President::

Patricia Turpin

Vice-President:

Bertrand Bhikkary

Secretary:

Wendy Austin

Treasurer:

Shirley McKenna

Other Directors:

William Trim

Kai Trim

Rupert McKenna

Fitzherbert Phillips

Renee Gift

Geoffrey Lewis

Darren Daly

Allan Sandy

Environment TOBAGO newsletter

enhancement of the environment in the insular Caribbean, with priority given to the smaller

islands of the eastern Caribbean. Euan P. McFarlane, after whom this award was named, was until his death in 1983 actively

involved in environmental causes in the Caribbean. He was a former Treasurer and Board

Member of the Caribbean Conservation Association, a Trustee of the Island Resources Founda-

tion, and a founding member of the St. Croix Landmarks Society. Endowment funding was

provided by the late Laurance S. Rockefeller, and the program has been administered since its

inception by Island Resources Foundation, an independent, not-for-profit NGO dedicated to

improved environmental planning for the development of small islands. Nominees for the McFarlane Award should be persons who have applied themselves to the

preservation of the natural or built environment and whose career or avocation demonstrates

an appreciation of and adherence to the advancement of environmental stewardship and bal-

anced development in the Caribbean.

1988 Mr. Yves Renard, St. Lucia

1989 Mr. Mervin Williams, St. Lucia

1990 Mr. Ronald Charles, Dominica

Mr. Arlington James, Dominica

1991 Ms. Alissandra Cummins, Barbados

1992-93 Mr. Kevel Lindsay, Antigua and Barbuda

1994-95 Mr. Jalaludin Ahmad Khan, Trinidad and Tobago

1996-97 Mr. Reginald Murphy, Antigua and Barbuda

Mr. Maurice Widdowson, St. Kitts

1998 Mr. Andrew Simpson, St. Croix, US Virgin Islands

1999 Mr. Ian Lambie, Trinidad and Tobago

2000 Mr. David Robinson, Nevis

2001 Mr. Charles Chavoudiga, Guadeloupe

2002 Jacqueline and Larry Armony, St. Kitts

2003 Dr. Brian Cooper, Antigua

2004 Dr. Joth Singh, Barbados

2005 Ms. Diana McCaulay, Jamaica

2006 Mr. Raymond Walker (posthumously), British Virgin

Islands

2007 Dr. I. Earle A. Kirby (posthumously), St. Vincent and

the Grenadines

2008-09 Mr. Rueben J. Thompson, Sint Maarten

2010 Mr. Albert Hugh “Errol” Harris, Dominica

2011 Mr. Karim V. D. Hodge, Anguilla

2013 Ms. Patricia Turpin, Tobago

M c F A R L A N E A W A R D R E C I P I E N T S


Pride of Tobago

Through collaboration, big ideas can emerge; ideas that can inspire communities to

take on transformational projects that can change the face of society. The ‘Pride of To-

bago’ Project is a Community Development initiative that encourages collaboration

between people, groups, organisations and institutions in a particular community to

come together to learn from each other and collectively solve a problem affecting their

community. The Pride of Tobago Project seeks to revive that Tobago spirit of self-

reliance and cooperation that we were once known for, and in the process assist with

the creation of a caring and nurturing society.

Objectives:

Through this project, the Department of Community Development in Collaboration

with Environment TOBAGO will seek to:

1. Mobilize communities to take an active role in addressing their own community

needs.

2. Instill values of civic pride in our children, youth, adults and the elderly with the aim

of inspiring an attitude change to show care for the environment.

3. Reinforce the importance of locals buying into the branding of Tobago.

4. Encourage innovation, creativity and fund raising.

5. Develop and improve social infrastructure in communities.

6. Encourage collaboration and partnership amongst community groups /organization

and institutions.

7. Highlight the importance of community involvement in social development and plan-

ning.

ET PROJECTS

“ To many p eopl e these tall pea ks make fo r a c hallen ging b ut scenic hike. Bu t they a re not jus t a no the r tall m oun tain to climb . ”


Summer & Easter Eco Camps

Since 2007 we have been running our Summer & EasterEco Camps for groups

of children between the ages of eight to twelve years old in Tobago. Each year the two

-week and hands-on camp has been a proven success; with fieldtrips, arts and crafts,

team building, environmental movies, hikes and discussions all at play, our young

‘graduates’ have left our hands more knowledgeable, aware and understand more

about environmental issues in Tobago.

At Environment TOBAGO we believe that understanding the importance of

the natural environment is of upmost importance and that this can be achieved best

through teaching children to feel responsible via the use of active examples - to engage

and educate in order to raise awareness and to instil knowledge.

Access to (or rather lack of) environmental education materials within Toba-

go’s schools plays a significant role in the alarming rate of misconceptions and misun-

derstandings concerning our natural environmental. Restrictions within the current

education curriculum (and assigned resources) prevent the opportunity to explore and

experience Tobago; children are, for the most part, limited to classroom teachings with

very little hands-on and interactive methodology taking place. Our Eco Camp proposes

to address just this - providing children with the opportunity for hands-on environmen-

tal education; thus enabling the students to develop their own environmental ethic.

Objectives:

1. To develop among students, an appreciation of the natural environment and to stim-

ulate interest and a continued learning about the natural history, ecology and conserva-

tion in Tobago.

2. To enhance student awareness and understanding of ecological processes and how

human interactions impact on the natural environment.

3. To encourage the adoption of positive environmental practices by students as well

as a commitment to conservation and the sustainable use of Tobago’s natural re-

sources.


Wild About Wetlands-Coral Reef and Wetland Sensitization Programme

Tobago’s wetlands are seriously threatened by the abuse and the critical

importance of them to biodiversity and human wellbeing is consistently ignored.

Most wetland areas of Tobago have been destroyed or their capacity severely re-

duced. Now less than one percent (1%) of our land area is covered by wetlands.

What many fail to recognize is that wetlands are closely linked to human

survival and development. The benefits to maintaining healthy wetlands has both a

direct, and positive effect on human health – such as provision of food, clean water,

pharmaceutical products etc. – and the negative effects of mismanaging wetlands that

result in the impairment of our health and even loss of life – through the effects of

water related diseases, floods and water pollution. Yet wetlands continue to be

drained and cleared for agriculture, urban, industrial and tourism developments.

What little we have left, we continue to pollute with domestic and industrial wastes.

We can no longer continue to exploit these vital resources indefinitely. To this end,

Environment TOBAGO seeks to promote awareness in our island’s school about

the importance of Wetlands and why we should protect these gems of nature.

The objective of this project is to further promote awareness, knowledge

and understanding about wetlands and its value to communities in Tobago.

Students from Bishops High School and University of Waterloo participating

in ET's 2013- Coral Reef and Wetlands Education program with Education

Coordinator -Barry Lovelace.



Coral Reef & Wetlands Education Campaign

The Coral Reef and Wetlands Education Campaign (CWREC) 2013, is an

interesting educational programme designed for secondary schools throughout Tobago.

This Campaign has been carded to happen during the third school term (April to June)

of 2013 and has been made possible by the contributions of number of organisations,

all of whom were part of the PCI Media Impact, "My Island, My Community" (MIMC),

Tobago Coalition. Collaborators include:

Environment Tobago (provided content, design and coordination)

PCI Media Impact (provided funding of materials and resources)

Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, THA (provided content

and human resource)

Division of Education, Youth Affairs and Sports, THA (endorsed program and fund-

ed boat trips)

Department of Tourism and Transportation / the Management of the Buccoo Integrat-

ed Facility.

This campaign is based on the rationale

that Tobago's economy in one that relies

heavily on ecosystem services (Coral

Reefs, Beaches, Wetlands, Forests

etc). Tourism and Fisheries for instance,

are major drivers of our economy, and as

we continue to explore the potential of

these industries into the future, it is of

crucial importance that our citizens/

stakeholders (especially our youths) ac-

quire a greater appreciation of the tre-

mendous value ecosystems such as coral

reefs, wetlands and rain forests confer to these industries, and more so, to Tobago's

socio-economic well-being. The Ministry of Education also recognizes this need, by

including in the school curriculum (at all levels), topics that require knowledge of, and

appreciation for, these ecosystem and the services they provide.

As such, the objectives of the CRWEC are to:

To deliver curriculum-relevant content on the value of Wetlands and Coral Reefs

of Tobago to senior students (third to sixth forms) of all secondary schools in Toba-

go .

To engage students in an Experiential Learning Journey (guided mangrove wetland

trek and glass bottom boat tour) of the Bon Accord/Buccoo wetland Complex.

To empower teachers who are responsible for imparting knowledge of the Wetlands

and Coral Reef aspects of the senior school syllabi, with methods, information and re-

source options.

Key messages will include:

Why Coral Reefs and Wetlands are important for Tobago with references to local val-

uation studies of the goods and services Tobago ecosystems provide.

Coral Reef and Mangrove Geography, Ecology and Biology

Climate Change as a threat to coastal ecosystems and our well being

What we can do to conserve and protect these ecosystems – A call to action!

Where and how to find additional resources and information (E.G. Department of

Natural Resources and the Environment, Department of Marine Resources and Fish-

eries, Environment Tobago, Buccoo Reef Trust, Speyside EcoMarine Park Rangers,

North East Sea Turtles)

There are two aspects to this campaign. First, an informative PowerPoint lecture on

topics stated above. Then, an experiential Learning Journey (field trip) of the Buccoo

Reef Wetland Complex. Both aspect can happen on the same day or if preferred, on

different days, according to logistics agreed upon.

This campaign should be of particular interest to Teachers and Students of Geogra-

phy, Biology, Caribbean Studies and Environmental Science, since it will cover topics

in their respective syllabi. However, all students will benefit since the resources be-

long to all.




Guilds and Life-Forms

Jo-Anne Nina Sewlal

Dept of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies

Scientists love to organize things simply because it helps to understand them

better. One such organization method is through the use of guilds and life-forms. A

guild is defined as a group of animal species (related or unrelated) that exploit the same

resources often using the same methods. However, one must not confuse occupying

the same ecological niche with belonging to the same guild. Guilds are also not to be

confused with trophic levels as in this system the animals are placed in each level ac-

cording to what they eat for example, if they eat plants of any kind they are placed in

the herbivores tropic levels. If they feed on herbivores then they are placed in the car-

nivore trophic level.

The term guild is used to emphasize the similarity between these groups and

associations of craftsmen that use similar techniques in their trade. It is not uncommon

to find that the species in a guild are closely related and arose from a common ances-

tor, which would account for their similarity in exploiting the common resource. How-

ever this is not a hard and fast rule and guilds can also contain unrelated species. Be-

cause of this commonality it is not unusual that species compete with each other, killing

and eating each other in some cases. But species do cooperate with one another to

search for food and avoid predators.

There are various ways to define a guild, such as the method used by the spe-

cies to exploit the resources for example, with spiders there are web-builders which

construct webs to catch mostly insects. Then there are active hunters which do not

depend on webs or do not build them altogether but search for and ambush their prey.

Guilds can also be defined based on location. Again using spiders as an example, active

hunters can be further sub-divided into two guilds; plant wanderers and ground wan-

derers based on the location of their hunting grounds. From this one can see that there

are no clearly defined boundaries guild.

Guilds for plants are referred to as life-forms and refers to the plants

“adaptedness” to the environment. Species share similarities within life-forms in that

they may be comprised of related as well as unrelated species and they also compete

for the same resources. However, life-forms contain more flexibility in terms of the

type of life-form they exhibit in that the same species can exhibit different life-forms

depending on the conditions it is growing in for example, deciduous trees shed their

leaves when it becomes cold. Another example includes tree species that are of normal

height and appearance under normal conditions however at certain altitudes they are

reduced to shrubs.

Life-forms and guilds are quite useful when it comes to studying the ecology of

an area. An advantage is that one does not spend money and identify all the species in

an area. The structure and form of the species in the guild can be used as an indication

of the environmental conditions present. Therefore these classifications are beneficial

to both scientists and governments in terms of the time spent gathering biodiversity

information which can used to maintain global biodiversity.

ECOLOGY NOTES


Looking at Better Building Practise in the Face of Sea -Level Rise

Bertrand Bhikarry

Environment TOBAGO

The habit of building close to the coast was a common practice in the old To-

bago days, and no doubt was influenced by harsh memories the general population at

that time bore for the estates further inland. But a century and a half has passed and

new realities exist now. One; the great grand-children of the African slaves who were

brought here are the embedded natives and they have taken charge of their destiny.

Two, the island itself is in the throes of climate change. Which means, among other

problems that will arise, those coastal developments begun well over a hundred years

ago are at risk of the rising ocean. For the island resident fifty years from now, if the

sea level rises even just a meter – and it will, Tobago stands to suffer loss to a major

portion of its road network, most of its tourism accommodation, all of its wetlands,

and more than likely, the port infrastructure. But the real sting would be the cost to

the individual of resettling further back inland. Consider the following ramifications:

Major urban centres will have to be relocated deeper into the hinterland, food will cost

more - since large tracts of agricultural land will become unproductive, and the most

valuable (expensive) tourism properties would need to be rebuilt further away from

the water.

Scientists predict a one meter SLR for this region as soon as 2050. For children

born now, their financial outlook will be horrendous in adulthood. Think of it: If a cou-

ple has a house on the coast at this time, and harbours the expectation their offspring

will have it relatively easy – in part because of an inherited structure, it may arise the

inheritors will have to rebuild elsewhere. In essence those ‘kids’ will not have the luxu-

ry of seaside property as collateral for mortgage financing; since general coastal inunda-

tion would have removed its value.

Is there a way out for the Tobago coastal zone dweller? There could be, but it

would require sweeping changes to the current way of doing things. Given that popula-

tions almost never do things voluntarily though, it may not be the civil sector that

makes those first moves. Indeed present government might want to consider the impo-

sition of a property tax, specifically to be paid by waterfront property owners and us-

ers. Those monies would feed and finance insurance scheme to offset costs of moving

or amelioration to flooded areas. The latter might not be an option, since the reality of

a one meter SLR is not quite a temporary as an overnight flood.

The other option is building dykes. But the cost to keep seawater away from

coastal areas that were developed for different hydrologic situations is not one that

Tobago ought to look at -even if it promises employment as the short term gain. The

better approach is a lateral spatial policy where the water is allowed to come inland,

and allowed to go where it finds its level. However given the old school engineering

tendency here to fight nature, that is yet a lesson for the learning. Actually, in preparing

itself for the big events of the next four decades and onward, Tobago people of the

now might want keep in mind a sobering thought: That they will be searching for solu-

tions to problems that will only manifest after they are gone. But if that’s done well,

there could be no better gift for the children.

ARTICLES

“Is there a way

out for the Toba-

go coastal zone

dweller? “



Will it be Sustainable Tourism including Eco-Tourism or Will it be

Hunting and Bird Catching

Ian Lambie

We have a long way to go before politicians and decision makers put a DOLLAR

VALUE on our country's renewable natural resources, other than when they give

our lands to quarry operators) and to implement adequate land use planning and

appropriate legislation for the proper and sustainable management of these re-

sources.

The government (whether PNM, UNC or PP) believes, from its actions, that

it is exempt from the laws and procedures which were passed in the Parliament for

example, Town and Country Act and the requirement of the EMA Act. Governments

must accept that the environmental laws also apply to the government and to govern-

ment projects. Just think of what is happening with the construction of the San Fer-

nando to Pt. Fortin highway. It appears to me that the government believes that it is

exempt from the laws which require the submission and acceptance of an environ-

mental impact assessment. I am not opposed to the construction of the highway but

the rules relative to the submission to and acceptance by the EMA of the required

environmental impact assessments and other reports, must be followed. I am also of

the opinion that the landowners must also receive, before demolition of their respec-

tive properties, the "market value" for their respective properties, as may be agreed

upon by both parties, in addition to payment for dislocation even if alternative relo-

cation sites are identified. Remember the rise of Hulsie Bhagan and her fight for fair

compensation for lands acquired for the widening of the Uriah Butler Highway (or

was it still the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway). It has also been reported, to com-

pound the "unfair treatment" to the owners and occupiers of the land, that the then

Minister of Works (or was it the Minister for National Security) accompanies a team

of police officers to the site of the proposed highway extension to remove the land

owners from their own land. Could this report be true? It took the Asa Wright Na-

ture Centre 14 years before it received compensation for its lands which had been

acquired in 1981 for quarrying purposes. We now understand that the quarrying

operations on this land is being conducted by a privately-owned company and is

threatening the continued existence of the Nature Centre. There are other govern-

ment construction projects which did not receive the approval of the EMA. The

construction of an aluminium smelter in South Trinidad (now either abandoned or put

on the "back burner"). However the forest cover was already removed from the

site even before the necessary permission had been granted by the EMA; and what of

the proposed development of Port Facilities at Charlotteville, Tobago etc. etc.

Imagine that a Minister by the stroke of her pen over-ruled the decision of

the professionals at the EMA and give permission to quarry operators to destroy an

area equivalent to 2550 Acres (17 parcels each not exceeding 150 acres) or approxi-

mately 13 times the size of the Queens Park Savannah. ..... Just so? Dat is Power

eh!!!! It is my belief that this and similar "job related" frustrations caused my friend

and mentor, Professor Julian Kenny to die of "a broken heart". And we talking about

"sustainable development" while priority is given giving to spending "scarce" taxpayers

money on expensive full page colour newspaper advertisements to highlight the

achievements of the government agency in environmental conservation. This money

may be better spent in environmental education programmes aimed at stimulating an

interest among senior students in secondary schools of the benefits to be derived

from the sustainable management of our country's renewable natural resources.



Imagine a country like Trinidad and Tobago with a heavy annual rainfall having

to depend on expensive desalinated water to supplement our requirements while the

rain water is lost to the sea. The desalination plant is not 100% owned by the state.

What an excellent and rewarding investment this has been for the minority sharehold-

er, the Karamath Family. Was Mr. Hafeez Karamath, now deceased, the regular visitor,

wearing short pants, to the Panday residence? Remember that the effluent from the

desalination plant is itself a polluter of the environment. By the way, with the mention

of the name Karamath, I recall that nearly a year has elapsed without any charges being

brought against any member of the Karamath family in whose home at Valsayn several

automatic weapons and ammunition were reported to have been found. Has this

matter been swept under the carpet or are the Police still continuing their investiga-

tions?

And what about the matter with Minister Tim Gopeesingh's son "planassing" a

man in full view of the public and with the images being televised later in the day? And

what about the drugs found in a container of frozen chicken on examination by the

customs and the matter, as is the procedure with drugs and firearms, handed over to

the police for further action? Is this matter still being investigated by the police? And

what about the fatal stabbing of a man over payment for "a doubles" which took place

on Cipriani Boulevard some months ago. It was reported in the media that the sus-

pect was a member of the Monteil family? It is rumoured that he left for the UK later

the same day. I assume that police investigations are continuing in this matter. This

week I read about the removal of Samaan Trees from the Queens Park Savannah and

the removal of Pink Poui trees from the verge of the Churchill -Roosevelt Highway.

The questions may be asked (a) Did the EMA give its approval for the removal of these

trees; (b) Are there plans to replant or replacement trees and (c) Who receives the

money when these trees are delivered to or purchased by a sawmiller. And what

about ...........................................................I can go on and on. Enough for now.

The Last Cry for Buccoo

Bertrand Bhikarry

Environment Tobago

It has been an interesting month of Sundays since the Tobago House of As-

sembly (THA) last brought Assembly guns to bear on the Buccoo Reef. Unfortunately

Gary Melville who was Secretary for Environment at the time, did not get to finish

his and the governing organisation’s stated intentions. Still, the Reef continues to die,

even as everyone makes the usual sympathetic noises, cosy up even more to self in-

terest, and generally pretend we still have something special to sell to nature lovers.

The fact is, ladies and gentlemen, Tobago may soon have the only truly dead reef in

the Caribbean. The real challenge then will be to position it into a viable tourism

product. Granted, it is more fun for our marketers and branders to travel around

dispensing brochures and cutting deals than it is to deflect the sewage which flows

into the Lagoon. But at some point the nutrient shall hit the fan and there will be

nothing much of interest there. Can we imagine a Tobago tourism product without

our reef? We should. Unless the THA and other powers that be get cracking.



Buccoo Reef is the only natural tourism asset we really have – aside from the

much vaunted rainforest up at Main Ridge. We do have Pigeon Point, but a large part of

the peninsula’s allure is the adjoining patch of coral, azure blue waters, and the green

mangrove-fringed coast. However, if either the reef or the surrounding mangrove dies,

Pigeon Point Heritage Park may be as useless to us as any other concrete-covered Car-

ibbean cape. Tobago may want to look long and hard at developing alternative tourism

attractions, but really, can anyone here do that? We could indeed, if we use outside

talent, bring in amusement and entertainment devices – that sort of thing. But such an

approach will merely leave us with non-local interests to pay, and eventually someone

still has to learn to maintain things. Do not forget, lack of maintenance is why we’re

losing the reef.

It would be simplistic to say we could just drop the tourism thrust and focus

on life without foreign money. No way Jose, if in doubt, perhaps we merely need to ask

around for an opinion from the 16-thousand or so Tobago-based people who depend

on tourism for a living. The answers from the white-shirted taxi-drivers, head-cloth

bound vendors, and young guides at the trail heads might not surprise - they want

tourism. We do not need to solicit the view of larger stakeholders already heavily in-

vested into property; like restaurants, extra rooms, apartments, and full blown hotel

accommodation - they want tourism. But none of those folks really have the clout to

protect the reef from pollution, its overuse, and of course, global warming. Which

brings it right back into the sights of “ye olde THA,” if only they’d fire their shots.

The THA owns the reef mind you. It was given to them to control under the

Marine Preservation and Enhancement Act (1973). Interestingly, Buccoo Reef being the

only such area in the country, one would want to think that the House of Assembly

might be keen to show off its capacity for managing it properly. Unfortunately this does

not really seem so given the dead diatoms and the crumbled coral. However the THA

ought not to give up. They could enlist the help of the ordinary people who do not

have a Government pay packet; the Civil Society; the taxi-drivers, restaurateurs, hotel

and guest house owners. That forty-seven percent of the working population who are

Tobago’s nature stakeholders – let’s call them that, are actually keen environmental

management assets, because they realise the value of the Reef (and other unique Toba-

go things) to their livelihood.

The mechanism by which the THA and Civil Society could work together is

called a co-management system. Co-management is a proven concept of which the

THA is very well aware. Somebody, maybe a key outgoing politician aware of legacy,

needs to understand that the civilised world actually use co-management to get the

best deal out of all of its natural resources. That person may also need to understand

that legacy has two sides, both of which depend heavily on documentation. Obviously a

concerted and sustained effort to protect Buccoo Reef led by a concerned Administra-

tion will look good in the books. However one is not too sure if sporadic and disor-

ganised efforts, left to own devices, will read as well for posterity.

“Tobago may

soon have the on-

ly truly dead reef

in the

Caribbean. “



SO NEAR, YET SO FAR

Thomas Barbour 1945. A Naturalist in Cuba. Boston: Little, Brown 317 pp.

[Thirty-second in a series on "naturalist-in" books.]


Dept of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies [email protected]

“the bats got

loose and flew

about the dining

hall, to the con-

sternat ion of

many. “

The American biologist Thomas Barbour (1884-1946) was something of a nerdy in his

youth, with an orientation toward natural-history museums and their specimens. He later

served as director of Harvard University's Museum of Comparative Zoology for almost 20

years.

Barbour had broad interests in animals, especially amphibians and reptiles, and trav-

eled widely on field studies. He was especially fond of Central America and the Caribbean

and explored Cuba during about 30 visits. He was mainly engaged in collecting specimens,

but with a naturalist's keen interest in the living organisms. The joy in his many returns is

seen in his loving descriptions of the various approaches to the island, especially to the

port of Santiago. He characterized himself as "not only a Cuban by adoption but a devot-

ed friend of the land and its people." And in his autobiography (Barbour 1943) he re-

marked that "If I grow loquacious and prolix when it comes to talking about Cuba I do not

care a reap, for I love the country with a deep, passionate affection." For a biologist from

Massachusetts, the largest of the West Indies was conveniently close at hand, yet a very

different world.

His main base in Cuba was the Soledad Botanical Garden, near Cienfuegos. This gar-

den, founded in 1901 and continuing today, was a Harvard facility at that time. It made

perhaps the greatest contribution in allowing young North-American biologists of the time

to acquaint themselves with a tropical biota.

Barbour's broad interests are on display in this book. There is much attention to

caves, and perhaps the most engaged chapter is on collecting in caves with emphasis on

fishes and crustaceans.

The chapter on extant mam-

mals focuses on the Zapata Swamp

on the south coast of Cuba. The

dwarf hutia, Capromys nana, was

known only from fossils until it was

discovered in the swamp. Of special

interest is the endemic large shrew

Solenodon cubanus -- a second species

is endemic to Hispaniola -- that re-

tains some markedly primitive features.

A chapter on bats includes extensive treatment of the horse bat, Molossus tropicorhyn-

chus (Gray). At one time he collected a great number of live specimens for dissection, put

them in bags in his hotel bathtub and went to dinner. One bag was insecurely tied, and

the) bats got loose and flew about the dining hall, to the consternation of many. Barbour

discreetly tied the bag, finished his dinner and then addressed the huge task of dissecting.

Then there was the matter of disposing of the bodies. Early the next day he put them all

Endemic shrew of Hispaniola (Solenodon cubanus)


into a cheap suitcase, took a train out of the city -- before he reached his destination, "the

bats had become aromatic" -- and then rowed out to sea and discarded the suitcase. This

sort of true-life anecdote is an essential element in a naturalist-in book.

Barbour's interests extended to the physical environment. The book includes an

appendix reviewing the physical geography and geological history of Cuba, with remarks

on fossils. There is also much about hurricanes, although in terms of force and immediate

destruction, not their roles in shaping island biotas.

He regretted that he never got to explore caves in the company of Felipe Poey (1799

-1891), regarded as the founding father of Cuban biology (Poey 1851-1858, 1865-1868).

He also would have loved to go into the field with German-born Johann Christoph “Juan”

Gundlach (1810-1896). Gundlach first went to Cuba in 1839 and lived there continuously

from 1845 to 1865, returning from time to time after that. He sent many papers to Euro-

pean and American journals (Ramsden 1915). Gundlach was a very modest man, much

loved by the local people and characterized by Barbour as "one of the noblest men the

world has known." I have heard Cuban biologists who missed meeting him by more than

a century refer to him with similar appreciation.

However, Barbour was a personal friend and admirer of Carlos de la Torre, "one of

the most captivating characters with whom I have ever come in contact." De la Torre

(1858-1950) was a formidable field naturalist who specialized on land snails.

Barbour was a sociable man, remarking that "I love to chin and chaffer with all the

country folk. I came in contact with them for the sake of finding out not only what they

knew about the habits and distribution of the birds in which we were interested, but also

what they could tell me of their children and their children's children, as well as all the

local gossip." Accordingly, he gives much attention to such aspects as home life and man-

ners, religion, public entertainment, cursing, education and especially food and drink (with

recommendations; Barbour was quite a trencherman). The 16 pages of black-and-white

photos show more buildings and street scenes than plants and animals.

Today, accounts of tropical field work by biologists from the industrialized north

make a point of an egalitarian outlook -- mostly sincere, I have no doubt -- toward the

other peoples and societies. This was not always the case, and Barbour's contemporary

readers likely saw no contradiction his deep affection for Cuba and its people, on the one

hand, and a solidly paternalistic attitude on the other. He refers to Cuba as

"independent", which of course it was not in any real sense until 1959. It is treated in the

book as a colony of the USA, including in scientific terms. He mentions, for example, that

Cuban biologists utilized the Soledad Garden for research on the same basis as their

American colleagues as if this were something noteworthy, as it probably was. His work

in Cuba and Central America was much facilitated by United Fruit Company officials, and

his reference to the company's "civilizing influence" might well flabbergast modern readers.

Barbour had the makings of an ideal naturalist-in author: a professional-level biologist

of long experience, who retained the amateur's enthusiastic eye and conveyed original

observations with strong, lyrical expression. However, while A Naturalist in Cuba is a

worthwhile read, I regret that it is not the splendid book it could have been. It was writ-

ten close to the end of Barbour's life, and the waning of his powers is apparent. The key

shortcoming is one of focus. The text is rather superficial, often skipping from species to

species, with no in-depth treatment of the life and habitat of particular species. The genus

Anolis is especially juicy in Cuba, and Barbour gives it considerable attention, yet even this

is treated in a rather airy, distracted manner. The chapter on "Reptiles and Amphibians" is

mainly a breezy survey of what is there, with occasional notes on personal encounters.

His frequent asides regarding the Boston home area and other places away from Cuba are

a distraction.


Barbour often gives the local and english vernacular names of species, but is rather

casual about scientific names. For example, he devotes a page to the habits of a certain

spider wasp without even mentioning its genus, Pepsis.

References

Barbour, T. 1943. Naturalist at Large. Boston: Little, Brown 314 pp. Online at http://

archive.org/details/naturalistatlarg00barb.

Poey, F. 1851-1858. Memorias sobre la Historia Natural de la Isla de Cuba. Vol. 1-2.

Havana: Barcina.

Poey, F. 1865-1868. Repertorio Físico-Natural de la Isla de Cuba. Vol. 1-2. Havana: Go-

bierno y Capitanía de S.M.

Ramsden, C. 1915. Juan Gundlach. Entomological News 26:241-60.


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