What is EarthWatch?

Founded in 1972, Earthwatch is an international organization that sponsors scientists, artists, teachers and students to research, explore and document ecocological and cultural changes around the world. It has to date supported 1,850 projects in 104 countries. It's 75,000 members include 40,000 volunteers who have contributed hands-on participation as members of "EarthCorps." EarthWatch research projects probe the physical sciences, protect threatened human and wildlife habitats, study human cultures, and develop sustainable development and resource management projects where they are needed most.

The Belize Barrier Reef Project

Belize's flourishing coral reefs are the most extensive in the Western Hemisphere and among the few near-pristine reefs remaining in the Caribbean. Since healthy reefs supply food to a third of the world, understanding what forces shape the reef life on which Belizeans depend will help them better manage reef fisheries, national marine parks, and coastal zones.

Dr. Howard Winn, a faculty member at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, and Dr. Susan Hammen-Winn, an adjunct Professor of Botany at the University of Rhode Island, are researching how numerous species with similar habaitat requirements, feedings requirements and daily routines can live together without competitively eliminating each other. How do different fish species forage for food along the reef? How do they orient themselves on the reef and home to their shelters? The Belieze Barrier Reef Project hopes to find answers to these questions in order to more fully understand the organization of fishes on coral reefs. This year's component of their long-term study along the coast of Belize, will examine the behavior and ecology of squirrelfish, grunts, barracuda and other species and habitates, particularly seagrass meadows, around the tiny island of Tobacco Caye. Under increasing population and tourism pressure, unintentional damage to these habitats is on the rise. The surveys established from this research will produce an important long-term database that will enable scientists to assess the damage and changes in the reef community over time.

Tobacco Caye is a beautiful 5-acre, coconut palm-covered island located directly on top of the reef. There are a number of houses and permanent residents on the island, but no entertainment establishments. Habitats around Tobacco Caye include lagoons that support large seagrass beds, mangrove areas and reef flats characterized by sand and coral outcroppings.

Project volunteers will work in three teams, each focusing ona component of the research project (squirrelfish, grunts, and habitat mapping) and change activities every 3 to 4 days. Daytime tasks include capturing fish to be tagged and tracked, baiting and checking traps, conducting visual censuses of fish, observing fish behavior and mapping critical habitats on the reef. Much of the work requires snorkeling. Nighttime tasks (usually at dusk and in the early evening) involve night snorkeling with underwater lights to track nocturnally-active fish.

Housing for the volunteers consists of two-person wooden huts with fresh (cold) water showers, a clean flush toilet and a large dining room. Local cooks provide delicious meals daily and do all preparation and cleanup work. Meals consist of rice, beans, fish, chicken, ham, eggs, coconuts, plaintans, bananas and fresh vegetables. EarthCorps volunteers pay (or raise donations for) their own expenses, which are approximately $1,000 for one-week teams and $2,000 for two week teams. The teams work from late January to mid-March.

Other EarthWatch Projects in Belize

Past EarthWatch projects in Belize have included an archeological project on Frenchman's Caye and Madre Cacao. Volunteers on this project, under the direction of Dr. Heather McKillop, Louisiana State University, excavated coral architecture, screened soil, catalogued unearthed artifacts and searched the coast by canoe for information that would shed light on the role of these Caye's in the Mayan coastal trading network. Participants camped in tents and shared cooking chores.

How To Get Information On EarthWatch Projects

If you are a potential volunteer interested in obtaining information about or signing up for EarthWatch projects in Belize or elsewhere, or would like to contribute to EarthWatch, you can Email to: info@earthwatch.org or telephone EarthWatch at (800) 776-0188, or write to: EarthWatch, 680 Mt. Auburn Street, Box 403Z, Watertown MA 02272. You can also become an EarthWatch member at $25 (US), $45 (Australia) or $35 (other countries); membership includes a subscription to EarthWatch Magazine. You can visit the EarthWatch World Wide Web site at: http://earthwatch.org.

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