Monthly Archives: December 2024
Blacktip Island Weather
Wahoo Reef weather station
Sunday, December 22, 2024
Temperature: 86
Humidity: 62%
Precipitation: 0.0% chance
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Blacktip Island Musician Creates New Coral-Saving Carol
Blacktip Island ecologists hope a new Christmas song, composed entirely of coral reef sounds, will encourage coral growth on the small Caribbean island’s reefs. (photo courtesy of Toby Hudson)
A Blacktip Island musician this week released a recording of healthy-reef sounds crafted into a Christmas carol, to be played on underwater speakers and hummed by scuba divers, in an attempt to rejuvenate the small Caribbean island’s coral reefs.
“There’s been several studies the last few years showing how broadcasting sounds recorded on healthy reefs can restore damaged coral,” Leigh Shore said. “We were already working on doing that here when I thought, ‘why not turn reef sounds into Christmas music?’ I just spliced together a bunch of sound files, and, voila, we’ve got the Carol of the Coral.
“All the sounds are what you’d hear on a vibrant reef— crackles and pops, parrotfish crunching coral, pistol shrimp snapping, and the like,” Shore said. “It’s a bit like that dogs-barking-jingle-bells song, but underwater. There’s no words yet, but that’s in the works. So far all I have is, ‘hmmm, hm, hmmmm, hmm-mmm, hm, hm.’”
Experts are divided on the idea.
“We know healthy reef sounds encourage coral growth,” Tiperon University-Blacktip marine biology professor Ernesto Mojarra said. “Worst case, this particular mix of reef sounds will have no effect, so it’s worth a try. And the dive guests really enjoy humming along. It sounds a bit like the A Coventry Carol.”
Others opposed the project.
“Dropping speakers on the reef, then piping garbled sounds into a so-called melody will do more harm than good,” ichthyologist Goby Graysby said. “Natural reef sounds would have been fine, but mounting hydrophones on the reef and blasting random holiday noise will inhibit coral growth. And right now, that’s the last thing our reefs need.”
Scuba divers visiting the island praised the music.
“It’s quite lovely, hearing all the fishy sounds turned into a song,” Suzie Souccup said. “My favorite part is in the chorus, when they use the sound of parrotfish pooping sand to create and awesome refrain. And it feels great to hum along and know I’m helping the reef. I’m going to add it to my Christmas playlist when I get back home.”
Local establishments are also taking advantage of the new song.
“We’re playing it at the bar, and folks love it,” Last Ballyhoo bar owner Willy Bottoms said. “The standard Christmas carols get massively overplayed, so having something fresh and new like this is a great addition. The fact it’s reef themed makes it even better.”
Shore said the carol will soon be available on music streaming services. All proceeds from sales will go to underwater speakers.
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Happy Baby Dolphin Learning to Jump Day to all who observe
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Blacktip Island Weather
Wahoo Reef weather station
Sunday, December 15, 2024
Temperature: 84
Humidity: 61%
Precipitation: Not today
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Blacktip Island Will Host ‘Plague Island’ Reality TV Competition
Blacktip Island entrepreneurs will film a 10-part ‘Plague Island’ reality-TV competition, based on the 10 Biblical plagues, on the small Caribbean island’s southern bluff beginning this week. (illustration by Wendy Beaufort/BTT staff)
A group of budding filmmakers announced Thursday their plans to create a Survivor-like reality television competition called ‘Plague Island,’ based on the Biblical story of the 10 plagues of ancient Egypt.
“All the obvious reality-competition concepts have been done, so we decided to film outside the box,” Gnarly Bottoms said. “We’ll start shooting now, during the Christmas season, with an eye toward airing it at the more traditional Easter time, kind of kill two holiday birds with one stone, so to speak.
“We’re doing the full 10 Commandments, in order, for maximum authenticity,” Bottoms said.
“For security and health reasons, we have a big swath of land down south, up on the bluff, cordoned off with tall electric fences—think ‘Jurassic Park—and mist machines blowing anti-viral spray around the exterior so the diseases stay contained.”
Crew members say the set will be as accurate as possible.
“For the water-turns-to-blood plague, it’ll be fish blood pumped into their drinking water,” Catalina Luxfer said. “Lice and flies are natural here, so we’ll just augment them a bit. Dead livestock’ll be iguanas and land crabs. For the raining-frogs bit, we have giant slingshots, and we’ll use those to crate the hail, too, with ice from various resorts. The deaths of the firstborn’ll have to be figurative, obviously. We’ll maybe settle on crushing some treasured childhood memories.
“The plan is to subject the contestants with one plague a day, for a 10-episode series,” Luxfer said. “The last person to stick it out without having a psychotic break’ll be the winner. There’s a good chance no one’ll finish, with what we have planned for them.”
Some on the small Caribbean island questioned the series’ subject matter.
“I understand the need to be different, but to make a horror like this come alive for the sake of entertainment is in extremely bad taste,” Father Audley Crossblesser of the Our Lady of Blacktip chapel said. “The plague episode in Exodus showed the power, and wrath, of God. To make light of that is sacrilegious, to say the least.”
The plague episodes, in order, will be:
- Water turns to blood
- Rain of frogs
- Lice
- Flies
- Livestock deaths
- Hail
- Boils
- Locusts
- Darkness
- Death of the firstborn
Contestants, however, were eager to compete.
“Reading the Bible, and seeing the ’10 Commandments’ movie, I always wondered how I’d react in that situation,” Wally Breight said. “Now I can find out, in real time. And, end of the day, it’ll be a hoot to walk, and talk, like an Egyptian. Or Israelite. Whatever.”
Organizers hired local artists to make the set look as Egyptian as possible.
“We got sphinxes and obelisks and pyramids made out of coconuts all over the place,” Bottoms said. “We’ll be filming it all remote, of course, to minimize the chance of contagion. We’ll also use a giant papier mâché Pharaoh that keeps yelling ‘NO!’
“The big challenge now’s to find someone who’ll pick it up and air it. Maybe a streaming service, or some such. If not, we’ll put it on YouTube.”
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Blacktip Island Weather
Wahoo Reef weather station
Sunday, December 8, 2024
Temperature: 83
Humidity: 62%
Precipitation: Incoming
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Blacktip Island Humane Society Urges Adoption For Both Its Animals
Club Scuba Doo owner Herring Frye visited Blacktip Island’s animal shelter Thursday to meet the dog and cat available for adoption there. (photo courtesy of Corporate Video Australia).
Blacktip Island’s animal shelter Thursday announced its holiday goal of getting both of its animals adopted in order to empty the shelter by Christmas.
“We’ve got the dog and the cat, and we’d love to place them in adoptive homes for the holidays,” Blacktip Island Humane Society president Coryl Bleeching said. “This time of year is all about families, and these two critters will make any family smile. And if they both get adopted before the 25th, we can give the kennel caretaker the day off and save on that holiday pay.
“We have two iguanas as well, but they’re pretty self-sufficient,” Bleeching said. “Ideally, we’d like to interview potential foster families to make sure it’s a good fit and to check for sobriety. And to make things easier, we haven’t named either of the animals. Except the iguanas. They’re Burt and Ernie.”
Some on the small Caribbean island questioned the adoption process.
“That dog’s been hanging out behind Peachy Bottoms’ store for months,” Herring Frye said. “And Coryl caught the cat at the dump. She’s just out to pocket the adoption fees. I guarantee as soon as somebody adopts that cat, she’ll go out and catch another one to adopt out.
“What’s next, adopting birds on power lines?” Frye said. “Coryl needs to just leave the animals alone. Give ‘em free run of the island. This’s just her way of scamming money for nothing, at the poor animals’ expense.”
Island officials sounded the alarm on the process’ optics.
“I appreciate what Coryl’s doing, but this thing’s giving Blacktip a black eye,” de facto mayor Jack Cobia said. “News stories break about Blacktippers refusing to adopt dogs and cats, that’ll make us look heartless. Especially at Christmas time. Our tourism product can’t take that kind of hit. I’ve got a proposal in the works for the government to adopt ‘em both, give ‘em to kids on Christmas and put an end to this debacle.”
Residents bristled at that suggestion
“Not gonna have my taxes go up just so Blacktip’ll look good,” Dermott Bottoms said. “Jack wants to adopt animals, he can do that on his own dime. Or take up a collection. Me, I’d just turn both animals loose and see where they wind up. Problem solved, and nobody’d be out any money.”
Cobia said the motion to take the adoption fees from the Department of Tourism’s budget will be presented to the island Council next week. Bottoms and others opposed to the action will protest outside the Last Ballyhoo bar.
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The Blacktip Times 