Sunday, October 9, 2022
Temperature: 84
Humidity: 73%
Precipitation: Not anytime soon
Blacktip Island Weather
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Giant, Cretaceous-Era ‘Devil Frog’ Terrorizes Blacktip Island
Blacktip Island resident are on edge this week after reports of a dinosaur-era giant frog stalking the small Caribbean island’s pets and small children. (photo illustration by Nobu Tamura)
A large, carnivorous frog species, long thought extinct, this week attacked Blacktip Island pets and children, panicking many of the small Caribbean island’s residents.
“Blacktip used to be lousy with devil frogs,” island historian Smithson Altschul said. “They were a terror for the early settlers, eating livestock, attacking children and sliming larders. Folks killed them off back in the 1920s, and there’s been no sightings since.
“With these new reports, though, the worry is all they might be back,” Altschul said. “Devil frogs can get as big as dogs, and there’s been all kinds of cats and chickens going missing. Folks are on edge.”
Officials say the first reports of the frog were ignored.
“The initial sightings were by Dermott Bottoms and James Conlee,” Island Police Constable Rafe Marquette said. “That’s the same pair who swore they saw a platypus at the Sand Spit bar, and a mermaid off the Eagle Ray Cove dock, so we chalked it up to too much rum. It wasn’t ‘til Doris Blenny’s cats disappeared, and little Shelley Bottoms came face-to-face with a giant frog in the bushes—and took a sticky tongue to the face—that we put the pieces together.
“We’ve got hunters out, and’ll do whatever it takes to kill this thing,” Marquette said. “Gets much bigger, it’ll be a danger to adults, too. As it is, we’re telling folks to keep their small children inside for the duration.”
Island biologists hope to capture the frog alive.
“Blacktip Island’s devil frogs were a subspecies of Beelzebufo ampinga, which first appeared nearly 60 million years ago,” cryptozoologist Chrissy Graysby said. “They were apex predators whose ancestors ate small dinosaurs. The ancient Egyptians worshiped them. If there’s one, or more, alive on Blacktip, that’d be a huge discovery. Sure, and a public safety concern, blah blah blah, but a huge opportunity.
“There’s no telling how one of these survived,” Graysby said. “Our working hypothesis is there was at least one dormant egg buried in dried mud in the interior, and all the recent rain caused it to hatch. And there could be more than one.”
Some residents were critical of the official response.
“Didn’t believe me, now look where we are,” Dermott Bottoms said. “It got a bunch of cats, and tried to get a little girl. Wouldn’t’ve happened if they’d listened to me. All makes sense now—folks ain’t seen that platypus ‘cause the devil frog ate it. The mermaid, too.
“Me and James, we made us a giant frog trap, though,” Bottoms said. “Buried a big net under some sea grape leaves, tied an iguana to a stake in the middle. That ol’ frog goes after the bait, WHOOSH! Up goes the net. Even if it’s off the net, if it shoots its tongue at the iguana, the net’s fine enough to grab it by the tongue. It’s foolproof.”
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Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, October 2, 2022
Temperature: 86
Humidity: 74%
Precipitation: Not today
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Blacktip Island Stages Impromptu Underwater Car Show
A scuba diver examines one of the vehicles swept away in Hurricane Wendy’s storm surge Wednesday. The car, and more than a dozen others, are now the small Caribbean island’s first underwater auto show. (photo courtesy of Achim R. Schloeffel)
Blacktip Island community organizers Thursday announced the small Caribbean island’s inaugural Underwater Car Show in the wake of Hurricane Wendy’s unexpected storm surge Wednesday morning.
“The storm was tracked to go way east of the island, so lots of folks parked their cars on the west side for protection,” island meteorologist Rayne Doppler said. “Problem was, the storm wobbled and came up the west side. All the cars parked by Diddley’s Landing public pier got swept out to sea.
“There’s no way to save any of them, and no way to get them out right now, so we decided to turn lemons into lemonade,” Doppler said. “The way they’re all strewn across the sand, it looks like they’re on display, so we decided to make it a car show. Scuba divers and snorkelers can swim around and check them out to their hearts’ content. For a fee.”
Island residents had mixed feelings about the new dive site.
“We’re thankful no one was seriously injured. Or died,” Sally Port said. “Unfortunately, a bunch of Nissans did, though. It’s a tragedy, really— some of them didn’t even have rust on them yet.”
Others praised the idea.
“Intentional or not, it got rid of a bunch of island beaters,” Chip Pompano said. “All the rust-buckets with leaking mufflers, cracked windshields and random wheel rims are gone. Now people’ll have to get newer vehicles. It’s beautifying the island, long term.”
Others voiced concerns about post-hurricane relief shipments.
“The supply barge docks at Diddley’s Landing, and it may not be able to land now,” public works chief Rocky Shore said. “We got divers out there now assessing whether it’s safe to dock, or whether cars are piled up so high they’re navigational hazards.”
Environmental officials were also concerned.
“There’s at least a dozen vehicles down there, all of them leaking oil and gasoline,” marine parks spokesperson Val Schrader said. “That will negatively impact the surrounding reefs for months, if not years, to come.
“Our first thought was to haul them all out, but we don’t have the equipment,” Schrader said. “And even if we did, what would we do with them? The dump’s already full. For now, the damage is ongoing and we can’t do anything about it. They might as well turn it into a car show.”
The island’s art community praised the sunken cars.
“It’s an unprecedented in situ modern sculpture,” Marcia Chagall said. “It truly speaks to the futility of humanity pitting itself against nature. Anyone who dives out there will be struck by that juxtaposition. It also makes a great fish habitat. We can now be inspired by art while we catch dinner just offshore.”
Island officials are charging a $25 entry fee per diver to view the cars. Those wishing to retrieve personal items will be charged an additional $20. Those wishing to retrieve the personal items of others will be charged an additional $50. All proceeds will go to hurricane relief and new cars.
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Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, September 25, 2022
Temperature: 88
Humidity: 82%
Precipitation: Storm soon come
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Blacktip Island Embraces Underwater Pickleball
Underwater pickleball this week became the latest leisure activity available on Blacktip Island. (photo courtesy of Steven James Hall)
Sports enthusiasts on Blacktip Island this week welcomed the small Caribbean island’s first underwater pickleball court near the public pier, the Chamber of Commerce’s latest ploy to lure post-pandemic visitors.
“This adds another outdoor activity to our island,” chamber president B.C. Flote said. “It being under water makes it all the more unique. It’s the first of its kind, and people’re already lining up to play. We’re calling it ‘Cukeball’ in honor of the sea cucumbers that’re all over the place out there.
“Pickleball’s one of the most popular sports these days, and we’re taking advantage of that,” Flote said. “The rules’re simple and anybody can play without fancy lessons or expensive gear. And now it’s a sport for every scuba diver.”
Organizers say the game required only moderate alterations for underwater play.
“We built the court by the public pier, where the coral’s all dead anyway,” Underwater Paddle and Pickleball Association president Lucille Ray said. “We had to modify the balls so they’d bounce properly underwater, and we put holes in the paddles to reduce resistance. We tried underwater pingpong, but the balls kept floating away.
“To stay down, most folks just strap dive weights to their feet,” Ray said. “A couple of people use lead boots from old hard-hat diving suits. It works better than we thought. The worst part’s clearing the sand off the court between games.”
Players praised the new facility.
“It’s great, low-impact aerobic exercise,” Frank Maples said. “And with a lot of us getting up there in years, it’s a great way to get a workout without stressing our hearts too much or having to worry about getting hurt falling.
“The games can get pretty heated,” Maples said. “Usually the winner’s the first one to get 11 points, but people go at it so hard, we had to implement an out-of-air forfeit for when folks run out of air and have to emergency-ascent mid-game. Happens more often than you’d think.”
The activity was not without its critics.
“Why can’t people be happy with just swimming around looking at fish?” Chrissy Graysby said. “This continual effort to make scuba diving a competitive sport is ridiculous. And how do they know coral wasn’t trying to re-establish itself on that court? It’s a reef, for Pete’s sake, not an underwater amusement park.”
Flote plans to expand the activity, despite the criticism.
“Cukeball’s all about socializing and camaraderie,” he said. “If that gets more people interested in the reefs and in protecting them, that’s a win for the environment. Chrissy needs to take an ease-up pill.
“Going forward, we have plans for a competitive league,” Flote said. “It’s proving popular for locals and tourists alike. We got a court reservation list a mile long.”
Cukeball t-shirts, caps, paddles and lead weights are available at the Chamber of Commerce shack onshore.
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Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, September 18, 2022
Temperature: 89
Humidity: 76%
Precipitation: Not happening
Filed under best scuba diving novels, Caribbean, Scuba Diving
The Blacktip Times 