The Pelican Brief

The largest bird in Mexico is the American white pelican. In fact, it's the largest in the entire of North America. With a wingspan of up to 9ft (2.74 meters), they are quite the sight to see flying over.



As well as that impressive wingspan, the adult American white pelican has a body length of around 5ft 2" (1.58 meters). They weigh in at nearly 2 stone (25lbs; 11 kilo), thus you'd think it would be difficult for them to get air-borne at all. Not a bit of it. They soar in their thousands into Mexico each year, in great clouds of squawking whiteness. They are here for the fish.

Their destination are the great inland lakes, like Lake Chapala, which divides the states of Jalisco and Michoacán. This is the largest freshwater lake in Mexico, covering an area of approximately 424 square miles (1,100 km²); which is a good job, when you consider the size and number of its annual avian visitors.

The American white pelican settles over a vast area and immediately establishes itself at the top of the food chain. It swims on the surface of the water, gracefully ducking its head to scoop up fish in its long bill. Once it ventures into the shallows, then some community co-operation comes into play. The pelicans group together in a wide semi-circle, trapping fish before them. Each pelican then chases the fish right into the path of its neighbour. Thus group hunting means that everyone feasts.


American white pelicans can be spotted, in winter, along the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coastlines, but they will be in the estuaries or inland lakes. Occasionally a stray, blown off course or just plain lost, will be seen along the Caribbean.

They had previously been in decline, as agricultural pesticides seeped into their habitat, but they have recovered. Environmental treaties, covering their migratory route between Mexico and Canada, have saved them. They live up to 16 years, in the wild, with the adult females laying two eggs a year.


American white pelicans might look impressive, but for pure entertainment value, their native cousins, the brown pelican, wins outright. These are the great divers of the avian world, with death-defying plunges that leave on-lookers breathless with anticipation as to whether they will make it or not. The adults, at least, invariably do, but the adrenaline rush is worth the spectacle.

Here is a version in slow motion. The reality is seven times faster. They will begin the dive at 40-60mph. They will have picked up speed by the time they hit the water.



A substantial number of brown pelicans don't make it past their first year. They break their necks learning how to do that. Then they drown.

Though dwarved by the American white, the brown pelican is not a small bird. Its wingspan can stretch up to 8ft (2.5 meters). Its body grows up to 4ft 7" (1.8 meters). It weighs nearly a stone (12lb; 5.5kg); and it drops from the sky at around 60mph. Aren't you glad that you're not a fish?

As with many creatures, it's not us who are at risk from them, it's the other way around. The use of DDT, in agricultural pesticides, came close to rendering brown pelicans extinct in the 1960s. It took a ban on that to see their population recover. By 1988, they were removed from the endangered register of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, redesignated 'least concern' instead.

In fact, their numbers have grown so great this year, that it's causing comment across their migratory route. (This report from San Diego, in the USA, is common: Buzz Rising Over Local Pelican Population.)


As a marine bird, brown pelicans can be spotted anywhere on Mexico's 6,300 miles (10,143km) of coastline. They are on the Pacific, Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. The challenge is to try and film those dive-bombs. They're much too fast for the average camcorder holder to follow!

Yucatán: Largest Ever Congregation of Whale Sharks

Take a boat off the Yucatán Peninsula this week and you will see the most astounding sight. The water is filled with the gentle giants of the sea, all meeting to feast on little tunny fish eggs. Whale sharks are there in their hundreds, with an estimated 420 of them forming the biggest aggregation. A second group are even further out to sea.


The Mexican Caribbean is home to the whale sharks, which can stray as far north as the Gulf of Mexico and the Southern coast of the USA. While sightings are rare up there, a glimpse of them off the Yucatán can be guaranteed, if you know where to look.

Yet their numbers this year have taken locals and scientists by surprise. Usually they are solitary creatures, meandering their way through the ocean alone or in schools no more numerous than a dozen. The hundreds in the Yucatán Afuera aggregation have brought researchers flocking to record this amazing event.

Flyovers have taken in the scale, with aerial footage and measurements; while scientists in boat are weaving amongst the whale sharks, collecting samples of food in nets.


This is the world's largest fish, with adults reaching lengths of 40 feet (12 meters); yet they are utterly harmless to human beings. Their diet consists mainly of plankton, plants or very small fish. Though, as the recent feeding frenzy shows, mackerel eggs are apparently a favourite.

Meanwhile, over in the second aggregration, in the Yucatán Cabo Catoche, it appears that shrimp and small crustaceans were there main draw on the menu.

Whale sharks swim with their mouths open wide. As water funnels through, they filter out the good stuff and keep it in their stomachs. The rest is channeled out through their gills.


Despite their huge size, whale sharks are not aggressive. They have a reputation for being incredibly docile and moving extremely slowly through the ocean. They will generally ignore human beings, as we aren't food; though well-fed ones are more inclined to be playful. They will happily allow people to swim alongside them and will even give them a 'ride', towing them through the water.

They live up to 100-150 years. Each one has a unique pattern of spots on its back, acting like fingerprints to identify them.


Mike Maslanka, biologist at the USA's Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, explained the significance of this find. "With two significant whale shark aggregation areas and, at the very least, one active spawning ground for little tunny, the northeastern Yucatán marine region is a critical habitat that deserves more concerted conservation effort."

His colleague, Lee Weigt, head of the Laboratories of Analytical Biology, added, "Having DNA barcoding is an incredibly valuable resource for this research. It not only allowed us to know what exactly this huge aggregation of whale sharks were feeding on, not readily done from only physical observations of eggs, but it also revealed a previously unknown spawning ground for little tunny."

It is worth noting that whale sharks are considered 'vunerable' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This is due largely to over-fishing and trophy hunting. The greatest predator for whale sharks being, of course, humans.

Pirates of the Caribbean - Blackbeard

At the very beginning of this blog, we recounted the swash-buckling, blood-thirsty true stories of the pirates of the Caribbean. Their names are so infamous and their deeds were so horrific, that they are still remembered now, in the places that they terrorized.

The Pirates of the Caribbean		Giovanni de Verrazano
Sir Francis Drake		Sir Henry Morgan
Jean-David 'L'Olonnais' Nau		Laurens 'Laurencillo' de Graaf
Jean LaFitte		Fermin Mundaca

But there was one notable ommission there. Disney's 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' is in our theaters. As box offices around the world thrill to 'the pirate all pirates fear', then we should add a chapter to our terrible tales. It's time to visit Blackbeard! (And, yes, he was in Mexico too.)


Ask someone to impersonate a pirate and there is a definite accent that they adopt. "Ha-arr, me 'earties!" The cry goes out, "Thar be treasure thar! Arrrr!" Everyone is attempting to affect England's West Country tones. There is a reason for this. In 1680, Edward Teach (aka Blackbeard) was born in Bristol, which is in the heart of the said West Country. In short, they are trying to sound like Blackbeard. He is, after all, the pirate's pirate and the most notorious of all.

It has been speculated that Edward Teach was born into a wealthy, English family. He could read and write quite eloquently, which was highly unusual for any but the higher echelons of society. It's also probable that his surname wasn't even Teach. Many pirates took false names, in order to protect their family's reputation. His real name could have been Edward Drummond, though little supporting evidence has been found for that.


18th century Bristol
All that is known for certain is that young Edward boarded a ship in Bristol, bound for the Caribbean. Bristol was a huge port at the time, one of the centers of the British slave trade. Was he captured and pressed into slavery? Or did he take a job on a merchant ship? Nobody knows.

The history books only take up his tale, with any sense of surety, in 1716. It was then that Edward Teach appeared in New Providence, in the Bahamas, and joined the crew of English pirate, Captain Benjamin Hornigold. New Providence was a pirate safe harbour. The bay was too shallow to allow large navy ships to enter, so the smaller, faster privateers could dock without fear of arrest.

Even amongst this company, Hornigold was infamous. His 33 gun sloop, the Ranger, was the most heavily armed in the region and he could take any other vessel with ease. By 1717, Teach was his second-in-command and it was now that Hornigold awarded Teach his own ship. Blackbeard's career had really begun.


The two captains worked side by side, sailing in to capture merchant vessels, from Havana to Bermuda. But Hornigold refused to attack British ships. He considered himself a pirate, but one loyal to the crown of his homeland. His crew had no such scruples and the sight of unharmed merchant ships, flying the Union Jack, rankled them. There was mutiny and Hornigold retired with The Ranger, leaving Blackbeard in sole command. British ships were no longer off target.

Let us pause to get the measure of the pirate. He was a huge man. He stood 6ft 5" tall (1.96 meters) and had the girth to match. As the name suggests, he had a long, flowing beard, in which he apparently wove hemp fuses. These had been soaked in saltpetre and lime water. During fights, he would set fire to the fuses, giving the impression that his whole head was on fire. For onlookers, filled with Christian lore, it was as if they were faced with Satan Himself.


Then there was his personality. Modern analysts have studied the stories and speculated that he was clinically psychotic. Many pirates of the time would give quarter to the captain and crew of a merchant ship, as long as all of the cargo was simply handed over without a fight. Blackbeard was unpredictable.

He killed indiscrimately, simply to fuel his fearsome reputation. In one notable incident, he was alleged to have shot his First Mate dead, just to prove that he was mean. Another time, he chased down a ship, boarded it and took only the wine, before scuttling the vessel and marooning its crew. There was no reasoning with him.

The merchant captain dropped sails, then dropped anchor. He could not outrun the sloop and her eight guns. Pray they take what they want and move on, he told his crew. Give what they ask -- none of it is yours, none of it worth your life.

Behind the sloop, the merchant captain spied another approaching craft. She was big brute poking cannon from every snout. Twenty, no thirty, maybe more guns -- she was a killing machine!

The merchant captain raised his spyglass to her deck. There, he could see a monstrous figure, pointing across the water, pointing to the merchant ship, pointing to the merchant captain. "Dear God, spare our souls," the merchant captain said aloud. He had seen the devil. And the devil had seen him.
Tim Rickard, 'The Spanish Main'

For all of his notoriety, it must seem that Blackbeard operated for decades. It was actually less than two years that he prowled the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. During that time, the ships of no nationality were safe. (Make no mistake, many pirates acted unofficially (and sometimes officially) for various empire building governments. French pirates would attack Spanish and British ships; and vice versa. Part of the fear of Blackbeard was that he was on no-one's side.)

Blackbeard's flotilla grew. He is usually linked with La Concorde, a 'French ship of 32 Guns, a Briganteen of 10 guns and a Sloop of 12 guns', which he renamed the Queen Anne's Revenge. (It is this ship which is featured in 'The Pirates of the Caribbean' movies.) However, he owned many more than that. His prowess in overwhelming vessels was so great, that he commanded a whole fleet of pirate ships. Hence he seemed unstoppable.


Queen Anne's Revenge
As well as terrorizing the high seas, Blackbeard also held to ransom the town of Charleston, South Carolina, USA. In May, 1718, his fleet blockaded the harbour, refusing to allow supplies to enter the town. He also took hostages from a ship containing prominent Charleston citizens, who had been bound on a diplomatic trip to London. His demand was clear. He wanted medical supplies and certain medicines for his crew. If he didn't get them, then he would execute everyone present.

The town was in uproar and panic. It seemed inevitable that, even if they gave him what he asked for, he would ransack the place. For several days, the whole horizon was filled with Blackbeard's ships. Each day the people held out, the ships came closer, until eventually they handed over the medicinal supplies. To everyone's shock, Blackbeard simply released his hostages and sailed away.


Blackbeard's end came on November 22nd, 1718, off the coast of Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, USA. A British navy ship, captained by Lieutenant Robert Maynard, spotted Blackbeard's fleet. Maynard ordered his own crew below decks and masqueraded as practically a ghost ship. Blackbeard saw it and laughed. The huge pirate then boarded with just a few of his men. Immediately the rest of the British crew burst from the cabins and used the element of surprise to separate Blackbeard from the rest of his men. In the squirmish, dozens were killed, though reports vary as to how many.

What isn't in doubt was that Blackbeard received a gaping neck injury from one of Maynard's men. Even then, he didn't topple, but ended up in hand to hand combat with Maynard, surrounded by the navy. It apparently took Blackbeard 40 minutes to die, fighting all the way, until he eventually collapsed from lack of blood. Maynard delivered the final, fatal blow with his sword. He reported that Blackbeard had been shot five times and suffered 20 sword wounds, before dying.

Maynard decapitated Blackbeard and displayed his head on the bowsprit of his own navy ship. Blackbeard's headless body was cast into the ocean. The rest of the pirates fled on their ships. Of those arrested after the fight, 16 were hanged in North Carolina.

---

Places to Visit

* Mexican Carribean/Yucatan Straits: Blackbeard's ship cruised up and down this coastline during his hey-day. Anyone on the shores would have seen him at one time or another. Also look out for any unidentified lights out at sea. They are said to be the ghost fleet of Blackbeard, still roaming the area.

* Veracruz, Mexico: During the winter of 1717/18, it is believed that Blackbeard was harrying ships on the trade route in and out of Veracruz. Read more about it here.

For details of other pirate related attractions, please visit our main site or peruse the list below:

Captain Hook Lobster Cruise

* Campeche: Completely destroyed by pirates several times, so had its fort and cannons built to protect it. L'Olonnais was once left for dead on its beach.

* Chinchorro Reef, Riveria Maya: Pirates used lanterns to lure ships onto the treacherous reef. Captains would see the lights far inland, but they would believe that the lights were on the edge of cliffs. Thinking that they were safe, they would sail too close to the coastline and crash on the reef. The wreckers would then swarm over the wreckage and take off with the cargo.

* Punta Herrero, Sian Ka'an: Many night time sightings of a headless pirate. The ghost is described as a giant, colored man, who patrols from one end of the village to the other.

* Subacuatico-CEDAM Museum, Puerto Aventuras: CEDAM (Club de Exploraciones y Deportes Acuaticos de Mexico; The Museum of Mexico’s Explorations and Water Sports Club, Civil Association) is a museum based in Puerto Aventuras. The exhibits are mostly from shipwrecks, many of which were caused by pirates, recovered from the Caribbean Sea. There are a few exhibits from Xel-Ha Mayan Ruins too.

The museum was formed by divers who had been frogmen in the Second World War. In 1958, they set about exploring the wreck of El Mantanceros, a Spanish galleon, which had sunk off the coast of Akumal in 1741. CEDAM have recovered its cannons, anchor and many small items, such as glass beads, belt buckles, coins and gems. These diving archaeologists went on to explore many other wrecks, as well as cenotes, and returned with more artefacts. They will also place commemorative plaques in places where there was a notable nautical link, for example, there is one to Captain Jean LaFitte in Port Dzilam, where the pirate's grave was discovered.

The museum is open Monday through Saturday all year long from 9:00 to 13:00 hrs. (9 AM to 1 PM) and from 14:30 to 17:30 hrs. (2:30 PM to 5:30 PM)

Pancho Villa: The Second Mexican Revolution

It seemed that Pancho Villa could do no wrong. On both sides of the Mexican-American border, he was proclaimed a hero.

Years later, chroniclers and reporters would travel through Chihuahua, Durango and Sonara, collecting stories of orphans delivered to safety and given treats; of the robbed having their possessions returned; of widows and the elderly given money and care; of wrongs righted and justice served.

In the USA, Hollywood moguls jostled for the rights to tell the story of Pancho Villa. From Washington to California, there were people singing his praises. Viewed as a modern-day Robin Hood, Villa could get a free meal anywhere. This was before we even got to revolution.



For Villa, the rise of Huerta to the presidency was a personal matter. Not only had the man once framed Villa for horse theft and almost had him shot, but he had undone the meagre gains of the Mexican Revolution. Huerta's policies were more than a return to those of Díaz. It was a full on dictatorship, forged in blood and heavy-handed responses to any who criticized him.

Moreover, Huerta arrested and executed Abraham González. This academic had been the brains behind the proposed reforms of the Revolution. He had written a far-reaching Constitution, which would have helped the Mexican poor out of poverty. He had advised Madero and recruited Villa to the cause. Now he was dead. Much later, Villa was to hunt down González's remains and give him a proper funeral. Villa probably would have rode out anyway, but the murder of González sealed the deal.

Villa crossed into El Paso, Texas, in the USA, to make his plans. He was well respected there. He funded his army on beef and cattle sold to the Texans, who willingly paid in arms or money. As Villa's prestige grew, and Huerta's correspondingly fell, Villa even started producing his own currency, which was readily accepted in Texas. His coinage was good and stable. He also had a contract with a studio in Hollywood. They would film his revolution and he would receive 50% of the door profits to fund it.


By the time Villa crossed back into Ciudad Juárez, the call had gone out. This Division of the North had never officially disbanded after the first Revolution and it quickly reassembled. Villa was in touch with other discontented leaders, such as Venustiano Carranza, and he was well stocked with American fire-arms. It didn't take long for practically the entire north of Mexico to fall under rebel control, with Pancho Villa's name attached to many of the major battles. (His military prowess and genius at battle strategies was impressive enough for the American army to start studying them; then using them in training exercises amongst their own personnel.)

Huerta hadn't quite been the puppet president that the USA had anticipated. In fact, he had acted with downright hostility towards American businesses in Mexico. The Americans were concerned enough to station navy ships in the Gulf of Mexico. The situation was to reach its zenith in the Tampico Affair.


Tampico, in Tamaulipas, was the site of a large American oil refinery. As Villa and Carranza closed upon it, President Woodrow Wilson sent messages to Huerta to ask what he was going to do about it. Meanwhile, US navy ships rushed into the area to evacuate their civilians from the town. Federal Mexican troops, controlled ultimately by Huerta, raised their guns on an American ship, the USS Dolphin. There was no-one amongst them who spoke both Spanish and English, on either side, thus the Americans on board were arrested and taken into custody.

They were eventually released, but not without bad feeling on each side. Rear Admiral Henry T. Mayo, of the US navy, demanded a written apology of Huerta and the placement of the Stars and Stripes to fly over Tampico. Huerta didn't respond, though the governor of Tampico did write the apology. All requests for the American flag to stand on Mexico soil were refused. President Woodrow Wilson ordered an invasion and American forces took Veracruz.


All the time, Villa and Carranza waited, not advancing, though it was obvious that they could have done. They were piling on the pressure in full knowledge of how the Americans would react. It forced Huerta to fight on too many fronts, without the backing of either his own people or their powerful northern neighbours. The people, en masse, were supporting Villa. It was his charisma and integrity which brought them from their fields; his strategy and generalship which won the battles; and the sheer presense of the man that foresaw a better future for Mexico. On 15 July 1914, Huerta bowed to the inevitable and fled the country.

It felt, at the time, that Villa was poised to become Mexico's next president. Wherever he went, the people would rush from their homes to cheer him. "¡Viva Villa! ¡Viva Villa! ¡Viva Villa!"


But there had already been some puzzling maneuvering along the chain of command. On the eve of Huerta's flight, Carranza had asked Villa to take his troops to attack Saltillo, a town which was still loyal to the president. Villa did so with his usual flair, winning the territory outright. In the meantime, Carranza had entered Mexico City in triumph.

Villa was outraged and immediately diverted his forces onto Zacatecas, the source of much of Mexico's silver wealth. It was a daring target, with easily defensible terrain to cross, but Villa did it. Carranza might have secured the capital city, but Villa had Mexico's economy.

It once again felt cut and dried. Villa would become president and he would ensure that all of the revolution's reforms would be applied. But there was one more sting in the tale. President Woodrow Wilson gave the order that the USA was siding with Carranza. The wily revolutionary politician had already done a deal with Standard Oil, the largest US oil company represented in Mexico. He would protect their interests first.


President Carranza (bearded with a stick) and his government
Villa continued to hold Zacatecas, but he ordered a half of his northern army to attack Carranza. They should have won. Villa's strategies were there and they had the strength and experience. But they were also fighting with ammunition, which had just arrived from Texas. The bullets were duds. 14,000 of Villa's men died on the field and the US president used that as justification for the fact that Carranza was the stronger candidate. From now on, no American arms would be supplied to Villa and no more financing was to come from north of the border.

Pancho Villa felt betrayed. He declared war upon the USA.

Sea Turtles Season!

In the dead of night, the female hauls herself from the sea. She is following the ancient tracks. For 130 million years, her maternal forebears have visited this beach; she hatched here herself. Now she does her bit for her endangered species.

She crawls away from the shoreline, looking for a likely place in the dunes. Then she digs, her hind flappers tunneling into the white sand. Into the hole, she lays her eggs. Dozens of babies, few of which will survive into adulthood. She buries them, then she returns to the ocean depths once more.


Beneath the sand the eggs lie hidden. Protecting their precious contents; which are nurtured and grow, quietly out of view. They are so vunerable. So much in their environment affects their chances of survival. A disturbed nest will kill them outright, even if a predator never finds their actual egg.

The heat of the sand has a sliding scale of worth. If it grows too cold, they will never hatch and die. If it remains at a normal, shaded Tropical temperature, then they will become males. If the sand heats up, in the full glare of the sun, they will become females. If it over-heats, then they will cook in their shells. Four fates await, based on the temperature alone.

Then, a month or two after they were laid, every hatchling emerges during a short period of time. They burrow their way to the surface and kick off the last of their encrusted shells. Then it's the perilous scurry towards the ocean and a frantic plunging into the sea. The birds above are watching, swooping down to feast. The infants' future is fair from certain. Many creatures out there love a snack of baby sea turtle. The majority won't make it. Only one in 4,000 will. But those that do will return in around 30 years time, to mate or lay their own eggs. Thus the cycle of life goes on.


We've spoken here about sea turtles before ("Sea turtles, mate"), but, as we enter the new breeding season, it's worth the repetition. They are an endangered species, hence they need all of the help we can give them, in terms of awareness.

May through to October is sea turtle breeding season. Upon any beach, in the Mexican Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico, the rare and awesome sight of a mother sea turtle crawling up the sands may be witnessed. Conservationists are desperately trying to keep this species going, so you may also see sticks poking out of the sand. If you do, then leave it will alone. It will be marking a nest and has been placed there to alert those passing by.

Also many hotels and other coastal companies may play their part. Some actively protect the nests within their land, collecting hatchlings and keeping them safe within shallow pools. These will then be released, en masse, directly into the ocean. It cuts out one more dangerous step, the rush from nest to sea, for the little ones.


A few final tips:

* If you are waiting at night on the beach, please try to keep bright lights shielded. (Sea turtles, looking for a nest, will navigate by it and collide with you - these are big creatures!) If you can see your shadow on the sand, then it's too bright.

* If you see a sea turtle emerging from the ocean, do not interrupt it. It will frighten easily and might not nest at all. Just stay very quiet and observe. Above all, do not use flash photography. (See above note on bright lights and add to it how startled mothers = not nesting mothers.)

* If you see a stick in the sand, leave it there and try not to be too loud in the vicinity.

And long live the sea turtles!

'Pink Meanie': New Species of Jellyfish Discovered In Gulf of Mexico

The scientific world is abuzz with the news. A brand new species of jellyfish has been identified in Mexican waters. This extremely rare creature has been nicknamed 'Pink Meanie', in part because it feeds on other jellyfish. Its discovery also means registering a new family, unique amongst any studied before.


Photo: Mary Elizabeth Miller, 2011
Drymonema larsoni has been measured at 3ft (0.9 meters) across, weighing in at 50lbs (3.6 stone; 22.7kg). Its tentacles can reach 70ft (21.3 meters) and are capable of ensnaring dozens of prey at once. (One in the Gulf of Mexico was spotted snacking on 34 smaller jellyfish at the same time.) It is the founding species of the Family Drymonematidae. This designation will cover jellyfish which specifically eat its own kind.

The species was photographed, in November 2000, off the coast of Dauphin Island, Alabama, USA. At the time, no-one realised the significance. It was assumed that the giant, pink creature was a stray, washed across the Atlantic from the Mediterranean Sea. A similar jellyfish lives there. Marine biologists nicknamed it the 'pink meanie'.


Photographed by Ben Raines, 2000
It was only when an American graduate student, Keith Bayha, went on vacation to Turkey, that questions began to be asked about the 'pink meanie'. He spotted one of the supposed species off the coast there and captured it. Asking around, he learned that this jellyfish hadn't been seen in decades in the region. It also had marked differences to the 'pink meanie' photographed back home.

Thus began ten years of research for Keith Bayha, who is now a Dauphin Island Sea Lab scientist. He teamed up with Dr Michael Dawson (University of California Merced Campus), who is an expert in the field, as well as an author of books on the subject. Bayha studied classifications of jellyfish from all over the world, as well as investigating 'pink meanies'. Their range covered the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the US Atlantic. Finally, DNA testing confirmed what his other data had already concluded. This jellyfish was something entirely new. In fact, it is unique.

Bayha explains, "It's rare that something like this could escape the notice of scientific research for so long. That it did is partially due to Drymonema’s extreme rarity almost everywhere in the world."


Keith Bayha and wallaby friend
When the classification was made, Bayha named it 'larsoni' after a personal hero, Ronald Larson. He was a US Fish & Wildlife scientist, who had contributed significantly to the jellyfish collection at the Smithsonian Museum. Bayha also believes that Larson was the first to document the 'pink meanie'. Bayha added, "I felt like he hadn’t really been recognized for all he had done. So this was my way of giving him some recognition."


Current cover of 'The Biological Bulletin'. A 'pink meanie' preys on the moon jellyfish Aurelia
Swimmers and divers suddenly feeling very nervous about taking a dip in the Mexican oceans should take note. The jellyfish have always been there. The only thing that has changed is that we now know about them. The distinct lack of headlines, from people attacked by them, is testimony to the fact that human beings are not on the menu. However, if you are an Aurelia jellyfish, beware!

Chevé: The Caving Equivalent of Climbing Mount Everest

There is an extreme race going on, with human beings pushing the borders of the known world, and the limits of their own endurance. It involves training akin, in intensity and danger, as preparing astronauts to go into space. The participants have to be self-sufficient and able to save their own lives, because if they get into trouble, no emergency service will be able to reach them. The goal is to find the deepest pit; the greatest vertical supercaves. This is a real life journey to the center of the Earth. In the vanguard, currently, are Mexico and Georgia.



Chevé Cave (pron Chay-vay), pictured above, is Mexico's best hope. It's L-shaped system has so far been navigated to a depth of 4,869ft (1,484 meters). American supercaver, Bill Stone, and his team then arrived at huge boulders, which they couldn't squeeze through. But water was passing beneath. They dropped dye into the subterranean river, then discovered where that emerged on the surface. They know that the cave is deeper still, they just need to work out how to explore it.

Chevé Cave begins with a 1,247ft (380 meters) sheer descent. The shaft then kinks to the west, sloping downwards for the remaining known 3622ft (1,104 meters). At this point, cavers encounter a terminal sump. That is a section that is completely flooded. Short sumps may be explored with cavers holding their breath, as they swim through it. But this one is too big. It will require cavers to lug proper diving equipment down there. An intimidating prospect considering the obstacles that have to be traversed before they even reach the waters.

Chevé's biggest rival is Krubera Cave, in Abkhazia, Republic of Georgia. A Ukrainian supercaver has finally charted its depths at 7,188ft (2,191 meters). Krubera Cave currently holds the title as the world's deepest pit. However, its extent is known. Chevé's is not. Yet finding out how deep it is requires amazing feats of human endurance.


Image froma 2004 expedition into Chevé

It is said that there are over 50 ways to die in a supercave. Falling is only the most obvious. Hypothermia, electrocution and sheer panic have all taken their victims. These cavers are underground for up to a month, as it takes a week to even get to the area where exploration can take place. During this time, they are usually in pitch darkness. They encounter pockets of poison gas, vast lakes and flooded chambers. Water levels can rise suddenly, if a flash storm occurs on the surface. There is no way to warn those below that this has happened.

Temperatures can plummet or soar, often quite quickly. One of the biggest dangers of Krubera is freezing to death. Sounds echo in the vast systems. Bill Stone described a 150ft (46 meters) waterfall, in Mexico's secondest deepest cave, Huaulta. He said that the noise was like standing next to a jetliner's engine, for days on end, without being able to get away. Moreover the mind can play tricks on you down there.



There is a phenomenom known as 'the Rapture'. It is not pleasant to experience. Supercave exploration taught us that every human being has a limit. It differs from person to person, but there is only so much darkness and depth that each of us can take. When that points is reached, a switch clicks in the brain and that individual is gripped by 'the Rapture'. It manifests as the biggest panic attack ever. They need to get out; and they need to get out NOW. No time for safety precautions. No consideration for the lives of your colleagues. It's fight and flight in overdrive. It's uncontrollable and they have to leave NOW!

This, naturally, is a bit of a problem, when you are a week's arduous journey from the surface and there's no way back without a lot of skill and self-control.



Sleeping takes place in camps, wherever the cavers can find a relatively broad ledge or underground beach to set one up. If they can't, then they tack a hammock between two boulders or onto the sheer face of a cliff. They dangle there to re-energize themselves with a little shut-eye. They carry with them food to sustain them. With any luck, they might even find a slab big up to rest their cooking gear onto it.

Sheer stamina and a high level of fitness has to keep them going. Some passages are so tight that only Yoga techniques can contort their lithe bodies enough to see them through. Often they are supporting their whole body weight with just a hand or strategically placed foot.

James M Tabor's book 'Blind Descent' tells the story of the supercavers, as they explore Chevé and Krubera.

Three miles on a level path–or even a mountain route–in daylight is one thing. Three miles immersed in absolute darkness, drenched by freezing waterfalls, wading neck-deep through frigid lakes, spidering up and down vertical pitches, scrambling over wobbling boulders, and belly-crawling through squeezes so tight you must exhale to escape them, is quite another…Imagine climbing the stairs of two Empire State Buildings in daylight, dry and unburdened. To get out, Vesely and Farr would have to do it in the dark, soaking, heavily loaded, on rope the diameter of a man’s index finger.

There is another, longer excerpt from this book on NPR's website. It compellingly describes a climb into Chevé Cave that ends in a fatality. There is also an interview with the author, which explains more about the conditions into which cavers descend, when exploring a supercave. That can be heard here.

Monsters: Now It's Our Turn to Adapt

British born Gareth Edwards had a vision. He was tired of watching movies about alien invading; those never told you what happened next? How did the people survive? How did they carry on with their lives, when their world was no longer entirely their own?

Moreover, Edwards wanted to prove that blockbluster special effects and brilliant cinematography could be achieved without a Hollywood budget. He wanted to create an intimate movie, against a backdrop of stunning scenery. He had $15,000; a crew of four other people; two American actors; and a van. He came to Mexico.

The result was 'Monsters'. It is set six years after aliens have created a colony on Earth. A NASA probe had been sent to collect samples from a world suspected of sustaining life. The spaceship got into trouble, on re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, and crashed into the Mexico. The creatures that emerged soon began terraforming our world into one that could hatch their young. They were here to stay and now huge swathes of Mexico belong to them: the infected zone.

But that is just the backdrop. The movie focuses upon the human aspect, as seen through the eyes of two Americans and the people that they meet. Andrew Kaulder (Scoot McNairy) is a photojournalist, who has arrived in Mexico to capture images of real people living right on the edge of the zone. He can get a lot of money for a picture of a dead child; or a tottering building; or a family rendered destitute and homeless by an alien raid.

Samantha Wynden (Whitney Able) is the daughter of his boss. She's also in Mexico, which isn't thrilling her wealthy father. When she's involved in a accident, spraining her wrist, Kaulder receives a call from his boss. He's to find and chaperone Wynden back to America or find his career taking a downturn. It shouldn't take long. There is a train to the coast, then a ferry across the Gulf of Mexico, avoiding the infected zone.



Obviously things don't work out as planned. Thus two days later, the couple find themselves relying on the kindness of strangers well within the zone itself. There is a sub-plot of a couple falling in love. The main story, though, is a chronicle of all they witness and experience en route.

This is Edwards's debut offering and it ticks the boxes of many genres: sci-fi, horror flick, post-apocolyptic/disaster movie, road movie, love story and 'long journey home' movie. Many are comparing it favorably to 'Cloverfield' and 'District 9', but it's not a remake of either. It feels like a documentary. 'Monsters' was in American theaters in the fall; and it is currently being launched to European cinema-goers.

Most remarkable of all is how the film was shot. Apart from McNairy and Able, every other person seen on the screen is not an actor. The van would pull up, at a likely location, and ask passer-bys if they would like to be in a movie. The fact that Able spoke fluent Spanish was a bonus in these negotiations. The cab driver was a real cab driver; the ticket vendor really does sell ferry tickets; the lady, who invited them into her home, was a real mother and that was really her home. They were actually her children. Edwards, via Able, would explain the plot and their role in it. They would be paid, there and then, for their part in the movie.



Such an approach meant that a script quickly became impossible. Edwards wrote out a paragraph describing each scene. All of the dialogue was ad libbed, by the actors, at the time. Edwards gave them points to hit, but all of the rest was the couple emersing themselves into their characters.

On the subject of realism, McNairy and Able were a real life couple when Edwards hired them. They are both professional actors, but they had also been dating for four months. He wanted a couple who were actually in love. The movie shoot worked for them. They got married last month.

All of this does lead to a very intimate movie. It's not really about monsters. It's about people living in a world, which also happens to include something bigger and scarier than themselves.

Naturally, some cameo appearances were never going to be filmed in Mexico. You could climb onto the top of any Maya pyramid and gaze out across miles, as the couple in the film did, but no alien is going to come trampling into view. There is also a distinct lack of ravaged homes and rusting military vehicles. Those bits were added in later, on Gareth Edwards's home computer. He's very, very good.

Hurricane Karl and Cancún

With the blogosphere and news full of dire reports about Hurricane Karl and Mexico, I'd like to confirm that Cancún has not been troubled. Karl has now dissipated into the mountains above Mexico City and will not be returning.



This is not to gloat in the face of our friends in the northwest, who are certainly having to deal with the mess left by Karl. It is to reassure those who have been searching our site, and others, for information about Cancún and the Riviera Maya. Karl did not touch this area.

Cancún has woken up to a beautiful day. Blue skies, with a few white, fluffy clouds. The temperature is, at the time of writing, 24°C (75°F), due to rise to 29°C (85°F) before the day is through. For those wishing to see for themselves, then there is a page full of Cancún based webcams at EarthCam.

If you are planning to visit Veracruz, then it is worth checking with your travel agent. Hurricane Karl hit there on Friday, as a category 3, causing the deaths of seven people. Some areas of the state are experiencing flooding and damage to buildings.

For those concerned about hurricanes in the Mexican Caribbean, then I'd like to refer you to my earlier blogs on the subject: 'Oh No! It's the Hurricane Season!' and 'Surviving a Hurricane in Mexico'. There are many sites with up-to-date information, about what's forming and what's heading this way, or not. A personal favourite is Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog.

In the meantime, Cancun Weather Today has the area on Blue Status. This is the second lowest flag. It is issued when there is 'Minimum Danger - When any tropical system forms in Atlantic or the Caribbean Sea.'

The Monarchs of the Madre

It is an arduous, 3000 mile migration, which no monarch butterfly survives. Those who arrive in their millions, to cloak the Sierra Madre in color, are the great-grandchildren of those who left, nine months before. Nobody knows why they do it, but the fact that they do is one of nature's most spectacular sights.

They grow to just 10cm (4"). Their distinctive orange and black wings are like starched tissue paper. Their life-span is a mere two to eight weeks, yet they will fly through storms and natural predators to complete their journey. They fly up to 161km (100 miles) a day, at altitudes of sometimes 3km (10,000ft); crossing in all terrains, from mountain to jungle, to city, to wetlands, to the Arizona desert, to the coast, to the Georgia woodlands and beyond. They are the only butterfly to migrate, like birds, rather than hibernate over winter.

Monarchs are the stars of a Mexican government tourist compaign; and the mascot insect/butterfly of no less than six American states. The Aztecs believed them to be the airborn souls of their departed warriors. Even today, some of the older Mexicans will step aside for the passage of the monarch butterfly, viewing them as carrying away the spirits of their dead. (It is a story that resonates across the world in Ireland, where white butterflies or moths perform the same service.)

To the Tohono O'odham tribe, of Northern Mexico and Arizona, the monarch butterflies caused wishes to be conveyed to the gods. Catch one and whisper your secret need, then let it go. The gods will hear. It is this that has fuelled a growing industry in monarch butterly releases, at weddings and funerals, all over the USA. That and, of course, the vision of hundreds of pretty butterfly wings, soaring like petals in the air, as something beautifully special to mark the momentous occasion.

For the Guatemalan Maya, the significance of the monarch butterfly was more philosophical. The butterfly's twin wings represented the dream world and the waking world. It could only survive if the two touched constantly, and met in the heart. It was a message to us all, that dreams and reality were equally important; and one should be dismissed as fancy only at our peril.

The monarch butterflies are on their way back. They left the central Mexican highlands in February to fly northwards, passing the border into America. They summered, supping on the nectar of those countries' flora, but as August turns, the monarchs start to head back down, ahead of the northern frosts.

En route there, the females would have deposited eggs, on the first milkweed growth that she found. These have now hatched into caterpillars. Three weeks later, the caterpillar is a monarch butterfly too, living out its eight weeks in an American garden, or flying northwards too. Its children, or grandchildren, might make it into Canada.

But then they turn, this descendent monarch, hearing the impulse of its ancestor to head to the warmth of the Sierra Madre. It will die before it makes it to the Mexican border. But its child or grandchild will cross and eventually settle, swarming the oyamel trees, until not a leaf nor inch of bark can be seen. It's like a gigantic relay race of the generations, ensuring their species' survival.


Monarch butterflies covering a Mexican tree.
Yet human beings haven't helped in that task. Monarch butterflies are not endangered, but there was a real fear that they could rapidly become so. For many years, the major problem was illegal logging in Mexico itself. However, that has dramatically decreased, since the loggers realised that there was more money to be had in butterfly tourism, than in selling the timber.

They have also been assisted by the establishment of state-funded butterfly sanctuaries, throughout the migration route. These vast areas span more than 790,000 h (1,951,300 ac) under the jurisdiction of 22 different municipalities; 12 in the State of Michoacan, and 10 in the State of Mexico. In Michoacan alone, over 500,000 oyamel trees have been planted to combat the logging losses of the past.

A handful of these sanctuaries are open to the general public. El Rosario and Chincua are in Michoacan; while Cerro Pelon, Herradura and La Mesa are in the state of Mexico. The revenue from their guided tours and amenities help to secure the protection of the legendary monarch butterflies. El Rosario has been declared an UNESCO World Heritage site.

But despite all of this, the numbers of monarchs fell sharply this year. A study from the World Wildlife Fund showed that only one-fourth of the amount of monarchs leaving Mexico, returned last year. There are several theories as to why. February is usually one of the driest months in Mexico, but last year, the oyamel trees, with their cargo of monarchs, was lashed by sleet and rain in a freak storm. As a result, fewer survived to even set off north.

This has worried Juan Bezaury, Mexico's representative for The Nature Conservancy, who told reporters, "We can say that extreme climate events will be more frequent and more intense." It is a concern that is likely to be included in the UN Climate Change Conference, being held in Cancún, in December 2010. Mexico has already promised to reduce carbon emissions, by 50 million tonnes, in 2012.

Then there are the dangers north of the border. Pollen from genetically modified corn, in the United States, has been blowing onto the milkweed - the favoured food of the monarch butterflies. This pollen is toxic to them and has been killing them in their thousands. Also herbicides sprayed onto roadsides, coupled with rigorous mowing to keep them neat, have been destroying the same milkweed. Meanwhile, blackwort has been able to thrive. This plant looks very like milkweed, but is poisonous to the monarch caterpillars. Mexican, American and Canadian officials are working together to see how these issues might be resolved.

For now, everyone is waiting, in wondrous anticipation, to witness November's grand return. They will be here until February, wintering amongst the oyamel trees. It is one of nature's most sublimely magical spectacles; and one which will see the crowds flocking into the sanctuaries to dream and watch and simply be a part of it.

Ancient Mexican Sea Deities

Visitors come from all over the world to explore the oceans of Mexico. From ancient and modern traders and business people; through invaders and pirates; to tourists and, of course, the local people. They have all witnessed the changeable moods of the sea. The calm serenity, that is there most of the time, to the occasional weight of tropical storms and hurricanes. They have sailed and fished and fed from its bounty. During all of this, particularly in the latter, these people have appealed to the divine entities, whom they believed ruled over these beautiful waters.

These days, the local fishing communities are most likely to be appealing to Mother Mary, or Our Lady Of Guadalupe. Those from other nations will bring their own gods or goddesses. For our ancestors, their prayers were heard by the ancient Mexican sea deities.

Chalchiuhtlicue

The Lady of the Waters, Chalchiuhtlicue, is an Atzec goddess.

Her name translates as 'jade skirt', but she was known by several names: Matalcueyeh, Xoxouhqui Ihuipil, Xoxouhqui Icue, Chalchiuh Tlatonac and Etzalqualiztli. Most of those relate to her skirt, which is variously described as blue, jade or green. The last moniker, Etzalqualiztli, means 'Lady Precious Green'.

Her icons and shrines have been found next to sources of water, streams, aquaducts, irrigation systems, lakes and cenotes, as well as the oceans themselves. She is shown wearing a skirt of blue or green, often with blue and white paper ornaments, and a shawl adorned with tassels. She also has tassels dangling down either side of her face. These are attached to an ornate head-dress, rendered from several broad braids. She is eternally youthful and very beautiful, as well as noble in status.

The Aztecs associated the sea with childbirth, so it is that Chalchiuhtlicue was evoked during labour. Newborn babies were sprinkled with water and greeted as the goddess. Four days later, they would be bathed again and blessed under the auspices of the goddess, Chalchiuhtlicue.

Chalchiuhtlicue is married to the rain god, Tlaloc. It was after he was slighted by the great father diety, Quetzalcoatl, that Chalchiuhtlicue flew into one of her rare rages. She caused such violent tempests that the whole world was flooded.

The region of Veracruz, alongside the Gulf of Mexico, was once known as Chalchiuhcueyecatl, ie 'the waters of the goddess, Chalchiuhtlicue'. Therefore, anyone worried today about the situation in the Gulf of Mexico might do well to appeal to this ancient lady, alongside their usual prayers.

Ix Chel

Grandmother, Ix Chel, is a Maya goddess.

She's been called 'Lady of the Seas'. Her temples and shrines tended to be around water or upon islands. She famously had her shrine on Isla Mujeres desecrated by the first Spanish visitors to Mexico. That story, along with Ix Chel's own, has been told in a previous blog.

She is the ancient deity for the Mexican Caribbean Sea.

Mama Cocha

Sea Mother, Mama Cocha, is an Inca goddess. She was also known as Mama Qocha.

Mama Cocha had dominion over all of the oceans and waters. She is a kindly, motherly divine lady, who protects fishermen and sailors. They would petition her for a large catch and calm waters. Mama Cocha would set about preventing storms and making sure there were plenty of fish around the fishermen's lures and nets.

As the goddess of both the waters and the rain, she could control the weather. She was most often evoked around the Pacific shores.

Her husband is Viracocha, the creator of the universe, sun, moon and stars. He also created civilization, walking amongst his people disguised as a beggar, in order to teach them certain skills. Mama Cocha and Viracocha were the parents of other Inca deities.

Comic book readers may recognize her from the Marvel publication, 'Thor & Hercules: Encyclopaedia Mythologica'. Mama Cocha appeared in issue one. She also lends her name to a Peruvian home for abandoned children, Mama Cocha, in Los Organos.

"Sea turtles, mate."

Ragetti: Is that... can't be.
Pintel: How?
Captain Teague: Sea turtles, mate.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Sea turtles can be found in all of the world's oceans, minus the really cold ones up by the poles. They spend their lives in the sea, coming to the surface to breath, before dodging back underwater to feed. Here they can live for up to 80 years. The largest of the five species of sea turtle can grow up to eight feet (2.5m) long, weighing in at 1,300lbs (93 stone; or 590kg). They are truly one of the great, gentle giants of the sea.

Only the mature females ever venture onto land and then only to lay their eggs on the beaches. Beaches in Mexico are some of the dwindling number where nesting occurs, as anyone who reads A Canuck in Cancun knows:

A gigantic mama turtle was RIGHT THERE laying her eggs!! Super awe, jaw on the sandy floor, ga ga girls, we oohed and aaahed and watched her do her thing ... Turtle patrol came along and took her measurements and clamped a tracking device on her flipper. Her shell was 106 cms by 96 cms, big girl! We got hit by some flying sand when she started to try to get out of her hole, her powerful flippers making loud THWACK sounds as she dug her way out. We left her in peace to make her way back to sea.
A Canuck in Cancun: Where the Boys Aren't: Girls' Beach Getaway

And if you don't read 'A Canuck in Cancun', then why not? It's a brilliant blog!



When these eggs hatch, there is a sudden surge of tiny babies rushing towards the ocean. Seagulls and other predators lunge in and only a fraction ever make it. Then there is the arduous task of growing up, amidst the sharks and others who like to see sea turtle on the menu.

Sea turtles have been around for 130 million years; yet they have now been hunted to the brink of extinction by human beings. Sadly, a large proportion of this happens in Mexico, where poachers illegally catch and sell them into the international market, or eat them at home. Tourist are warned to boycott and report any restaurant with sea turtle on offer. Moreover, please don't buy any tortoiseshell products.

Even more recently, BP came under sharp criticism for burning sea turtles alive, by trapping them into controlled 'burn zones', in a bid to remove oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico. The Nature Institute in New Orleans estimated that at least 425 sea turtles had perished that way, with many more being picked up by conservationists. The survivors had to be cleaned up, with toothbrushes used to scrub the oil from their shells.

Sea Turtles are globally protected under the regulations of both the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Mexico is amongst those countries who have added extra laws to strengthen international law. It is illegal to poach, hunt, catch or eat sea turtles in Mexico. It is also illegal to use shrimp nets that don't allow sea turtles to escape. By-catch (when something other than what you were fishing for ends up caught) was a major threat to the sea turtles before that law came in. Traditional nesting beaches, in Mexico, are protected under law. They are often incorporated into national parks in order to ensure this protection.

In addition, there have been many other campaigns in the country, aiming to combat some of the cultural, religious or superstitious reasoning behind the consumption of sea turtles. In this very Catholic of countries, sea turtles are often eaten during Lent. This is such a problem that activists wrote to the Pope hoping that he would rule that sea turtles are meat, not fish, and therefore prohibited during that period. He hasn't done so yet.

Another pervasive (but utterly incorrect) belief was that sea turtle eggs boosted male potency. Playboy pin-up and singer Dorismar was enlisted to help combat that one. For the non-Spanish speakers, that legend reads, "My man doesn't need turtle eggs."

Dorismar also made an appearance on the extremely popular TV show, Sábado Gigante. She used her charms to convince Spanish speaking men everywhere that they really didn't need to eat sea turtle eggs. Wearing nothing but revealing pyjamas, she explained carefully that it's a myth that they help male virility.

The TV show broadcasts to an audience of over 100 million people, spread across 42 countries. Dorismar's slot on it was part of Sábado Gigante's campaign tour of Latin America, ending in Mexico City. During which they spread the 'Don't Eat Sea Turtles' word even further. Live music and personal appearances by Dorismar helped the message to sink in.

May to October is sea turtle breeding season, so it is possible that any visitors to Mexico might encounter their nests. If you see a mound of sand with a stick in it, then leave it well alone. It is being monitored by one of the many volunteer or state sea turtle conservation organizations. If you happen to spot a giant turtle leaving the ocean, with huge tyre track grooves in the sand, then report it immediately to the beach patrols. They can then alert the relevant people to come and protect the nest.

Then sit back, at a distance, and revel in the fact that you have witnessed one of nature's more wondrous moments. Because, if the poachers win, no future generation will be able to see it at all.