Expedition leaders: Dr. Bryan Keller, Annie Guttridge and Sorantaa Bain

Crew: Autumn, Christian, Dani, Emily, Olivia, Scott - Saving the Blue also hosted local marine science students Bianca and Skye from BAMSI, for multiple, full day experiences with our team.

A week full of sharks, rays and science, with tons of laughs. We experienced thrilling snorkels, dived in blue holes, and caught two giant tiger sharks, just a to name a few of the weeks highlights! Read the full breakdown below.

Day 1

After meeting at a semi-private airport it was time to board our private 9-seater plane, and before we knew it, we were off to Andros Island, The Bahamas for our week of research!

Our flight took around 80 minutes, however with stunning views from all seats the time flew past and we landed in no time. We cleared customs and hopped in local taxi’s where we headed south. After 30 minutes we had arrived at our lodge for the week. Annie and Bryan then gave an island/lodge safety briefing followed by shark research/handling and finally first aid procedures and a kit talk through. After this it was go time!

The crew set up block rigs with the guidance of the trip leaders and before we knew it, we had a shark on! First up was a nurse shark, followed by a Caribbean reef shark (one of our target species this week) and then finally our last shark of the day, another nurse shark. During sets and workups (shark capture processing) we were greeted by a pod of bottlenose dolphins!

After our successful afternoon on he water it was time to head home, back to the lodge for dinner, followed by equipment fixing/remaking and then off to bed we went ready for an early start the next day.

Day 2

We woke up early today around 6am and headed to the open ocean to target pelagic sharks. Our mission today was to internally acoustically tag silky sharks for our ongoing project. The acoustic tags are implanted into the body cavity of the sharks and each time it passes within 1500ft (500m) of a receiver (a listening device) it will ‘talk’ to it, sending an ID code, time and date stamp. These acoustic tags have a battery life of ~10 years and through our receiver array, and other scientists in the Bahamas and US we monitor the movement and habitat use of a mixture of animals, including sharks.

Our morning was a huge success! We tagged silkies from as small as 107cm to 223 stretch total length. Occasionally we bring smaller sharks onto the boat (see below) as this is the fastest way to ‘process’ them (usually under one minute). Sometimes in pictures it looks stressful for the shark but we promise we do this for them, not us. It can actually be more dangerous for us, however this is truly the best/fastest way to work.

After an early start and a busy morning the team headed back to the lodge for a mini break and reset before heading back out for a few more hours of fishing. Our target species for the afternoon was Caribbean reef sharks and our luck was in, we caught and tagged three! After an incredibly successful day it was time to head home, eat dinner and head to bed.

Day 3

A new day was upon us and, as with every morning, guests have the choice of a freshly-made breakfast eggs (scrambled, fried, or an omelet) to-order at no extra cost, cereals, toast, fresh fruit, yogurt, and more. After breakfast the team started work on creating items for our new stingray project! We made ‘spoons’ to help usher the rays, and a holding square to safely restrict the ray if and when we could.

Once the items were made it was time to head out and search! Conditions were challenging, however with all eyes on the water a large ray was spotted, not a southern stingray (our target ray), but an INCREDIBLY rare whiptail ray measuring approximately 6ft in disc width! These animals are extremely rare and have only been seen a handful of time in Andros. Team member Annie Guttridge hopped in to capture some photos - Note the size of Annie to the ray below.

After the whiptail excitement we moved locations and were successful in spotting, capturing and tagging three southern stingrays! All rays were quickly worked up with samples taken and tagged placed.

Once back at the lodge we droned the sand flats surrounding the property in search of rays, however none were seen and so we called it a day. The team then took the opportunity to freshen up with a shower and settled down for a shark lecture by D.r Bryan Keller. Other guests at the lodge, and local Bahamians were also invited to join. Soon after it was dinner time, followed by another early night.

Day 4

Today’s first activity started on land at a local primary school. Part of our ongoing outreach on Andros is to inspire and educate the youth and we regularly visit schools and present to the children.

Our team spoke on reusable alternatives, including refillable water bottles. The children were asked questions on single use plastics and enjoyed a fun, educational talk on conservation including how both children and adults can reduce their single-use plastic habits. Our team gifted over 60 colorful Bahamian themed water bottles to the children and their teachers

Our afternoon activity saw us back on the water searching for rays. As we meticulously searched the shallows we saw a large animal working its way along the shoreline; it surprising didn’t look or move like a stingray or a shark. As we approached the object fluttered its ‘wings’ removing an enormous amount of sand, to reveal ANOTHER large whiptail ray! Our team were lost for words! Annie once again hopped in and could immediately see the ray was smaller with a normal looking tail (unlike the ray from yesterday) so confirmed this was indeed a different individual from the ray seen yesterday!

After our excitement it was back to work. Our team spotted a large southern stingray and the team quickly scooped it up. Surprisingly, after scanning the ray it was confirmed the same individual we had caught and tagged the day before! She was in fantastic condition and we quickly released her and watched her swim away strong, back to foraging in the shallows.

After a few more hours of searching, with no luck we deployed our block rigs in the hopes of capturing more Caribbean reef sharks, however after a few hours we again called it a day and headed back to the lodge.

On arriving back to the lodge the team decided to give the sand flats one last try, and it was the right call! The team were able to catch and tag two more rays, this time significantly smaller than those caught previously.

The final push concluded our ray captures for the week and as the team walked back along the beach with the sun setting there was a sense of pride knowing the team pulled together for a final push and were rewarded in the last few minutes of day light.

Day 5

Today we headed out early at 7am to the open ocean. Breakfast was at 6:30am, however Annie suggested it was best to not eat a big breakfast – or any breakfast at all – if you suffered from motion sickness, before heading out to the big swells of the silky shark habitat.

On arrival the water was calm and a number of silkies were present. Silky sharks are social and are known to school and so where you find one, you often find others! We got straight to work setting our lines in the hopes of catching and tagging. Within minutes we had a silky on, and then another, and another. All sharks got a full work up including measurements and an internal PIT tag.

The larger sharks however were all acoustically tagged. Like earlier in the week the sharks were rolled onto their back for a lower-belly incision and insertion of an acoustic tag. A few sutures closed the incision and the sharks were released to go on their way. A very productive morning!

After the captures we decided to all briefly hop in and enjoy the sharks beneath the waves. The deep blues of the open ocean is an incredible sight, and the sharks really standout against the perfect blue backdrop.

Everyone saw the sharks up close and observed firsthand how bold the open ocean predators can be; beaming with confidence with a true lack personal space! In addition to the sharks we saw mahi-mahi, tuna, barracuda and rainbow runners! After our incredible dive, it was time to pack up and move to our next location.

After our successful morning the team enjoyed a much deserved break, diving in an ocean blue hole! Andros is known for their abundant and diverse blue holes and the team thoroughly enjoyed exploring this one, locally known as ‘The Coffin’! After our dive we set more block rigs in a new location, however our afternoon was slow with no more shark captures so we called it a day, and headed in for showers and dinner.

Day 6

Our final full day on Andros and the sunrise set the tone for the day. Everyone was in high spirits as we left early with the goal of targeting a great hammerhead with the objective of placing a satellite tag on him or her.

Once set we waited and waited but after many hours not a single shark was caught. Shark fishing is exactly that, fishing, not catching. Nothing is guaranteed after all, these are wild sharks in a truly wild habitat. Annie suggested the lack of shark captures could be due to a large predator (a hammerhead, tiger, bull etc.) in the area, making their prey (blacktip, blacknose etc.) shy and cautious hence a lack of captures. So, once we hit a slack tide we decided to take a break, and we took the opportunity to reward the team with a treat.

During each research trip we try to allocate a little time to simply enjoying the sharks that we aim to protect. This small contribution of ecotourism contributes to a larger project. Ecotourism helps to create a better appreciation of the world’s natural resources, such as landscapes, wildlife and coral reefs. Experience of these in turn stimulates a desire to improve protection and establish national or marine parks and wildlife preserves. A fantastic example of successful ecotourism was the creation of the Bahamian shark sanctuary in 2011. This sanctuary, heavily encouraged by the shark diving community, means it is illegal to target or kill a shark in Bahamian waters.

After our incredible afternoon in the shallows with both lemon and blacknose sharks it was time to get back to our research. We returned to the same spot we had worked in the morning and after another few hours of no action we almost gave up hope! But then….. Our buoys started moving through the water and it was clear a large shark was on the line. As we moved closer we were able to identify the large shark as a tiger. Unfortunately we lost the tiger at the boat, however within minutes we had another big hit, and another big tiger! It was clear our theory was likely accurate, that these two large sharks were likely patrolling the waters putting smaller sharks off from taking our lines.

Team spirts went from low to high in minutes! After a very long day of patiently waiting the team were finally hit with adrenaline as this large tiger shark was secured to the boat and ready for a workup. The shark measured over 350cm (~12ft) and for many of team was a once in a lifetime encounter. We quickly processed and released the shark and soon after hauled the last of our block rigs and made our way back to the lodge.

Once home we settled down for our last meal at the lodge and spent the evening enjoying the local lemon sharks that are regularly seen from the dock of the lodge. What a fantastic final full day!

Day 7

All good things come to an end. We woke this morning and savored our final moments on Andros. We all enjoyed the sunrise and a hearty breakfast before packing our things. Before long we hopped in our taxis north to the airport and boarded our chartered flight home. Finally it was time to say our sad goodbyes. What a week.. Thank you all for an incredible trip.

Thank you

Thank you to our research trip leaders Dr. Bryan Keller, Annie Guttridge and Sorantaa Bain for guiding the team through an incredibly successful week. A huge thank you to our research assistants for their passion, determination and endless enthusiasm to work hard, learn and produce results. We would also like to thank the Andros Island Bonefish Club for their hospitality, and the hardworking and ever professional Stevano for his top class boating and captaining skills.

Gratitude must also go to Annie Guttridge for generosity allowing us to use her images in this blog.