St Eustatius National Parks March 2016 Newsletter 1/2016

Inside this Publication...

2015 highlights 1 STENAPA Marine Park news 2

Turtle papers published with da- Botanical Garden 3 ta collected from St Eustatius. Quill/Boven National Park 4 Education and outreach 5

Over the last year St Eustatius National Parks Sand temperatures were taken and historical has contributed to three published papers weather data dating back 200 years was Don’t forget… concerning sea turtles. looked at to determine the percentage of males and females produced from Statian Guided Hikes: Call to arrange! A study called ‘Green and hawksbill turtles in beaches since the mid 19th century. the demonstrate behavioural Botanical Garden: Check out plasticity in inter-nesting behaviour and post- The paper concludes that strategies should the view from the Lookout Gar- nesting migration’ by Esteban et al was pub- be put in place for the future to prevent lo- den. Open from sunrise to sun- lished in ‘Marine Biology’. calized extinction of these species. Measures that can be used would be things like shading set. Great for picnics and BBQs! This study used satellite tracking information nests or relocating them to deeper depths to on three green ensure the temperature of the nest can be Find us on Facebook: turtles and two controlled. Keep up to date with all the lat- hawksbill turtles est happenings - Like our to gather infor- A third study looked into the international ‘Stenapa St. Eustatius’ and mation about movements of female leatherback turtles ‘Stenapa Youth Nature’ pages! inter-nesting, using tag recovery data. migratory and Volunteer At STENAPA foraging habits in 3151 Leatherbacks were tagged throughout the region. Alt- the with WC-series tags supplied We are always on the look- hough the sample size was very small the data by Wider Turtle Network out for new volunteers and was interesting as it showed both migratory (WIDECAST). When a leatherback is seen on behaviour and year-round residents within a monitored beach data is collected including interns, especially with our the group. tag numbers if it already has a tag. turtle season just around the corner. If you would like to The team also used tagging data to look at This data is then shared throughout the re- nest-site fidelity and the results were similar gion and the results were used for this paper. help out at the parks please showing some turtles return to the same contact us or if you know beaches over and over again and others move The Study found that although many of the anyone who would like to from one site to others. leatherbacks returned to beaches within the same country they did not always return to volunteer or complete an Another study published this year in the Jour- the exact same beach and in areas such as internship here please pass nal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecolo- Statia where there are other viable nesting on the contact details to beaches on other islands not in the same gy’ looked at the sand temperatures for nest- them. ing sea turtles in the Caribbean and the impli- political jurisdiction they will often travel cations of this in relation to global climate between different countries. Tel: +599 318 2884 change. These studies are Email: [email protected] Like many other reptilian species, the temper- showing that the old ature of the eggs in the nest is what deter- adage that sea tur- mines the sex of the hatchlings. The higher tles always return to the temperature of the nest the more likely the exact same the hatchlings will be females. With climate beach from which change and temperatures potentially on the they emerged as a rise this can affect the populations of already hatchling is not al- critically endangered species by skewing the ways true and this has important implica- male/female ratios. tions for protection legislation for the future. Page 2 STENAPA Newsletter Marine Park News More sharks tagged in January This event is held every year in a different There will be exhibitions in town, location and is a great chance to take part presentations and talks as well as the During January, park staff were happy in training, network with other turtle return of the popular film nights from to welcome Dr Erwin Winter and his conservationists and keep up with the last year. research assistant Melanie Meijer zu latest technologies, studies and best Sclochtern to Statia once more in an practice from other protection This year there will be more infor- attempt to tag more sharks in our organizations. mation about rays. Sharks and rays waters. form the elasmobranch family of ani- mals and are very closely related. A total of 4 sharks were tagged during Jillian Morris described rays to the 2 days of fishing bringing the total for school children last year as basically Statia to 6 individuals now.

‘squished’ sharks. When we talk about sharks and their importance in the environment we really are talking about all the whole elasmobranch Jessica usually participates as a volunteer. This project is important to learn family. This means long days arriving before any more about the movements of sharks other delegates and leaving late in the Southern stingrays are a common around the island. If we know where evening after preparing for the following sight in the Statia Marine park but we they are, we can better protect them day. Luckily, this year she got funding from also see the beautiful spotted eagle and their habitat. WWF to attend without having to ray and on Lionfish fry - Another good volunteer, meaning she was able to get to rarer occa- turnout. her bed before midnight most nights.! sions the majestic Easter has always been a great time to Shark week 2016 - I think we’re gonna manta ray. be on St Eustatius. The bay comes need a bigger week! alive with stalls, bands and people National Park staff are now gearing up for spending time with family and friends shark week 2016. The week will happen and enjoying the long weekend. this year in June. Seeing these So, back by popular demand on Good animals in STENAPA have Friday this year was the lionfish fry. the marine a wide variety We had an excellent turnout once park is as of interesting again. There were cleaning and much of a events and dissection demos, presentations and thrill as exhibitions planned for the week as well as of course lots of fish to sample. seeing one fun competitions designed to engage the of the several different shark species It’s a tasty fish that has a mild flavour, whole island in the sharky fun. we have. Southern sting rays are of- not dissimilar to grouper and is suited ten seen coming into the city pier The family fun day will kick off the week to a lot of different recipes. They are when the fishermen are cleaning fish, with more games and educational displays invasive and a threat to other fish looking for an easy meal to a chorus for the children. populations and so by eating them, of excited on-lookers. not only are you enjoying a tasty meal, you are helping with environmental Sharks and rays are enigmatic and protection! can capture the imagination like no other species. Even people who are 2016 sea turtle symposium still scared of sharks are also drawn to them and fascinated by them and Jessica Berkel went to Lima, Peru in their behaviour. Shark week 2016 is March for the 2016 world sea turtle gearing up to be bigger and better symposium. than last year so look out for more information over the coming months. Newsletter 1/2016 Page 3 Miriam C Schmidt Botanical Garden Fixing the road for a some time after having to dismantle Work continues on the children’s garden the old playground in early 2014. The restoration and we will be planting up the The first family Friday of March the wooden frames of the previous play sets STENAPA team turned road crew and had deteriorated in the extremes of the they worked on a particularly Caribbean weather and were no longer safe treacherous section of road where the for the children to use. main paved road leads to the dirt road section.

The step from the concrete The playground area before work started onto the dirt road had become gradually deeper and steeper over time and in one section it was a drop of 7 and half inches.

This was bad enough for the STENAPA pickup trucks (especially with a group of volunteers in the back) but for members of the public with an ‘normal’ car or taxi drivers it had become a serious hazard and meant many were not able to drive all the The area was cleared ahead of Statia Doet weeded flower beds and installing new way to the garden. and interesting installations to educate As with everything at STENAPA, all the and entertain the younger visitors to the The idea of the morning was to even salvageable parts were saved for future use garden. out the drop and ensure the end of the and so we still had the plastic slide, rock- road cannot simply break off again by wall hand holds and other hardware. Planting and propagation using reinforcing wire to extend the end of the road into a gentle slope. The frames were constructed at the Many areas of the garden have been Gwendoline Van Putten school workshop by cleared of Corallita and weeds and are now The foundation hired a cement mixer the teachers and students and installed on in need of some plants. for the morning and used 2 yards of Friday 11th as part of Statia Doet. mix and 8 bags of cement to complete STENAPA is starting work to propagate the over 6 ft extra section of road. and plant out a number of different species both native and ornamental. The road is now a lot more passable in this section although the road as a Native species are fundamental for the whole is still in desperate need of Botanical garden and was one of the main more serious repairs. reasons the garden was created in the first place. Planting native species not only Statia Doet and the children’s preserves them in a safe environment but garden also encourages wildlife and showcases the plants to visitors and locals alike. This year saw the second annual Statia Work continued on the second day of the Doet event on the island. The idea of project on the 12th and the base for the Ornamental plants also serve a purpose. the project is to encourage people large slide was cemented in place to ensure They can bring colour and vibrancy to the from all over Statia and from every it is safe and secure for the children to play garden, creating a beautiful space people walk of life and profession to on. want to spend time in. Many are also great volunteer some time to help out a non- for attracting local wildlife and even governmental organization operating We were very lucky to have assistance from though they are not native they can still on the island. Broadreach students the following week provide habitat and food to many insect, and much of the painting was completed by bird and reptile species. This year for our project we opted to them a few days after Statia Doet. rebuild the children’s playground at the Botanical Garden. This is a project we have been hoping to get finished Page 4 STENAPA Newsletter Quill/Boven National Park Slave trail progress update STENAPA staff responded and removed Tim Van Wagensveld will be the iguana from the area. It was later returning to the island this month to Work is progressing on the new slave humanely euthanized. Rangers have carry out a short extension to the trail. The idea of the trail is to offer an checked the area for more individuals but survey he carried out last year in alternative route down from the none have so far been found. None were order to verify for certain if there are crater onto the main quill trail and to seen during any of the iguana surveying any more present on the island. highlight some of the historical ruins done earlier this year and last year in the National Park. therefore this would suggest this was an We are encouraging the general isolated incident. public to contact us if they think they The slave trail follows an old ghaut may have spotted one of the green which was terraced by slaves to catch iguana species on the island. Please water and stop the soil run-off. call the office and inform us immediately so it can investigated The trail traverses down the rock wall and removed if necessary. terraces showing off the workmanship of the walls and their Trail tags selling fast - only in durability even today. March and already 350 tags sold!

Green Iguana caught on Statia. By the end of the March we had already sold more than 350 trail tags. Last month the National Parks office Malvern Lopes from GIS keeping her distance from the iguana during her received a call from a local police Trail tags are generally sold to interview with Park Ranger Ambrosius officer that an unusual looking iguana visitors as non-residents are required about the differences between the species. was sitting near his wall. by law to pay a user fee before The most distinctive difference between entering any of the National Park the species is the obvious black bands areas. However, it is a great way for along the tail of the green iguana. It also residents of Statia to help the parks. has longer spines along it’s back and a Paying a user fee for the National large single scale located just below the Parks helps to contribute to all the ear. work we do, the maintenance of the trail network, the monitoring and of course the development of new trails.

This year we have increased the fee It turned out to be a Green Iguana. slightly from $6 per annum to $10. This is an invasive species found on This reflects the increased cost of other islands in the region like St materials on the island and is still a Maarten and can be a serious threat to fair price for a whole year of hiking in the native Lesser Antillean Iguana. the National parks.

The Lesser Antillean Iguana, although sometimes green in colour is a separate and less dominant species. Therefore when the larger Green Iguanas are present on the same island, they will compete for food, mates and good nest sites, all of which is a threat to the population.

Lesser Antillean Iguanas are protected on Statia by law and with good reason. Statia is one of the last islands in the region these lizards call home and the last Dutch island to have a population. They are also critically endangered. The dark bands on the tail and the large, single scale shown here in the circles. Newsletter 1/2016 Page 5

Education and Outreach

Hazel field trips with schools The children saw a for their hospitality and being able to wide variety of engage the children so well on the All of the primary schools on the different products on subject. island visited Hazel’s vegetable project the farm including, on Zeelandia road last month as part Job training at STENAPA okra, peppers, of the STENAPA school lesson cucumber, STENAPA has always had groups of program. watermelon and volunteers and interns assisting with tomatoes (which they work whilst also learning and gaining got to sample raw, valuable work experience employers are straight off the plant). looking for. Recently we have been having more and more young people come to work with STENAPA from the local schools and training foundations.

Shanelle Heynes has been carrying out Each month every primary school job training in the office for a few weeks child has a nature lesson from the at a time since September of last year. park’s education officer and learns This forms part of the MBO training about different aspects of the scheme at the Gwendoline Van Putten protected areas, nature and the They also saw things like sorrel, egg plant, school. Violet Busby and Claire Blair environment. pumpkin, papaya and got to look over the different pieces of farm machinery. Mr. completed ‘craftsman teacher’ training The children were able to visit the Hazel gave the children the tour and back in 2011 in order to be able to farm and learn about growing encouraged them to sample the produce properly supervise and train these vegetables, agriculture on the island and imagine themselves one day involved students in all aspects of on-the-job and where their food comes from. with agriculture explaining the many training. different careers available in the sector. Yiraldi Abreu Gomez is also back It was so encouraging to see the children working with STENAPA once more. He interested in the information and also to spent time working at the Botanical garden back in 2013 as part of his PRO course at the GVP school. This time he is here with New Challenges Foundation doing more on-the-job training. It is great to have him back and see the progression he has made over the years. Most of the fresh produce on Statia is He has gone from a teenager to a self- shipped from other islands or even as assured, smart, young man.. far as the USA. These items spend many days and weeks on board Aymerik Maduro is also helping out each day at STENAPA. He has been working container ships before they even reach with us through the Statia Foundation local stores and so describing it as being ‘fresh’ can be misleading. since last year, mostly at the Botanical garden, removing invasive tan tan trees and also helping out with trail maintenance and development.

While these young people gain experience and training working in the see them squabbling over who would get parks, we also get a few extra pairs of to try the vegetables on offer when many hands helping out with the workload. parents struggle to get them to eat Staff also benefit from working with vegetables at every meal. young people and get great satisfaction passing on their knowledge and passions We would like to thank Mr. Hazel and his to the next generation. team of workers at the vegetable project STENAPA is an environmental not-for-profit foundation on St Eustatius established in 1988. The purpose of the Foundation is the acquisition, preservation, protection St Eustatius National Parks and administration of parcels of land/water on , worthy of preservation, due to; a. its scenic beauty and/or presence of flora and fauna important in scientific and cultural respect or valuable from a geological or historical point of view; b. its purpose to serve for the well being, the education, and the recreation of the Sint Eustatius population as well as that of visitors, all this with due observance of the primary requirement of preservation. STENAPA is legally mandated by the Island Council to manage the St Eustatius National Marine Park, The Quill/Boven National Park and the Miriam Schmidt Botanical Gardens . President: Irving Brown Gallows Bay z/n Vice President: Teresa Leslie Lower Town St Eustatius, Treasurer: Gene Herbert Dutch Caribbean

Phone: +599 318 2884 E-mail: [email protected] www.statiapark.org Don’t forget: The whales are back! Watch out for migrating humpback whales until April/May. A great place to spot them is the lookout at the botanical garden!

Staff Matters Goodbye to Hannah Madden. She worked with Nicole Esteban to We wish her all the best in her endeav- complete the hikers guide to the Quill/ ours and much success for the future. After working for the parks for over 9 Boven National parks informing the public years Hannah Madden is leaving Jack of all trades .... about the rich biodiversity of the island. When you work at the parks you have to She completed her BSC in 2012 and develop many skills. We have a small staff quickly put her new knowledge into and this often involves mucking in and practice conducting many surveys and getting on with whatever needs to be contributing to many areas of research done, even if that is not something you assisting visiting scientists with various usually do. Here are some examples of publications while working at the parks. staff stepping out of their daily routines She even had a tarantula species named over the last month. after her.

She was promoted to Terrestrial Areas Manager in 2014 and is currently working on her masters degree with the University of the . STENAPA for pastures new. She first Although she contributed in many ways to moved to St Eustatius in 2005 and St Eustatius’ National Parks possibly the started to volunteer with the National most profound and long lasting Parks running the junior rangers and contribution was the promotion of the snorkel clubs. She started to work for terrestrial nature and working to ensure STENAPA full time in 2006 as a National Na- that St Eustatius is not only known for it’s Park Ranger working in the Quill/Boven dio marine life. Our island boasts incredible National parks, maintaining and terrestrial biodiversity and this is now developing new trails as well as installing much more widely recognised. information signage for visitors. felling a tree, Claire fixing nuts and bolts and yes, that’s Tutti pulling corallita!