Category: Belize

Our work in Belize encompasses scientific research at the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve as part of our award-winning expeditions, and community-based efforts to combat the threat of lionfish to local reefs by stimulating new markets for this invasive species.

Marine mammal heaven

By Jennifer Chapman, Field Scientist, Belize Here in Belize we are lucky enough to see dolphins fairly frequently from our boat and the jetty at dive camp. Last year, sightings consisted of mostly bottlenose dolphins throughout the seasons, with occasional...

/ Aug 23, 2011

Science Schooling

A poem by Naomi Lucas, Blue Ventures Medic, Sarteneja, Belize Welcome to the Benthic Test A sea of colours, shapes and crests Urchins, sponges, coral and algae Tunicates, ‘trolls hair’ and the cowrie Starting with soft coral whips and rods...

/ Jun 27, 2011

Getting to know Belize

By Joe Armstrong, Blue Ventures Volunteer, Sarteneja, Belize Sarteneja As a group we spent a week in Sarteneja staying with local host families. My host family was amazing and the food was incredible! Everyone else seemed to be having similar...

/ Jun 6, 2011

Lionfish Please!

By Garry Phillips, Expedition and Dive Manager, Sarteneja, Belize. Belize fisheries department are in the process of publishing a book of recipes for lionfish. The lionfish cookbook will feature a number of different ways in which the lionfish can be...

/ May 19, 2011

The Easter Regatta

By Crystal Soutière, Blue Ventures Volunteer, Sarteneja, Belize. After the beautiful full moon on Tuesday April the 19th, we were landed with a couple of days of bad weather at our dive camp which meant that diving was off the...

/ May 10, 2011

Things Volunteers Do That Make Us Love Them!

By Jen Chapman and Nikkita Lawton, Field Scientists, Sarteneja, Belize. The Blue Ventures Staff have been delighted to host 4 amazing volunteers and our new medic.  We love them all so much that we wanted to dedicate our first blog...

/ Mar 30, 2011

The Mangroves

By Dan Purnell, BV Belize Volunteer, Sarteneja, Belize. It happens to be another windy day in Belize.  This usually means that it will be a “Plan B” day; we won’t be doing much in the way of diving.  But no...

/ Mar 24, 2011

Less than two weeks to go in BCDC…

By Steph Remion, BV Belize Volunteer, Sarteneja, Belize. Less than two weeks to go in Bacalar Chico Dive Camp (BCDC)… Belize it or not, despite living in wooden huts, washing with cold water, and having only three hours of electricity...

/ Mar 17, 2011

Would you BELIZE it???

By Gaz Phillips, Expedition Leader, Sarteneja, Belize. Would you BELIZE it??? A manatee or two or three or …………….. The weather can sometimes blow hard on the Caribbean coast making diving the outer reef a little treacherous. Despair not as...

/ Mar 14, 2011

BV Belize Primary School Teaching in Sarteneja

By Sarah Adams, Expedition Manager, Sarteneja, Belize. The theme for BV Belize primary school teaching session this expedition was conservation and natural resources.  We accompanied 25 pupils from the Standard V class at Sarteneja’s RC School to Shipstern Nature Reserve...

/ Mar 2, 2011

BV Belize joins Seagrass Net Survey

By Sarah Adams, Expedition Manager, Sarteneja, Belize. Blue Ventures Belize staff and volunteers joined the Belize Fisheries Department in January’s Seagrass Net survey.  The Fisheries Department have a base in Bacalar Chico, at the San Juan Ranger Station, and Blue...

/ Feb 28, 2011

Blue Ventures helps local tour guides refresh their first aid skills.

By Garry Phillips, Dive Manager, Sarteneja, Belize. Four members of the Sarteneja Tour guides association (STGA) recently took part in the Emergency first responder course. They require a First aid qualification to be able to renew their guides licence. BV...

/ Feb 21, 2011

A Belizean adventure

By Jodi Burley, Blue Ventures Belize Volunteer.

/ Feb 14, 2011

A visit to Belize

By Richard Nimmo, BV Managing Director. I have just returned from a whistle-stop tour of Belize in which I visited all of Blue Ventures’ project partners and spent time in our host village of Sartegna and at our Expedition site...

/ Dec 1, 2010

A hard week at the office

Notes from the field, from Blue Ventures expedition manager, Sarah Adams. Bacalar Chico Dive Camp, MesoAmerican Barrier Reef, Belize, 18° 07′ 53.32″ N, 87° 50′ 21.24″ W. One of highlights of this expedition so far happened on consecutive days during...

/ Nov 19, 2010