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“潜伏”在特克斯群岛棉花礁
Snorkeling
Cotton cay,Grand Turk,The Turks and Caicos Islands,Lucayan Archipelago,West Indies
如果说特克斯和凯科斯群岛已经够袖珍，那么，离大特克岛还有一小时快艇行程的棉花礁就更是在地图上找不到了。
这个大西洋西印度群岛中的一员，是英国的海外属地。
棉花礁附近海域并不是浮潜的理想场所，也许我们遇到的风浪大了一点，浮潜变成了一项挑战。
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Caribbean Sea and northern Caribbean region.
The first recorded European sighting of the islands now known as the Turks and Caicos occurred in 1512. In the subsequent centuries, the islands were claimed by several European powers with the British Empire eventually gaining control. For many years the islands were governed indirectly through Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Jamaica. When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the islands received their own governor, and have remained a separate autonomous British Overseas Territory since.
The eight main islands and more than 299 smaller islands have a total land area of 616.3 square kilometres (238.0 sq mi),[b] consisting primarily of low, flat limestone with extensive marshes and mangrove swamps and 332 square kilometres (128 sq mi) of beach front. The weather is usually sunny and relatively dry, but suffers frequent hurricanes.
Little San Salvador Island - The Bahamas -
Little San Salvador Island, also known as Half Moon Cay, is one of about 700 islands that make up the archipelago of The Bahamas. It is located roughly halfway between Eleuthera and Cat Island. It is a private island, owned by Holland America Line, which uses it as a port of call for the cruise ships it operates in the region. Prior to being owned by HAL, Little San Salvador was the private island of Norwegian Cruise Line.
Little San Salvador Island is located about 100 miles (160 kilometres) southeast of Nassau. Holland America Line purchased the island in December, 1996 for a price of $6 million USD. It has since developed 50 acres (200,000 m2) of the 2,400-acre (9.7 km2) island, with the stated goal of maintaining as much habitat as possible for wildlife. The island is also a significant nesting area for waterfowl. The island does not have deep water docking, requiring the use of tenders for cruise ship passengers to disembark and embark.
The Bahamas
The Bahamas, known officially as the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic state within the Lucayan Archipelago. It consists of more than 700 islands, cays, and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, and is located north of Cuba and Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, southeast of the United States state of Florida, and east of the Florida Keys. The capital is Nassau on the island of New Providence. The designation of "the Bahamas" can refer either to the country or to the larger island chain that it shares with the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Royal Bahamas Defence Force describes the Bahamas territory as encompassing 470,000 km2 (180,000 sq mi) of ocean space.
The Bahamas is the site of Columbus' first landfall in the New World in 1492. At that time, the islands were inhabited by the Lucayan, a branch of the Arawakan-speaking Taino people. Although the Spanish never colonised The Bahamas, they shipped the native Lucayans to slavery in Hispaniola. The islands were mostly deserted from 1513 until 1648, when English colonists from Bermuda settled on the island of Eleuthera.
The Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1718, when the British clamped down on piracy. After the American War of Independence, the Crown resettled thousands of American Loyalists in the Bahamas; they brought their slaves with them and established plantations on land grants. Africans constituted the majority of the population from this period. The slave trade was abolished by the British in 1807; slavery in the Bahamas was abolished in 1834. Subsequently, the Bahamas became a haven for freed African slaves; the Royal Navy resettled Africans there liberated from illegal slave ships, American slaves and Seminoles escaped here from Florida, and the government freed American slaves carried on United States domestic ships that had reached the Bahamas due to weather. Today, Afro-Bahamians make up nearly 90% of the population.
The Bahamas became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1973, retaining the British monarch, then and currently Queen Elizabeth II, as its head of state. In terms of gross domestic product per capita, The Bahamas is one of the richest countries in the Americas (following the United States and Canada), with an economy based on tourism and finance.
Giant tortoises are any of several species of various large land tortoises, which include a number of extinct species,[1] as well as two extant species with multiple subspecies formerly common on the islands of the western Indian Ocean and on the Galápagos Islands.[2]
A Galápagos giant tortoise on Santa Cruz Island
History
As of March 2022, two different species of giant tortoise are found on two remote groups of tropical islands: Aldabra Atoll and Fregate Island in the Seychelles and the Galápagos Islands in Ecuador. These tortoises can weigh as much as 417 kg (919 lb) and can grow to be 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) long. Giant tortoises originally made their way to islands from the mainland via oceanic dispersal. Tortoises are aided in such dispersal by their ability to float with their heads up and to survive for up to six months without food or fresh water.[3]
Giant tortoises were once all placed in a single genus (often referred to as Testudo or Geochelone), but more recent studies have shown that giant tortoises represent several distinct lineages that are not closely related to one another.[3] These lineages appear to have developed large size independently and, as a result, giant tortoises are polyphyletic. For example, the Aldabra Atoll (Aldabrachelys) giant tortoises are related to Malagasy tortoises (Asterochelys) while the Galapagos giant tortoises are related to South American mainland tortoises, particularly the Chaco tortoise (Chelonoidis chiliensis). The recently[when?] extinct Mascarene giant tortoises (Cylindraspis) are thought to have belonged to their own branch of the tortoise family, being sister to all other modern tortoise genera aside from Manouria, Gopherus, and Testudo.
Giant tortoises are classified into several distinct genera, including Aldabrachelys, Centrochelys (in part, often excluding the extant African spurred tortoise (Centrochelys sulcata)), Chelonoidis (in part), †Cylindraspis (extinct c. 1840), †Hesperotestudo (extinct c. 9,000 years Before Present), †Megalochelys and †Titanochelon. Both Megalochelys and Titanochelon reached sizes substantially greater than modern giant tortoises, with up to 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) and 2 m (6 ft 7 in) shell lengths respectively.
The phenomenon of animal species evolving in cache to unusually large size on islands (in comparison to continental relatives) is known as island gigantism or insular gigantism. This may occur due to factors such as relaxed predation pressure, competitive release, or as an adaptation to increased environmental fluctuations on islands.[4][5] However, giant tortoises are no longer considered to be classic examples of island gigantism, as similarly massive tortoises are now known to have once been widespread. Giant tortoises were formerly common (prior to the Quaternary extinctions) across the Cenozoic faunas of Eurasia, Africa and the Americas.[6][7]
Giant tortoises are notably absent from Australia and the South Pacific. However, extinct giant horned turtles (Meiolaniidae) likely filled a similar niche, with Late Pleistocene-Holocene meiolaniid species being known from Australia, New Caledonia, Lord Howe Island, Vanuatu, and the Fijian Archipelago. The identity of the Vanuatu meiolaniid has been controversial, however, with some studies concluding the remains actually belong to a giant tortoise, which are otherwise unknown from this region.[8] Older (Early Miocene) meiolaniids are also known from the St. Bathans fauna in New Zealand.
Although often considered examples of island gigantism, prior to the arrival of Homo sapiens giant tortoises also occurred in non-island locales, as well as on a number of other, more accessible islands. During the Pleistocene, and mostly during the last 50,000 years, tortoises of the mainland of southern Asia (†Megalochelys atlas),[6] North America (†Hesperotestudo spp.)[6] and South America (Chelonoidis spp.),[7] Indonesia,[6] Madagascar (†Aldabrachelys)[6] and even the island of Malta[6] all became extinct.[1]
Giant tortoises (†Titanochelon) also inhabited mainland Europe until the Early Pleistocene (2.0 Mya).[9] The giant tortoises formerly of Africa died out somewhat earlier, during the Late Pliocene.[10] While the timing of the disappearances of various extinct giant tortoise species seems to correlate with the arrival of humans, direct evidence for human involvement in these extinctions is usually lacking; however, such evidence has been obtained in the case of the distantly-related giant meiolaniid turtle Meiolania damelipi in Vanuatu.[11][12] One interesting relic is the shell of an extinct giant tortoise found in a submerged sinkhole in Florida with a wooden spear piercing through it, carbon dated to 12,000 years ago.[13][better source needed]
Today, only one of the subspecies of the Indian Ocean survives in the wild; the Aldabra giant tortoise[1] (two more are claimed to exist in captive or re-released populations, but some[vague] genetic studies have cast doubt on the validity of these as separate species)[citation needed] and 10 extant species in the Galápagos.
Life expectancy
Giant tortoises are among the world's longest-living animals, with an average lifespan of 100 years or more.[14] The Madagascar radiated tortoise Tu'i Malila was 188 at her death in Tonga in 1965.[citation needed] Harriet (initially thought to be one of the three Galápagos tortoises brought back to England from Charles Darwin's Beagle voyage, but later shown to be from an island not even visited by Darwin) was reported by the Australia Zoo to be 176 years old when she died in 2006.[15]
On 23 March 2006, an Aldabra giant tortoise named Adwaita died at the Alipore Zoological Gardens in Kolkata. He was brought to the zoo in the 1870s from the estate of Lord Clive and is thought to have been around 255 years old when he died.[16][better source needed] Around the time of its discovery, they were caught for food in such large numbers that they became virtually extinct by 1900.[citation needed] Giant tortoises are now protected by strict conservation laws and are categorized as threatened species.
List of insular species
Taxonomy of extant and extinct insular giant tortoise species follows Rhodin et al. (2021),[17] unless otherwise noted.
Aldabrachelys
ArchipelagoIslandSpecies
SeychellesGranitic Seychelles[a][b]
Arnold's giant tortoise (A. gigantea arnoldi)
†Daudin's giant tortoise (A. gigantea daudinii)
Seychelles giant tortoise (A. gigantea hololissa)
Aldabra AtollAldabra giant tortoise (A. gigantea gigantea)
Cosmoledo†Aldabrachelys sp.[19]
Denis Island
Assumption Island
Astove Atoll
Glorioso IslandsGlorioso Islands†Aldabrachelys sp.[19]
Comoro IslandsComoro Islands†Aldabrachelys sp.[19]
MadagascarMadagascar
†Abrupt giant tortoise (A. abrupta)[20]
†Grandidier's giant tortoise (A. grandidieri)
Chelonoidis
ArchipelagoIslandSpecies
Galápagos IslandsSan CristóbalSan Cristobal giant tortoise (C. niger chathamensis)
Isabela
Volcán Wolf giant tortoise (C. niger becki)
Southern Isabela giant tortoise (C. niger vicina)
SantiagoSantiago Island giant tortoise (C. niger darwini)
Santa Cruz
Eastern Santa Cruz giant tortoise (C. niger donfaustoi)
Western Santa Cruz tortoise (C. niger porteri)
FerdandinaFernandina Island Galápagos tortoise (C. niger phantastica)
Pinta†Pinta Island tortoise (C. niger abingdonii)
Floreana†Floreana Island tortoise (C. niger niger)
PinzónPinzón Island giant tortoise (C. niger duncanensis)
EspañolaHood Island giant tortoise (C. niger hoodensis)
Santa Fe†Santa Fe Island tortoise (C. niger ssp.)
Lucayan ArchipelagoAndros†Abaco tortoise (C. alburyorum alburyorum)
Nassau
Mayaguana
Crooked Island
Gran Abaco
Grand Turk†Turks tortoise (C. alburyorum keegani)
Middle Caicos†Caicos tortoise (C. alburyorum sementis)
Greater AntillesCuba†Cuban giant tortoise (C. cubensis)
Hispaniola
†Northern Hispaniola tortoise (C. dominicensis)
†Southern Hispaniola tortoise (C. marcanoi)
Mona†Mona tortoise (C. monensis)
Navassa†Chelonoidis sp.
Lesser AntillesSombrero†Sombrero tortoise (C. sombrerensis)[21]
Curaçao†Chelonoidis sp.
Other genera
ArchipelagoIslandSpecies
Mascarene IslandsRéunion†Réunion giant tortoise (Cylindraspis indica)
Rodrigues
†Domed Rodrigues giant tortoise (Cylindraspis peltastes)
†Saddle-backed Rodrigues giant tortoise (Cylindraspis vosmaeri)
Mauritius
†Saddle-backed Mauritius giant tortoise (Cylindraspis inepta)
†Domed Mauritius giant tortoise (Cylindraspis triserrata)
MaltaMalta†Centrochelys robusta[c]
Aldabra giant tortoise
The Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) lives on the remote Aldabra Atoll, one of the Seychelles group of islands in the Indian Ocean It is the only living species in the genus Aldabrachelys. Two other species in the genus, Aldabrachelys abrupta, and Aldabrachelys grandidieri were formerly endemic to Madagascar, but became extinct after the arrival of people.
Distribution and habitat
An Aldabra giant tortoise cooling down in a freshwater pond on Curieuse, Seychelles
Aldabra giant tortoises have large dome-shaped shells in order to protect their delicate bodies that lie beneath their shells. They also have long necks in order to eat leaves from the higher branches of trees. The males, although not much bigger than the females, weigh nearly 100 kg (220 lbs) more. They move slowly and have small, thick legs and round, almost flat feet that assist them in walking on sand.
The Aldabra giant tortoise mainly inhabits grasslands and swamps on Aldabra Atoll's islands, which form a part of the Seychelles island chain in the Indian Ocean. In the past, they shared the islands with multiple other giant tortoise species, but many of them were hunted to extinction in the 1700s and 1800s.[citation needed] Despite the fact that they are usually found in regions of dense low-lying vegetation, they have been known to wander into areas with more sparse vegetation and rocks when food is scarce. They can also be seen resting in shaded areas or shallow pools of water in order to cool themselves on hot days.[16][better source needed] Aldabra giant tortoises tend to spend their lives grazing, but will cover surprising distances in search of food and have also been observed on bare rock and thin soil. They can drink from very shallow pools through their nostrils; the former genus Dipsochelys refers to this adaptation.[22][full citation needed]
Species and subspecies
Main article: Aldabrachelys § Species
Galápagos giant tortoise
The closest living relative of the Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis niger) is the small Chaco tortoise from South America, although it is not a direct ancestor. Scientists believe the first tortoises arrived to the Galápagos 2–3 million years ago by drifting 600 miles from the South American coast on vegetation rafts or on their own.[citation needed] They were already large animals before arriving in the Galápagos. Colonizing the easternmost islands of Española and San Cristóbal first, they then dispersed throughout the archipelago, eventually establishing about 16 separate populations on 10 of the largest of the Galápagos Islands. Currently, there are only 10 subspecies of Galápagos giant tortoises left of the original 16 subspecies. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Galápagos were frequented by buccaneers preying on Spanish treasure ships. Filling a ship's hold with tortoises was an easy way to stock up on food, a tradition that was continued by whalers in the centuries that followed.[23][better source needed] The tortoises also conveniently held water in their necks that could be used as drinking water.
Lonesome George, the last known individual of the Pinta giant tortoise (C. n. abingdonii)
These buccaneers stocked giant tortoises not only because of their meat but because of these animals' ability to survive for six months to one year without food or water.[citation needed] Once buccaneers, whalers and fur sealers discovered that they could have fresh meat for their long voyages by storing live giant tortoises in the holds of their ships, massive exploitation of the species began. Tortoises were also exploited for their oil,[citation needed] which was used to light the lamps of Quito.
Two centuries of exploitation resulted in the loss of between 100,000 and 200,000 tortoises. Three subspecies have been extinct since the 19th century, and a fourth subspecies lost its last member, Lonesome George, in June 2012.[24] In February 2019, a tortoise subspecies once thought to have been extinct since 1906, the Fernandina giant tortoise, was discovered on its namesake island in the Galápagos.[25] It is estimated that 20,000–25,000 wild tortoises live on the islands today.[24][better source needed]
Distribution and habitat
Galápagos tortoises are mainly herbivorous, feeding primarily on cactus pads, grasses, and native fruit but have been recorded eating baby birds in the case of the aldabran species. They drink large quantities of water when available that they can store in their bladders for long periods of time. There are two main types of shell among them, the saddle-backed shell and the domed shell. They both provide special adaption to different environments. The saddle-backed tortoises are the smallest Galápagos tortoises, but present a very long neck and pairs of legs. They live on arid zone and feed on cactus. The domed tortoises are bigger with shorter neck and legs, they are found in the more vegetated islands and feed on grass.[26]
They spend an average of 16 hours a day resting. Their activity level is driven by ambient temperature and food availability. In the cool season, they are active at midday, sleeping in during the morning and afternoon. In the hot season, their active period is early morning and late afternoon, while midday finds them resting and trying to keep cool under the shade of a bush or half-submerged in muddy wallows.[citation needed]
Life cycle
Tortoises breed primarily during the hot season from January to May; however, tortoises can be seen mating any month of the year. During the cool season (June to November), female tortoises migrate to nesting zones, which are generally located in low lands of the islands, to lay their eggs. A female can lay from 1–4 nests over a nesting season from June to December. She digs the hole with her hind feet, then lets the eggs drop down into the nest, and finally covers it again with her hind feet. The number of eggs ranges from 2 to 7 for saddle-backed tortoises to sometimes more than 20 to 25 eggs for domed tortoises.[citation needed]
The eggs incubate from 110 to 175 days (incubation periods depend on the month the clutch was produced, with eggs laid early in the cool season requiring longer incubation periods than eggs laid at the end of the cool season, when the majority of their incubation will occur at the start of the hot season). After hatching, the young hatchlings remain in the nest for a few weeks before emerging out a small hole adjacent to the nest cap. Usually, the temperature of the nest influences on the sex of the hatchling. Warm temperatures would yield more females, while colder temperatures would yield more males.[citation needed]
Subspecies
Main article: List of subspecies of Galápagos tortoise
Mascarenes giant tortoises
Drawing of a stuffed specimen
The Mascarene Islands of Mauritius, Réunion and Rodrigues once harboured five species of giant tortoise belonging to the extinct genus Cylindraspis, comprising two species occurring on Mauritius, another two on Rodrigues, and one on Réunion. The tortoises were unique to these islands and had gained a number of special adaptations in the absence of ground predators. They differed from any other giant tortoise species because of their modified jaws, reduced scales on the legs and shells averaging just 1mm thick. The shells of the giant tortoises were open-ended; the name Cylindraspis actually means "cylinder-shaped". This was a specific adaptation in response to the lack of predators, where thick, heavily armored shells were no longer necessary.[citation needed]
They belonged to a far more ancient lineage than the two extant giant tortoises, having diverged from all other tortoises during the Eocene, with divergence between the individual species far greater than that between the insular subspecies of the extant tortoises. The divergences between some Cylindraspis species are thought to be even older than the geologic history of the modern Mascarenes themselves, indicating that Cylindraspis originally inhabited several now-submerged island chains of the Mascarene Plateau before colonizing the modern Mascarene islands following their formation.[17][27]
Around the 16th century, with human arrival and the subsequent introduction of domestic animals, particularly pigs, the tortoises were hunted to extinction.[citation needed] The thin shells were of no protection against these new invaders; rats, cats and pigs devoured the eggs and young and thousands were collected alive for provisioning ships. Sometimes they were even hunted for their oil,[citation needed] which was very valuable around that time because it provided a cure for many ailments, including scurvy.
On Mauritius, the giant tortoise disappeared from the main island by the end of the 17th century and the very last tortoises survived until the 1730s on the islets in the north. Around the late 1800s, large number of tortoise bones were discovered in the Mare aux Songes excavations.[citation needed] These resulted in the description of the two species of giant tortoise endemic to Mauritius, the Mauritius saddle-backed (Cylindraspis inepta) and the Mauritius domed (Cylindraspis triserrata).[28]
Today, the only remains from these five species are a number of fossil bones and shells, a few drawings of live animals and one stuffed Rodrigues saddle-backed giant tortoise in France's National Museum of Natural History.
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
The beach at Freeport was wonderful! If you go for a cruise, be sure to get out of the port area - it is pretty dismal. There is a shopping shuttle that goes to the Port Lucaya shopping area for $5. Public access to the beach is just across the street from there.
I have traveled a fair amount to the Hawaiian Islands, Mexico, and over a dozen Caribbean Islands, I had never seen anything like this before! Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding into each other from both sides in a symmetrical flow! The Caribbean sea wraps around a distant rock formation - detached headland. A shallow sandbar, covered at high tide, creates a breaking shelf for the waves to crash into each other. ( #sandspit or #tombolo : a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a mound, spit or bar) reconnected the island to the mainland It's quite amazing to see the waves closing, like a zipper being zipped towards the camera. The teal blue waters with shallow paper white sands below creates a vivid hue for which I have never encountered on any other island except for Antigua.Mudjin Harbor Beach, Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Symmetrical Surf on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos at Mudjin Harbor Beach. Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding from both sides in a symmetrical flow.
The Lucayans were part of a larger Taino community in the Greater Antilles. The Lucayans, along with the Tainos in Jamaica, most of Cuba and parts of western Hispaniola have been classified as part of a Sub-Taino, Western Taino or Siboney Taino cultural and language group. Keegan describes any distinctions between Lucayans and Classical Tainos (of Hispaniola and eastern Cuba) as largely arbitrary. The Lucayans lived in smaller political units (simple chiefdoms, compared to the more elaborate political structures in Hispaniola), and their language and culture showed differences, but they remained Tainos, although a "hinterland" of the wider Taino world. The Lucayans were connected to a Caribbean-wide trade network. Columbus observed trade carried between Long Island and Cuba by dugout canoe. A piece of jadeite found on San Salvador Island appears to have originated in Guatemala, based on a trace element analysis
Lucaya es un suburbio de Freeport, Bahamas, una ciudad en la isla de Grand Bahama, aproximadamente a 105 millas (160 km) al este-noreste de Fort Lauderdale, Florida. La industria primaria de Lucaya es el turismo.Los lucayanos eran parte de una comunidad taína más grande en las Antillas Mayores.
Los Lucayans, junto con los Tainos en Jamaica, la mayor parte de Cuba y partes de la Española occidental han sido clasificados como parte de un grupo cultural y de idioma Sub-Taino, Western Taino o Siboney Taino. Keegan describe cualquier distinción entre Lucayans y Tainos clásicos (de La Española y el este de Cuba) como ampliamente arbitraria. Los lucayanos vivían en unidades políticas más pequeñas (cacicazgos simples, en comparación con las estructuras políticas más elaboradas de La Española), y su idioma y cultura mostraban diferencias, pero seguían siendo taínos, aunque un "interior" del vasto mundo Taino. Los lucayanos estaban conectados a una red comercial caribeña. Columbus observó el comercio llevado entre Long Island y Cuba en canoa. Una pieza de jadeíta encontrada en la isla de San Salvador parece haberse originado en Guatemala, basándose en un análisis de elementos traza
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Caribbean Sea and northern Caribbean region.
The first recorded European sighting of the islands now known as the Turks and Caicos occurred in 1512. In the subsequent centuries, the islands were claimed by several European powers with the British Empire eventually gaining control. For many years the islands were governed indirectly through Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Jamaica. When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the islands received their own governor, and have remained a separate autonomous British Overseas Territory since.
The eight main islands and more than 299 smaller islands have a total land area of 616.3 square kilometres (238.0 sq mi),[b] consisting primarily of low, flat limestone with extensive marshes and mangrove swamps and 332 square kilometres (128 sq mi) of beach front. The weather is usually sunny and relatively dry, but suffers frequent hurricanes.
I have traveled a fair amount to the Hawaiian Islands, Mexico, and over a dozen Caribbean Islands, I had never seen anything like this before! Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding into each other from both sides in a symmetrical flow! The Caribbean sea wraps around a distant rock formation - detached headland. A shallow sandbar, covered at high tide, creates a breaking shelf for the waves to crash into each other. ( #sandspit or #tombolo : a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a mound, spit or bar) reconnected the island to the mainland It's quite amazing to see the waves closing, like a zipper being zipped towards the camera. The teal blue waters with shallow paper white sands below creates a vivid hue for which I have never encountered on any other island except for Antigua.Mudjin Harbor Beach, Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Symmetrical Surf on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos at Mudjin Harbor Beach. Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding from both sides in a symmetrical flow.
La Rábida, Huelva (Spain).
With this kind of boat they arrived the first spanish people to the coast of Guanahani.
Con este tipo de embarcaciones llegaron los primeros españoles a la costa de Guanahani.
ENGLISH
Guanahani was the name the natives gave to the island that Columbus called San Salvador when he first arrived at the Americas. Columbus reached the island on 12 October 1492, the first island he sighted and visited in the Americas. Guanahani is one of the islands of the Lucayan archipelago in the Bahamas, but the exact island is a matter of some debate. The problem may never be resolved, as Columbus's original log book has been lost for centuries, and the only evidence is in the edited abstract made by Bartolomé de las Casas.
At 10 p.m. on October 11, Columbus noticed lights "like a little wax candle, rising and falling" at the horizon. He pointed them out to other people on board, some of whom were able to see the lights, while others didn't. The actual landfall was about 35 miles from the location Columbus saw the lights, so if taken that the lights were from a ground-based source, then they could not have been from Guanahani, but must have been from another island farther east. For the Plana Cays theory, the light would have been on Mayaguana. For Conception, it could have been on Cat Island, Watling/San Salvador or Rum Cay. For Caicos it could have been on Grand Turk. For Cat Island it could have been Watling/San Salvador and for Lignum Vitae Cay it could have been Eleuthera Island. Other theories have no ready explanation.
Columbus calls the island very flat with many trees. This is true for all of the proposed islands. His next statement is more problematic. He says Guanahani has "muchas aguas y una laguna en medio muy grande" (many waters and a "laguna" in the middle (or "in between") very big). The word laguna creates many problems. It is uncertain whether it means lagoon or pond. In any case, most of the proposed islands have either a lagoon or pond; only East Caicos lacks one.
On October 14, Columbus made a boat trip to the eastern part of the island. Therefore he went the length of the island in a North-northeast direction. This is only possible on Plana Cays, Conception and Egg, and to a certain extent on Samana Cay. Columbus noticed a reef that completely surrounded the island. All proposed islands, except Cat, have a reef, but the ones on Cat and Watling don't completely surround the island. Between the reef and the island was a harbor "large enough to store all ships of Christianity." Of course this is an exaggeration, but the harbor on Egg is definitely too small. Columbus went on land and saw "a piece of land, that looked like an island, but actually wasn't one." This is difficult to track, because it may have become a real island in the past 500 years.
More info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guanahani
---------------------------
CASTELLANO
Guanahani es el nombre de la isla en la que desembarcó Cristóbal Colón el 12 de octubre de 1492, cuando llegó por primera vez a América, y a la que renombró como San Salvador. La isla estaba habitada por el pueblo Lucayo o Taíno. Guanahani es sin duda una de las islas del archipiélago de las Antillas, más precisamente en las Bahamas. Sin embargo la identificación de la isla exacta a la que llegara Colón es materia de debate.
El Diario del Primer Viaje de Colón se encuentra perdido. En 1791 se encontró un completo resumen del mismo realizado por Bartolomé de las Casas. Los siguientes son extractos de ese documento.
El resumen del Diario de Colón cuenta del siguiente modo el momento de la llegada a Guanahani:
Jueves 11 de octubre:... A las dos horas después de medianoche pareció la tierra, de la cual estarían dos leguas. Amainaron todas las velas y quedaron con el treo, que es la vela grande, sin bonetas y pusiéronse a la corda temporizando hasta el día viernes, que llegaron a una isleta de los Lucayos, que se llama en lengua de indios Guanahaní. Luego vieron gente desnuda y el almirante salió a tierra con la barca armada y Martín Alonso Pinzón y Vicente Anes, su hermano, que era capitán de la Niña. Sacó el almirante la vandera real y los capitanes con dos vanderas de la Cruz Verde, que llevaba el almirante en todos los navíos por seña, con una F y una Y, encima de cada letra de su corona, una de un cabo de la cruz y otra del otro. Puestos en tierra vieron árboles muy verdes y aguas muchas y frutas de diversas maneras. El almirante llamó a los dos capitanes y a los demás que saltaron en tierra, y a Rodrigo de Escobedo, escrivano de toda el armada, y a Rodrigo Sánchez de Segovia, y dixo que le diesen por fe y testimonio como él por ante todos tomava, domo de hecho tomó, posesión de la dicha isla por el rey y por la reina sus señores, haziendo las protestaciones que se requerían, como más largo se contienen en los testimonios que allí se hizieron por escrito. Luego se ayuntó allí mucha gente de la isla.
La isla estaba habitada por el pueblo Lucayo o Taíno. En el texto recién citado por primera vez los europeos utilizaron la palabra "indios" para denominar a los pobladores de América, derivado del error que cometieron al pensar que la isla Guanahani pertenecía al continente asiático, que los europeos de entonces confundían con India. El propio Colón relata más adelante que cultivaban calabazas y algodón y poseían casas y huertas de árboles.
Taínos y españoles intercambiaron productos pacíficamente pero aquellos no tenían posesiones de oro que era el principal producto que buscaba Colón. Al día siguiente el Diario comentaba:
Sábado 13 de octubre:... Yo estaba atento y trabajava de saber si avía oro y vide que algunos de ellos traían un pedaçuelo colgado en un agujero que tienen en la nariz. Y por señas pude entender que yendo al Sur o Bolviendo la isla por el Sur, que estaba allí un rey que tenía grandes vasos de ello, y tenía muy mucho.
Sin embargo, a pesar de la buena relación entre taínos y españoles Colón ya pensaba en su sometimiento:
Domingo 14 de octubre:... puédenlos todos llevar a Castilla o tenellos en la misma isla captivos, porque con cincuenta hombres los ternán a todos sojuzgados y los harán hazer lo que quisieren.
El resumen del Diario describe Guanahani del siguiente modo:
Sábado 13 de octubre:... Esta isla es bien grande y muy llana y de árboles muy verdes y muchas aguas y una laguna en medio muy grande, sin ninguna montaña, toda ella muy verde, que es plazer mirarla.
Colón abandonó Guanahani el domingo 14 de octubre por la tarde:
Domingo 14 de octubre:... Yo miré todo aquel puerto y después me bolví a la nao y di la vela, y vide tantas islas que yo no sabía determinarme a cual iría primero. Y aquellos hombres que yo tenía tomado me dezían por señas que eran tantas y tantas que no avía número, y anombraron por su nombre más de ciento. Por ende yo miré por la más grande y aquella determiné andar, y así hago, y será lexos desta de San Salvador cinco leguas y las otras de ellas más, de ellas menos. Todas son muy llanas, sin montañas y muy fértiles y todas pobladas y se hazen guerra la una a la otra...
Más info: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guanahani
Cuban tree frog (Osteopilus septentrionalis)
This photo has a natural background: a cave in the Lucayan National Park in Grand Bahama Island.
This little frog on the stairs was spotted to me by nicely people I met there. A big thank you to them so I could take this photograph.
This Beach is on the far eastern edge of the Island of Hopetown. It's open Atlantic to the east. I think this is the nicest beach I've seen the Bahamas yet! and virtually nobody there.....
Freeport is the main city on Grand Bahama, an island in the northwest Bahamas off the Florida coast. It's best known for the oceanfront Lucaya district, with beaches, resorts and shopping. Nearby, Deadman's Reef is popular for snorkeling, and the surrounding offshore waters host many dive sites. Up the coast, Lucayan National Park features extensive underwater caves, plus kayaking and nature trails.
we discovered solitude in paradise behind the Bohio resort on Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos. An empty beach beckoning attention.
January 2012, Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Stalactites and stalagmites fill the damp and mysterious interior of the Conch Bar Caves on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos. The largest caves in the entire Bahamian chain of island. Lucayan Indians occupied this area many centuries before they were exterminated by the Spanish. The caves have fresh water lakes with caverns meadering on for many miles.
The Bahamas (pronounced /ðə bəˈhɑːməz/), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an English-speaking country consisting of 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 islets (rocks). It is located in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti) and the Caribbean Sea, northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States of America (nearest to the state of Florida). Its total land area is almost 14 000 km², with an estimated population of 330,000. Its capital is Nassau.
Originally inhabited by Arawakan Taino people, the Bahamas were the site of Columbus' first landfall in the New World in 1492. Although the Spanish never colonised The Bahamas, they shipped the native Lucayans (as the Bahamian Taino settlers referred to themselves) to slavery in Hispaniola. The islands were mostly deserted from 1513 to 1650, when British colonists from Bermuda settled on the island of Eleuthera.
The Bahamas became a crown colony in 1718 when the British clamped down on piracy. Following the American War of Independence, thousands of pro-British loyalists and enslaved Africans moved to The Bahamas and set up a plantation economy. The slave trade was abolished in the British Empire in 1807 and many Africans liberated from slave ships by the Royal Navy were settled in The Bahamas during the 19th century. Slavery itself was abolished in 1834 and the descendants of enslaved and liberated African form the bulk of The Bahamas's population today.
Economic activity is mostly based on tourism and financial services. A relatively high degree of economic freedom has made The Bahamas one of the most prosperous countries in the Caribbean region. The financial sector’s domestic and offshore activities contribute around 15 percent of GDP. The economy has a very competitive tax regime. The government derives its revenue from import tariffs, license fees, property and stamp taxes, but there is no income tax, corporate tax, capital gains tax, value-added tax (VAT), or wealth tax. Payroll taxes fund social insurance benefits. In the most recent year, overall tax revenue as a percentage of GDP was 21.8 per cent.
The Bahamas has the 47th freest economy in the world according to the Heritage Foundation 2010 Index of Economic Freedom. The Bahamas is ranked 7th out of 29 countries in the South and Central America/Caribbean region, and its overall score is higher than the regional and world averages. Total government spending, including consumption and transfer payments, is relatively low. In the most recent year, government spending equaled 23.4 percent of GDP. Authorities are committed to improving the transparency of budget planning. Annual FDI into The Bahamas is $700 million a year. The Bahamian legal system is based on British common law.
History
Taino people moved into the uninhabited southern Bahamas from Hispaniola and Cuba around the 7th century AD. These people came to be known as the Lucayans. There were an estimated 30,000+ Lucayans at the time of Columbus's arrival in 1492. Christopher Columbus's first landfall in the New World was on an island named San Salvador (known to the Lucayans as Guanahani), which is generally accepted to be present-day San Salvador Island, (also known as Watling's Island) in the southeastern Bahamas.
An alternative theory holds that Columbus landed to the southeast on Samana Cay, according to calculations made in 1986 by National Geographic writer and editor Joseph Judge based on Columbus's log. Evidence in support of this remains inconclusive. On the landfall island, Columbus made first contact with the Lucayans and exchanged goods with them.
The Spaniards who followed Columbus depopulated the islands, carrying most of the indigenous people off into slavery. The Lucayans throughout The Bahamas were wiped out by exposure to diseases to which they had no immunity. The smallpox that ravaged the Taino indians after Columbus's arrival wiped out half of the population in what is now The Bahamas.
It is generally assumed that the islands were uninhabited by Europeans until the mid-17th century. However, recent research suggests that there may have been attempts to settle the islands by groups from Spain, France, and Britain, as well as by other Amerindians. In 1648, the Eleutherian Adventurers migrated from Bermuda. These English Puritans established the first permanent European settlement on an island which they named Eleuthera—the name derives from the Greek word for freedom. They later settled New Providence, naming it Sayle's Island after one of their leaders. To survive, the settlers resorted to salvaged goods from wrecks.
In 1670 King Charles II granted the islands to the Lords Proprietors of the Carolinas, who rented the islands from the king with rights of trading, tax, appointing governors, and administering the country.
18th century
During proprietary rule, the Bahamas became a haven for pirates, including the infamous Blackbeard. To restore orderly government, The Bahamas were made a British crown colony in 1718 under the royal governorship of Woodes Rogers, who, after a difficult struggle, succeeded in suppressing piracy. In 1720 he led local militia to drive off a Spanish attack.
During the American War of Independence, the islands were a target for American naval forces under the command of Commodore Ezekial Hopkins. The capital of Nassau on the island of New Providence was occupied by US Marines for a fortnight.
In 1782, following the British defeat at Yorktown, a Spanish fleet appeared off the coast of Nassau, which surrendered without a fight. It was recaptured by American Loyalists the following year and the Peace of Paris which ended the global conflict recognised British sovereignty.
After American independence, some 7,300 loyalists and their slaves moved to the Bahamas from New York, Florida and the Carolinas. These Americans established plantations on several islands and became a political force in the capital. The small population became mostly African from this point on.
The British abolished the slave trade in 1807, which led to the forced settlement on Bahamian islands of thousands of Africans liberated from slave ships by the Royal Navy. Slavery itself was finally abolished in the British Empire on August 1, 1834.
20th century
Modern political development began after the Second World War. The first political parties were formed in the 1950s and the British made the islands internally self-governing in 1964, with Roland Symonette of the United Bahamian Party as the first premier.
In 1967, Lynden Pindling of the Progressive Liberal Party became the first black premier of the colony, and in 1968 the title was changed to prime minister. In 1973, The Bahamas became fully independent, but retained membership in the Commonwealth of Nations. Sir Milo Butler was appointed the first black governor-general (the representative of Queen Elizabeth II) shortly after independence.
Based on the twin pillars of tourism and offshore finance, the Bahamian economy has prospered since the 1950s. However, there remain significant challenges in areas such as education, health care, international narcotics trafficking and illegal immigration from Haiti.
The origin of the name "Bahamas" is unclear. It may derive from the Spanish baja mar, meaning "shallow seas";[citation needed] or the Lucayan word for Grand Bahama Island, ba-ha-ma "large upper middle land".
Geography
The Bahamas are a group of about 700 atolls and cays in the western Atlantic Ocean, of which only between 30 and 40 are inhabited. The largest of the islands is Andros Island, located 120 miles (190 km) southeast of Florida. The Bimini islands are to its northwest. To the North is the island of Grand Bahama, home to the second largest city in the country, Freeport. The island of Great Abaco is to its east. In the far south is the island of Great Inagua, the second largest island in the country. Other notable islands include Eleuthera, Cat Island, San Salvador Island, Acklins, Crooked Island, and Mayaguana. Nassau is the capital and largest city, located on New Providence. The islands have a subtropical climate, moderated by the Gulf Stream.
The islands are surface projections of the three oceanic Bahama Banks, the Little Bahama Bank, the Great Bahama Bank and the westernmost Cay Sal Bank. The highest point is only seventy meters above sea level on Long Island; the island of New Providence, where the capital city of Nassau is located, reaches a maximum elevation of only thirty-seven meters. The land on the Bahamas has a foundation of fossil coral, but much of the rock is oolitic limestone; the stone is derived from the disintegration of coral reefs and seashells. The land is primarily either rocky or mangrove swamp. Low scrub covers much of the surface area. Pineyards are found on four of the northern islands: Grand Bahama, Great Abaco, New Providence, and Andros. On some of the southern islands, low-growing tropical hardwood flourishes. Although some soil is very fertile, it is also very thin. Only a few freshwater lakes and just one river, located on Andros Island, are found in the Bahamas.
Other infos
Oficial Name:
The commonwealth of the Bahamas
Independence:
July 10, 1973
Area:
13.939 km2
Inhabitants:
319.000
Languages:
Bahamas Creole English [bah] 225,000 in Bahamas (1987). Also spoken in USA. Alternate names: Bahamian Creole English, Bahamian Dialect. Dialects: Intelligibility with Sea Islands Creole good. Very close to Sea Islands Creole and Afro-Seminole of USA (Ian Hancock). The major differences with Sea Islands are in phonology, a few words, regional expressions, and a few grammatical differences (verbal markers). There is a spectrum of varieties from Standard USA English usage to the creole (Todd and Hancock 1986). Classification: Creole, English based, Atlantic, Eastern, Northern
English [eng] 49,331 in Bahamas (2004). Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, English
Extinct languages
Taino [tnq] Extinct. Members of the ethnic group are also now in the USA, in Florida and New Jersey, in Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo, and Cuba. Classification: Arawakan, Maipuran, Northern Maipuran, Caribbean
Capital city:
Nassau
Meaning of the country name:
From Spanish Baja Mar – "Low (Shallow) Sea". Spanish conquistadors thus named the islands after the waters around them.
Description flag:
The black equilateral triangle on the left represents the unity and determination of the people of The Bahamas, who are primarily of African descent. The triangle is oriented toward three equal-width stripes symbolizing areas of natural resource. Two aquamarine stripes at the top and bottom of the flag represent the sea and one gold stripe in the middle represents the land. The flag was adopted on July 10, 1973.
Coat of arms:
The coat of arms of the Bahamas contains a shield with the national symbols as its focal point, the shield is supported by a marlin and flamingo.
On top the shield is a conch shell, that represents the varied marine life of the island chain. This rests upon a helmet. Below this is the actual shield, the main symbol of which is a ship, reported to represent the Santa Maria of Christopher Columbus. It is sailing beneath a sun. The animals supporting the shield are the national animals, and the national motto is found at the bottom. The flamingo is located upon land, and the marlin upon sea, indicating the geography of the islands.
The vibrant colors of the coat of arms are also intended to point to a bright future for the islands. They are also reputed to have been maintained due to their attractiveness to tourists.
Motto:
"Forward Upward Onward Together"
National Anthem: March on, Bahamaland
Lift up your head
to the rising sun,
Bahamaland;
March on to glory
your bright banners
waving high.
See how the world
marks the manner
of your bearing!
Pledge to excel
through love and unity.
Pressing onward,
march together
to a common loftier goal;
Steady sunward,
tho' the weather
hide the wide and treachrous shoal.
Lift up your head
to the rising sun, Bahamaland,
'Til the road you've trod
lead unto your God,
March On, Bahamaland.
Internet Page:
Bahamas in diferent languages
eng | ast | bre | fao | fra | frp | fur | glg | hat | ina | lin | nor | nrm | oci | que | roh | rup | spa | srd | swe | tet | wln | wol: Bahamas
bam | est | fin | ita | jav | lld | mlg | ron | scn | vor | zza: Bahama
ces | dsb | hsb | pol | slk | szl: Bahamy
deu | ltz | nds: Bahamas / Bahamas
cat | jnf: Bahames
fry | nld: Bahama’s
hrv | slv: Bahami
kin | run: Bahmasi
mol | slo: Bahama / Бахама
afr: Bahamas; Bahama-eilande
arg: Bahamas; Baamas
aze: Bahama adaları / Баһама адалары
bos: Bahami / Бахами
cor: Ynysow Bahama
crh: Bahamalar / Бахамалар
cym: Y Bahamas
dan: Bahama-øerne; Bahamas
epo: Bahamoj
eus: Bahamak
gla: Na Bahàmas
gle: Na Bahámaí / Na Bahámaí
glv: Ny Bahamaghyn
hun: Bahamák; Bahama-szigetek
ibo: Agwe-etiti Bahama
ind: Bahama / باهاما
isl: Bahamaeyjar
kaa: Bagama atawları / Багама атаўлары
kmr: Adaêd Bahamê / Адаед Баһаме / ئادایێد باهامێ; Adaêd Bagamê / Адаед Багаме / ئادایێد باگامێ; Cizîrêd Bahamê / Щьзиред Баһаме / جزیرێد باهامێ; Cizîrêd Bagamê / Щьзиред Багаме / جزیرێد باگامێ
kur: Bahama / باهاما
lat: Insulae Bahamenses
lav: Bahamu salas; Bahamas
lit: Bahamų solos; Bahamai
mlt: Baħamas
msa: Bahamas / باهاماس
por: Baamas; Bahamas
rmy: Bahamas / बाहामास
sme: Bahamasullot
smg: Bahamas; Bahamā
smo: Pahama
sqi: Bahamët
swa: Visiwa vya Bahama
tuk: Bagam adalary / Багам адалары
tur: Bahama; Bahamalar; Bahama Adaları
uzb: Bagama orollari / Багама ороллари
vie: Ba-ha-ma
vol: Bahamuäns
abq: Багамска дзыгӀвбжяква (Bagamska dzəʿʷbžjakʷa)
alt: Багамский ортолыктар (Bagamskij ortolyktar)
bak: Багама утрауҙары / Bagama utrauźarı
bel: Багамскія астравы / Bahamskija astravy; Багамскія выспы / Bahamskija vyspy
bul: Бахамски острови (Baĥamski ostrovi)
che: Багамаш (Bagamaš)
chm: Багамский остров-влак (Bagamskij ostrov-vlak); Багамы (Bagamy)
chv: Багама утравӗсем (Bagama utravĕsem)
kaz: Багама аралдары / Bagama araldarı / باگاما ارالدارى
kbd: Багамскэ островхэр (Bagamskă ostrovĥăr)
kir: Багама аралдары (Bagama araldary)
kjh: Багамскай олтырыхтар (Bagamskaj oltyryĥtar)
kom: Багамскӧй островъяс (Bagamsköj ostrov"jas)
krc: Багама айрымканлары (Bagama ajrymkanlary)
kum: Багама атавлары (Bagama atavlary)
mkd: Бахами (Baĥami)
mon: Багамын арлууд (Bagamyn arluud)
oss: Багамӕтӕ (Bagamätä)
rus: Багамские острова (Bagamskije ostrova); Багамы (Bagamy)
srp: Бахами / Bahami
tat: Багама утраулары / Bahama utrawları
tgk: Ҷазираҳои Баҳама / جزیرههای بهمه / Çazirahoi Bahama; Ҷазираҳои Багама / جزیرههای بگمه / Çazirahoi Bagama
tyv: Багам ортулуктары (Bagam ortuluktary)
ukr: Багамські острови (Bahams'ki ostrovy); Багами (Bahamy)
ara: الباهاما (al-Bāhāmā); جزر الباهاما (Ǧuzuru l-Bāhāmā); جزائر الباهاما (Ǧazāʾiru l-Bāhāmā); البهاما (al-Bahāmā); جزر البهاما (Ǧuzuru l-Bahāmā); جزائر البهاما (Ǧazāʾiru l-Bahāmā); البهاماس (al-Bahāmās); جزر البهاماس (Ǧuzuru l-Bahāmās); جزائر البهاماس (Ǧazāʾiru l-Bahāmās)
ckb: بەهاما / Behama
fas: باهاما (Bāhāmā)
prs: بهاما (Bahāmā)
pus: بهاما (Bahāmā)
uig: باھاما / Bahama / Баһама
urd: بہاماس (Bahāmās); بہاماز (Bahāmāz)
div: ބަހާމާސް (Bahāmās); ބަހާމަސް (Bahāmas)
heb: בהימה (Bahêmah); באהימה (Bâhêmah); איי-בהימה (Iye-Bahêmah); איי-באהימה (Iye-Bâhêmah); בהמה (Bahamah); בהאמה (Bahâmah); באהאמה (Bâhâmah); איי-בהמה (Iye-Bahamah); איי-בהאמה (Iye-Bahâmah); איי-באהאמה (Iye-Bâhâmah)
lad: באהאמאס / Bahamas
yid: באַהאַמאַס (Bahamas)
amh: ባህማስ (Bahəmas)
ell-dhi: Μπαχάμες (Mpaĥámes)
ell-kat: Μπαχάμαι (Mpaĥámai); Βαχάμαι (Vaĥámai)
hye: Բահամյան կղզիներ (Bahamyan kġziner); Բահամներ (Bahamner)
kat: ბაჰამის კუნძულები (Bahamis kundzulebi)
hin: बहामा (Bahāmā)
ben: বাহামা (Bāhāmā)
pan: ਬਾਹਾਮਾਸ (Bāhāmās)
kan: ಬಹಾಮಾಸ್ (Bahāmās)
mal: ബഹാമാസ് (Bahāmās)
tam: பஹாமாஸ் (Pahāmās); பஹமாஸ் (Pahamās)
tel: బహామాస్ (Bahāmās)
zho: 巴哈馬/巴哈马 (Bāhāmǎ)
jpn: バハマ (Bahama)
kor: 바하마 (Bahama)
mya: ဘဟားမား (Bʰáhàmà)
tha: บาฮามาส (Bāhāmāt)
khm: បាហាម៉ាស (Bāhāmās)
Turks and Caicos is home to one of the worlds best beaches. We made these loungers on Grace Bay beach our home for 2 weeks.
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The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
“潜伏”在特克斯群岛棉花礁
Snorkeling
Cotton cay,Grand Turk,The Turks and Caicos Islands,Lucayan Archipelago,West Indies
如果说特克斯和凯科斯群岛已经够袖珍，那么，离大特克岛还有一小时快艇行程的棉花礁就更是在地图上找不到了。
这个大西洋西印度群岛中的一员，是英国的海外属地。
棉花礁附近海域并不是浮潜的理想场所，也许我们遇到的风浪大了一点，浮潜变成了一项挑战。
Looking northwest from the Great Salt Pond of St. Maarten in the Caribbean islands, consisting of the Greater Antilles on the north and the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), part of the somewhat larger West Indies grouping, which also includes the Lucayan Archipelago (comprising The Bahamas, and Turks and Caicos Islands) north of the Greater Antilles and Caribbean Sea... and in a wider sense, also including the mainland countries of Belize, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana
To all who visit and view, and – especially – express support and satisfaction: you are much appreciated!
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
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The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
North Coast, Mudjin Harbor Beach, Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos Caribbean
I have traveled a fair amount to the Hawaiian Islands, Mexico, and over a dozen Caribbean Islands, I had never seen anything like this before! Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding into each other from both sides in a symmetrical flow! The Caribbean sea wraps around a distant rock formation - detached headland. A shallow sandbar, covered at high tide, creates a breaking shelf for the waves to crash into each other. ( #sandspit or #tombolo : a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a mound, spit or bar) reconnected the island to the mainland It's quite amazing to see the waves closing, like a zipper being zipped towards the camera. The teal blue waters with shallow paper white sands below creates a vivid hue for which I have never encountered on any other island except for Antigua.
January 2012, Mudjin Harbor Beach, Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Symmetrical Surf on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos at Mudjin Harbor Beach. Beautiful teal waters contrasting the distant rock cliffs with waves colliding from both sides in a symmetrical flow.
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
"The Lucayans were an ancient people who are thought to have colonised the Bahamas from South America. It is believed that they travelled on wooden rafts using ocean currents and prevailing winds. A cave on Grand Bahama contains rare evidence of the Lucayan civilisation. In this underwater cave, a skull has been found which is thought to be Lucayan due to its flat forehead. Lucayans strapped wood to their heads which caused their foreheads to become flatter than those of normal skulls. The Lucayans believed they originated from caves, which may be why they chose to bury their dead there. The Lucayan culture died out as a consequence of European colonisation" www.bbc.co.uk/oceans/locations/atlantic/grand_bahama.shtm..
"The caves at Lucayan National Park comprise one of the longest underwater cave systems in the world, which is also among the most environmentally distinct. The vast tunnel system, accessible by both land and sea, was created over eons by the seepage of acidified rainwater into the island's limestone base. "
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.
The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.