At Sea

Whenever we had a day at sea,photo opportunities were somewhat limited.A few seabirds would accompany the ship on its journey through the Carribean mainly a  bird called a Brown Booby.Very similar to our European Gannet, but smaller and lacking the yellow appearance around the neck.I spent hours in close proximeter to these birds, watching them on the lookout for flying fish and then diving from considerable heights to try and catch them.Sometimes the birds would take the fish whilst airborne, other times they would dive down into the water to take them.It wasn`t till I was at a local fish market in Barbados that I could get a good look at their actual food source.The seas were full of these fish and they would cover quite a distance  with their broad pectoral fins enabling them to glide effortlessly a few feet above the water.They are Barbados` national fish and appear on flags,coins and are the official logo of the Barbados tourism industry.They are part of Barbados`main national dish known as cou cou and are a vital part of the culture there.In ancient Greek times they were believed to leave the water and fly onto the shore and rest!I hope you have enjoyed reading my accounts of the Carribean and will finish off with one more, before I move closer to home with more tales from `A Walk On The Wildside`.