Lisa Becking and Erik Meesters from Imares plunged the depths together: three six-hour trips to a depth of 250 metres. They were surveying the biodiversity of the reefs to the south of the island, gathering sponges, soft coral and gorgonians for the Dutch government. The study is part of a nature management plan for the Dutch Caribbean. For if you want to conserve nature you have to know what you’ve got. Taxonomists from Naturalis will be examining the specimens over the next few weeks.
Plunging the depths
What fun - fieldwork! Especially if it involves a submarine off the Caribbean island of Bonaire.
