Laguna Grande

November 17 , 2002

0930 - 1030

Laguna Grande, Gulfo de Cariaco, Venezuela

Dry tropical lagoon

Tall hills surround the lagoon, covered in cacti and acacia trees. The ground is so covered on the hills that the only way to get up the hills is along the ridges, or following dry streambeds, which are hard to find as mangroves surround the water. Parrots fly overhead, as well as falcons and other birds of prey, and frigate birds and pelicans are everywhere. Underwater it's mostly mangrove-murky, and the only really living coral is fire coral.

Laguna Grande is an off-cut of the Gulfo de Cariaco, but sheltered by the Araya Peninsula. With hills blocking wind and clear water, and mangroves mucking up the current water, nothing much can live under it. It is hot and arid, so acacia and cacti thrive easily.

Adaptations -

- Cactus - they store the water they suck up, to use when there isn't enough from rain.

- Mangroves - instead of the salt they live in poisoning the whole plant, the salt gets transferred to several sacrificial leaves. When one dies and falls off, another becomes the salt-holder.

Dominant species -

- Cactus

- Acacias

- Pelicans

- Frigate birds

- Green (?) parrots

- Yellow-headed caracara

- Mangroves

- Fire coral

- Crabs (fiddler, land)

Other identified species -

- King scallop

- Domestic goats

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