A #BahamasStrong story:

University of Florida and Florida Museum scientists and students have been doing research in the Bahamas for decades. This tiny fossil bat mandible in clear capsule was collected there in 1958 by J.C. Dickinson & Walter Auffenberg, two of our well-known scientists.

This tiny fossil is one of many collected in the Bahamas in the ’50s by prominent Florida Museum scientists. Museum collections help document biodiversity across space and time. Florida Museum photo by Radha Krueger

This tiny fossil is from a Waterhouse’s Leaf-nose Bat, Macrotus waterhousii. This species of bats is still very common in the Bahamas. Florida Museum photo by Radha Krueger

There are 11 species of bats currently living in the Bahamas. The Bahamian Funnel-eared Bat, Chilonatalus tumidifrons, lives only on a few islands in the Bahamas. It is considered near threatened, and is vulnerable to human impact, climate change & severe weather.
More about this tiny bat on the IUCN Red List

There are eleven species of bats that live in the Bahamas. Of these, two live only in the Caribbean, and one lives only in a few locations in the Bahamas. Florida Museum photo by Radha Krueger

The Bahamian Funnel-eared Bat, Chilonatalus tumidifrons, lives only on a few islands in the Bahamas. Florida Museum photo by Radha Krueger

Because they can fly, bats are good models for studying mammal movement in fragmented habitats. This video looks back at our then-UF grad student Kelly Speer, our scientist David Reed and team doing bat research in the Bahamas in 2013:
Bat Dispersal in the Bahamas (Watch)

A genetic analysis of bats living in the #Bahamas found that there was a difference in northern vs. southern populations of Brazilian free-tailed bats, and bats might not be flying across a very narrow channel to intermingle for some unknown reason. Full story:
Ocean channel in Bahamas marks genetic divide in Brazilian free-tailed bats

The dashed line marks the Northwest and Northeast Providence Channels, which divide populations of free-tailed bats that last shared an ancestor hundreds of thousands of years ago. Bats were collected from locations marked with white dots. Figure by Speer et al. in Ecology and Evolution

Brazilian free-tailed bats can likely see across the narrow ocean channel that divides northern and southern Bahamian islands but do not cross it. Photo courtesy of Nancy Albury

It may be some time before our professional work in the Bahamas can resume. But as relief work evolves, we will be extending support to the island community.

A #BahamasStrong story:

Years ago, diver Brian Kakuk helped scientists excavate thousands of fossils from an unusual Bahamas site–a blue hole. This sinkhole contains salt water covered by freshwater, with a middle layer of hydrogen sulfide.
Full story: Fossils from Bahamian Blue Hole may give clues to early life

This photo shows an overhead view of the sinkhole where scientists and divers recovered fossils including crocodiles, tortoises, snakes, birds and bats. Photo courtesy of Curt Bowen, Advanced Diver Magazine

The extinct tortoise fossil shown here was discovered by divers about 75 feet below the surface of Sawmill Sink in the Bahamas. Photo courtesy of Nancy Albury

Caracara creightoni, a Caribbean bird driven to extinction by the arrival of humans, was about the size of modern caracaras but had a bigger bill and stronger bite. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

A tortoise skeleton from the blue hole helped scientists tie the species’ extinction to human arrival on the island. “It’s probably a blend of direct hunting and habitat loss as the humans started burning the forests in the dry season,” said Dave Steadman.
Full story: Extinct tortoise yields oldest tropical DNA

Recently, DNA from one of the fossils revealed an extinct bird–Creighton’s caracara. The sinkhole’s caustic hydrogen sulfide prevented light and oxygen from degrading the fossil, leaving enough fragile genetic material for scientists to examine.
Full story: Extinct Caribbean bird yields DNA after 2,500 years in watery grave

“On islands like Abaco that have always been dominated by reptiles, the flora and fauna are more vulnerable because they have evolved to lead a more laid back, island existence,” Steadman said of Abaco’s largest carnivore & herbivore disappearing.
Full story: Answer to restoring lost island biodiversity found in fossils

For years, Brian Kakuk & scientists campaigned for protection of these blue holes. Kakuk: “From a scientific standpoint, we have basically been here since the splitting of Pangea, so the Bahamas are a great way to see how things have changed over time.”
Full story: Protecting a sunken ancient world

Museum collections are valuable yet vulnerable. Blue hole specimens were stored both in the Bahamas & here at the Florida Museum. Scientists also left specimens in the sinkhole, so there are likely more discoveries to be made some day.

Two divers explore the ornately decorated Cascade Room in Dan’s Cave. Photo courtesy of Brian Kakuk

Sawmill Sink contains the fossil bones of more than 60 bird species, including Creighton’s caracara, osprey, American kestrel and likely Cooper’s hawk. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace