Loh Island
Our day started with apprehension and anticipation, as the National Geographic Endeavour rocked her way to our first stop in Vanuatu, the Torres Islands. Vanuatu, officially the Republic of Vanuatu, is a Melanesian nation, consisting of 83 islands. It was first inhabited by Melanesian people, but in the late 18th century Europeans began to settle here, and in 1906, Britain and France officially claimed the country, jointly managing it through the British-French Condominium. In the 1970’s, an independence movement was established, and in 1980 the Republic of Vanuatu was created.
The Torres Islands are a group of lush green islands in the western part of Vanuatu. It is here that we plan to visit Loh Island and its residents. As we make our way ashore, gliding into a hidden lagoon through a small pass on a wave washed reef, we are greeted as old friends, hands are shook, hugs are given, and a grand welcome ceremony held. Children clamor around us, first shy but inquisitive, then more bold and interested, climbing around and upon the Zodiacs, and even up into our arms. We whisked some of the primary school students out to the ship for a tour, where full length mirrors held many a-trance, and the treadmills had a proper test. What a feeling to be able to share as much with them, as they had so graciously with us.
In the afternoon, we moved slightly south to another island in the Torres group, where water sports of glass bottom boating, snorkeling, swimming, and scuba diving were on the schedule. None of us had visited this island before, so it was a true expedition stop where your guess is as good as mine as to what we would discover. Today we were ecstatic to find a group of five Cuttlefish.
Cuttlefish are marine cephalopods, small relatives of squids. They have an internal shell, large eyes, eight arms and two tentacles furnished with denticulated suckers, by means of which they secure their prey. Cuttlefish possess an internal structure called the cuttlebone, which is composed of calcium carbonate and is porous, to provide the cuttlefish with buoyancy. Each species has a distinct shape, size, and pattern of ridges or texture on the "bone." Cuttlebones are traditionally used by jewelers and silversmiths as moulds for casting small objects. They are probably better known today as the tough material given to parakeets and other cage birds as a source of dietary calcium. The cuttlebone is unique to cuttlefish, one of the features contrasting them with their squid relatives.
Cuttlefish are sometimes called the chameleon of the sea because of their remarkable ability to rapidly alter their skin color at will. Their skin flashes a fast-changing pattern as communication to other cuttlefish, to camouflage them from predators and to sneak up on their preferred diet of crabs or fish.
As our first day in Vanuatu comes to a close, our minds are buzzing from all that we have experienced. As we sail further eastward, deeper in the islands, we can only speculate on what Vanuatu will reveal to us next.
Our day started with apprehension and anticipation, as the National Geographic Endeavour rocked her way to our first stop in Vanuatu, the Torres Islands. Vanuatu, officially the Republic of Vanuatu, is a Melanesian nation, consisting of 83 islands. It was first inhabited by Melanesian people, but in the late 18th century Europeans began to settle here, and in 1906, Britain and France officially claimed the country, jointly managing it through the British-French Condominium. In the 1970’s, an independence movement was established, and in 1980 the Republic of Vanuatu was created.
The Torres Islands are a group of lush green islands in the western part of Vanuatu. It is here that we plan to visit Loh Island and its residents. As we make our way ashore, gliding into a hidden lagoon through a small pass on a wave washed reef, we are greeted as old friends, hands are shook, hugs are given, and a grand welcome ceremony held. Children clamor around us, first shy but inquisitive, then more bold and interested, climbing around and upon the Zodiacs, and even up into our arms. We whisked some of the primary school students out to the ship for a tour, where full length mirrors held many a-trance, and the treadmills had a proper test. What a feeling to be able to share as much with them, as they had so graciously with us.
In the afternoon, we moved slightly south to another island in the Torres group, where water sports of glass bottom boating, snorkeling, swimming, and scuba diving were on the schedule. None of us had visited this island before, so it was a true expedition stop where your guess is as good as mine as to what we would discover. Today we were ecstatic to find a group of five Cuttlefish.
Cuttlefish are marine cephalopods, small relatives of squids. They have an internal shell, large eyes, eight arms and two tentacles furnished with denticulated suckers, by means of which they secure their prey. Cuttlefish possess an internal structure called the cuttlebone, which is composed of calcium carbonate and is porous, to provide the cuttlefish with buoyancy. Each species has a distinct shape, size, and pattern of ridges or texture on the "bone." Cuttlebones are traditionally used by jewelers and silversmiths as moulds for casting small objects. They are probably better known today as the tough material given to parakeets and other cage birds as a source of dietary calcium. The cuttlebone is unique to cuttlefish, one of the features contrasting them with their squid relatives.
Cuttlefish are sometimes called the chameleon of the sea because of their remarkable ability to rapidly alter their skin color at will. Their skin flashes a fast-changing pattern as communication to other cuttlefish, to camouflage them from predators and to sneak up on their preferred diet of crabs or fish.
As our first day in Vanuatu comes to a close, our minds are buzzing from all that we have experienced. As we sail further eastward, deeper in the islands, we can only speculate on what Vanuatu will reveal to us next.
