A quick sundown stop at a huge fossil reef

Erin, Félix, Aaron and Mauro take a quick look at fossil reefs excavated along the road around Lake Enriquillo

We reached the banks of Lake Enriquillo just before nightfall. A new road has been cut through the Holocene fossil reef — to circumvent the steadily rising hypersaline lake, which is 40 meters below sea level — and the spoil of fossils line the road for kilometers. Acropora cervicornis (staghorn coral) is the dominant species found here, along with a variety of other coral species, snails and clams. Nightfall and a brief rain kept the exploratory visit short. The serious sampling begins tomorrow…