QUAD tt

17/08/2024

Extinct Giant Vultures; Cuban Teratorn & Cuban Condor

The Cuban Teratorn was a large, predatory bird that roamed the region that is now modern-day Cuba. It belonged to a family of giant birds with morphological similarities to condors, and old world vultures, leading scientists to conclude that they may have had a similar lifestyle.

The Cuban Condor is another extinct bird of prey whose closest living relative is the critically endangered California Condor.

Both of these birds were scavengers that spent significant time soaring in the skies over Cuba searching for food, which would have included the carcasses of giant sloths and tortoises. They both went extinct at the end of the Pleistocene when their sources of food also started going extinct.

The Cuban Condor is at the top of the pic, Cuban Teratorn is below it. The third bird is the Black Vulture which is common all across the Americas, and is just added to provide additional scale.

Artist credit; https://www.deviantart.com/artbyjrc

14/08/2024

Although coffee originated in Africa, more than half of the world’s coffee supply now comes from Central and South America. Like many other crops that crossed the Atlantic, the entry point of coffee into the Americas was via the Caribbean. The most popular account of coffee coming to the Caribbean is the story of a sailor called Gabriel de Clieu who acquired a coffee plant from the Jardin de Plantes in Paris and smuggled it to Martinique in 1720. According to his account, he protected the plant from Tunisian pirates, attempted theft by a Dutch spy, and severe storms. At one point he also shared his small daily ration of water with the coffee plant allowing it to survive the treacherous journey.
Coffee thrived in Martinique as de Clieu had correctly predicted that the plant would grow well in climates suitable for sugarcane. From here, plants were transported to several other islands so that coffee plantations could be established. Plants were sent to Hispaniola, and by 1750 Haiti was producing more than half of the world’s coffee. In 1721, coffee plants were sent to Guadeloupe, and in 1728 to Jamaica. The propagation of plants in those islands led to new varieties of coffee like Guadeloupe Bonifier, and Jamaican Blue Mountain, both of which are regarded as exceptionally smooth.
Coffee from Martinique was also transported to French Guiana, and from there it was smuggled to Brazil in 1727. Many historians however, now believe that coffee was already present in this region as the Dutch had planted it in Dutch Guiana several years before. Among the coffee introduced to this part of South America was a rare species known as liberica coffee that currently accounts for less than one percent of commercial coffee production. Introduced from the Dutch East Indies, this type of coffee now grows wild in the Amazon, and is harvested and sold in Guyana as Pomeroon Coffee.
In addition to Pomeroon Coffee, Blue Mountain Coffee, and Guadeloupe Bonifier Coffee, there are several other interesting varieties of coffee in the Caribbean. Read more about them via TasteTrinbago.com; https://tastetrinbago.com/coffee-varieties-across-the-caribbean/

11/08/2024

August 11th is recognized by the United Nations as World Steelpan Day in recognition of the instrument's cultural and historical significance.
Read more about steelpan history here; https://quadtt.com/history-of-steelpan-and-the-struggle-for-respect/

07/08/2024

López won medals in five different Olympics, and dominated the sport for two decades.

After winning his fifth gold medal in his fifth consecutive Olympic games, Cuba's Mijaín López left his shoes on the mat to signify his retirement from the sport 👏

An Olympic legend leaving the sport on top 💪

03/08/2024

A historic first 🫶

Thea Lafond delivers the first ever Olympic medal to Dominica.

And it's a glittering triple jump gold with a 15.02m national record 🏆

03/08/2024

SAINT LUCIA TO THE WORLD ‼️

🇱🇨's Julien Alfred storms to the Olympic 100m gold medal with 10.72 🤩

That's the first medal in the history of the Olympic Games for her country.

🥈 Sha'carri Richardson 🇺🇸
🥉 Melissa Jefferson 🇺🇸

01/08/2024

Emancipation is often summed up as a humanitarian act by the British Crown. The abolitionists in England definitely deserve their due respect for the role that they played. However it is important to recognize the events in the British West Indies that occurred in the decade before the Emancipation of Slavery in 1834.
By the mid-1820s, British West Indian sugar was in terminal decline, with no chance of recovery and outcompeted by every other sugar producing region in the world. According to Eric Williams; “Cuba could contain all the British islands of the Caribbean, Jamaica included. One of Brazil’s mighty rivers could hold all the West Indian islands without its navigation being obstructed. India could produce enough rum to drown the West Indies.” As such, the British parliament felt it less necessary to protect the economic interests of the West Indian sugar planters.
Additionally, historian Richard S. Dunn said that “the acid test of any slave system is the frequency and ferocity of resistance by slaves,” and the frequency and ferocity seemed to be constantly increasing. 1816 saw Bussa’s rebellion, the largest slave revolt in Barbados history. The Demerara Revolt of 1823 was mostly nonviolent, but it was instrumental in building support for the abolitionist movement in England. The baptist war that began in 1831 saw about twenty percent of the slaves in Jamaica take part in guerilla warfare against colonial authorities. This conflict continued into 1832, a year that saw slaves all across Trinidad put down their tools and refuse to complete tasks.
Emancipation Day is a day celebrating these triumphs, and also reflecting on the long term effects of forced labour on Caribbean society even today.

31/07/2024

Since the 1600s, sailors in the British Navy were issued a daily ration of rum referred to as a tot. On the 31st July 1970, the British Navy issued the rum ration for the final time and the day is now referred to as Black Tot Day.

This day is celebrated by rum enthusiasts in North America and Europe, however there is a dark side of Black Tot Day that honours controversial elements of Caribbean history; https://tastetrinbago.com/the-dark-side-of-black-tot-day/

28/07/2024

Angel Waterfall or Angel Falls is a fifty foot waterfall that cascades down the slopes of El Tucuche, Trinidad’s second highest peak. Located in the middle of a misty forest with moss covered rocks and tropical flowers, it might be assumed that the name Angel Falls is due to this hidden gem having a heavenly appearance. As a single drop waterfall tumbling down a cliff, it also looks like a miniature version of Angel Falls in nearby Venezuela leading some hikers to believe that this resemblance is the source of the name.

Neither of these are the reason for the name.

In the early 1940s, Angel Bastaldo was an outdoorsman who worked in the cocoa estates of the Maracas Valley when he first came across this waterfall. At this time, there were a few footpaths connecting several estates and some trails used by hunters, but this part of the Northern Range was largely unexplored.

The waterfall remained something of a secret until Bastaldo shared its location with some tour guides and hikers in the early 1990s. They temporarily named the waterfall after him, however the name seemed fitting and it remained. Bastaldo passed away in 2010, and now the name Angel Falls remains as a tribute to a Trinidad hiking pioneer.

See more pics; https://quadtt.com/hike-to-angel-falls/
https://quadtt.com/tag/angel-waterfall/

27/07/2024

Almost to this day 144 years ago, the founder of Fernandes Black Label Rum arrived in Trinidad.

Learn more about the history via TasteTrinbago.com here; https://tastetrinbago.com/the-portuguese-caribbean-rum-of-trinidad-guyana-and-antigua/

26/07/2024

On this day, July 26th 1951, members of the Trinidad All Steel Percussion Orchestra offloaded their instruments in Southbank, London as curious children looked on.
This group introduced the steelpan to an international audience at the Festival of Britain and is acknowledged as the first modern steelband.
More here; https://quadtt.com/history-of-steelpan-and-the-struggle-for-respect/

24/07/2024

Simón Bolívar was born on this day, 24th July 1783.

18/07/2024

Nelson Mandela was born on this day, July 18th 1918.

17/07/2024

17/07/2024

British Actress Nathalie Emmanuel from Game of Thrones. She played the role of Missandei. Fun fact: Her dad is of Saint Lucian parentage and her mom, Dominican, hence the flags.

08/07/2024

King Charles III meets the West Indies cricket team at the Buckingham Palace ahead of the first Test against England 🤝

04/07/2024

The signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas on this day fifty years ago led to the formal establishment of CARICOM: Caribbean Community and is now recognized across the region as Caricom Day.

02/07/2024

02/07/2024

01/07/2024

Beryl likely to hit Grenada this afternoon;

Major hurricane Impacts! In this video, the direct hit from Hurricane Beryl, and where it is going next. TAKING PREPS: Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Belize, Yucat...

01/07/2024

Track Hurricane Beryl live via these links; https://www.windy.com/?11.092,-50.449,5,m:etuafl4

https://earth.nullschool.net/ /wind/surface/level/orthographic=-42.81,7.37,1261/loc=-60.800,11.735

quad.tt

30/06/2024

Hurricane Beryl is likely to be one of the most powerful early season Hurricanes on record;

Direct hit coming! In this video, Hurricane Beryl is rapidly intensifying. This will move in as one of the most powerful early season Hurricanes on record.PL...

29/06/2024

Hurricane warning for some of the Lesser Antilles;

Record Hurricane Coming... In this video, when Tropical Storm Beryl becomes Hurricane Beryl, the extreme winds, flooding, and timing of this. PLEASE BE SAFE:...

23/06/2024

UWI, SRC - Automatic Earthquake Location

DATE AND TIME:
2024-06-22 11:58 pm (Local Time)
2024-06-23 03:58 (UTC)

MAGNITUDE:
6.2

LOCATION:
Latitude: 10.83N
Longitude: 62.37W
Depth: 46 km

NEARBY CITIES:
Carúpano, Venezuela, 97 km, ENE
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, 97 km, WNW
San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, 119 km, NW
*distance and direction to epicenter

DISCLAIMER: This preliminary location has been automatically calculated by computer algorithms. It is subject to potential revisions pending evaluation by SRC analysts.

18/06/2024

13/06/2024

Join us on the 13th June for the first local screening of the “Liz Bonnin’s Wild Caribbean” (Episode 4).

This series, which broadcast in the UK late last year, sees presenter and Liz Bonnin (who has Trini roots) visiting a range of different conservation projects all over the Caribbean.

Episode 4 concentrates on and features some faces that will be very familiar to TTFNC members, including our very own Dan Jaggernauth and Laura Baboolal, and showcases the important work of the group.

Be ready to cheer for appearances from our friends at Wa Samaki Ecosystems, ecwc_tt and West Indian Herping, too! We will also show a bonus clip from Episode 3, featuring Lester Nanan and Winston Nanan's Caroni Bird Sanctuary Tours.

Several of the local stars of the show will be in the audience, and no doubt willing to answer any questions afterwards!

For copyright reasons, we cannot stream this event online, so please come down and join us in person 😊

For more info on the series and a few clips: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0gsgz2z