Since 2021, summer has marked a time of year when the Department of Environment and the public turn their gaze to the evening sky, where one of Cayman’s most underappreciated animals rules supreme: the velvety free-tailed bat (Molossus milleri). Both DoE and citizen scientists from all walks of life venture out at dusk to bat
The National Conservation Council will hold their next General Meeting on Friday, August 7th at 1pm. The public are invited watch the meeting via @CaymanIslandsDoE YouTube channel. DOWNLOAD the complete Agenda Comments may be submitted by email to conservationcouncil@gov.ky by Wednesday, 5 August 2026.
Grand Cayman, 29 July 2026 The world’s largest shark conference “Sharks International” brought together more than 800 researchers, conservationists, and policymakers from 81 countries including two representatives from the Cayman Islands. Dr Johanna Kohler and Anne Veeder of the Department of Environment’s Shark Research & Conservation Programme were honoured to take part in discussions on
Every year, sea turtles travel thousands of miles across the Caribbean Sea, navigating ancient routes that connect feeding grounds and nesting beaches. Much of their lives remains out of sight, glimpsed only when turtles surface near shore or crawl onto beaches to nest. Today, however, new research is illuminating these hidden journeys. Sea turtle scientists
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Illegal Coral Nursery Found at Smith Cove 22 June 2026 – On June 1, 2026, the Department of Environment (DoE) identified 70 + fragments of Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) in a coral nursery that had been set up at Smith Cove without the necessary National Conservation Council (NCC) permit permission. The structure
Grand Cayman, Thursday, 18 June, 2026 — The Cayman Islands Department of Environment (DoE) Shark Research Team has confirmed a major scientific milestone for local shark conservation – the first Birth-Alert-Tag (BAT) deployment in a pregnant 2-metre Caribbean reef shark (Carcharhinus perezi) on Friday, 5 June. Since the start of fieldwork in April this year,
MEDIA RELEASE3 June, 2026 Meet Amber: The First Loggerhead Turtle of the 2026 Sea Turtle Tracking Programme When a nesting loggerhead turtle emerged onto a Grand Cayman beach on the night of 1 June, Department of Environment researchers carefully fitted her with both a satellite transmitter and an acoustic tag. Named Amber, she is the
The Cayman Islands are home to two of the Caribbean’s most distinctive and culturally cherished birds: the Grand Cayman Parrot (Amazona leucocephala caymanensis) and the Cayman Brac Parrot (Amazona leucocephala hesterna). These parrots are more than national symbols—they are irreplaceable components of the islands’ natural heritage, shaping forest health, supporting biodiversity, and embodying the uniqueness
On 10th of May 2026, DoE received a report of a severely wounded nurse shark from Jason Washington, Owner of Ambassador Divers, who was diving at Trinity Caves on the west side of Grand Cayman. The nurse shark was a young, female, approximately 110cm (3.6ft) long with deep cut wounds on top of the head,
For the Department of Environment, every day is Earth Day, but this year, the Cayman Islands mark 40 years of Marine Parks. That’s four decades of protecting the sea around us that has shaped our islands’ history, culture, economy, and daily life. This milestone reinforces how long-term conservation is essential to protecting both the natural