One of the many things I enjoy about Cayo Costa is the botany. Today I photographed the flowering black mangrove tree. This tree uses the salt water and releases the salt through it’s leaves. If you look close you can see the salt on the leaf. The underside of the leaf is a pale color. This is from the salt. In the months of June and July the tree can be very productive for honey. The honey is clear white. In the early 1900’s there was a gentleman who lived on Cayo Costa with a large family who collected the honey from the black mangrove. I have always liked the location of his long gone house, an ancient shell mound. The vistas are breath taking but sleeping is hard. This is one of the many things I enjoy about Cayo Costa.
Beautiful photos and I enjoyed the lesson. Very interesting. Thanks Brian!
Did he have hives on the island or do you think he just collected it in the wild? I get raw honey from a local beekeeper & it is the best. Not to mention the pollens in the raw honey are good fer what ails ya.
I will have to check my Cayo Costa archives. I would guess hives. the old time fisherman and women said" he just lived off those bee's.
I do a lot of mullet fishing around these babies around Pine Island in the fall. Can't wait to see them again.
I can't wait to see them again either. I left them 2 hours ago and won't be back for another 18 hours.
Very interesting about the Black Mangrove trees. I learned a lot 🙂 I really enjoyed the pictures too…very nice!