Effects of Hypopigmentation Alleles and Ancestry on Skin Color in the Kalinago of Dominica

Admixture analysis of 458 Kalinago individuals from the Commonwealth of Dominica shows 55% Native American ancestry grouping with East Asian ancestry at K=3, 32% African, and 11% European ancestry. Skin pigmentation measures (Melanin Index) ranged from 20 to 80, averaging 46. Three albino individuals were found to be homozygous for a multi-nucleotide polymorphism OCA2NW273KV of African origin whose single allele effect size was -8 melanin units. European hypopigmenting allele frequencies for SLC24A5A111T and SLC45A2L374F were 0.14 and 0.05, with effect sizes per allele of -6 and -3, respectively. Native American Ancestry contributed an effect size of about -22 melanin units.

Hylaeus (Hylaeana) dominicalis, a new species and the first colletid bee recorded from Dominica, Lesser Antilles

A new species of colletid bee, Hylaeus (Hylaeana) dominicalis Gibbs, new species, is described and figured from the Commonwealth of Dominica. The new species can be distinguished from consubgeneric species in the Caribbean Islands based on the integumental coloration, facial fovea, and pubescence. A list of all known Hylaeus from the Caribbean Islands is provided.

The Caribbean’s Geotourism Potential and Challenges: A Focus on Two Islands in the Region

Geotourism is a relatively new concept in the tourism industry, a concept which apparently has not yet been formally embraced by Caribbean destinations. This paper, based primarily on a literature review supplemented by the first-hand knowledge of the author, who served for over a decade in the natural resource management and tourism sectors in the region, identifies some of the geotourism assets and assesses the geotourism potential of two selected Caribbean islands, namely the Commonwealth of Dominica and St. Lucia. Indications are that the islands of the region have outstanding geological formations, dormant and active volcanic zones and associated geomorphological features, and breath-taking terrestrial and marine landscapes, including deep river gorges and tall mountains, and beautiful beaches, which together constitute important geotourism assets. Currently, these resources are marketed and promoted as part of the region’s nature tourism attractions. The feasibility of incorporating geotourism as a component of this overall nature tourism thrust is explored in this paper. As a follow-up to this study a survey of tourism officials, natural resource professionals, and selected scientists of the region is proposed for the purpose of identifying the reasons and constraints preventing the Caribbean region from formally embracing geotourism, developing and promoting the geotourism resources of the region as a unique component of the overall tourism product.