Buzzing & Galloping

Last night (Saturday) we had a night tour with the locally famed Bug Lady. Today we took it easy and did some horseback riding along the beach at sunset. April will share her experience with the bug tour, and Matt horseback riding. (We are a few days behind on the blog due to the very limited internet connection while in Drake Bay).

The bug tour with the bug lady [by April]:

Yesterday night me and dad had a bug tour with the bug lady from 7:30pm to 10:00pm. We left at 6:00 to have appetizers at the restaurant and on my seat there was a praying mantis! We took pictures of him. I even accidentally leaned back on him but he wouldn't budge for the full hour and a half that we were there. We named him Mr. Mantis.

Finally the bug lady came to get us and we started our hike. First, we saw a big rain forest cockroach. Then we went to the docks to meet two other people for the bug tour. At the dock we saw Bulldog Fishing Bats eating fish . After that we saw a type of of bug that was a mix of a spider and a scorpion called a Tailless Whip Scorpion.

Its body looked like a scorpion with no tail and it’s legs looked like a spider. A little later we saw a pregnant one. When we flipped her over we could see a bunch of little eggs in her stomach. Then we saw Trapdoor Spiders that dug holes in hard packed dirt then made a little trap door and when you opened it there would be a little spider inside and then he would crawl out and shut the door on you! (or jump out, drag you back into the tunnel and eat you if you were a bug). We also saw a Ray Spider which is very rare. To catch prey they weave a tiny square net and then make a little line and pull and when a meal comes by he will let go of the rope and release the tension to shoot the net and catch the bug. I also learned that there are thousands of tiny spiders around you every day and the way to see them is to go outside with a headlamp and make sure it is using white light and is in line with your eyesight and you will see thousands of tiny flecks of what look like emerald and those are the spiders eyes. We also saw a Scorpion. The way you see scorpions in the night is to get a purple light and because of what the scorpions skin is made of the scorpion glows in the dark when the light is shined on it. We also saw a Gaudy Leaf Frog

and an animal that had a long tongue and looked like a mix between a monkey and a lemur called a Kinkajou. We also saw an iguana sleeping in a tree and a leaf bug. I learned that every single leaf bug looks different. I really did learn a lot today.

Horseback Riding [by Matt]

Late this afternoon we met our guide Marvin, and his horses Gabbylang, Pinta and Fantasmo on the hill above our house for a horseback riding tour of the nearby forest and coast. Unfortunately Laura wasn't feeling well so she needed to take a pass on horseback riding. After saddling up, we started off into the woods. The trail was steep enough to be a bit daunting to the three Canadians and their mounts. Fiona in particular was feeling a little nervous at the beginning. Marvin and his ride obviously had the confidence of a horse and rider that both know exactly what they are doing so we trekked on!

Once over a few big hills and a small wooden bridge, we rode out of the forest and down onto an amazing stretch of beach. The waves were crashing on the rocks, tidal pools sparkled, and the horses and riders all seemed happy to be on flat ground. It didn't take long for both girls to beam with joy, although April would say her horse was too stubborn! Every few hundred meters we would run out of beach and ride up into the woods a bit to get to the next stretch. Some beaches had a few people on them, one had a few monkeys on it and they were all beautiful.

After about an hour, Marvin swung around and started us back home. On the walk back down the path toward our house the girls were excitedly recounting all the details of their rides and asking if we could go again tomorrow.

It was another great day!