Sun, Sand and Surf

Just got back from a driving trip to Hilton Head, South Carolina. My husband and I aren't really into the beach, but we sacrificed ourselves for our sun-loving daughter and her best friend. Despite the searing temperatures, we had a wonderful time. I'd hoped to catch a glimpse of some interesting wildlife, but I mustn't have been looking hard enough because this is all I came up with:



If you look very closely, in the centre of the pic, (and magnify the photo by clicking on it), you'll spot a bunny munching on the scarce grass by the stand of bicycles. His colouring is perfect camouflage for the beach.



A crow. Yeah, we have loads of crows in Canada too, but I thought how much nicer the winter must be for them in South Carolina.

I did see tiny geckos streaking through gardens and up trees, but by the time I reached for my camera, they'd disappeared. Loads of pelicans -- I'll bet they're glad they don't hang out in the Gulf of Mexico. And cockroaches. Big cockroaches. Thankfully, outside where they belong.

Early Morning Ant Activity

Honestly, just because I wrote about ants here and here, I don't really have a special interest in them -- they just seem to be making an appearance more often (though, thankfully, not inside my home).

For the past few days, around 6:30 in the morning, thousands of ants have been exiting their nest under my front walkway (click on the photo for a creepy close up). They race around, seemingly without any purpose other than to get a bit of fresh air before the heat of the day sets in. By 8:30 a.m., the ants have returned underground. But how far underground do they go? Check out this plaster cast of an ant colony in Wikipedia. Anyway, it looks like my ants have done some major excavating, and I wouldn't be surprised if the walkway begins to sink -- I'll have to sweep in some sand this summer before my interlock begins to heave.