Caribbean Coast – All the Little Creatures

There are plenty of interesting happenings in and around a house in the jungle, like the afternoon that Richard was down in the garden and suddenly heard something coming toward him, out of the forest at speed. That can be quite a scary moment, wondering what on earth it could be but already knowing it is probably too late to get out of the way.

Branches were crashing, leaves were rustling, Richard started to back away and then out of the forest there appeared a huge……… amphibian! The beast broke cover, shot across the garden, with no chance of a photo and disappeared into the undergrowth on the other side. Later we looked it up, it was a bufus toad and there were we, expecting to see a puma!

There is also the hazard of the Sticky Frogs, these guys will stick anywhere. As soon as night falls they are out on the prowl, doing their thing – splat, splat, and there they are. One little chap seems to think nothing of zooming in and attaching himself to a table or wall or even Richard’s shirt or glasses while he is still wearing them! By morning there is no sign of them.

Sticky Frog (House Frog)

Less welcome are the ants. We have seen swarms of Army ants. When these are on the move the only advice is to stay out of the way and let them pass, even if it happens to be through your house. The Fire ants are just a nuisance with their sharp, stinging bite but even they can be intimidating when they attack in numbers. Stand around too long in their territory and they will scale your shoes and get in amongst your socks, clinging and snapping for all they are worth. The Leaf cutters are the most endearing; they go about their business, cutting and transporting and are much too busy to bother humans. We respect them accordingly and take great care not to disturb their trails as we walk through the grass.