army ants and green iguanas

It's been a bit rainy for the past two days. The thing about the rain is that it brings the army ants out from underground in search for dry land. Today I got my first experience with the army, or warrior, ants. Now, I don't know if you know anything about army ants, but they are in HUGE, fast, swarms... and they prefer to eat non-plant material. One of the main concerns when dealing with army ants is the fact that they can easily prey on sleeping birds, especially those that are compromised and cannot defend themselves. Today they decided to swarm on the outside of the bathroom wall near Jack's, the red lored parrot, enclosure. They quickly moved over to, and in, Jack's enclosure. I wasn't entirely sure which tactic I was supposed to take when dealing with these tiny predators so I grabbed the hose and started spraying the enclosure. Unbeknownst to me, I had gotten a bit too close to the swarm and my feet were instantly covered in ants. I threw off my flip flops (which were immediately taken over by little black beings) and jumped out of the reaches of the ants. Thankfully the bites of the army ants aren't painful; I suppose it's just the sheer number that helps them accomplish their massacres. Oh, the exciting obstacles you come across when doing rehabilitation in the tropics.

This week has been pretty slow; it's mainly consisted of fishing for the tern. It's a good thing that I only eat plants anyway because I would never be able to survive in the wild by catching my own fish. What else? Tracy introduced me to Cayo Twist in town; they serve non-dairy ice cream. I think it's soy? I had the soursop flavor and it was so good. I decided to do a little research so I could purchase some of the fruit and apparently consuming it every day is linked to Parkinson's disease. Fantastic.

In bird news, the tern's eyes are improving. We found out that he was a nestling or fledgling when he was banded in 1997 so he's 13 years old. He was moved out to an aviary and appears to be doing well. All of the parrots (eight came in as babies last year) are doing well. The two Ruddy Ground Doves are improving... the youngest actually started eating on her own today. The other that had a horrendous wing fracture had the wrap removed last week and is getting physiotherapy every other day. No new patients this week... quite a difference from rehab in the states.

Tomorrow we get an early start to help wash Green Iguanas at San Ignacio Hotel. The hotel has a breeding and release program to help raise the number of Green Iguanas in the wild. They're a threatened species due to pregnant females who are about to lay eggs being a delicacy here. The resident iguanas need a good scrub every once in a while to get rid of external parasites. It should be an interesting experience!

That's all for now. Check back next week - it should be a busy week and I'm sure I'll have fun stories to share.

release day!

I have somehow been here for over a week already. It's been really busy and a bit overwhelming, but things are slowly coming together. I suppose I'll start from today and work backwards since my memory has a tendency to work better that way...

Today started at 4:15 AM(!) for me. It was a quick feed all the birds, catch up the white-fronted parrot, and head out to the release site as soon as possible... which ended up being about 6:00 AM. We drove northeast to Caledonia near where the Amazona albifrons was found after she was hit by a car (head trauma, possible shoulder fracture). Ricky set her carrier on the car and opened the door. She wasted no time in flying out of the carrier! It took us all a bit by surprise and I was lucky enough to get this shot of her release (satellite internet won't let me upload pictures to blogger anymore). She flew off into the trees; we got one more glimpse of her and then she was gone. This is why we do this.

Yesterday we got a Royal Tern (Sterna maxima) in from the southeastern coastal town of Placencia. He was found on the beach and with the help of the Belize Forest Department, he was transported to Belmopan where we picked him up. He's a bit on the thin side and his eyes are cloudy - almost like cataracts. The odd thing is that upon staining his eyes with fluorescein, they took up some of stain which indicates damage to the lenses. He started eating live fish from a bowl of water on his own today but his depth perception may be a little off. We'll have the veterinarian come in soon to do an exam to see if she can help with the diagnosis. This particular tern was banded with what appeared to be a brand new band. As it turns out, he was actually banded in 1997 in North Carolina! He's travelled quite a distance and is a bit older than we had expected. Hopefully he'll have a good prognosis and can be released.

And how did we get the fish for this tern? Well, yesterday I learned how to fish Belizean style. Basically, you take an empty wine bottle with a cork and a deep punt (new word!) in the bottom. Poke out a hole in the punt and throw some bait in - we used dog chow, but also rice and bits of corn tortilla seem to work, too. Lodge the bottle in between some rocks or the river bottom and wait for a few minutes. It works pretty well and is mostly effortless. I'm sure the tern is appreciative of not having to be tubed a couple of times a day.

Other than the new arrival and release today, I'm still trying to get the hang of things around here. Yesterday I was introduced to the Forest Department and the veterinarian with whom I will be working. I hope to soon meet Belize Bird Rescue and continue the relationship that CASA has started with them.

In non-CASA related updates, I'm really enjoying it here. I've been fortunate to see quite a bit since I got here. Tuesday night Tracy, the current ACM from Canada, and I went to the 'movie theater' in San Ignacio to see Baraka. The theater was small and a bit... musty, but it had character and it was only $2BZD/$1USD! San Ignacio is a relatively small town but there are quite a few ex-pats. The couple who run the movie theater also hold a trivia night every other Monday.

Tracy has a 'scooter' / dirt bike / motorcycle that she'll be selling when she leaves. She's selling it for quite cheap and I'm considering it so I have an easy way to get around. Now, family members, don't freak out. If I purchase it, I'll be extra safe. She even has a helmet and reflective vest that comes with the bike!

The food here is amazing! Our cook, Gracie, makes delicious meals three times a day. It's pretty much guaranteed that I'll have beans at least once during the day. Breakfast generally consists of a plate of fruit, beans (it's hard to describe how they're made) and a bread of some sort. Usually it's flour tortillas; yesterday it was fry jacks, or fried dough. Everything is fried. Please don't judge me when I return to America and I've gained several pounds. She makes fresh juice every day - watermelon juice is my new favorite. I haven't actually eaten anywhere in town as I'm a little weary but soon enough I'll get over my fear and try something local. I bought a bottle of local cashew wine ($8.50BZD/$4.25USD) the other night in town. I can only take it in small amounts because it's very sweet. It does have a good taste though and I'm guessing it comes from Orange Walk District. The Cashew Festival occurs in that district in May; I was invited today but it may be the start of baby season.. and it's about a 2.5 hour drive.

Speaking of driving, I've driven to San Ignacio a few times in the 'blue monster' - a beat up stick-shift Isuzu Trooper. Driving in Belize is interesting. It's a bit similar to Korean driving where people make up their own rules, just less hurried. You need to stop in the middle of the road to talk to a friend? No problem. You need to pass a car when there's another car barreling down the other side of the road? Also not a problem. It all seems to work out somehow.. so far anyway. There are about five traffic lights in this country. I saw two today and I think the remaining three are in Belize City. It's a small country but driving anywhere takes longer than in the states; mostly due to the numerous speed bumps. You can probably only hit 45 mph then you have to slow down again for another pedestrian ramp. At some of the pedestrian ramps, there are police checks. These are usually used to check insurance and licenses, but they were originally put into place to keep tabs on the smuggling of various items out of Guatemala. Nice, yeah?

I suppose that's all I've got for now... time to prepare diets and do the last feedings of the night.

belize!

I successfully made it to Belize in one piece! Wednesday was pretty much a non-stop travel day... I think my longest layover gave me about 10 minutes to sit around. New Orleans was crazy, especially after almost an hour delay leaving Charlotte. I was literally sprinting (too bad I hadn't been running in about three weeks) through the airport with five minutes to catch my next flight to Houston. I was running to the next concourse and then... surprise! Security check! And apparently you're a target for individual bag checks if you've packed your carry-on full. So my bag was checked for gunpowder in Charleston then again in New Orleans. The TSA agent wanted to chat about my Belize bird book but I hurriedly told her that yes, I was going to Belize and yes, I was about to miss my flight. Sorry for being a jerk TSA officer if you're out there...

So, somehow I made it to Belize without missing a flight AND so did my checked baggage. Amazing. I took the picture on the left flying into Belize City. Last night and today I've just mostly been observing how everything is done here. I'm pretty overwhelmed by all that I will be doing, but thankfully I will have a month with the current ACM before she leaves. It'll definitely help me get a grasp on everything, I think.

I had about a two hour drive from the airport last night so I got to see a lot of the country. We passed the Maya mountains which were once

coral reef. There are so many birds to see... my life list is probably going to quadruple. The scenery is amazing and Guatemala is pretty much in my front yard (right). It's all so green! And it's cold! I had to put on several layers last night when attempting to sleep... it warmed up quite a bit today, but it's still pretty chilly. This is way better than 20 degrees in South Carolina though.

The rehabilitation facility is actually pretty nice and well-equipped. The eco-lodge is also really, really nice... you should definitely come for a visit if you have the chance!

Everybody that I have met so far have been extremely nice.. I definitely made the right decision to come here. I probably won't be able to update more than once a week, but I'll do my best. In the meantime, I'll hopefully at least be posting pictures on Facebook frequently to tide you over.

Thanks again for all your thoughts, support, and interest in what I'm doing! Stay tuned.

wednesday

Well, less than two days to go. It definitely hasn't hit me yet that I will be living in a third world country in just a couple of days. It's a little hard to become mentally prepared to live in a sub-tropical climate for a year when it's 20 degrees outside. I'm pretty sure it won't hit me until I get off the plane in Belize City; I'm hoping the stress will miraculously vanish as well.

I started taking my malaria prophylaxis (thanks, mom!) last Tuesday and so far I haven't had any extreme side effects. I was a little dizzy for a couple of hours but I'm thinking that was probably because of the additional VazoBID + amoxicillin for the ridiculously persistent sinus infection. I've heard rumors of intense dreams and illness with malaria prophylaxis, but so far I'm good to go!

Last Monday I went to Columbia for a few hours to pick up donations. My car was packed full and I was overwhelmed by the amount of donations that CASA received. I failed my packing challenge and had to resort to two bags - one is packed full with the majority of the donations. I can't wait to see the faces of the TSA officers when they open the bag to rifle through it. It'll be great when the french catheters and gauze leap out at them...

My flight has four legs: Charleston to Charlotte to New Orleans to Houston to Belize City. Who doesn't love cheap tickets? Two of my layovers are pretty short. I'm hoping that everything is on time and this isn't a typical travel day for me (every time I fly, something goes amiss.. it all started when landing in Dallas and the strut to the wheel under my seat broke when we landed). I'll change carriers in New Orleans and of course the terminals are on opposite sides of the airport. It's going to be an exciting day of sprinting across airports.

The CASA quarterly newsletter was put online a few weeks ago but I forgot to post the link in my last post. So, here's the newsletter if you're interested in reading the official goings-on at CASA.

A huge thank you to all who have donated - from the medical supplies, to the monetary donations, to the advice and support. I will still be able to receive donations via Paypal whilst in Belize. I suppose the next time you hear from me, I'll be in my new home in San Ignacio hanging out with this guy.. oh, and some birds too.