Turtle Eggsperiment

In past years our little beach cove has often been used for maternity purposes 

by the occasional Mama turtle.  

After a clamber up the beach from the sea  she lays her eggs in the deep sand, 

well above high tide level. Usually around April/May.

But last year was a disaster. Early rains, heavier than usual, gushed down 

from the rocks and her brood of ping-pong size eggs were washed away. 

Only this empty canyon remained.

So this year, to prevent a tragic recurrence, we're going to try an experiment. 

The cove sand is back to normal and we now await the tell-tale tracks of Mama T. 

on her motherly mission.

Once she's deposited and disappeared the plan is to remove half the eggs 

and rebury them in identical sand in the garden. 

Yes, we'll wear gloves.

There's an ideal spot - my golf practice bunker, 

deep and safe from flood waters and predators. 

A net surround should keep the tiny turtles in when they pop out, 
which is usually at night. Come the dawn we can then put them onto the beach, 
hopefully to scamper off seaward and find their mum.

Should be interesting, though I'll have to hold off on my practice sand swings.

Weird things that crawl from the undergrowth are not uncommon

on Yoron, especially after a local drinking party.  

But this fella, making a first time appearance, takes some beating -  

half lobster, half crab, or a giant bedbug?
Folks tell us they are very rare and make a gourmet dish - Yoron style.  

We managed to return this one to the wild before news of its presence got around.

Of particularly interest was the unusual egg it left behind.

'Thar She Blows! '  

For those of you still tingling with the excitement

of my c*p*lating turtles picture, here's another mind-blowing action shot.

WHALES! They arrived unexpectedly at dusk last night, almost causing 

me to choke on my first gulp of Kirin.

They're late this year, probably due to the heavy rain we've been having. 

No doubt they time their visit to when the whalers are at a safe distance, 

somewhere in the South Atlantic skirmishing with Sea Shepherd.

This dramatic picture taken with a TeleXenophobe Ultra lens at 2.13 aperture 

 at a high shutter speed of 400mph on FujiXerox 45PS4h 

 shows these magnificent creatures in their natural ambience - the sea.

(For the ultimate thrill use a magnifying glass)

Broken but not beat

Spring is here on Yoron and this small pine,

 a broken victim of last year's typhoons, 

struggles back to life.

Ain't nature wonderful?

BlogsnBooks: SEXUALLY explicit material is not usually the méti...

BlogsnBooks: SEXUALLY explicit material is not usually the méti...: SEXUALLY explicit material is not usually the métier of this blog,  but it became irresistible to record the antics of two creatures  ...

SEXUALLY explicit material is not usually the métier of this blog,

 but it became irresistible to record the antics of two creatures 

that  were actually c*p*lating right in front of me as I sat on the deck 

sipping my  evening libation.  

It came as such a shock (not that l'm prudish about these things) 

when the dark mass floating by, which I'd falsely identified  as a 

big clump of seaweed, suddenly  attained two heads. 

Turtle heads. 

Slowly they rolled as one in an ecstatic intertwining of shells.

One of them, probably the female turtle, gave me a long, languid, 

liquid look -  perhaps a subtle invitation to participate. 

I dashed off, not  for my swimming trunks and snorkel but for the camera.  

When I got back they had disappeared. 

Probably gone down for a breather. 

I sat there expectantly, camera poised. 

Dusk had almost fallen when  they again gushed up briefly 

and I managed to take this stunning photo, 

perhaps the first ever to capture twoYoron turtles c*p*lating.  

Nature at its most sensual.

Then they disappeared as darkness blanketed the sea.