Flora and Fauna
Ecuador flora and fauna
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Greenery Delivered to Your Door in Puerto Lopez #AtoZChallenge
Some of the items sold by entrepreneurs on foot or tricycle: Plants Shrimp Cheese Ice cream Croissants Towels Clothes Plastics Rugs Produce Bicycle kickstands Phone chargers ______________________________________________ Around Puerto Lopez in 26 words. A look back Last year, I wrote Guayaquil – Iguana Park and other free attractions
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Ecuador Rice Fields – Beauty, Predators and Allies
Planting rice is not a joke Just bending all day long You can’t even stand still You can’t even sit down. — Traditional Filipino Folk Song Ecuador rice Rice is a staple in Ecuadorian meals. It is generally served with your main meal regardless of what the entree is. A typical meal might include soup, chicken, rice, green salad, potato salad, and juice. The other side dishes vary but rice is always included. On separate occasions, I have served chili and spaghetti to guests and been asked if there was any rice (I had not made any). When eating out, I have been served a side of rice with my…
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When The Rooster Crows
“Where the rooster crows there is a village.” — African Proverb I spent most of my life thinking roosters only crowed at dawn. I was wrong. I had not lived among roosters before moving to Ecuador. These roosters are truly free range. They and their hens live in the open, without fences or cages, in every village. Roosters, hens and chicks run around the neighborhood like dogs and cats during the day. They return home each night to sleep. In Ecuador, roosters crow at any time of the day or night. This curious habit made me wonder what makes roosters crow. Hey Mister Rooster – Why do you crow day…
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Tree Stump Art
“We have those in Houston now, too.” — My Mom when I told her about the chainsaw tree stump art in Cuenca Many years ago, when my husband and I cut down a tree in our California backyard, we left the tree stump about 6 feet tall. Scott built a bird feeder on top of the stump. I planted flowers at the base. Birds enjoyed the feeder year round. It never occurred to either of us to take a chainsaw to the stump to create something beautiful. Tree stump art was not a thing back then. Most people we knew struggled with removing unwanted stumps. We were glad to find…
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Guayaquil’s Parque Historico Wildlife
“Nature is not a place to visit. It is home.” — Gary Snyder Free attractions abound in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city. One of my favorites is Guayaquil’s Parque Historico, full of plants and animals. Parque Historico (Historic Park) is a relaxing retreat in the big city. The park has three distinct areas – wildlife, historic architecture, and traditional lifestyle. Today I focus only on wildlife. The park’s plants and animals are all native to Ecuador. Some animals injured in the wild find homes here. Meandering through the park, pausing frequently to listen to the birds is a relaxing way to spend a morning or afternoon. Raised walkways provide incredible proximity…
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Zoo – I live in one! #AtoZChallenge
Someone told me it’s all happening at the zoo. — Paul Simon When I wrote my first post for the A to Z Challenge, I did not know the what the remaining posts were going to be about. While blogging about my life in Ecuador for the past month, I realized that I live in a zoo. A natural, wild, amazing zoo! Let’s recap what is in my zoo. Wildlife in my zoo Throughout the month, I introduced the following zoo residents: (click link to open post) Blue-footed boobies Humpback whales Iguanas In a park At my home A Monkey Owls A Frog Sea Turtles Rounding out my zoo…
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Vegetable Ivory – Tagua #AtoZChallenge
Thinking in generations also means enabling our young to have a decent standard of living. — Paul Tsongas Tagua, sometimes called vegetable ivory for it’s resemblance to elephant ivory, is a nut from the Tagua palm tree. The hard white inner nut can be carved and polished like ivory. Artists carve it into jewelry, figurines, and many other products. My friend Marianne Fry in Puerto Lopez has been designing and exporting hand-carved Tagua products for 18 years through her company, Feel Good Exports. Each piece is hand crafted by artisans living in remote areas. These products afford families an opportunity to make a decent life for themselves who could…
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Underwater Endangered Testudines (a.k.a. Sea Turtles) #AtoZChallenge
The beach is in our blood. Everyone in our family returns to the beach instinctively, just like the sea turtles. — Sandy Archibald Four sea turtles species live off the coast of Ecuador. Green Turtles, Leatherbacks, and Olive-Ridley are endangered and Hawksbills are critically endangered. People are working to improve their numbers and chances of species survival. Sea Turtle Isla de la Plata, Manabí, Ecuador Sea turtles live the majority of their lives in the ocean but are born on beaches. Female sea turtles return to the beach where they were born to lay eggs. Each egg nest is marked to prevent human damage. Each nest is marked with caution…
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Quick stories – Rare Frog, Heated Toilet, Happy Snake #AtoZChallenge
“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” ― Mark Twain Rare Frog We saw a cool frog in Puerto Lopez. Took some photos. Figured we’d see more like him over time. Did some research. It is a rare Ceratophrys stolzmanni (Pacific horned frog) found only in Ecuador and Peru. Haven’t seen one since. Ceratophrys stolzmanni (Pacific horned frog) Heated Toilet Our friends rented an apartment. The owner assured them that there was hot water (many homes in Ecuador have only cold water). Turns out he had installed a hot water heater for the building’s only incoming water pipe. There was no cold water. Happy Snake Some…
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Nurturing Owl Parents #AtoZChallenge
“Then nightly sings the staring owl, Tu-whit; Tu-who, a merry note.” — William Shakespeare, Love’s Labour’s Lost A pair of burrowing owls built their home adjacent to our driveway in Puerto Lopez. During the first few weeks, when anyone walked or drove past, they flew away. They slowly began remaining at the entrance to their home and monitoring us instead of fleeing. Soon cars, trucks, mototaxis and motorcycles drove by while they held their ground. They guarded the entrance, ever watchful. Burrowing owl pair adjacent to our driveway Puerto Lopez, Ecuador One often hunted while the other guarded the entrance. Burrowing owl guarding entrance Puerto Lopez, Ecuador Walking down the…
