Monkeys and Manatees and owls oh my!!

Wow what a week. Spiders and scorpions everywhere, plants that made me feel like I was on fire, a Peccary (wild pig) that lived in the garden and wanted to eat me, a roommate that was not afraid to be naked(all the time), mosquitoes worse than they have been in ten years, an angry Barn Owl who I got a hold of my hand (I was glad to see him released!) no running water for days at a time, and of course monkeys.....

view from my room

Boa Constrictor found in the garden

lambs born in the middle of the night

angry geese where ever I go!!

This is a Peccary, they received him from a wild animal "zoo" that had been shut down

Duma the spider monkey

The walk I had to make four times a day while being attacked by mosquitoes

spider monkey we got in while I was there also from the wild animal "zoo" She was so thin we could see the outline of her rib cage. For three days we couldn't keep her food dish full because she would eat everything we offered her. 

Pacas also from the park

Twiggy the baby manatee

The nightlife of the town : )

Maddy the new monkey stuffing her face

Curossows

Sultan the baby Howler monkey

My adventure at Wildtracks primate/manatee rehab center

During the first week of July I was lucky enough to be invited to come and help out at Wildtracks. This is a wonderful rehabilitation center focusing on Primates and Manatees. It is located in Sarteneja, a very small town in Northern Belize along a lagoon. Now when I say a small town I mean SMALL. There are two tiny restaurants, one bar, and one small store. It is also very isolated from other towns so if the one store doesn't have it you are out of luck! My adventure began in Belize City where I was dropped off at the bus station. After hopping onto the baby blue school bus I took a seat next to a nice old woman and promptly fell asleep for the next two hours. The last hour was spent on a dirt road being amazed and terrified all at the same time as the bus driver went barreling along at high speeds causing branches and rain to hit me in the face

. Once arriving into town I waited at the "bus stop" on the bus for my ride. While waiting I was greeted by a dog who came onto the bus looking for a head scratch and struck up a conversation with the conductor who went on to tell me that the driver was driving exceptionally well because he was drunk. I was greeted a few minutes later by Zoe Walker who is the co-founder of the center and so began my week with the monkeys

this is the bus station. notice the chickens and turkeys running around

Critters of Belize/ attack of the Coatimundi

Yup you knew it was coming......
    If you are afraid of spiders, snakes, and other creepy crawlies then stop being a baby and realize that these guys are great for people! They kill vermin, insects, and other stuff we "hate" even more. Of course I love them all but it seems like a good argument to get the anti spider lovers on my side : )
   I see creepies all the time here and only wish I had my camera and was quick enough to get pics. A few things I did not photograph that I wish I had was the huge scorpion I almost stepped on in my room in the dark when I got up in the middle of the night and the see through teeny version of a praying mantis I saw the other day.

He has blue legs! How are you not impressed!?

ok this isn't a creepy crawly but it definitely falls into the creepy category. What you are looking at is a carving done out of tinned meat. That's right meat in a can. Terrifying

This guy was huge and just sitting in the driveway getting some sun. I tried to give him a hug but he whipped his tail at me. I don't think he wanted a hug....

ok you can't actually see the creepy crawlies in this pic so I will describe them. The other day it flooded and the pic above is where a pond randomly showed up. What's funny is this is part of the yard so to see ducks swimming through "the yard" makes my day. Anyway, what you can't see is in this pond their are clump of fire ants. They create a sort of moving raft amongst themselves, always rotating so that no one drowns. What's scary is that they do this until they find land or whatever else wanders their way, then they attach themselves to whatever they have found. Note to self, do not approach fire ant raft....

found this guy in the garage

again, this falls into the creepy section. Apparently these naked upper barbie halves were cake toppers. And to answer your question, no their were not clothes to purchase next to them. 

snake in the chicken coop

another snake in the chicken coop

us trying to decide if the snake is venomous or not before we try to remove him

iguana going for a swim

coatimundi

hair styling session : )