For Halloween!! Marvel Comics Announcement

MARVEL COMICS 
PROUDLY ANNOUNCES A NEW BAT  CAVE
OPENING IN PUNA HAWAII 

(just in time for Halloween)


About three years ago I saw the most unusual black flower in a vase at a friend's house. When I admired it, she offered to give me four tiny little seedlings which I have carefully tended in the greenhouse (they would be quickly consumed by fast growing vines if planted in the jungle.)

In the meantime, however, I found a white one for sale, blooming,and bought it for Phil. Recently I noticed that one of them was blooming and since they seemed pretty well established I decided to plant them....but WHERE? They do love shade, and since so many of our ohia trees have died, finding just the right place was an issue.

Under the protective leaves of our giant Monstera I cleaned out a little "cave" area for them and planted them in a semi-circle with the white one in the middle. So, we now have an unofficial "bat cave."

The website EashGrowBulbs had this to say about the "Tacca" plant:
Spectacular. Bizarre. Tacca! Lurking in the shadows of the tropical jungles, the sinister seeming blooms of the tacca rule the shaded depths of the understory. Lush, emerald green foliage makes a beautiful backdrop for the dramatic blooms. Widely flared bracts (8-12 inches across) mimic the look of a bat's wings in flight, while the rounded lobed blooms beneath may appear to be the animal itself. Extraordinary trailing filaments remind others of a cat's whiskers, leading to other common names for this most uncommon of plants.

Hawaiian Frigate Birds

Knowing that a huge storm was blowing into the islands, I decided to head out early yesterday morning for a swim. The weather reports had warnings of high tides which meant Ahalanui  pond right along the ocean would be clean, cool and frothy. I ran into a friend, and had a great swim, but also got a rare treat -- witnessing the arrival of three huge Frigate birds -- blown toward the Big Island by the storm.

Male with extended display chest

With its extraordinarily long wings and deeply forked tail, the magnificent Frigate bird is unmistakable when seen in flight  The massive wingspan enables the magnificent Frigate bird to soar effortlessly, and make graceful aerial manoeuvres, which so captivated Charles Darwin that he dubbed this species “the condor of the ocean” . Frigate birds are the only seabird family that have obvious, significant differences in plumage between the sexes. The male has entirely black plumage, glossed green on the head and purple on the upperwings and back..

These birds live on Frigate Shoals -- a large crescent shaped atoll in the island chain just above the Hawaiian islands.

GREAT MAP! -- Click on it to see interesting DETAILS

'Iwa / Frigate Bird  - A large, wide-winged sea bird of the tropical seas (wing span up to 6 feet), the 'iwa soars for hours on updrafts and may stay at sea all night or for days. 

These birds sometimes travel great distances, though generally are non-migratory and stay within 50 miles of their home islands. As they are incapable of taking off from the surface of the water, they swoop down and pick fish just below the surface or leaping above the water (see mahimahi); or they may attack other birds in flight and steal the fish that their victims disgorge or drop. The 'iwa nests in remote areas or islands on bushes or vegetation. 

NASA image of Frigate Shales

OK; hard to see - click to make image bigger

More about the unique habitat of this area follow this link:  Frigate Shoals.

UPDATE another friend who teaches school near where I was swimming yesterday forwarded a photo of the sky FULL of Frigate birds. 

Info from: Wikipedia, www.arkive.org, and Polynesian Voyaging Society, NASA

"Small Treasures"

Although we call this "Big Island" home, sometimes it is easy to forget it is actually a very small island in the middle of a very big ocean. One of my favorite views that illustrates that comparison is a beautiful NASA image I keep near my bed.

Here are a couple "small treasures" images we collected recently from our yard. The first is a poorly placed cocoon that we have had to work around given its precarious location. And, the second is of one four hoya plants that are blooming right now.

 Also attached is a photo of a piece of art that Phil and I created for a dear friend whose beloved big dog passed recently.

Finally, is a new collection of "Whatzit" miniature assemblages (4-6"). I just finished creating. Some I will use for gifts, but many will also be for sale -- should you have an interest. They are uniquely one-of-a-kind, and many have moving pieces. They are available on a first-come-first-get basis. They are $25 each. Email me if you want to have me send a larger image: haysmer@sonic.net.