Field Trip Peru Day 4: Air Please!

My savior!

 Arriving in Cusco, which is 11,500 feet above sea level, I could feel it immediately. The thin mountain air making it hard to even get my suitcase of the carousel. So, to stave off altitude sickness, I headed straight for the OxiShot booth in the Cusco airport, where they sold canned oxygen. Having worked for an oxygen company many moons ago, I know the importance of getting enough. Instead of suffering like the rest of my crew who abstained from canned oxygen, I actually did pretty well. No headache or anything, but still, I couldn't eat much and walking fast - let alone running - was out of the question. The rest of the girls tried to rely on coca tea (basically liquid cocaine), which sort of helped, but also kept them up all night. Oh well, can't win 'em all!

Field Trip: Peru Day 2: I Caughta Piranha

My second day in Peru, in the heart of the Amazon,  I was taken by the wonderful guides at Aqua Expeditions, to do a little piranha fishing. I have to admit I went through A LOT of bait before I stopped feeding him and finally caught one of those silvery suckers. What did we use as bait? Raw meat. Nothing draws them like a little fresh blood. They're not very big - but their teeth are insane. On land he could snap and take your finger off. In the water he and his little buddies will eat all the meat off your bones in seconds, so don't get in the water if you have even the tiniest cut!

A side note: Some people think having a piranha as a pet is bad ass, but it's a very bad idea. Many states have outlawed it because people (who should know better) release them or flush them, they wind up in local lakes and ponds.  Piranha from aquariums has been found in the Potomac River and as far north as Wisconsin. If you or anyone you know has a piranha and doesn't want it just take it out of the water and throw it away - or eat it. The locals here love them!

Field Guide: Land Lubbers hit South Beach

Young Ones

I am constantly fascinated by the flora and fauna I find in my little South Beach back yard, and the insects are no exception. These grasshoppers congregating on a dead rosemary plant caught my attention the other day. Knowing next to nothing about bugs, I looked it up and discovered they were Southeastern Lubbers. While the name might not ring any bells for you, it was interesting for me to discover they were juvenile versions of some grasshoppers I'd photographed two summers ago! These guys don't jump much, and cannot fly, so they just sort of walk around very slowly. Hence the name "Lubbers." And, although they can do a lot of damage to plants, I haven't had any problems with them. I could never exterminate them- they're too cool looking. See for yourself.

Hello there!

Southeastern Lubber / alien life form

crawling very, very slowly