Day 24

I haven't found a job yet, but I did find a volunteering position at the university aquarium!  It's a pretty small and out-of-the-way place, but they have some very neat stuff in there.  There's a whitetip reef shark, a lionfish, seahorses, rays, batfish, epaulettes (tiny sharks), cone snails, peacock mantis shrimp,a baby crocodile, and lots more more.  I will be helping with feeding the animals and cleaning.  I've started cleaning out a greenhouse for a lungfish project, and I think I'm going on a 'field trip' with them on Thursday, although I don't know where to.  (They insisted on getting my next-of-kin info before we went, so I think that's a good sign?)  I'll try to get photos of the animals but it's hard when they're all underwater.

School has been fairly easy, as expected.  One of my classes, Ecology & Australian Indigenous Cultures, is apparently less learning of new information and more discussing our feelings about ecology.  The Australian students eat it up, but the American students all sit awkwardly during these 'discussions' because we don't think that feelings have much of a place in science.

Today we were supposed to take a trip up to Mossman Gorge, but the boys' poorly-planned car rental fell though because they didn't call to ask if we were old enough to rent.  We're supposed to go tomorrow now, but we'll see how that goes.  Instead of the Gorge, I spent most of the day out in the rainforest taking photos of whatever I could find.  Usually I'm either running or hiking with the group, so I don't have a lot of time to stop and look for things and take decent photos.  I had to end my photo-hike early because of a torrential downpour (I was not kind to my camera today) but I found lots of good stuff!

A butterfly!

This Dome Tent spider has been living on the side of the highway for at least two weeks.  Isn't she pretty?

A masked plover!  I love how silly they look.

The underside of a Dome Tent spider.

The backside of a Dome Tent spider.  This one was a bit smaller than the one on the side of the highway.

I guess when it rains, all the beetles huddle together under leaves?

Look at all those beetles.  Geez.

A sulphur-crested cockatoo!  It is REALLY hard to take bird photos so I got very lucky that this one stayed still!
(I am also very lucky to have a telephoto lens.  This guy was at least 50 feet up.)

Tiny tiny flowers!

Unidentified spider.

The beetles were everywhere!

I am not sure if this is a crayfish or a prawn.  He lives in a little pool of water in a dried-up river and
chases the little minnows that are stuck there with him.

Another butterfly.

And what a miracle, I got him with his wings down!

And today was extra excellent because I found a golden orb weaver!!!  It was bigger than my hand, so it was at least 6 inches long.  The body was very skinny, but I think they get fat once they start to produce eggs.  I think I've found a few before, but never anywhere near this size.  It was HUGE!!!

A GOLDEN ORB WEAVER!!!

This spider is breathtaking.  Mostly because you are so shocked by its size that you forget to breath.

Just imagine your hand next to this spider.  And that they're the SAME SIZE.

Another excellent find: a flower that looks like a woman's privates.  I had to grab it to get a closer look.  But wait, what is that poking out...?

OH GOD IT'S ANOTHER SPIDER.  This little Flower Spider was not very happy with me.
I can't really say that I blame him.

On an ending note, allow me share the biggest lesson my travels have taught me: America is number one!  I had never thought of myself as an outstandingly patriotic individual, but I find myself getting very defensive when anyone insults my country, or more often, my state.  Michigan is awesome and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.  Last night I had to suffer through a New Englander's explanation that she knew Detroit was a crappy city because she flew through the airport once, and another girl from the West Coast who insisted (even after I tried to correct her) that Michigan actually faces the opposite direction, with the thumb in Lake Michigan.  So yes, apart from our apparently-failing education system and our continued use of high fructose corn syrup, America is number one, and don't you forget it.