The Army Ants Return

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

The week before last, we had a very interesting encounter with army ants (identified by Kathy, one of my blog readers – thank you!). It was interesting for us, but not so much for our bees who got evicted from their home and all their larvae carried off.

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Since then we have had two more visits from these ants but nothing really happened. About a week after the first visit I again noticed the ants in the driveway. They were going up the side of the house in a few areas but with no real purpose, and they were also exploring any outside walkways and patios. A few of them went in the front door but didn’t get much farther than a couple feet from the door. They hung around for a couple hours, apparently finding nothing that interested them, and again vanished without a trace. I couldn’t get a clear idea of where they were coming from or where they went, and they just milled around in a disorganized fashion while they were here.

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Yesterday we had another visit and again, disorganized milling about. They seemed less interested in going up the side of the house and more interested in the patio and outside walkways – the carport, the patio, and the laundry room between, and they only ventured a very little ways into the house. We went bike riding and again, when we returned, they had all vanished.

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There was a small beehive in the bush outside the front door, and yesterday my husband found it empty and abandoned. I didn’t see it get attacked but it’s certainly possible. The beehive on the side of my next door neighbor’s house is still active and thriving though, so all is not lost (like one ant attack will wipe out the bee population 😀 )

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Very curious creatures, these army ants. I’m glad I have a bit of experience with them, and understand that they don’t seem to be a threat to us or our home. Just give them a little time and they will move on.

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An Indian House?

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

IndianHouse

We’ve passed this house a number of times on our bicycle rides. It’s not far from El Rey and the big shopping center near us. I never took much notice of the green shack next to the house until the other day when I saw an Indian woman come out of it in her traditional ngobe bugle dress. Is it possible that she works for this house, and they have put her up in this shack next door? Many of the Ngobe Indians live in very basic housing and live on very little money. Maybe she is happy to have the job and the shack? It looks so primitive to me though, especially in this upscale neighborhood.

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A Man on the Street

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

I’ve been sorting my photos and finding a few odds and ends I wanted to post….

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I don’t know what this man does! It looks like he has two guitars as well as who knows what else. The little dog was following him until he came to the PanAmerican Highway in front of Novey where I snapped this photo. He stopped to put the little dog up on the handlebars before proceeding on.

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Little Miss Bossy Pants

Posted on October 13, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

This term was coined by my friend InDaCampo, and it struck me so funny that it’s stuck with me. The hummingbirds frequently visit our terrace so I finally took pity on them and put the feeder back up. It was found within minutes, and it was staked out by our own Little Miss Bossy Pants a short time later.

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Ever vigilant, she spends most of her time in a nearby tree and the moment another hummingbird dares approach the feeder, she is on the job chattering and swooping until they are chased off.

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This beautiful little bird was lucky enough to stop by in one of those rare moments when LMBP let down her guard and went elsewhere for awhile.

Now, it’s getting dark, a time when the birds want to fill up for the night. Poor LMBP! 😀 She is beside herself trying to control of the situation because there are at least six other birds trying to eat. As soon as she chases one off, there are three more at the feeder taking advantage of her diverted attention. It is quite the ruckus.

We are easily amused here in Panama!

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One Year in Panama!

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

It’s almost hard to believe, but it was exactly one year ago that I left Florida. I remember how I felt – excited, happy, ambivalent (I was leaving Joel behind, not knowing how long we would be apart), not quite believing I was actually doing it, not knowing exactly what was going to happen, not sure if I could manage in a new country with a foreign language – wow!

But, it worked out. It worked out better than I dared hope. Economics was a driving force in our move, the wish to retire earlier and have a better life on our limited resources. We are living on a lot less here, but even if money was not a factor I would live here. It’s a good and happy life.

Of course there have been challenges. For me, language and communication have been difficult but it’s gotten better. I can actually have a telephone conversation in Spanish now and understand most, if not all that is said (it’s difficult without body language and facial expressions). I can find my way around town in most areas (but I’m directionally challenged and take months to learn any new town). Otherwise though, the transition has been quite easy.

For me, the change in lifestyle has been the slowest adjustment. For the longest time it felt like I was on a break and any day I would be back at work, my phone attached to my ear and the papers piled on my desk. Even now, I frequently spend much of the night dreaming that I’m working.

I still can’t relax very well. I can only sit in the hammock and watch the birds fly by for a short while. I have to be studying something, or doing something that feels productive or I quickly get restless. The best I can manage is to work in the garden with a book in my headphones, and I do that a lot (this has always been my stress therapy).

Maybe this is just me though, and maybe that’s OK. Maybe I have been so busy all my life that I’ll always be like this. It is quite different to be busy doing things I choose to do though, rather than things I must do. And, I have such a big list of things I choose to do! I don’t want to waste any of this precious free time that I have been given. We all know that things can change in a flash and none of us get out of here alive.

When I look back on the last year, it’s been a wonderful year. I am so thankful to have this time, this opportunity, these experiences, this chance to see the world through another culture, through other eyes. I think it has changed me for the better and will continue to do so.

It will be interesting to see what the second year brings!

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Life in the Compost Pile

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

I’ve had compost piles for ages, but it’s a bit different here in Panama. There are so many critters that love the scraps. It was hard to even get started because anything I’d put out would immediately disappear. Now that I have more time to garden, there are lots of weeds and leaves but any fruit and veggies scraps still always attract things. I’ve seen squirrels, iguanas and other lizards, possums, all kinds of bees, ants, flies, and quite a few different types of butterflies.

One day there were tons of these golden bees visiting. I've also seen a lot of the little black bees.

One day there were tons of these golden bees visiting. I’ve also seen a lot of the little black bees. and sometimes some other varieties as well.

One days I discovered ants carrying off all the white inner part of an orange peel. If you look closely you can see white spots which are bits being carried away. By the end of the day there was nothing left but the orange outer peel.

Another day I discovered ants carrying off all the white inner part of an orange peel. If you look closely you can see white spots which are bits being carried away. By the end of the day there was nothing left but the orange outer peel.

What gets me the most excited by far though, are these butterflies. It's a large and beautiful butterfly here, but this is only a part of the beautiful it offers!

What gets me the most excited by far though, are these butterflies. They are large and beautiful butterflies, but what you see here is only a part of the beautiful they offer!

When they rest the keep their wings closed and only open them for a flash, so you have to be patient to get a glimpse of the beauty within, and very very patient to catch it with a camera!

When they rest the keep their wings closed and only open them for a flash, so you have to be patient to get a glimpse of the beauty within, and very very patient to catch it with a camera!

These are spectacular butterflies and quite large. It's something to see the flying through the yard with their iridescent blue wings flashing in the light.

These are spectacular butterflies and quite large. It’s quite something to see them flying through the yard with their iridescent blue wings flashing in the light.

I took over 300 photos to get these three with a peek at the blue inside the wings. By the time they flash their wings open it's too late to click the shutter, so I just took tons of photos and hoped a couple would catch them at the right instant. I was very happy to see that I had had some luck!

I took over 300 photos to get these three with a peek at the blue inside the wings. By the time they flash their wings open it’s too late to click the shutter, so I just took tons of photos and hoped a couple would catch them at the right instant. I was very happy to see that I had had some luck!

I also took a short video where you can see the flashes of blue.

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My Panama Retirement Article

Posted on October 7, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

The Retirement and Good Living website asked me to write an article about retirement in Panama, so I did. It’s published at http://retirementandgoodliving.com/retiring-in-panama/  They even used some of my photos 🙂

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Good Morning!

Posted on October 5, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

Weekly Photo Challenge: Good Morning!

THIS WEEK, SHOW US A PHOTO THAT SAYS “GOOD MORNING!”  It could be a shot taken during your morning walk, the morning vista out your kitchen window, your cat doing a pre-breakfast stretch, or a textured close-up of your oatmeal bubbling away at the stove.

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This is my morning spot, the patio looking out into the backyard. We have breakfast and lunch here, and this is also my outdoor office.

That’s my computer on the table. The bucket hold my pencils, cords, and whatever else I carry in and out. There are some plant cuttings rooting in jars, the binoculars, and a container of lizard eggs I found in a window. I think one of them hatched because there has been a tiny gecko running around the table since last night.

We collect rain water in the white buckets for watering potted plants and other uses if the water isn’t on in the house. The bananas on the floor are from the woods across the street and should be ripe in a week or so.

The closer tree in the yard is a guanabana (soursap), much loved by everyone but us so fruits are given away when ripe, much to the delight of our neighbors. The tree farther in the distance is an orange tree. There are  black squirrels nesting towards the top and we enjoy seeing them as they come and go. The banana trees are from the woods also, and should have more of those red bananas at some point.

The yard behind us is Narda’s place. She loves flowers and fruits so we have a good time talking about gardening and admiring her plants and trees. She’s out quite a bit so our meals are often interrupted for a hello and a chat.

There are always birds singing, various insects visiting, and butterflies flying about. It’s a nice way to greet every day!

That photo was taken this morning. It’s evening now – dark, raining, and thundering. I’m still outside at that same table watching the rain and lightning. It’s wonderful to live in a place where the temperatures are so nice and there are so few annoying insects that you can pretty much live outside.

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Ants, Bees, Insanity, and New Paint

Posted on October 3, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

You just never know what you are going to see around here! I went out this morning to take a photos of the tree where the toucans have been visiting, and I noticed a large column of ants marching across the driveway. We have ants of all kinds here, and the closest I could guess was leaf cutter ants. None of them had the big cutting jaws though, they weren’t carrying anything, and they were all going in the same direction rather than coming and going, and there were a lot of them.

So, I follow them and saw that they were headed for the house, and up the side of the house towards the attic.

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The ants head up the side of the house by the front door

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The numbers were increasing by the minute

Oh dear! I have heard about ants that invade the house, eat every crumb and scrap they can find, and then leave. I was told to just go out for an hour or two and when I return the house will be clean. Was I about to experience this? OK, maybe it will be interesting.

Then, I notice they were headed for the BEES 😦

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There has been a beehive above the front door as long as I have lived here. The neighbors warn me that they are very bad and will bite very hard, but these are very mellow and have never caused a bit of trouble. As a former beekeeper, I figured this beehive meant that this is the right house for me! But, this was not to be a good day for the bees. We thought about spraying the ants or trying to do something, but by now they were totally overrunning the beehive. We didn’t see much chance of success so we decided to let nature take it course.

Meanwhile, the army of ants continued to increase by the minute.

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By now, we could see the ants taking bee larvae out of the hive and carrying them off.

By now, we could see the ants taking bee larvae out of the hive and carrying them off.

The number of ants was extremely impressive!

The number of ants was extremely impressive!

The ants were going around this bush, then around that bush in the distance, over the wall behind it, and into the woods behind the house in the opposite direction from which they had come.

The ants were going around this bush, then around that large bush in the distance, over the wall behind it, and into the woods behind the house in the opposite direction from which they had come.

Ants going over the wall. The ants with the big white heads looked strange, and I didn't remember seeing them among the ants on the house (though later I spotted a few in the photos)

Ants going over the wall. The ants with the big white heads looked strange, and I didn’t remember seeing them among the ants on the house (though later I spotted a few in the photos)

It was an amazing attack!! I noticed them when they were first arriving and only a few ants were going up the side of the house. It wasn’t long though before there were incredible numbers of ants participating in the raid! The bees didn’t have a chance.

We went out on our bike ride, and when we returned maybe 45 minutes later there was much less activity going on, though there were still large numbers of ants going to and from the hive. I came out to check maybe ten minutes later, and it was all over. There wasn’t an ant anywhere to be seen!! The whole thing lasted maybe 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 hours in all.

I had been wanting to paint the front of the house since I arrived. The paint was old and worn, and some new paint would really freshen up the place. But, I wasn’t about to kill the bees and I didn’t think it was wise to paint with the hive right there. Well…. if the ants were gone… and the bees were gone… and I had paint on hand (from painting the patio the other day)…. lets DO IT! I enlisted Joel’s help and we went to work.

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There were still a few bees flying around but they were so traumatized that they weren’t any threat. They weren’t even landing on the hive or paying any attention to me so I had no trouble painting. It looks so much better! I will paint the rest one of these days soon, but this was the section that worried me with the bees right there. Our timing was excellent because by the time we were finished more and more bees were flying around, though they still weren’t landing on the hive or being the least bit aggressive towards us.

And then, GOOD NEWS! Joel noticed a lot of bees flying around the bush right in front of the house and went to investigate. There, in that bush, was a swarm of bees.

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I hope that these are my bees. Maybe when they saw the attack beginning they got out with the queen, and now they will be able to rebuild their colony. They don’t seem to be coming back to this hive, but maybe they can find another good place to live. There’s also another small colony of these bees that just begun in that same bush, so I am not without bees. Perhaps at some point, the hive above the door will look good to another colony of bees and they will move in. Please though, don’t tell the ants!

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The Toucans Visit Again

Posted on October 3, 2013 by Kris Cunningham

Yesterday afternoon we spotted the toucans again. This time we called our neighbors so we had quite a group of excited people in our backyard watching the birds. My neighbor, who loves birds, told us that she had seen one with a yellow beak a long time ago, but she had never seen these toucans. She thinks maybe they are living by the river somewhere and as long as this tree has the berries they like, they will come back. We saw two adults for sure, and she said she also saw a young bird, smaller, less color, and a smaller beak.

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This is our house, and that big tree behind it is where we have seen the toucans, way up in the top of that tree.

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One of the toucans in the tree. (Thank goodness for the zoom feature on the camera)

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Such a beautiful bird! Thank you again Joel for catching a bunch of great photos.

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