Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis)

A wonderful bird is a pelican,
His bill will hold more than his belican.
He can take in his beak Food enough for a week;
But I’m damned if I see how the helican.

Often attributed to Ogden Nash but actually from “The Pelican” by Dixon Lanier Merrith.

Brown Pelican

Outside of man, pelicans have few natural enemies. Occasionally a hungry shark happens to be in the vicinity when a pelican makes its dive into the sea, but this happens only rarely.

Man, however, has been a serious threat to the brown pelican…. read more

St John News

Police Advise Centerline to be Closed Saturday During 8 Tuff Miles
By Lynda Lohr — February 21, 2013

Centerline Road will be closed Saturday for the 8 Tuff Miles race until the participants are safely past, Deputy Police Chief Maria Jones said Thursday, firming up information provided this week by the race committee.

Gilly Grimes of St. John’s chapter of the Amateur Radio Emergency System pointed out that it was particularly important for vacation villa managers to alert their guests of this road closure because if guests are planning to depart the villa between 7 and 10:30 a.m., they could find themselves stuck and miss their planes…. read more

St John Weather

Clear with rain showers in the morning, then partly cloudy with rain showers
High of 82 degrees F
Winds from the NE at 10 to 15 mph
Chance of rain 20%
Sunrise: 6:42 AM AST – Sunset: 6:22 PM AST
Water temperature 82.9 degrees F

St. John Live Music Schedule

Aqua Bistro
Stephan Sloan
5:30 – 8:30
776-5336

Barefoot Cowboy Lounge
Michael Beason
7:00 – 9:00
201-1236

Castaways
Mikey P 8:00
Dance Party 11:00
777-3316

Cinnamon Bay
Eddie Bruce Drum Circle
6:30 – 8:00

Concordia
Bo & Lauren
6:30 – 9:00

High Tide
Mikey P
9:00
714-6169

Inn at Tamarind Court
Reverend Ravin
6:00 – 9:00
776 6378

Miss Lucy’s
David Reed
6:00 – 9:00
693-5254

Morgan’s Mango
Lauren Jones
6:00 – 9:30
693-8141

Ocean Grill
T-Bird
6:30 – 9:00
693-3304

Rhumblines
Erin Hart
7:00 – 10:00

Spyglass
James Milne
5:00 – 8:00
776-1100

Shipwreck Landing
Mitch Woods
7:00-10:00

Skinny Legs
Chris Carsel & Company
6:00
779 4982

See Weekly Schedule

Every day this week, I’ve had this early morning visitor. A beautiful bird it’s true, but there’s always something annoying about it. The last time it came around was when my mangoes were in season and it was a regular mango teef. Took big bites too. It could finish a mango in no time at all. It disappeared when the mangoes were gone, but it came back, as I said about a week ago. Comes at the break of dawn and lets out a screeching call that could wake up even the heaviest of sleepers.

I wonder where it came from. There is an indigenous parrot in the Caribbean, but this one isn’t one of them. I suppose it escaped from captivity and has adapted to life in the wild.

Worms

Question: Which of these photos contain an image of a worm?

If you guessed the one in the center, you are only partly right. Actually they all are images of worms, specifically of the class of worms known as polychaetes commonly referred to as bristle worms. The one in the center is the only one that actually looks like a worm to me, but the other two are worms also and in the same class as the center one.

The photo on the left shows Christmas tree worms, “Spirobranchus giganteus” and the photo on the right is of a feather duster worm, “Sabellastarte spectabilis”

All these worms are commonly found in St. John waters. The Christmas tree and feather duster worms are usually found on coral reefs and on rocks. They will shoot back into a shell-like tube if approached too closely. The worm in the center is a fire worm and is found in shallow coral rubble waters often under rocks. You don’t want to touch one because the bristles break off and give a painful sting. (I once saw a dog that stepped on one, and it howled and cried for quite a while and wouldn’t walk on that paw for a few days)

BuzzFeed.com has some cool macro images of bristle worms. Check them out

Chocolate Fruit

The Cacao tree, Theobroma cacao is the tree from which chocolate is derived by grinding up and roasting the seeds inside the fruit. I once wrote, “the Cacao trees found growing alongside the Cinnamon Bay Loop Trail may be the only ones on the island,” but I found two more growing at Teri Gibney’s garden at Hawksnest Bay. And what a beautiful garden it is! Nestled within an old Bay Rum forest are all sorts of tropical fruit trees, egg fruit, coffee, mango, avocado, star fruit, aki, cocoa, jackfruit, bananas, pineapples and more. In addition there are flowers and orchids and palms all easily accessed along shaded rock-lined paths.

Jackfruit

An impressive tropical fruit tree in Trei’s garden is the jackfruit, (Artocarpus heterophyllus) which produces the largest tree-borne fruit in the world weighing up to 80 pounds and reaching sizes as large as three feet long and 20 inches  in diameter.

Lobster Claw: a species of genus Heliconia

White Orchid

St. John Weather
Isolated showers. Sunny, with a high near 86. East northeast wind around 15 mph. Water temperature 82. Sunset 6:36 pm

St. John Live Music – Tuesday April 17

Castaways – Karaoke Night – 9:00 – 777-3316
Driftwood Dave’s – Michael Beason – 8:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Erin Hart – 6:00 – 9:00 – 714-6169
Island Blues – Karaoke & Open Mic – 8:00 – 11:00 – 776-6800
Morgan’s Mango – Greg Kinslow – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – Rascio on Steel Pan  – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Chris Carsel – 6:30 – 9:30
Spyglass – T-Bird – 5:00 – 8:00 – 776-1100

See Weekly Schedule

Frangipani Caterpillar

I’m at a loss to explain the relationship between the farngipani caterpillar and this particular native frangipani tree I have growing right beneath my deck.

Normally the tree blooms, producing new leaves and flowers. At this point the frangipani caterpillar hatches from eggs laid on the underside of the leaves and then proceeds to eat all the leaves and flowers. Their excrement fertilizes the tree and the cycle continues.

On this tree, however, the caterpillars emerge as soon as the tree starts to sprout new leaves. The sprouts are devoured and the leaves and flowers never emerge. (I provided the above photo for those who doubt me.) I have been here about ten years and I’ve only seen the tree flower once. Apparently the symbiotic relationship is still working. I estimate the tree to be at least 70 years old, evidenced by a rusted piece of wire fencing that had grown into the trunk and now sticks out on both sides of the tree, indicating that this was a mature tree when Chocolate Hole was still used for grazing animals. The abnormal relationship with the caterpillar hasn’t killed it yet, but I’m at a loss to understand how. For instance, if the caterpillar lays it’s eggs on the underside of the leaves, and there are no leaves allowed to grow, where do the new caterpillars come from? And how does the tree photosynthesize without leaves?

At any rate, I’ll be studying this tree further and taking more photos which I’ll share.

St. John Live Music – Thursday April 12

Castaways – Karaoke Night – 9:00 – 777-3316
Driftwood Dave’s – Michael Beason – 8:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Erin Hart – 6:00 – 9:00 – 714-6169
Island Blues – Karaoke & Open Mic – 8:00 – 11:00 – 776-6800
Morgan’s Mango – Greg Kinslow – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – Rascio on Steel Pan – 6:00 – 9:30 -693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Chris Carsel – 6:30 – 9:30
Spyglass – T-Bird – 5:00 – 8:00 – 776-1100

See Weekly Schedule

Hummingbird on Aloe Flower

With spring officially here  a few days ago, we see another sign of our St. John springtime, hummingbirds sucking the nectar of the aloe flower.

See hummingbird video

St. John Live Music Schedule Friday March 23

Aqua Bistro – Steve Sloan – 5:30 – 8:30 – 776-5336
Castaways – Mikey P – 9:00 – 777-3316
Cinnamon Bay – Eddie Bruce Drum Circle – 6:30 – 8:00
Cruz Bay Prime – James Cobb – 7:00 – 10:00 – 693 -8000
Driftwood Dave’s – John W Lee – 7:00 – 10:00 – 777-4015
Morgan’s Mango – Lauren – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – T-Bird – 6:30 – 9:00 – 693-3304
Rhumblines – Erin Hart – 7:00 – 10:00
Spyglass – James – 5:00 – 8:00 -776-1100

See Weekly Schedule

St. John Flora: Key Lime Flower

Key Lime Flower

Key Lime Flower
My key lime tree, a gift from my friend, the late John Gibney, is doing its thing again – busting out with flowers and baby limes and promising to be a really good harvest. Meanwhile the flowers are not only pretty to look at, but they smell really good like sweet perfume! Just walking past the tree is an olfactory treat, especially in the early morning.

About the photo:
The flower shown in the photo is about the size of a dime. The little green bud is the beginning of a new key lime

Mango Flower

Mango Flowers
Also popping is my malika mango. There’s plenty of buds now, but with mango’s you have to wait and see. A strong wind can knock off buds or baby mangoes if they haven’t set in real well yet. If the wind is strong enough it can even knock full-sized mangoes to the ground. The other enemy I have to watch out for is the Thrushie Bird, who loves mangoes as much as me. We’ll see, but here’s hoping for the a big successful mango harvest.

St. John Live Music Schedule Thursday March 22

Banana Deck – Steel Pan by Lemuel Samuels – 6:00 – 9:00 – 693-5055
Castaways – Dance Party – 11:00 – 777-3316
Driftwood Dave’s – Just Mike -7:00 – 10:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Inner Vision – 8:00-11:00 – 714-6169
Island Blues – Ike – 7:00 – 10:00 – 776-6800
Morgan’s Mango – Mark Wallace – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – Chris Carsel – 6:30 – 9:00 – 693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Slammin – 7:00 – 10:00
Skinny Legs – Lauren – 6:00 – 9:00 – 779-4982

See Weekly Schedule

Bananaquit

bananaquit

“Yellow bird,
Up high in banana tree,
Yellow bird,
You sit all alone like me…”

bananaquit recording
bananaquit video
bananaquit webpage

St. John Live Music Schedule Wednesday March 21

Aqua Bistro – Rascio on Steel Pan – 5:30 – 8:30 – 776-5336Castaways
Kenny Floyd – 8:00 – 777-3316
Coconut Coast Studios – St. John Flutes – 776-6944
Cruz Bay Prime – Samba Combo – 7:00 – 10:00 – 693 -8000
Driftwood Dave’s – Paradise People – 7:00 – 10:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Chris Carsel – 6:00 – 9:00 – 714-6169
Sun Dog Cafe – Wednesday Night Jam – 7:30-10:00 – 244-9713

See Weekly Schedule

T’rushie

Pearly-Eyed Thrasher (Margarops fuscatus), aka Thrushie Bird

Pearly-eyed thrashers have been described as aggressive and opportunistic. The one in the above photo was waiting for a waitress to step away from a plate of food so that it could descend and steal a bite or two before someone chased it away.

The t'rushie gets my mango

I’ll most likely be fighting my own battle with the Thrushie, which will be coming up when my mangoes are just about ready to eat. My mango tree is in flower and baby mangoes are beginning to form. It looks like a good mango year for both me and the t’rushie dem.

The not so melodic call of the thrushie – Turn Volume Up (mp4)

The not so melodic call of the thrushie – Turn Volume Up (mov)

St. John Live Music Schedule Tuesday March 20

Castaways – Karaoke Night – 9:00 – 777-3316
Driftwood Dave’s – Michael Beason – 8:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Erin Hart – 6:00 – 9:00 – 714-6169
Island Blues – Karaoke & Open Mic – 8:00 – 11:00 – 776-6800
Morgan’s Mango – Greg Kinslow – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – Rascio on Steel Pan – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Chris Carsel  – 6:30 – 9:30
Spyglass – T-Bird – 5:00 – 8:00 – 776-1100

See Weekly Schedule

Key Limes

Key limes are probably best known as the main ingredient of key lime pie, originally introduced in the Florida Keys. The tree was brought to the Caribbean by Spanish colonists, and then spread to the warmer areas of North, South and Central America. It has a unique flavor and grows well on St. John.

Key limes have their own special flavor, stronger and more aromatic than the more commonly found Persian lime.

Key limes are picked when green commercially, but left to their own devices they’ll turn yellow and fall off the tree, which gives them added flavor.

The lime tree in the photos was given to me by John Gibney and produces a great deal of fruit each time it blooms. It can survive the harsh conditions on St. John, but it does particularly well when given water during prolonged dry spells.

Ripe Key Limes

Harvest