Mexican wildlife 2007

[Anthony Darby]

Here's some of the wildlife I saw in the Rviera Maya. Firstly, the commonest bird at H10 was the Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus palustris). These were everywhere, even inside the restaurants picking up food from unattended plates. The males displayed from every vantage point and nests were in nearby coconut palms throught the complex.
Several species of bird passed through, such as the Maginficant Frigate Bird (Fregata magnificens).
Brown Pelicans (Pelicacanus occidentalis) also passed through, with barely a wing-beat and looking for all the world like pteradactyls.
Occasionally a Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) would appear on the beach. One landed on a fence post and I walked up to within 5' of it. I was a mile from my camera. I ran back and it was still there, but looking for food amongst the seaweed.

[ranunculus]

Super shots Anthony.

[Anthony Darby]

Here's some more.There were very few smaller birds, but these tanagers were nesting in a coconut palm in amongst some hammocks.
These waders were quite common too. They would be looking for small crustaceans or even 'sea skater's?
Green Turtles nested on the beach nearby, and every night there was a turtle watch. Nests were either fenced off, or in anunsuitable site, the eggs moved. They were place in a bucket of sand and carefully put in a deep hole, ensuring they were returned in exactly the same orientation vertically.

[Anthony Darby]

Turtle nests. The last being the finished result of nest relocation.
Turtles were definitely not the only reptiles present near the hotel. Black Iguanas (Ctenosuara similis) were everywhere, even on the hotel lawns and rock features. Next were the Basilisks (Basiliscus vittatus). These were comical lizards that ran on their back legs. Finally in this group were the small brown Anoles (Norops sagrei).

[Anthony Darby]

Geckoes were ever present, and vocalised at night, which is the only time they can be seen, usually on ceilings or beside lights. I saw several frogs, but this is the only one that stayed still long enough to take its picture. Land crabs were to be found at the edges of the hotel, which were made up of mangroves, and also in an area of mangrove withing the hotel grounds. It was here that I disturbed a raccoon. I only ever saw one other, and that was along the back of the beach between hotels. On a trip to Coba, we stopped at a large lake with a population of 11 crocodiles (Crocodylus moreletii). The largest (a 40 year old called Orla) was tempted to a jetty with offerings of chicken. I saw a few spiders, including this lycosid (Wolf Spider).

[John Forrest]

A fantastic array of wildlife. Great stuff.

[Anthony Darby]

Here's some under sea shots. Various fish and a couple of pics of James on his second openwater dive (and during his pool lessons) and Lucy on the Sea trek with Sergeant Majors and Yellow Jacks.

[Maggi Young]

Anthony, the children weren't anywhere near the barracuda were  they?  Don't those fish eat ANYTHING?
Not that James and Lucy give any impression of being cruelly treated!  Intrepid little creatures... what a great holiday!

[Anthony Darby]

We spotted the barracuda near the dolphin ponds. They are not dangerous to us, and tend to scarper whenever you give them more than a passing glance. The fish we saw on the 'Sea Trek' were mostly Sergeant Majors, but there were also some huge (probably less than 2' long, but water has a magnifuing effect) Horse-eyed Jacks which did everything but bump into us. I can thoroughly recommend H10 Hacienda Maya as a resort and the Riviera Maya as an area to visit.

[mark smyth]

very interesting shots Anthony. None of the Mayan temples? I have Mayan blood flowing in my veins

[Anthony Darby]

We only visited Coba as we decided a 2¹/₂ hour bus trip to Chichen Itza and not be allowed to climb up was too far. Here are some pics of two smaller pyramids at Coba and two of the Pok-ta-Pok courts. We climbed the big pyramid, but my goodness, health and safety is not something that is in the Mexican psyche . Bad enough climbing up, but there is a sheer drop on either side and coming down is not easy, as you can see with Vivienne and James. The whole area covered many square miles and hasn't been completely excavated. The trees take over, and when one fell recently a passageway was discovered. The Mayans have been converted to Christianity, so this cemetary was interesting.

[mark smyth]

I've been to some big ones in Belize including Xunantunich, Altun Ha and Lamanai. Pity all my images are 35mm slides