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Building Our Beach House
Life on Middle Caicos
Some of our Middle Caicos Friends
Snorkelling Around Middle Caicos
Swimming with Sharks
Exploring the Caves
Hiking the Crossing Place Trail
Remote Locations Worth the Effort
Tropical Flowers and Greenery
Birds and Wildlife
Island History
Other Islands in the Turks and Caicos
Island Inspired Poetry
Our Family on Vacation
Favorite Vacation Moments
What You Need to Know to Go
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| | Birds and Wildlife
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Termite Nest Sat 05:06 PM Jan 5, 2002 |  |  |  |  | | Due to these pests, most of the buildings on Middle Caicos are constructed of concrete or block. In earlier days, stone was used. This termite nest is in a tree just outside Indian Cave.
Flamingos are very common around the large inland pond of neighboring North Caicos. On Middle Caicos, they occasionally visit ponds such as Village Pond near Conch Bar or Montpelier Pond near Bambarra. More often, you may find flocks in the shallow waters between the islands. We saw this flock twice in the area around Crossing Place.
These flamingos are wading just off the beach at Crossing Place with the island's barrier reef and the Altantic in the background. The shallow water here is barely knee deep and covers nearly a square mile.
The Cuban Crow is common on Middle Caicos and has become a kind of mascot for our trips there. Beside the familiar crow call, they have a turkey-like gobble. We always feel we're being welcomed back to the island when we hear it.
The thumbnail photo of the crow links to a video clip of a Cuban Crow that objected to me being too close to the tree where he and his mate were nesting.
The Cuban Crow is often a comical competitor for the fruit ripening in the trees near your villa. At Seascape Villa, several papaya trees grow just outside the porch. Every day, the local crow would land in the tree to check the fruits' ripeness. The only sure way to keep him from eating the ripe papaya was to pick them early and let them ripen in the kitchen.
This crow was nesting near the beach and didn't like me coming close to take his picture. The thumbnail links to a video clip of him chasing me away.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Jellyfish Fri 09:45 AM Jul 21, 2000 |  |  |  |  | | This is an Upsidedown Jellyfish, here temporarily right side up. They are common around the Ferry Landing but are easy to mistake for plants as they lay on their backs with tentacles up.
We didn't see stingrays until our sixth visit to Middle Caicos, then we saw one on two different swims. Cathy discovered this large one at McKitrick's Reef, just a few feet from the beach.
Everyone was spread out on the beach at Crossing Place when little Ricky screamed. A monster was chasing him. Truth is, this little crab was hiding in the shade under a Conch shell until Ricky picked it up. Suddenly exposed, it held up its claws to protect itself and ran for the nearest dark spot, Ricky's shadow.
True to it's name. the Night Heron makes it's appearance when the sun goes down. This one showed up every day after dinner and walked around the porch railing at Seascape. The bird is called the Gullen by the belongers.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Ospreys at Half Crek Mon 10:58 AM Jul 17, 2000 |  |  |  |  | | The Osprey, or Sea Eagle, nests all along the shores of Middle Caicos. This pair is perched on the ruins of the fish plant at Half Creek.
For several days, we had been hearing the screach of Ospreys when we drove past the beach west of the Bambarra Beach villas. Then one evening on our regular walks along the beach we saw a pair in the trees directly overhead.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Turks&Caicos Rock Iguana Fri 12:32 PM Jul 21, 2000 |  |  |  |  | | The Turks and Caicos Rock Iguana lives only in these islands. East Bay Cay is Middle Caicos's "Iguana Cay". The Turks and Caicos Rock Iguana is smaller than the giant lizards of Central America (or the local pet store). And, at least on this island, they're not tame. They hide below the scrubby brush and run away quickly when approached.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Frigate Birds Pose Thu 09:46 AM Dec 23, 1999 |  |  |  |  | | The adult male Frigate Birds inflate their bright red throat sacks for show or threat. While you'll normally see Frigate Birds only as they soar far overhead, you can get up close at Man O' War Bush, a nesting site south of Middle Caicos.
This Green Heron was perched on a limb just above where Bryan and I stopped to look over Nanny Pond after our hike.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | At the Conch Farm Wed 10:51 AM Aug 11, 1999 |  |  |  |  | | The Conch is a large edible mollusk found throughout the Caribbean. You may find them slowly pulling themselves across the sandy bottom inside the reef at Middle Caicos. You can also see them at the Conch Farm on Provo where they raise them for export as well as to replenish the native population. They even have a tame mascot Conch that, unlike the shy ones in the wild, comes out of his shell to meet you.
Middle Caicos has three species of snakes but you'll probably never see one. All three are harmless Tree Boas that feed on small lizards. Bryan Manco, the resident naturalist, hasn't even found one himself. This one was captured by a belonger that knew Bryan wanted to study the local snakes.
Bats are the only indigenous mammals on the island. Most are fruit eating bats. Several made a meal of this mango we found on the ground at Mango Tree Hole. By day, the bats sleep in the islands many caves.
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