
Such a wonderful evening watching the sun go down while floating in the water. We didn't see the "green flash" because of the low clouds on the horizon.

We motored out from our Marina channel to a small sliver of white powdery sand beach for a few hours Sunday afternoon
It was pretty windy and the ocean was rough last Sunday but we thought it would be fine out at little Bay Cay. It was a bumpy ride over the white caps so much so that I was literally gripping onto the hand rail. Luckily we were protected from the wind and things calmed down as we approached the little beach on Bay Cay.

I was thrilled to see several Rock Iguanas and I could hear the rustling of many others as they made their escapes before I could spot them.
Bay Cay was one of many little Cays where the Turks and Caicos Rock Iguana was re-introduced. It is an endangered species of lizard and is endemic to the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The waves were pounding on the far side of the island and I was fascinated by the large rock formation with a hole in it.

We enjoyed the sun, sand and beach and of course we had it all to ourselves. Even the iguanas didn't mind sharing this little spot of paradise.
Hermit crabs or Soldier Crabs are usually very particular about their shells. Shell switching is not uncommon as the crab searches for the perfect shell. Barry and I had laid out four shells we had and it seemed that his preference was for the West Indian Top Snail shell.
The hermit crab has four tiny legs to hold the shell in place…a fourth leg that clasps the shell and the fifth that holds the shell.
In the wild, Hermit or Soldier Crabs feed off of coconut trees, leftovers from humans, and they will scavenge dead organisms, such as fish and other crabs. By the way, if they can’t find an adequate shell, they will use such man made things as plastic glasses, tiny one person jam jars, PVC pipes or whatever they can scrounge.
Hope you enjoyed these photos as much as I enjoyed photographing this little guy and helping him along in finding his new home.
Marta
This little Soldier Crab was maneuvering quite easily with his four inch, closed pipe for a home. Barry watched him while I ran to get my camera and play realtor by looking for some shells that might make a new, more traditional home for him.

Checking out a Tulip Shell for size and fit??

Papaya trees come in one of three sexual forms: male, female and hermaphrodite and the photo above is of a male flowering papaya.
The Papaya tree or Paw Paw is found growing wild throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands and we have several here at Harbour Club. Presently, Barry and I are juicing these wild papayas almost every day as we have so many that are ready to eat right now.
Male Papaya flowers have no ovaries and therefore do not produce any fruit. Female flowers have an ovary and are borne on the stem of the plant where the leaf is attached.
Some papaya bear only short stalked female flowers while others bear male clusters of flowers and pollination is done by the wind.
The ovary of a female Papaya plant must receive pollen from either a male or hermaphrodite plant before it can be fertilized and produce a fruit bearing viable seeds. Insects and or the wind will carry the pollen.
Papaya trees can grow from 6 to 20 feet tall and have a head of foliage much like a palm tree up at the top. The trunk is soft wooded, never developes a bark and is ringed with scars from previous leaf stems that have dropped off.
Wild papaya fruits aren’t really that large but they are favoured by the birds so long as Barry doesn’t get to them first. They are delicious served up as a smoothie or eaten with lots of fresh lime juice.
Papain from the papaya is used by the locals and applied topically for the treatment of cuts, rashes, stings and burns. It is said that Christopher Columbus named the papaya or paw–paw, ‘the fruit of the angels’. Try some papaya with fresh lime juice for a tasty treat…….it is ripe and soft and has a sweet and delightfully vibrant orange flesh much like the consistency of a peach.
Marta
I came out onto our deck today at Harbour Club to find some Anole Lizards sizing each other up as they prepared to defend their territory. I have never seen them quite this aggressive towards one another but I know that they are very territorial.

One Anole had a strong hold on the other so much so that his head was almost torqued right around. The fight consisted of grabbing the opponent with the mouth and then using the legs and tail for leverage.

A number of times these two disengaged and I expected one of them to turn tail. They seemed intent on settling the territorial dispute.
We find so many Anoles and Curly Tailed lizards on the grounds of Harbour Club Villas and Marina. Some are now getting quite big especially the Curly Tailed lizards. Hope you enjoyed these photos and I will look for some good ones of the Curly Tails for another post.
Marta

Liquid sunshine pearl drops on a spider's web taken one afternoon that I found irresistable for a photo.
I’m not a big fan of spiders at any time but when I came across a spider’s web dotted with drops of rain after one of our brief rain showers, I couldn’t resist trying to get some photos.

The spider's web with strands of liquid pearls stood out from the backdrop of one of my fushia coloured bouganvillea.
The gardens here at Harbour Club Villas always present something interesting or new for me to photograph. Yesterday for example, I couldn’t get a photo of a baby dove that was trying to fly. It was in our wild area hidden somewhat by the bush. Never mind……..there’s always shots that are missed but something else always comes along to take its place.
Marta
The water was so clear yesterday with sun reflections dancing and creating silvery patterns as we just played in the water. Malaika just loved being buoyant in the foot deep waters of the south side of Provo. She’s beginning to kick her legs and is totally unafraid of the water.
We took a little break and close to the shore where we were sitting in the water, we were joined by some tiny little fish. Malaika was delighted but stayed close to Mom.

Malaika spots little fish from the safety of Mom's lap. You can just make the fish out at the bottom of the photo below Mom's feet.

Here's a blow up of the little fish that were swimming around us as we sat in a few inches of water at the beach
An idyllic afternoon spent just lounging in the water close by our villas at Harbour Club. Come on down to Providenciales and enjoy our stunning beaches and the clearest water you’ll ever see.
Marta