Destination 8º N: Local Creatures [click to open]

Nothing better than fresh bukus!

While making breakfast the other day...Jade [the guy who runs the place. Im the only guest] points to a crazy hybrid crab/lobster/shrimp creature along the wall outside. In his 31 years here in Lanuza, he has never seen this guy. Some kind of prehistoric mix of common sealife here.

Later I asked some old-timer fisherman who wandered by. I showed them the photos on my camera, They called this 'oo-sen'. They claimed it lives in brackish waters, like Lanuza, a big river reaches the sea right out front. They also said the tail had a stinger which caused lots o' pain. Maybe part scorpion?

If any scientists are following along...please help with more information. My limited internet here in the provence makes real research impossible.

It looks like a crab

It seemed real 'pissed-off' at me

Overall length was about 12" or 30.5 cm

'OO-SEN'

When the surf goes flat here there is not much to do. My favorite hobby is watching the spider that I share my porch with. I am on the 2nd floor of the surf camp. Ever since I arrived this spider has been building a complex web in between some wood beams. As one expects from living in the tropics, the bugs are in charge!

I hoped this spider would assist in keeping the native mosquito population in check. I need all the help I can get...even the eight-eyed kind.