No fly zone

Crab spider webs and fruit
A crab spider sits in its web
A crab spider sits in its web.,

Crab spiders (also known as spiny-backed spiders) came to Hawaii in 1985. They spread through all the islands and are especially numerous here in the winter months. They build dense thickets of webs such as these between two tangerine trees. They look threatening, but aren’t particularly. People do get bitten, mostly if a spider falls on them or gets lodged in clothing.

I usually encounter them when I miss spotting a web and end up with it wrapped around my head. Their webs, which often span a 10 or 20 foot gap, seem especially strong and sticky.

For more information about crab spiders, go to gardenguyhawaii.com/2011/12/crab-spiders.html.

Scrawled filefish

Scrawled Filefish
This filefish is quite distinctive. It has a flattened body and long tail fin. Typically, it has a pale body with blue spots and scribbly lines, which is where it gets its name. It also has the ability to darken to a camouflage pattern, which is what this one was doing, though the blue lines are still visible. When sporting the camouflage pattern, they lie on the coral and blend in very well indeed.

In my attempts to identify what I see in the water, I use John P. Hoover’s book The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals. His website is hawaiisfishes.com.

Lantana

Lantana Camara

Originally from South America, Lantana camara is a shrubby plant that can grow to 6 feet. Its cheerful, multicolored flowers are followed by berries that are a favorite of birds. The birds, in turn, disperse the seeds which lead to the plant being common in many places. Too many perhaps. It’s another of those invasive weeds here, this one particularly problematic because it’s poisonous to livestock.

Garden skink

A garden skink looking watchful
Also known as the delicate skink (Lampropholis delicata), I saw this one sunning itself at the foot of the lanai steps. Unlike geckos and anoles, which mostly just look curious when I show up, skinks tend to zip away.

This one didn’t notice me, so I eased away to get my camera, returned, and took a couple of photos. The skink looked out into the grass. I edged closer, took a couple more photos. The skink looked off to the side. After a couple more, similar moves, the skink finally looked behind and up at me. Its wonderful expression made me laugh, which the skink took as its cue to scoot for cover.

The planned Thirty Meter Telescope site on Mauna Kea

Thirty Meter Telescope site on Mauna Kea
This is where the planned Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is supposed to be built. I say ‘supposed to’ because the project is currently going in reverse. Construction should have started in April of last year, but protests derailed that. Then two court decisions late last year mean the permitting process has to start again. As it stands right now, The TMT people have said they need approved permits by early next year. In the meantime, alternative sites are being checked out, in case things don’t come together.

Personally, I don’t think the telescope will be built here. The protesters aren’t going to go away, I don’t think there’s the will in Hawaii officialdom to get it done, and I don’t think the TMT people want to do what it will take, which would leave them looking like the bad guys running roughshod over Hawaiian cultural practices.

It’s more complicated than this of course, but if I were a betting man, I know where my money would go.