(1 Apr 2011, Exmouth WA) This termite mound greets you as you arrive in Exmouth. Termite mounds are as common as dirt -- and are made of dirt. They're very big and hard as concrete. This one, which stands about 6-8 ft high, has been decorated. There was an area we drove through near Port Hedland where a great many mounds had been decorated with hard hats -- quite funny to see. I'm told that termite mounds, like icebergs, are an indication of a much larger structure under ground.
At our hotel we discover that termites are trying to build mounds all over the building. The laundry door was open and several were started on the walls -- hard red dirt structures with grubs inside. I discover this when I try to break one off the wall. You'd almost need a hammer and chisel. They're all over the place and this really creeped me out, you had a feeling that if you stood still too long one would start building on you!
One good thing about termites -- genuine didgeridoo's (the native musical instrument) are made from live trees that have been hollowed out by termites. I suppose they're edible too but I'm not going there.
The weather, having recently seen some cyclones, meant that the country side was very lush. That meant that locusts where everywhere feeding on the lush growth. The emu like that I'm sure -- they'd eat them! In Coral Bay the locusts had stripped the palm trees. One of the divers we met told us about a plague of "desert frogs" they'd had recently. Apparently the frogs burrow into river bottoms when the weather turns dry and will appear years later when the rain comes. After the recent rains a ton of frogs appeared.
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