Andes Mountains = Alpacas!

What Big World Assignment to Ecuador and the Andes Mountains would be complete without some new Alpaca friends?

 Mr. Alpaca:  You must be JB's mom!  We have been waiting to meet you.

JB's mom:  Yes, it's me.  JB sent me to make sure I met some real Alpacas living in the Andes Mountains.  I don't know if you are truly a good example of this though!

Hi JB!  You are one famous Cat, and I am honored to be your friend!  Thank you for sending your mom to visit us in our country.

Then mom visited the equator, and that was the end of her Big World Assignment to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.  It went by much more quickly in real life than on my blog, by the way!

One last thought from my friends, the Alpacas.  

"Don't forget to eat your greens, JB!"

Thanks to my mom for this outstanding Big World Report!
 ~~JB 

Before you go, please sign my GUESTBOOK here, and stop by JB's SMALL WORLD too, thanks!

An Assortment of Ecuadorean Dogs

Mom finally made it off the Expedition Ship from the Galapagos Islands and she toured mainland Ecuador a bit.

And guess what?  Mom found me a lot of new Dog friends!!

"Woof, you must be JB's mom!  Nice to meet you!  Tell JB we are all so excited to be her friend!"

Since Ecuador is located near the Andes Mountains, the climate can be cool sometimes.  It looks like a lot of the dogs there wear clothes.  Very fashionable yellow sweatshirt and matching cap, I must say!

This new friend was wearing a bright red T-shirt!

Some Dogs were not so well taken care of, and there are homeless dogs in Ecuador too, just like in the U.S.  

Mom felt really bad for this guy, and I do too.

There were puppies too, full of hope for a wonderful life.  Mom was not sure if this puppy had a home or owner, or if he was on his own.  I sure hope he will be ok.

Most of my new Ecuadorean Dog friends were excited to meet my mom, but this one slept through mom's visit!

What a great assortment of new Ecuadorean Dog friends, mom!

Before you go, please sign my GUESTBOOK here, and stop by JB's SMALL WORLD too, thanks! 

Fowl Friends from the Galapagos Islands

So the next place mom visited on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos Islands was an inactive lava tube!  

JB:  Oooh, this looks a bit scary, mom!

Mom:  Just so you can see, I take my Big World Assignments very seriously, and will do what it takes to find you new animal friends!

Lookie here!  Mom found me a new Owl friend outside the lava tube, a Barn Owl we think.  He was sleeping because it was the daytime, so mom could not see his face.

The lava tube was a bit scary, and mom did not find any animal friends inside for me.  I wonder if there are snakes in there?

This next new friend mom found for me was near a small pond.  He is a White Cheeked Pintail Duck.  I bet he is glad that game is not called "Pin the Tail on the Duck!"

Mom got me a few Great Blue Heron friends, and this one was especially good at posing for mom's report.

So just when I thought mom was being really serious about her Big World Assignment, I found this picture of mom in "Paradise" and found out she was drinking beer here!

Mom:  Oh JB, I was working really hard on my Big World Report!  I was looking for some fowl friends for you near this foul water reservoir, and suddenly I got a little bit thirsty!

Before you go, please sign my GUESTBOOK here, and stop by JB's SMALL WORLD too, thanks! 

My Feathered Friends, the Darwin Finches!

There was a wide assortment of Darwin's Finches on the Galapagos Islands.  They are unique, and "endemic" to the Galapagos, as they have adapted over time into various subspecies.

Mom tried to take a variety of pictures of my new feathered friends.

They come in all different colors, and the easiest way to distinguish the different types of Finches is by the size and shape of their beaks.

Their beaks are highly adapted to different food sources....

....and are used for various activities.

This new Finch friend was especially interesting as he had blue feet!

As you may know, birdies are my favorite friends, so I was SUPER excited about these new Finch friends!!

What's next mom?  Are we really still in the Galapagos Islands??

Before you go, please sign my GUESTBOOK here, and stop by JB's SMALL WORLD too, thanks!