Part two - our visit to Put-N-Bay - the Niagra and Ohio Aquatic Resource Center

This is second part of our visit. I was amazed to see the flowers and gardens all around the island. these flowers were growing around a open air misted patio.  We could only walk along the pier there were no tours on the Niagara it is still being restored. They are using some of the orginal wood in her reconstruction. Right now she looks more like a pirate ship them a member of the US Navy but there is a dedicated crew working hard on her. 

a wooden statue in front of the Butterfly hous

Dolomedes ( /dɒləˈmiːdiːz/) is a genus of large spiders of the family Pisauridae. They are also known as fishing spiders, raft spiders, dock spidersor wharf spiders. Almost all Dolomedes species are semi-aquatic, with the exception of the tree-dumping D. albineus of the southwestern United States. Many species have a striking pale stripe down each side of the body.

They hunt by waiting at the edge of a pool or stream, then when they detect the ripples from prey, they run across the surface to subdue it using their foremost legs, which are tipped with small claws; like other spiders they then inject venom with their hollow jaws to kill and digest the prey. They mainly eat insects, but some larger species are able to catch small fish. They can also climb beneath the water, when they become encased in a silvery film of air. Six spotted spiders can also walk on water to get their prey. from Wikipedia

Ok - Fish eating spiders - this thing was about as large as a quarter and they said they get to be as big as half dollars. And you wonder why I don't swim

The other critter we learned about was Lake Erie Water Snakes - this is a quote from their leaflet
If you keep the boat snug against the dock, it increases the likelihood that snakes may fall inside  WHAT how does a snake fall inside your boat -
Remove the snake carefully by had using a towel or rage to cover its head. The LEWS are non-venomous, they are very aggressive when picked up . Since your are in the boat, the quickest and easiest solution is to drop the snake in the water - NO SHIT -  you cannot kill or harm the snake as they are protected. - another reason I don't swim in the water - just a side nature fact