Mark has the look on his face that suggests that he has been here before- told about something only to not have it materialize- remember the bats with the White Nose Syndrome?  Mark never saw a single bat in all the time (months to the poor readers) spent in the cave system… and yet he still wrote a story on it?

Yup, because that what ants will do… right Abbey?  The move in, take over and, well, there goes the neighborhood…  But again, I thought this was a rocky little atoll.  It now appears that we have stumbled into a full-fledged rain forest…  Yeah, I’m scratching my head too, Mark.  I wonder how many Blue Hawaiians Cherry has ordered up by now… She had the right idea.

Wow, I could have sworn I posted something yesterday… but I guess not… a draft post awaited me this morning with nary a comment.  Just the strip.  I’m sure I stared at it a few times and nothing came… which is not unusual these days…

But today there is, ummm, intimacy?  Awkwardness?  Why, a woman hasn’t used the Trail as a “landing spot” since the cave adventure…

So as Mark Billy-goats his way along the rocky outcropping and with that strange bit of touching, we are all left to feel just slightly uncomfortable…  and to wonder what Abbey’s true motives are…

As  Abbey, ummm, mounts the boulder, Mark looks on with curiosity and wonder,  wishing he had brought his rock climbing gear, but alas, he lost it in the cave adventure…

Nice list, Abbey.  Reminds me of how many ways, according to Benjamin Buford  “Bubba” Blue, one can prepare shrimp…

We had almost forgotten you buddy!  And it would seem that you are the only one that has any common sense… but then you made it out of the ‘Nam in one piece, so you can be assumed to have good instincts…  and following a Nature Writer and an “Agent” of the USDA (hey, she can pretend, right??) into the Hawaiian wilderness is probably something you should avoid…

So with Cal’s ears growing, and Abbey’s face changing by the day…

Or simply the deft use and re-use of the same unrecognizable face…

…but at least in Mark’s case, the little forelock hairs are slightly different… sort of like the Slylock Fox Comic that asks the reader to point of what is different between to seemingly identical pictures…

And with that, the longest sentence fragment ever in the history of the blogosphere, I leave you all to wonder what will happen once Mark and Abbey hit the “Trail…”  Ha!  See what I did there??

As opposed to the the Domestic variety?  They must have hailed from somewhere at some point- had to be indigenous before they became invasive… Looks like they came from South America originally…   Lest I appear to any readers as being cavalier about invasives, let me assure you I am not.  But we really can be our own worst enemy sometimes…  the “Bighead” or “Asian” Carp that is knocking on the door of the Great Lakes system is a real threat and brought to us courtesy of the catfish farmers down south… who started introducing this species into their catfish ponds to help keep them clean.  One flood later and poof, the genie’s out of the bottle and there’s  only so much we can do to stop them.  Another example is the Buckthorn Plant… deemed a noxious weed in Minnesota by our own DNR, various versions can still be purchased over the counter at you local nursery or home center…

But, but, but… I thought Abbey already retrieved a specimen?  I’m so confused.  Whatever.  And hey… I have an idea.  Why don’t you both board the Helicopter and have Cal fly you up there?  I’m sure he could hover precariously as you both execute a tetherless rappel (I just made that one up…) which to the uninformed would look like two people leaping out of a helicopter onto a small outcropping.  No risk there…

It just occurred to me, looking at the pained and manufactured expressions on the faces of Mark and Abbey, that they are styled after Kabuki…

While Mark maintains the Trailian visage (seen in panel one) more that anything else, we have also seen him, through facial expressions, go for other emotive states- irony, sheepishness, cluelessness, anger, all the way to ‘hey I just made a joke here…’ But that’s nothing compared to Abbey’s transformation in both emotion and facial shape between panels two and three…  Anger to sadness and resignation almost in mid sentence.

So as it becomes apparent that the ants have taken the high ground, and therefore have strategic placement advantage, I’m guessing that Mark and Abbey will be climbing the same precarious slopes that Abbey earlier slipped and fell down.  Good luck with that!

…seems that you have done all the research…  and it seems as though the USDA database is replete with details…  about the comings and goings of every American (we assume they are American, heck, they looked American…)  Is anyone else concerned?  So with finger wagging, Abbey recounts all the details of the “mystery…” which leaves us to wonder, “what’s next?”

And are we to believe that every ship that puts into a given harbor is given a thorough inspection for invasive species?  Drugs, I understand, but invasive species??  What with all the fresh fruit loaded onto cruise ships throughout the world, are they inspected?  I suppose so.  But it appears that in the U.S. we more concerned with human trafficking than invasives…  but depending on what side of the immigration argument you are on, invasives can come in different shapes and sizes…

But a quick check of the procedure in New Zealand suggests that the inspection is quite thorough… including a six-step biosecurity inspection and clearance…  So it’s conceivable that the ants were discovered upon reaching New Zealand and a complete history of their travels documented!  How could I ever have doubted!!  But how on earth do you live on a boat, no matter how big, with ant colony??  ick.

And I’m sure… a picnic lunch…  we all know what they really did on those white sand beaches…

Geez, Mark you really are full of yourself, aren’t you…  Are you just trying to impress Abbey, or what?  Your pilot?  Please. In the span of an afternoon, Cal has not become yours…  Abbey Powell, breathless in the presence of The Trail, isn’t helping with all this…

And what’s with all the sudden vegetation?  Fully grown palm trees and flowers?  This was a rocky, volcanic outcropping until you showed up and then poof!  Cue the Palms!

With various forms of wildlife enjoying cameo roles (hearkening back to the Trailverse of old) we see the long-shot approach and the eager anticipation that is meant to create a modicum of expectation for this story.

With the island not shaking anymore, and Abbey back on her feet with her glasses on, Mark makes his grand entrance (with Cal’s help, of course…)

I will say it again- what’s missing in all this is the bad guy (or gal) that threatens to lay waste to fragile ecosystems, to poach rapaciously the innocent fauna that might be hanging by a thread.  While I should probably care about invasive species and man’s role in spreading them around, there’s no story line in it.  At least not for me.  Bring back Big Mike, or the corrupt Senator’s aid, or Dirty Dyer the Rhino Horn trafficker,  or that skinny milquetoast who wanted to mine titanium oxide from the Great Dismal Swamp…    anything… please…

OK, kids,  we’ve seen this before…  Abbey Powell taking a bad step, and a random earthquake RRRUUUUMMMMMBBBBBLLLLLEEEE…  at least this is more plausible here than in the cave story.  Appears that Earthquakes are a daily thing in Hawaii, although registering only 1.0 – 2.0  on the Richter scale…

Abbey Powell needs to have a word with James Allen.  If he going to feature her (a real person with a life, presumably with ambitions,) she can’t allow him to continue to portray her as a stumbling oaf…  Hey, I mean, I have daughter, probably about Abbey’s age, trying to make her way in the world of science, and this kind of portrayal helps no one…

So pick yourself up and dust yourself off, Abbey… blow the coral dust out of your nose and pretend this never happened, right??

According to TC, I mean Cal, this is an unstable volcanic formation… shows what Abbey might know… or the Narrator for that matter.  And Abbey, to whom exactly are you speaking?  The Horseshoe Crab in the foreground?  But it’s comforting in its own way to have her talking aloud to herself, in time-honored Mark Trail fashion…

So as Abbey waits patiently for Mark to arrive, apparently leaving the details to take care of themselves, (Today?  Does that mean morning, afternoon, or evening? Did Abbey stay there guarding the island in the meantime?) we are left to wonder how she made a positive ID on the type of ant they are dealing with… and whether, ultimately, this is going to call for the inestimable resources of the USDA to mount an offensive against it…

And by “scour the island” you mean what?  Oh, OK, probably just what it sounds like…  in my search for meaning and inspiration I will grab at any possible double-entendre that might appear…

Or the shark to bite.  Something.  Some mornings I am immediately struck by what I want to comment on, but other mornings it’s a struggle…

As we wait to get to the island, we are left to pull out the Ol’ Tedium-Meter® … last seen in the Bio-Luminescent cave system…

…like the EAB (Emerald Ash Borer) this little terror (the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle) has wreaked havoc on the Hawaiian ecosystem by threatening a necessary and iconic feature- coconut and date palm trees…

Ugly little thing, ain’t it??  What is it about invasive species, at least these two, that are reduced to three letter acronyms??  Does James Allen get all his story ideas from the USDA website?  I think he must…

And why haven’t the Rhinoceros lovers of the world risen up and filed an anti-defamation suit against the naming of this pest?  While it has a vague likeness, the two aren’t even in the same league as it pertains to what role they play, one a victim of its own physiology, the other a destroyer of economies!

Red Imported Fire Ants?  as opposed to the domestic, home grown variety?  I guess it’s a real thing…  Never doubt the Trail, Dennis, never doubt the Trail…

Your natural, trusting instincts can get you in trouble… you don’t know whose side Cal is on- yours or the invasive species’…  so best you make up a back story that seems plausible but doesn’t give away the true nature of your mission…  although that invasive species line would be the perfect cover for another, more nefarious plot of your own, so by now Cal must be thinking that you are full of it…

But soft!  Do I detect foreshadowing?  As in, “The island has been quiet for several years now…”  I’ll bet you dollars to donut holes that we are in for a doozy!  But really? Where’s the story here?  This atoll is completely segregated from other islands, and unless ants learn to build rafts and migrate I think that the problem is solved…  or at least contained…

Thanks to everyone who weighed in on ant reproductive cycle and methods… very entertaining.  For the record, I have to believe that Mark and Cherry have yet to consummate their marriage.  To think otherwise would shatter all notions we hold dear in the Trailverse…

Or since Cal has already acknowledged being a big fan of Mark’s work, and therefore must know that he already knows all this “volcano” stuff, perhaps Cal can’t help himself but to go into his normal schpeel about volcanos and what-not…

…so as Mark patiently listens to the lesson in geography, above the din of the rotor and unmuffled exhaust, we whirl our way toward the tiny atoll… that is if it and Abbey are still there…

But wait a gosh-darn minute… were their two ants in that pile of logs that Honey and Darling brought with them to the island?  Or was the one that bit (was it Honey or Darling…) pregnant, otherwise how could the infestation have taken hold??  I’m still holding out hope that we will find skeletons locked in an embrace, but certainly not holding my breath, you know?

Thanks again, Dan P. for this awesome reference.  I can’t decide whether to laugh or cry thinking that there are members of congress this misinformed…  of course he was challenged and quickly defended his statement as part of his “schtick…”  Reminds me of the scene from Arthur where Dudley Moore introduces his date, Princess Gloria, to his aunt and uncle… I’m talking small…

Yes, and as long as we don’t mean politically unstable I think we’ll be OK…  no tin-horn despots hoarding uranium and spinning it down to weapons grade or anything like that.

So as Mark and Cal continue their conversation over the din of the Hughes 500D, we are left to wonder two things- did Abbey really just cool her heels on this atoll long enough for Mark to be turned down (#letmarkrentaboat) and find a chopper pilot and drive to the chopper and then fly out to see her?  And what of Cherry, now that she is free to roam the resort with her 7 minute abs?

And just how loud are Mark and Cal talking, or shouting even??  Anyone who’s been in a helicopter knows that with the spinning rotor a few feet above your head and no sound-proofing, the decibel level is quite high and one needs to wear a headset– for hearing protection as well as in-flight communication… Sound level estimates range from 90-150 dB, certainly not conversation friendly…

Anyway, seems we are off to an adventure… again.  As Cal warns Mark about the geological instability of the little atolls, we are left to wonder what force of nature is waiting to threaten our hero…  which is continuing theme- no human villains, just man against nature…  OK, it was Jefe (or maybe Jose) who drove Mark, Gabe and Carina into the cave system to begin with as they ran from the AK and the bundle of dynamite, but then for weeks it was Nature trying to take them out…  But it seems that Cal is game, heck he can always punch it and get the heck out of there if things get dicey…

OK… late add… this link brought to my attention by loyal reader Dan P. features one incredibly mal-informed member of congress, afraid that by putting too many Marines on the island of Guam that it will- get this- tip over… seriously…  great reference to supposedly unstable atolls… I was simply unaware of this one.

…Thank Goodness… But she’s “got a bad feeling about this.”  And doesn’t want to be any part of it.  Any time Mark goes on assignment, shit happens…  But look at how Mark’s face lights up at the prospect of leaving Cherry behind.  He doesn’t want her tagging along- no way, no how…  Compare his expression today with what we saw when he wasn’t allowed to rent a boat…

Business must be slow for “Island Hoppers” charter services.  It’s as if Cal was sitting around with an empty date book…  But let’s also take a look at the greatest and most blatant reference (nod? ripoff?) to Magnum…

Here we see “Higgy Baby”(Higgins, caretaker to the estate of Robin Masters, where Magnum slummed in the beach house) standing along-side the van with matching motif of the Hughes 500D that is the fleet for Island Hoppers.  TC would take Magnum for rides at the drop of a hat, and get mixed up in all kinds of stuff, all without Magnum paying him a dime!  Now there’s friendship!  “Hey we did ‘the Nam’ together, so I guess you owe me,” or something like that…  But that color scheme!  bleccch!  I guess there’s no accounting for taste, especially looking back in time…

Unabashed and unapologetic references to the Magnum PI series…  Even down to the cap that was featured in the show, worn by TC the Helicopter pilot…

I must disagree slightly however… I think that Thomas Magnum wore a Detroit Tigers Ball Cap more than anything…  But now we have the cap, the chopper and the person of color to fly said chopper…  what more do we need?

Although I will say that Cal has a striking resemblance, a familiar laconic manner that was sported by our friend Vince who maintained the family homestead in the Great Dismal Swamp…  big ears and everything… maybe they are brothers?

And there’s Mark again, denying any culpability for his actions and inevitable reactions… Ok, I will grant him the SWAN, but the Cigarette Boat went up because he unloaded a flare into the leaking pool of fuel in a feeble attempt to slow the bad guys, after his fight or flight response, permanently stuck on fight, took over…  But it appears that Vince’s hat is now in on the act- reacting to the mere chance of having to hear stories about explosions…  I mean, judging by his cap, Cal is probably still recovering from more than a lifetime’s worth of loud noises and near death experiences…

So there’s Cal… flying secret missions in Viet Nam, ferrying wounded comrades through bullet-riddled battlefields, and all he can hope for is that his copy of “Woods and Wildlife Magazine” is in the next mail pouch…  While his platoon-mates are waiting their turn at a peak inside the dog-eared Playboy, Cal is reaching deep into his footlocker, pulling out past issues of W&W and re-reading all those hard hitting pieces that Mark has contributed over the years…

Note how Cal has to interject the name of his one-chopper enterprise, just in case the Trails might have mistaken him for his competitor, Blue Hawaiian… But that guy dresses up like Elvis, anyway, and who needs a Vegas vibe on a trip to Hawaii??