Just Passing Through...

Since this javelina is not travelling with his family group and is roaming around during the mid morning, he's probably a young male. He strolled across the back yard today and paused just long enough to snack on palo verde seed pods.

A single "piggy" arrives unobtrusively, but a whole family is preceded by a strong, musky odor that is overlaid with the essence of manure along with a distinct hint of garbage. Before the neighborhood folks decided that all dogs should be silent, there was a warning system that gave gardeners a sporting chance to discourage their (usually) nocturnal diners. Now, even if the wind hollers out the announcement, catching them in the act is most difficult.

A couple days ago, the front plants had been newly trimmed of their heat fried leaves and the sun had set when the breeze announced that diners were on their way. My old green recycling tub was filled with clippings and a decision had to be made as to whether it was prudent to leave a salad offering in hopes that the plants would be spared or whether to dispose of the trimmings and take my chances. Javelina are so intelligent and learn so quickly that it seemed prudent to dispose of the clippings.

Morning brought the unwelcome evidence that it might have been wiser to leave a salad. In the defense of the javelinas, in the front of the house, they dined on the inside parts of the container plants so that the street side parts were still presentable. Around back, they used less discretion.

Previously, I have mentioned that they can jump and climb...This leaves only the roof as a possible safe place for tender delectables like roses. I had a little conference with the one remaining rose bush and it suggested that if the roof was my only plan, then I might as well fire up the bar-b-que grill and roast it that way.

While I search for a way to outsmart the javelina, I'll continue to hope for sightings. It's always a delight to know they are gracing my home with their presence...even if they do eat like pigs and then leave the mess for me to clean up.

Becoming A Chupacabra...

One never expects to actually see the mythical Chupacabra and certainly not strolling through the neighborhood on a hot Tucson summer day, but it happened almost exactly a year ago. After a quick check to make sure my eyes were focused, my mind raced to record and understand what was crossing the road. It was definitely in the canine family with leathery, blue gray skin and completely devoid of hair. There was time to compare the anatomy to that of a dog, and with those large ears, the conclusion was that it was a coyote.

There was no doubt that we had a Chupacabra. How could that be without it being on the news? So it was a coyote, but what had happened to it? Maybe it had been burned in a fire and survived...or maybe it was mange. My heart was heavy and my prayer was that it be helped and if I could help it, it would come to my house. It never did.

This morning, a lone cactus wren sent up an alarm. Cactus wrens and their squawking little ones are noisy enough, but this sounded different, so I stood in the front window and waited. In about a minute, a rather small, male coyote appeared and slowly strolled across the yard. That was a welcome sight...It has been a couple of months since one has visited in the daytime.

The coyote was moving with a lack of energy and that was alarming. Then I noticed his fur and the large patches of blue gray skin. This is mange and very bad news, not just for this poor creature, but for all of our neighborhood coyotes.
He did not stop by the water bowl in the back, but instead headed down one of our usual critter corridors.

My prayer has no words, but it is there. Healing this poor creature is beyond the realm of human capability, which is humbling. The only remaining option is to hope that the one who created us all will hear my prayer and answer "Yes."

And Rays of Hope...

It's really a stretch to imagine that the hole in the cloud looks like a white dove, but the storm was coming and the rays were shining out and it was a happy thought. The storm turned westward and so my "happy thought" remained undisturbed.

The Chicken Little Alarm System

Through years of dedication, my Chicken Little Alarm System has been highly refined for storm alerts. This involves all out panic to spread the word and ready the yard and house for whatever might come.

Late yesterday afternoon, the small critters and birds were in a frenzy to find food and protocol at the watering hole bowl was waived as they clustered together and quenched their thirst.

Yesterday evening, the approaching clouds promised that this part of town was about to get soaked. Finger Rock (in the center of the picture) was pointing out the need to be prepared and seek cover. The sound of the outside painting easel falling on the porch, followed by flower pots rolling around, guaranteed the wind was going to be impressive and it was.

A California Kingsnake By Any Other Name...

All California Kingsnakes are named "Max", but don't bother looking that up.

Many years ago, the first Max showed up in my living room and set off a comedy of hysteria that went on for hours and involved way too many people. It was a teenage boy, working in a local pet store, who restored calm with the information that if it wasn't a rattlesnake, it wasn't poisonous. That left only the problem of why the snake was appearing and disappearing and where it was hiding.

After several hours of hide and seek, it occurred to me that the snake was smarter than me. Humbling as that realization was, I was not going to be deterred from the task of living in a snake free home. Finally, exhausted and shaking, I stood in the breakfast area and waited for the snake to find me. It was about five minutes before it came up from under the door to the garage, looked at me, laughed, and slithered back out. (Only three out of four of those observations were visibly true.) A well placed towel under the door ended the entertainment portion of the day for the snake.

Learning experiences can be very hard on the nerves, so they should be remembered lest they need to be repeated. Kingsnakes are fast, aggressive, tuned in to human thought patterns, and have highly refined senses of humor. A creature like that deserved a name, hence "Max."
One other fact worth noting, Kingsnakes dispatch rattlesnakes.

So, different house, different Max...but quite a welcome visitor...except to the little hole dwelling critters, etc. One hopes and prays they have enough defense systems in place to outsmart this snake because rattlesnakes don't and neither do I.

Speedy Escape To The Watering Hole...

It was a difficult three minutes in the life of a young roadrunner on a smoke filled day. Just when this adolescent had spotted a snake and was running toward dinner, a quail couple launched a noisy arial attack. Roadrunners are often very people friendly and sociable, but not so popular in the critter kingdom due to their dining habits. After escaping the wrath of the quails and no longer up to a snake chase, the local watering hole beckoned as a place of sanctuary to quench it's thirst and survey the local landscape for the next dinner possibility.

Bunny Sprout Update...

There has been a bunny sprout sighting!

(Re: 7/6/09 post)

It made a quick dash from the base of the planter to the cactus a few feet away. It is good to know this tiny one is still here and functioning with good instincts.

Nothing like an old woman wielding a garden hose to strike permanent fear into a four inch bunny...Hopefully, little pieces of banana will add me to it's circle of friends, but that may be too much to expect after it was soaked in the planter. It might have to be enough to have a sighting and be able to report that this little sprout has grown about two more inches since the last time it was watered.