The coati came back with an injured paw. I don’t know whether he was caught in a trap or stepped on a thorn or was stung by a scorpion. Whatever happened, he is permanently disabled. The foot has withered. He comes to the door looking pitiful, and I give him two handfuls of raisins and two handfuls of peanuts. But he is getting fat and rejects food not up to his standards. I discovered that he walks a mile in one direction to get fed at one house and a mile in the opposite direction to a bed-and-breakfast. And probably to all stops in between. Smart animal.
We came home from a shopping trip yesterday to find a Gila monster on the front porch. He was two feet long and barely moved when Harold came out to photograph him. I know it’s a male because it is Gila monster mating season right now and the males taste the trail of a female with their tongues. If the female isn’t in the mood she bites him and walks off. Simple courting procedure, unlike the javelinas that put on a show on the front porch last week. I can only provide one picture because the rest are unsuitable for ages 8 to 12.
Last night a bear murdered the bird feeders I forgot to take in. She (I think it’s a female) got the feeders outside the town library, too. This morning Harold was watering a flowerbed when a five-foot-long snake slithered between his legs. It took a few seconds to tell whether it was a rattlesnake or not, and a few minutes to get his heart rate down. It was a gopher snake drawn by the smell (or taste, because snakes hunt with their tongues) of water. It lay under the water sprinkler drinking happily. Harold came inside and had a drink, too.
The movie option for The House of the Scorpion was renewed for a further 18 months. This means there is some interest, but they don’t have the money yet.
The photo of the gila monster tongue is from the internet.
We came home from a shopping trip yesterday to find a Gila monster on the front porch. He was two feet long and barely moved when Harold came out to photograph him. I know it’s a male because it is Gila monster mating season right now and the males taste the trail of a female with their tongues. If the female isn’t in the mood she bites him and walks off. Simple courting procedure, unlike the javelinas that put on a show on the front porch last week. I can only provide one picture because the rest are unsuitable for ages 8 to 12.
Last night a bear murdered the bird feeders I forgot to take in. She (I think it’s a female) got the feeders outside the town library, too. This morning Harold was watering a flowerbed when a five-foot-long snake slithered between his legs. It took a few seconds to tell whether it was a rattlesnake or not, and a few minutes to get his heart rate down. It was a gopher snake drawn by the smell (or taste, because snakes hunt with their tongues) of water. It lay under the water sprinkler drinking happily. Harold came inside and had a drink, too.
The movie option for The House of the Scorpion was renewed for a further 18 months. This means there is some interest, but they don’t have the money yet.
The photo of the gila monster tongue is from the internet.
