I have been attempting to turn my thumb green and become one with nature this week. I've uncovered several of our earth's smallest creatures.
Dirty Little Frog: Yes, such an original name for the tiny thing that was hiding in the dirt where I wanted to place my plant. He was about the size of my thumbnail and covered in dirt.
A friend asked me if I'd ever seen a clean frog. I told her that of course I had, because they usually come out in the rain, freshly showered. Sheesh.
See? This one has obviously lathered, rinsed, and repeated:
I also disturbed several small garden snakes. I will spare you the photos.
I've mentioned armadillos before.
Pretty? Not so much.
I think there is a multi-family household under my shed. They are overdue on the rent:
It's either that or Evil Twin's first attempt at making us a tornado shelter.
It is most likely an armadillo. These "beastards" like grub worms and will stick their pointy noises in your yard to get them. Unfortunately, they also uproot your grass, don't fill their holes after they're done, and probably make several dirty little frogs homeless. Or maybe they eat the juicy little things. Those pointy little feet don't bode well for your lawn, either.
Dinner is served.
I've also discovered that it isn't cats or dolphins that rule the world. It's ants. That's right. A N T S !!!! They are everywhere, even in my mailbox. ICK! Just this morning, I saw an army of them trying to carry Cat to their mound. They kept dropping the 14-pound beast, losing a third of their army each time. I finally heard the queen say "Give up the fat whining furball. Go see what's under that outbuilding."
Have a great weekend!
Photo credits: tiny frog: yumievriwan on flickr.com, armadillo: sunchild_dd, flickr.com, pie: jannabeth, flickr.com, Creative Commons license (see sidebar), tunnel entrance: Reffie
Posts
34 comments:
Ha! Oh, that was fun! When I lived in Florida for 16 years, I was always coming across those armadillos on my morning runs. We'd basically just scare the tar out of each other, then run in opposite directions!
I, too, have a family living under my shed here in my new home in PA, groundhogs!! I have no clue what to do! Perhaps some groundhog pie...
P.S. That frog is ADORABLE!! I, too, prefer them showered!!
Thanks for the laugh, as always!!
You guys have armadillos? That is the coolest thing I have ever heard. We only have polar bears. And they're always dirty. They should really take after those frogs and shower every once in a while.
@Anything - Yeah, that would scare me on a morning run. I think I met a possum one morning and nearly jumped out of my skin! I'm glad you liked the froggy.
@Ziva - Uh huh. Not so much. What a mess! Dirty polar bears? Sheesh. Why can't they jump go for a swim in the icy water?
Girl, would you jump into icy water and take a swim? Oh, never mind, I just remembered who I was talking to...
That armadillo reminds me of my Aunt Matilda - seriously.
I love it! Around here we have moles and gophers to tear up the yard. Chippers (aka chipmunks) to collect nuts and steal Luke's food. And let's not forget the squirrels to drive us all batty! That's just the small stuff, the big ones, now that's a different story altogether!
Hmmmm, I do hope I can catch a shot of our resident cougar...
Leave it to you to make even gardening a fun adventure! I am glad PC survived! ;)
@Ziva - Polar bears have fur coats!
@Old Silly - Ahem....
@Skye - Thanks. I would love to experience your critters! A cougar? YIKES!
@dizzblnd - Thanks. I love it.
Armadillos and snakes and frogs... oh, my! Each kinda cute in their own way, but all a bit of a bother.
Love the little froggie but the armadillo, not so much. I'm with you on the ants. I am constantly battling with them. I wish we had anteaters in our area.
Have a great weekend.
That's SO COOL that you have armadillos! Ants are ubiquitous, aren't they? We have lots of creatures here in our new house (new to us), most of which are quite undesirable....
I wanted photos of the garden snakes. I'm disappointed. I don't know if I'll ever return to this blog now because of that. ;)
@CatLady - Yeah, so much for having a cat.
@Leeuna - I'll work on training Cat to be an anteater.
@Funnyrunner - YIKES! Good Luck with your new critters.
@Unfinished - So you're finished now, huh? Sheesh.
I really hates Ants, with passion, but I would love to see an armadillo sometime, I have never seen one, it look so cute
Thoughts of a Career Woman
Loved the post! Armadillo dish, priceless.
I guess our beloved deer in the north east garner the same affection from homeowners as armadillo in the south.
Even though deer are peaceful and graceful creatures, they leave ticks and Bambi droppings on the front lawn. I don't have a back lawn, per se.
P.S. Armadillo look like giant grubs with body armor.
It is one of my life's dreams to see a live armadillo. I'm not kidding about that. I think they're are one of the strangest critters on Earth. I hear they're moving northward as the globe heats up, so maybe they'll make their way to Colorado in a few years. Oh, and love frogs. We don't have many left anymore. I think they also one of the coolest creatures on the planet. I would never eat a frog, though. Or an armadillo. Unless I was really hungry. Then I might. Maybe they'd be good, too. We have a Mexican restaurant here called The Armadillo. Maybe they called it that because armadillo is really, really good. Or maybe they use armadillo meat.
I'm never eating there.
@Laura - You are welcome to adopt mine as a pet. ;-)
@Lauren - Thanks. Yes, I've heard about the deer. Believe it or not, we have a slight problem with them here. They ate my daffodils that are close to the street (there is a wooded area across the street). Ticks? Ick. LOL. Body armor.
@Mike - I wouldn't eat there, either. That's just a poor choice for a restaurant name. Nope. I'm never eating a frog or an armadillo if I can avoid it! I will be happy to send this unwelcome house guest to you.
awwww. I don't have anything alive in my yard at this moment.. ants sure to come soon
I saw a king snake the other day while I was weed whacking. I let it be. They are not poisonous and actually feed on poisonous snakes.
@Jean - You've killed everything? Sheesh!
@otin - YIKES! I like to observe snakes from far, far away.
I hate ants. They follow me everywhere too. Like the toilet.
Well crud! All these years I thought I was raising kids and it turns out they're just armadillos! Now, I have an explanation for all the holes in the yard and uprooted plants. Since I let them live in the house I sure hope they aren't eating the worms...
I love your blog. You have a great sense of humor.
@Bee - Ants in the toilet. Oh ick.
@Diane J. - I bet you let them live in the house, too. Sheesh!
I think frogs are adorable. [Well, from far away - like in photos!]
But, armadillos? Not so much!
I've never seen an armadillo before, but I'd like to touch one. They seem so texture-y.
@Meleah - Frogs are fun to play with. ;-)
@Marissa - I'll send him to you....in a cage.
Haven't seen an armadillo since I lived in Austin. There, I have to say, I mostly saw scaly road pizza (new from Pizza Hut, with free cheesy sticks). Big props for that frog shot; did you have a camera with you or did you have to go get one then creep back like a frog whisperer to get the shot without scaring it?
Wow, you have so much wildlife in your neck of the woods. I think all we have here are the occasional oppossum or lizard, neither of which is as cude and cuddly as an armadillo.
So lucky!
A. I hate snakes
B. I hate ants
C. I'd freak if I see a snake
D. We spray semi-annually to keep the ants away
I think armadillos are probably the most ugly animal out there, besides monkeys.
@Kablooey - Yeah, armadillo pancakes on the pavement on a hot sunny day!
Ha! The photo came from flickr.
@Tgoette - I love lizards!
@Constant - I don't mind the snakes if they will eat mosquitoes or rats!
@Jacki - Ah, monkeys are cute!
ohhhhhh exactly why I can't live in texas or southern new mexico. the varmints...
We moved away from Florida...too many ants. We moved out of Georgia...too many ants. We moved out of N. Carolina...ants there too. We moved to Michigan. Yikes, they have ants here even but not as bad as Florida. I HATE ants! But I do like Texas bluebonnets. Do you see many of those up your way?
The thing under my shed turned out to be a possum. Then a hurricane dropped a tree on the shed. Problem solved.
Post a Comment