Western Wild

August 29, 2021

Hello again,

We had another tarantula sighting today, Erin saw it just waltzing across the parking lot towards our house. I was out cleaning the horses' water trough and walked back down the hill to check it out. It was a Monarch, the same kind that I saw last month, with a yellowish carapace(its tough, shell-like back plate). It shied away when I got too close and scampered into the undergrowth of Kim's garden. Erin then saw it make its way up and onto her porch, then around to the courtyard behind the house and then up and over the wall into the backyard and on up the hill. They say if you see one walking uphill that it's going to rain, and sure enough we have about a 80% chance tomorrow starting around lunchtime! I'd say we're settled in now, and perhaps locals even, now that I've witnessed Erin not stop watering the flowers in her flip-flops while there was a tarantula less then five feet away. Their big migration is upon us and I was told that when I saw one back in July that that seemed a little early to be seeing one. In any event, just one of the many cool critters that we have out here: scorpions; giant centipedes; snakes; lizards(that are only females and can still reproduce by themselves!); among many other wild things.

Speaking of which, we saw a rather largish sized white spider out our side door over the weekend that was easily approaching hermit crab size. We had just had a downpour and there was a puddle at the base of the steps that come down to our side door and there it was right along the edge of it apparently drinking water. So, we looked it up quickly, and sure enough, spiders drink water and actually put their little mouths down to it and suck it in just like any other animal. They can go a lot longer without water than most critters, but still quite an interesting fact to learn. This type of spider was an Orbweaver. We weren't able to zero in on its exact type, but I can say with assurance that it is another set of eyes that appears to be helping us watch the kittens. So, now as we go in and out the door to check on them, we have to make sure that we don't squish this huge nanny that is usually hanging off the door somewhere! When we moved out here we thought we'd be seeing cougars, bears and coyotes every day and would also be inundated with snakes, scorpions and other things that bite and sting. Turns out that there just isn't as many animals out here as we are used to back East. Back East when you're out walking in the woods, even way out in the middle of nowhere, there are chipmunks and even squirrels everywhere, as well as all kinds of bird life. The carrying capacity of the land out here in the high desert appears to be a lot less than the humid Appalachians that we hail from, but we are still noticing the life that is all around us. Last winter I thought that I wouldn't be able to go anywhere around the ranch without snake boots and that we'd need some kind of strategy to keep the scorpions out of the house. Now, we both waltz around everywhere in flip-flops and have even gotten to the point of shrugging when we see another scrawny, little scorpion scurrying under the couch.

And, now for some pictures. First up, an image that I played around with that started with a close-up that Erin did of a red and yellow flower and ended up looking like blue-green stained glass. This is followed by another mantis that Erin spied in the garden and then the Orbweaver that is our new neighbor and kitten sitter. Then, the next three shots are of the dogs out for another swim this week, this time with Cheyenne tagging along. Next, a shot of Rui and Ela crashed out on the couch after yet another adventure. Then, a shot of beans from the garden that Erin first gathered and cleaned and then got ready for freezing. Next, a shot from the jobsite this week as I was up on a scissor-lift sanding beams with Starvation Peak in the distance. The next five shots are of the kittens and their antics: first, the boy, Chaco, mugging for the camera while out on patrol; then, a shot of their setup on the side porch with their coyote-proof tube; next, Chelly(pronounced 'Shay,' as in Canyon de Chelly) peaking out from her hiding spot in our big copper kettle with firewood in it; then, all three, with Zia this time, exploring under the big juniper at the side of the house; and, finally, the girls bouncing off of each other like ping pong balls while they were out playing. And, lastly, one of Erin's shot of her beloved Zinnias.

Be good and see you next week!