As of this writing I haven’t yet been able to discover a proper name for the spider shown above. Despite that, and as a budding amateur arachnologist, I’ve observed that her work hours are unique: 100 percent at night! [No wise-cracks, thank you.] And I assume it is a she because the female in the orb-weaver [Araneidae] family usually weaves the large web. [The
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I just realized that this is the one-year anniversary of desktodirt. And for new readers I bet most haven’t yet gone back to read good articles from the early days. So, from time to time I will reach into the past to present an article that you may enjoy again, or will for the first time. The first-ever article is about a
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Ernie and I got a late start on our evening walk to the way back. On our return under a dusky sky his nose stopped and backed off something in a tuft of weeds: a snake. Without hesitation I picked up my pal and put him inside the shack. There was no need risking his getting a mortal bite. Immediately
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It is 2:22 a.m. Ernie starts barking. Not just one or two obligatory warnings, but a dedicated alarum. I flick on the outback lights. The beams highlight a solitary killdeer, a bird common to Texas and North America. What is the grounded aviator doing out there in the cold and fog at this early hour of a winter morning? Startled
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Ernie has been uncomfortable meeting four legged creatures many times his size. And when you spend your pooch adolescence pretty much citified and indoors, becoming a member of a farm animal social network doesn’t happen overnight. [There is a website for transitioning, isn’t there?] But now, Ernie is a Texas country guy so he is adjusting. He just needed a
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The Mother goat and kid are always very close together. Feeling a little like paparazzi note in every picture the mother and new-born are staring at the camera. That is probably a good idea. Being ever vigilant – including with the aid of the two rams – is good life insurance. There is strong evidence of a coyote that roams at night.
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Press Release: Monday, January 12, 2015 The birth of a new kid in the Fayetteville neighborhood happened today sometime early morning to afternoon. EXCLUSIVE: NOTE FIRST IMAGES OF THE PROUD ADDITION TO THE GOAT FAMILY Mama and little one were first seen lying side by side in the high grass. The weather outside was glum, cold and damp with a chilly north
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I thought it would have happened by now: Ernie personally greets one of the neighbor’s cows. But as you can see from the picture he is not there yet. The cow was willing and made the advance, but Ernie’s body language and occasional nervous whine put her off. She turned on her heels – er hooves – and as much
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You always have to be ready when driving back country roads. Surprises can appear around any curve. That’s the reason I use them. And I’m no longer rushing to be on time for a really really important corporate meeting. With a camera most times in my truck I quickly pulled over to capture these guys. Actually, they could have captured me.
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My favorite animal. Burros. We had a couple back in the late Eighties in New Hampshire. They had been saved from the slaughterhouse door by Cleveland Amory, animal-rights activist. Smart and friendly many people think of them as dumb and stubborn. Well, in my experience, that is just another bogus urban-style legend. They are now widely used as the equivalent
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