Thursday, July 15, 2010

Shudder

Sometimes I imagine myself as some sort of big tiny game hunter when I 'run my trap lines' each morning. We have a problem with ground-dwelling critters. They are darn cute but wreck havoc on our pastures and gardens. Yesterday I pulled up a trap, expecting to find

but found this instead


This is a Tiger Salamander (not my picture - the real/dead McCoy was a little too unsightly). I had no clue that things like this live in arid areas. I was in shock. It turns out that they will take over rodent burrows....ah hah, Mr. Gopher is gone! They are nocturnal and can grow to just under 14 inches. (My specimen was about six inches in length). OMG - we have the ingredients for a Godzilla remake. Well, suffice it to say that you won't find me outside at night without my shoes on. I would hate to step on one of these guys....shudder!
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3 comments:

  1. UnknownJuly 15, 2010 at 8:05 AM

    Aww it's cute! I love lizards though.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Once Upon an EquineJuly 15, 2010 at 9:07 AM

    Interesting. Yeah, I'll take the salamander over the rodent any day. I like lizards too. I keep getting surprised by big frogs when I walk out to the barn at night. It's a regular wild kingdom of the prairie out there.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JeniJuly 15, 2010 at 5:40 PM

    Salamander over rodent ANY DAY !!!! Agree completely!

    My son has a pet green gecko and a green tree frog - they are really cool.

    ReplyDelete

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