Snakes (on a path)

[hrj]

In theory, yesterday's NLT-monthly gettogether with scotica was supposed to involve her coming to my place, but when I saw the news about the freeway foo I called and warned her off, on the assumption that it would be easier for me to find work-arounds than for her, given that it's my neighborhood. So we ended up going for a hike in the park off the other side of 280 from her place. A close encounter with a young rattlesnake within the first fifty yards or so of the trail inspired a cumulative wildlife tally. (Everyone was very polite about the encounter. The eight or so hikers in the vicinity did a perfect imaginary-crosswalk stop while the snake performed a nicely perpendicular transit of the trail. There was entertaining muttering along the lines of, "Is that a rattlesnake?" "Yup, that's a rattlesnake.") Final list: 3 snakes (one juvenile dimondback rattlesnake; two extremely young garter snakes -- about the size of a pencil); 4 assorted lizards (3 Western fence lizards and one possibly some other species or maybe just dull colored because it hasn't shed recently); at least 9 identifiable bird species (2 California quail, multiple cliff swallows, 1 disturbingly unshy Oregon junco, multiple brown tohwees or something indistinguishable from them in heavy brush, 1 crow, 2 Brewers' blackbirds, 1 starling, several hummingbirds, probably Anna's purely on statistical grounds, a few pigeons); 7 insect species large enough to be worth counting (dragonfly, damselfly, bumblebee, large black beetle, and three types of butterflies -- a probable monarch, a Red Admiral, and some nondescript white thing). There was also a small tuft of rabbit, but we decided the rules only allowed counting whole, life creatures.

Inspiration for the required dinner tie-in came from the recollection that the Morroccan restaurant on Main St. in Los Altos had a very nice roast quail stuffed with mushrooms.

Comments

[albionwood.livejournal.com]

I love rattlesnakes, and can't resist messing with them until they buzz. Once I even got one to make a fake-strike, directly toward me; the mental effect was wonderfully bizarre. (The strike happens too fast to actually see in real-time, but you get a subliminal image of the open mouth coming toward you, causing an involuntary fear response.)

It's too cold for them here, so we only get the garter snakes. No fence lizards either - only alligator lizards.

Juncos aren't shy here either. They will come right into the house if we leave the front door open.

No Turkey Vultures?

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

It sounds like a great time. I need to hang out with you two more.