After a sleepless night with an ailing dog, the morning should have been spent resting. I would have given anything for an uneventful start to the day but that was not to be. As is my habit, I opened the windows in the kitchen so I could enjoy my first mug of coffee while listening to the birds awakening. They always sound so happy to see the sunrise and it brightens my day hearing them. This morning, however, I did not hear the cheerful chirping. Instead, there was quite the ruckus going on near the plum tree. Crows were everywhere and they were not playing nicely. There was nothing else to do but go out and investigate the cause of their turmoil. Crows can get into the most trouble of any critters on the Bayou.
After easing my way out the front door and around the side of the house, I watched as a crow made a dive down to the ground. It was just about to launch an attack on a poor hapless critter. Thinking this may be another baby bird being ruthlessly mauled, I quickened my step. The crow flew to a nearby pine where it started to scold me relentlessly.
Nope. It was not a baby bird this time. The tiny rat snake that had been feasting upon the tree frogs a few weeks back, had made its way to the ground and was trying to cross a small patch of lawn. The crows were hoping to make a meal out of this little one. Even though Son frowns on me interfering with nature, I was not going to let that happen. Rat snakes are good to have about the place so I had to do a quick rescue. It was then, that a few more crows joined the pack. My little friend was not going to make it without my help. So....I reached down, scooped him up and toted him to a shady spot under the orange tree. There, the snake and I sat bonding for a good fifteen minutes. Finally the murderous crows left to stir up some trouble elsewhere. My little buddy was released near a hollow log and I was able to go finish my mug of (now cold and stale) coffee. Oh, the things I do.
There is one thing that is always holds true here on the Bayou. You can always depend on something to catch your interest. While it may not be something that you enjoy, it will be interesting. Today's bit of (morbid) entertainment came around noontime. I was cooking lunch when a strange noise alerted me that something not-so-nice was happening in the back yard. Since we recently lost an entire nest of baby birds to some marauder, I figured that I had better investigate this call for help.
As I quietly slipped out the back door and down the back steps, I had no idea that I would literally come face to face with a predator. A snake was sort of precariously dangling from the top of the shed. The twisting and torquing of the body told me that this snake was the cause but not the source of the noise. The snake was in the process of trying to swallow a green tree frog. This was a juvenile gray rat snake that was probably only about 15 inches in length and maybe a half inch thick. The frog was a normal sized tree frog. Even though the snake had quite a good grip on the frog, the frog was doing its best to escape. One of the escape tactics the frog was employing was to inflate its body to nearly twice its normal size. This indeed was helping as the snake was having a difficult time swallowing such a round object. The squeaking sound that I heard was the frog being squeezed by the snake's jaws.
My first instinct was to help the poor, doomed frog but, at the urging of Son, I had promised to stop interfering with nature. "You have to let things happen, Mom." So, I got to pondering about that snake and that frog. I was not there to protect the insects that the frog ate before it met up with the snake so I should not protect the frog just because the snake needs a meal. Plus, I really like rat snakes and this little one would have a doozy of a time trying to catch anything larger than the frog. Given time, the snake will grow and move onto larger prey. Perhaps it will clear out the shed of any rats or maybe catch a few of the squirrels that are devouring the peaches. Any which way, the snake had his meal and I had the opportunity to learn a bit more about snakes and frogs. Oh, and about the baby birds mentioned earlier, that dirty deed was definitely NOT done by this little rat snake. Snakes swallow their prey whole....lets just leave it at that.
While out and about the hillside, I always take the camera. You never know what might pop up as a chance to get a great photograph. Plus, I am still on the search for "hidden" critters to send to my grandlittles. Sometimes, however, those critters refuse to hide. Recently, a warbler kept trying to perch on my camera. I had to shoo that one away several times before it got the idea that perhaps I was a bit protective of my gear. Then, there was today.....
This afternoon, the sun made it a tad too warm to do much gardening so I headed back to the creek. Being in a bog is relaxing and far more cool than the sun drenched yard. I found a spot to rest on a leaning tree as I waited for critters to become accustomed to my presence. Other than an occasional gnat, the area was rather peaceful. I could watch for visitors to the sun dappled clearing, yet, be comfortable at the same time. The trunk of the tree where I was sitting was only about a foot off the ground so it gave me a good view down under the small brush. As I was sitting there, I heard the slightest of movement to my right. It was more of a slithering than a footstep making me think a large skink had come to say hello. I turned ever so slightly to find not a skink but a small snake.
A tiny, fifteen inch black racer eased its way closer and closer to me. It must have been curious as to why I had invaded its territory but was not acting like a predator. About six inches from my leather moccasin, the snake stopped. It curled up and eyed me cautiously. After about ten minutes, it seemed to be satisfied that I meant no harm so it relaxed enough for me to gently move the camera in range. The snake was almost too close to get clear pictures. It did not even attempt to move even though I had to change the camera lens to get a better shot.
The little black racer was such an adorably sweet snake and I felt truly blessed to have gained its trust. Even when I stood up to head back to the Little Bayou House because of pending darkness, the snake remained. Only after I took a few steps did it slither back into the leaf mulch to hide for the night. Tomorrow, I will visit the leaning tree again to see if my new found friend will return. Oh, the things you find in bogs! Such happy places!
