Change of Occupancy

  Yesterday when the old dog and I were meandering about the hillside, we stopped by the little Frog Pond.  Dozens upon dozens of tiny green tree frogs were climbing up out of the water and onto the lily pads.  They were making that change from tadpole to frog and were such wee, little things!  Oh, how cute they were!!  Even the old dog, Mr. PJ had to stop and take a gander at the little squirts.  He seemed to be as amused as I was.  That was all too adorable but, then, we fast forward until today.  That cuteness has gone and has been replaced by another almost as interesting (albeit tragic in a sense) scenario.

  After painting a couple of dozen boards for window screens, I decided it was time to change up chores.  The hand needed a break from the paint brush.  I swapped to a pitchfork and started hauling away the wisteria vines that had been recently trimmed.  This job was right next to the Frog Pond.  While I was working, I often looked at the little frogs but, suddenly, a swift movement disturbed the water.  Oh, my!  A snake was after the frogs!  Sure enough, a slender, brown snake gulped down a tiny frog then darted to another lily pad where it gulped another.  It was time to stop work and watch nature at its best.

  A Common Ribbon Snake was making short work of the tiny frogs that dotted the lily pads.  Another local name for this snake is Swift Garter Snake (even though that is not a correct identity) and I could fully appreciate the swift part.  This snake was truly speedy!  It darted about so quickly that it was hard to keep track of where the snake was!  In and out of the lily pads, under the water hyacinths, through the elephant ears it went and all the while snatching frogs from their perches.  At last count, I found 3 frogs remaining.  While that fact did not make me happy, seeing the little snake did.  Nature never ceases to amaze me.