Breakfast With a Friend

   I usually rise long before the sun starts to peek over the pines on the far side of the Bayou.  At about 4am, I rise, head to the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee and make a skillet of buttermilk biscuits.  Then, I sit back and enjoy my breakfast in peace in quiet while the menfolk are still asleep.  Sometimes, that biscuit and coffee is taken out to the back deck so I can listen to the frogs as they interrupt the stillness of the predawn.  Coffee is sipped while I ponder things to come.  Usually, this is my "alone" time and I cherish that.

  Yesterday morning, however, that alone time was spent with a long-time friend.  As I sat on the top step, Virginia came ambling out from under the shed.  Yep, my old friend had aroused from her brumation and was rather hungry.  I watched as she made her way up to the steps.  She was still covered with dust from being buried beneath the dry dirt under the shed.  Once she realized I was there, she lifted her front foot which has long been her way of telling me she needed food.  I rushed to find sustenance for my friend.  A hungry box turtle needed food!

  Virginia has been coming around for some 10 to 12 yrs now....perhaps more.  She has befriended each of us and knows she is welcome to a handout simply by asking.  That front foot being raised was her own doing but, since it worked the first time, she has repeatedly used it to get food.  I think it is adorable and always rush to find the best treats for her.  This morning, we shared a banana.  Well, she ate all but one bite.  Virginia was ravenous!  After our breakfast together, she made her way to the Frog Pond for a refreshing dip in the tadpole laden water and I sat and smiled.  Sharing breakfast has never been so grand. It is always nice to have a friend drop in to visit...even better when it is one so sweet.

Ms. Penny

   It was another busy, busy day of shredding mulch for the garden and cutting grass.  After about 3 hours of this work, I needed a cooling glass of water and a bit of rest.  It was during that rest time that an old friend came by to visit.  Ms. Penny, the box turtle ambled out from under the front steps of the Little Bayou House where she has been in brumation since last November.  It was good to see my old friend.  I watched as she slowly ambled to the tiny Puddle Pond where she could get a long awaited drink and some lunch which mainly consisted of tadpoles.

  This turtle has been coming around for years and years.  She is gentle and friendly but not so much as the turtle that hangs around the Frog Pond.  That one literally begs for handouts and attention.  Ms. Penny is receptive of handouts as long as you set it on the ground and back away.  She does, however, clear the Puddle Pond of all tadpoles.  This afternoon, she was still circling the edge nipping the tiny tadpoles from the sides of the pond.  It saddens me to know that hundreds of tiny future frogs met their demise today but it is a fact of nature that predators will be predators.

  Ms. Penny made her way out of the pond and back under the steps for the evening.  Tomorrow, she most likely will go exploring in the Small Gardens then visit the pond again.  She is welcome to stay and is always a delightful visitor.

Long Time, No See!

  It is always good to see old friends even when those friends are critters.  After months of not seeing my buddy, the alligator, it was a relief to finally see him.  Over the winter months, the gators are not active so I miss their presence around the pier.  Once the weather starts to warm a bit. the gators make their appearance again.  Having the gators around seems as natural to me as having the mockingbirds singing in the rose arbor.  

  Contrary to what most folks believe, alligators do not hibernate.  They do not going into a deep sleep and snooze the cold months away.  Instead, they do a thing call brumation.  Gators have a way of slowing down their metabolism to preserve energy.  During this torpid state, the gators use little energy but are still awake. They spend the cold months in either lairs dug in the side of the bank, mud holes or even in thick marsh...anywhere that there is a bit of protection from the cold. They stay dormant until the air warms.   If a gator's lair faces the sun, it may crawl out to enjoy basking.  Once the evening starts to cool, it will crawl back under cover.  

  Our lack of winter allows the gators to do a good bit of basking but they never stray far from their dens deep in the Bayou.  This brumation is why my gators are missing in action for a few months.  Once they become active again, they are hungry and immediately start to hunt.  Anything is fair game for the critters.  Let the nutrias, otters, ducks, etc get lackadaisical during the gators' absence and they may just wind up being supper for a the reptiles!  My crab traps are also considered fair game for the gators but this is a small price to pay for the enjoyment I get from watching them.  Welcome back, Gators!  You have been missed.