That Old, Dead Pine

   Along the path that meanders down where the Bayou meets the creek, there stands a dead tree.  At one time, this was a stately pine but now it is just a remnant of what it once was.  Back in 2014, we had some pretty terrible lightning storms.  Several of the pine trees were struck by bolts of lightning which ultimately killed them.  Since most of these were growing right in the marsh, we left the trees stand.   The trees were of no value to us and would become of great value to the wildlife of the area.  As the trees decayed, many insects started gnawing on the inner portions which caused woodpeckers to pound away at the trees.  The cavities soon became homes to, not only the woodpeckers, but dozens of other critters.   Flying squirrels, nuthatches, snakes, lizards and even raccoons nested there.  A dead tree can provide even though it has ceased its own life on this earth.

  Today as I hiked along the path, the tree struck me as some sort of eerie monument.  Its gnarled limbs were silhouetted against the pale lit morning sky.  The tree was dark and ominous.  As I stood there staring at the tree, a tiny flying squirrel darted into one of the holes.  Ahh, yes.  Life continues even through death.  The totem holds life in its arms and gives protection.  Pretty neat thing.

Greedy Critters

   While I love to watch most critters around the Bayou, squirrels have got to be the nuttiest.   (Yes, that was intended.)  These fluffy tailed rodents are ridiculous.  The female goes about all summer in a tizzy as she builds a nest, has the young, repairs the nest, has another bunch of young, repairs the nest again and stores enough nuts to feed an army.  The male chases the female.  Basically, that is all he does.  She does the work, he does nothing.  

  During the winter months, squirrels' appetites become quite intense.  They eat anything...hickory nuts, acorns, sunflower seeds, flower bulbs and stale Christmas cookies.  (I actually found a gray squirrel eyeing the shell wind chimes the other day!)  It is those hickory nuts that cause me to ponder.  Have you ever tried to shell a hickory nut?  It is nigh on impossible to get a morsel larger than a grain of rice out of the nut and that is after smacking it with a hammer.  Yet, a squirrel can gnaw a tiny hole in the end of the nut and empty the contents completely.  Of course, gnawing that tiny hole leaves about ten pounds of hickory nut shreds under the tree.  (I have yet to figure out how one squirrel with one nut can create such a mess.)

  Years ago, Pop told me that it is not the gray squirrels that gnaw the hickory nuts in that fashion but rather the flying squirrels.  That makes the enigma even more confusing as flying squirrels are extremely tiny.  You would think that such a difficult chore would be left to the larger critters.  Who knows?? I am not out much at night when the flying squirrels take their outings.  

  The squirrels of all types are running low on "supplies" already this winter.  The tropical systems that came through knocked down the nuts before they were filled so food is scarce.  Lately more are gnawing on twigs and are begging for handouts.  They raid the birdfeeders as soon as the seed is available.  This causes problems for the songbirds so now I have started including table scraps to the bounty.  Apple cores, squash seeds and any other tidbits are put out for the critters in hopes that they will share.  Not likely as those squirrels are a greedy sort but I have to do something to protect those wind chimes and flower bulbs!

Late Night Dining!

  Yesterday evening seemed unusually warm.  So much so that I reached over and raised one of the living room windows just a crack.  The night air was refreshing.   As I sat there pondering all of the sounds that could be heard more clearly though the open window, one stood out above the others.  Hmmm?  It sounded a lot like some critter was dining just outside the window.  Scritch, scritch, scritch.  I had to listen carefully to be sure that I even heard the slight noise.  Whatever was having dinner this evening must be small.  A large animal would have surely made a heavier gnawing sound.  I pondered and pondered and just when I was about to gather a flashlight to investigate, I had my answer.  A wee squeak joined the scritching sound.  Ahhh, yes!  The flying squirrels that live in the dead Black Gum Tree must have come down to dine on the acorns that littered the ground.  Other squirrels have not dared to venture so close to the house as these acorns are literally under the front steps.  

  As I listened to the munching sound, a thought occurred to me.  Flying squirrels seldom stay on the ground long.  The little one must have found some "table" on which to enjoy its supper.  This...this, I would have to investigate come morning.  I would leave the tiny critter to enjoy his meal for now.  I even went so far as to not close the window in case I startled the squirrel.  The blind and curtain were soundlessly closed instead.

  This morning, I found the diner where the little squirrel munched.  The gatepost top sufficed as fine tabletop.  With the arbor overhead, the little rascal was protected from owls and the gatepost allowed the little one a good view of ground based predators.  Hopefully, the little one can dine in peace from this day forward.

  All of this reminds me of a tale that I told a few years back.  My sweet daughter-in-law and her adorable friend came to spend the night at the Little Bayou House.  It was the day after Halloween and, of course, I still had candy sitting about the buffet.  At this same time, the house had another visitor.  I had seen a flying squirrel swoop across the dining room from the shelf to the china cabinet.  This did not bother me as I am sort of used to having critters visit but during the night, the squirrel decided to eat the nuts out of one of the candy bars.  I guess when you are hungry, anything will suffice.  Anyway, I showed the girls the gnawed upon candy and explained that there was a squirrel somewhere in the house.  I did not want them to be upset if they were suddenly on the receiving end of a dive-bombing experience.  All went well but I could not leave well enough alone.  I sort of stretched the story to lead Joanna's guest to believe that all houses this far south kept flying squirrels.  "On the Bayou, we get an awful lot of bugs so a flying squirrel or two inside keeps the house pretty much bug-free!" I told her.  At first she was very skeptical but after a lengthy (and obviously convincing) speech, she seemed sure that she would awake during the night with a squirrel in her bed. Oh, that would never do!  I could not fib to Sweet Amy.  I had to confess!  The tale about all houses having flying squirrels was totally fictitious,,,,the part about a squirrel being in the house....totally true.  I am not sure that poor Amy felt any better about sharing her sleeping quarters with a squirrel but I sure felt better about not giving her a line of bull!  That visit was most delightful!  I love those two young ladies!

Nibbles and Lil Bit..two funny, little clowns!

I am sitting here this evening with the windows open!  It has been that warm here for the past week or so!  With the windows open, I can hear some shrill squeaks coming from the dead Black Gum Tree that sits not ten feet from the window.  I suppose the tree is not fully dead, just the top part seems to be.  The woodpeckers have drilled numerous holes in the upper part as they were looking for grub worms and other critters.  There is even one hole that a Red-bellied Woodpecker has claimed as home.  She nested there this past summer and comes back to the nesting spot each evening to sleep.  Here she is well protected from any inclement weather.  But...she is not making the nighttime squeaks!

Picture taken by Michelle Hengen of two adorable flying squirrels!

I went out with the flashlight a bit earlier to investigate the high-pitched sound.  I knew just what was making the calls and could even hear the little critters scampering around on the rooftop!  Flying squirrels were playing in the darkness!  I could not actually see the squirrels themselves but their eyes would catch the light letting me know just where they were!  I counted seven different squirrels and one even decided to investigate me!  As I was standing there, I heard something scurrying on the tree trunk just a few feet from me!  There was one brave little guy spying on me!  He stayed just a second and then went gliding off to another spot!

A cute little flying squirrel  climbing around  on the upper shelf!  Picture taken by Michelle Hengen.

My cousin, Michelle has several of the little flying squirrels that have taken up residence in her home.  She lets them have free range of the entire house and often takes pictures of their escapades!  She has named them Lil Bit and Nibbles!  She even has to check her clothing in the morning lest she pulls on a jacket that has a squirrel taking a snooze in the pocket!  Michelle has always had a soft spot for any wildlife and pretty much can make friends with any critter that comes her way.  It seems as if the critters know this and..well, just take over her house! She feeds the little squirrels and makes sure they are quite comfortable.   I am sure that the squirrels' antics keep her amused and that in itself is her reward.  I, personally, am happy that the squirrels have not made their way inside the house!  Ms. Ez, the dog, and Ms. Put, the cat, would be chasing them around at all hours of the night!  Not good!!!  I will let Michelle house the flying squirrels even though I adore them!.....And, now that I said that...one or more will probably find a way to come inside!

Midnight Snack

The evidence of a midnight snack is there. Well, maybe not exactly midnight, but the fact remains that there is definitely some nightly noshing going on in my yard. Littered under the large hickory tree are the telltale signs of flying squirrels' mealtimes. It is easy to tell that these are the remnants left behind by the Southern Flying Squirrel as no other squirrel can open a rock-hard hickory nut in quite the same way. These tiny rodents will gnaw a perfect oval hole in the end of the nut and leave what resembles a wooden "cup". The edges are left smooth and the shell empty. The other squirrels just simply rip the thing to pieces. It intrigues me that something so small can do this. Just as a matter of explanation..flying squirrels do not actually "fly". They have no wings just a flap of skin called patagium. This flap stretches from the ankle of the front leg to the ankle of the back leg. When the squirrel wants to "fly" from one tree to another it launches itself into the air, stretches its legs outward and glides with these flaps! Pretty efficient mobility!

Finally! Today, the old parlor stove received its final touches of restoration. This beautiful old cast iron stove had been severely damaged during Hurricane Katrina so I am elated that it is now ready to be reinstalled in the house. The before picture shows the intensity of the rust damage caused by salt water that was blown into our house by the storm. Now, after much laboring the stove has regained most of its beauty. I say most since there had to be some replacement of parts that are not original to the stove. The back legs were completely gone and try as I might, I could not find any that matched. As luck would have it though, the same storm that caused harm to this fine old stove gave me the replacement legs. A piece of some other iron

stove washed into our yard from "who knows where". We removed the broken legs, replaced them with found ones and then scraped and buffed away all the rust. With a new grating and a new cook plate, it is finished! The results..a beautiful, functional cast iron woodstove! Now with some new stove piping and a bit more elbow grease during installation, this beauty will be ready for the first cold spell of winter!