Staying Safe From Bat!

   Bat, the rescue cat, is a very active cat.  A lot of that is due to his still being young and healthy.  He has not gotten into that "fat and lazy" stage that some older cats age into with ease.  He is far too active to be a strictly indoor cat.  I have to let him roam a bit so he does not bounce off the walls.  Being confined is not a good thing for any of us.  Of course, being a cat, he hunts.  Thankfully, his prey is usually limited to shrews, rats and mice but he occasionally does devour a frog or two if he catches them.  I love my frogs so the cat gets reprimanded with each catch.  That probably does not do a lot of good but, believe it or not, Bat does listen...sometimes....and he does know what the word "No!" means.

  This morning, I eased out the front door before the cat went out and noticed that Gilbert, the "light-dwelling" treefrog, was missing.  My heart did a flipflop because I really have become attached to this froggy!  My search of the light was in vain.  Gilbert was missing even though I could have sworn I heard him calling just last night.   I was beginning to be quite sad when a slight movement at the top of the tented arbor caught my eye.  Gilbert?  Nope.  A green anole swished his tail while he eyed my every move.  

  Just past the lizard, another movement brought joy.  Yep!  Gilbert was huddled on the very top board of the arbor and, to my surprise, he was not alone!  Gilbert was sharing the space with another treefrog!  Gilbert found a friend and they were in a safe place.  Bat, the cat, would not think of looking atop the arbor when there were so many other interesting things near the marsh edge.  The two froggies and the anole stayed hunkered down in the hiding spots until I brought the cat back into the house for the evening. 

  This evening, the serenade of the two treefrogs is being heard loud and clear.  They have a lot to sing about.  They have found each other and found a place to stay safe from predators.  Critters are indeed smart!

Intimidation Time

   Earlier before the storms started, I watched two male lizards battling for dominance of the woodpile.  At the beginning, it was noticeable that both lizards were putting on quite the show.  What started as two anoles stalking each other became a fiasco in its own right.  The lizards were fun to watch as they scooted along the fence rail then up to a board that was intended to be used as part of the new gate.  One would appear to be winning the standoff, then the action would shift and the other would take control.

  It was interesting that both lizards started the battle as brown in color but both changed colors several times during their confrontation.  Also, both were changing size and shape.  Lizards can make themselves almost twice their normal size as a form of intimidation.  Then, if speed is needed, they can lose the puffiness in a few seconds.  

  The confrontation was interesting to watch but, to be honest, I could never tell which lizard actually won the rights to the woodpile.  They both seem to have accepted that the other was going to share the hunting space.  This makes me happy as it is nice to have lizards, of any kind, in the garden.  I only wish they would get busy munching the pests and stop lollygagging about trying to intimidate each other.

Garden Stalkers

   About mid morning, I headed to the garden to get a few chores completed before I cranked the lawnmower again.  The sun had warmed the chill from the air so a few critters were out and about.  On the fence rail, there was a show of territorial rights happening!  Two male green anoles were trying to intimidate each other with the flaring of necks and the showing of the bright red dewlaps.  Other than the "I'm bigger than you" performance, there was not much battling.  Both lizards soon tired of the display and went along their respected ways.  One opted to venture into the flowers while the other climbed onto a tomato plant.  Neither of these fellows seemed to be in prime condition.  Both were shedding and both had visual marks of being under stress.  

  Personally, I am glad the lizards were there.  Recently, tiny holes have been appearing in the plant leaves indicating that I have some varmints to eradicate.  My method of "safe" spraying works somewhat but is never as effective as the lizards and birds.  While I was pulling a few weeds from under the tomatoes, the one lizard was happily snapping up some tiny caterpillars.  This is natural pest control at its best!  Since the lizards seemed to have settled their differences, all is good in the garden realm!  

 

The Greenhouse Guardian

  If you are the least bit squeamish about lizards, never work in a greenhouse.  The critters love the place and are actually a grower's best friends.  Lizards keep the place pretty much insect-free and do no harm to the plants. I adore the lizards that dwell in my greenhouse.  Those, along with the family of wrens and numerous green tree frogs, keep the place interesting and also keep me from having to use any pesticides. Nice work!  My sweet sister, however, may never step foot inside my greenhouse as she has an aversion to lizards of any kind.  Let one make a mad leap onto her shoulder and I may just have a new doorway installed...the hard way.

  Today when I went out to give the plants a little drink, the feeling of someone (something) watching swept over me.  I stopped, sat down in the wicker chair and started searching the place for that one set of eyes that was glaring at me.  Sure enough, directly above my head, a green anole was lounging on one of the rafters.  The lizard watched my every move.  I guess it felt like I was some monster invading its domain and was a bit wary of letting itself be seen.   Satisfied that I had found my "watcher", I proceeded with my chores.  It was not long before the lizard moved down to get a sip of water dripping from one of the leaves of the lemongrass.

 With all of the critters moving into the greenhouse, I have to be careful where I step, sit or place things.  I have to be careful of watering the plants in case I douse baby wrens.  I have to be careful to not leave buckets, pots, or rooting jars in upright positions if they are empty. (Lizards get trapped inside and die of thirst.)  I just have to be careful that I keep the greenhouse a critter friendly spot as well as a plant friendly place.  The greenhouse guardian might frown at me from his rafter perch if I do not.

Masters of Disguise

This morning's walk was starting out as any other morning's walk. I headed out the door, took the path through the flower gardens and headed to the vegetable patch. Nothing was out of the ordinary, everything was as I had left it last night. Nothing momentous had occurred overnight. As I meandered through what used to be the lilies, a small movement caught my eye. No..maybe not. Maybe it was just the wind, but there was no breeze to be felt. Maybe my imagination? (I have talked about that before earlier, I do have an active imagination.) Ahh, there it was again. Almost too tiny to see, but definitely a movement. It took me a while to find, but a tiny lizard was on the hunt this early morn. It was so well camouflaged that I could hardly tell it from the dried lily blossom. I took picture after picture as it happily clung to the lily. It was only maybe three inches in length and was hunting tiny gnats and mosquitoes. I was really glad to see it in my garden and was careful not to disturb its hunt. After my walk, I looked at the pictures. I photographed two lizards that were just inches apart! I had not even seen the green one! They are definitely adept at disguising themselves.

Although these lizards are of two different colors, they are both the same species. The Green Anole is usually five to seven inches long and varies in color from bright green to dusky brown. They eat a multitude of bugs so are considered "garden friendly".

Speaking of the garden, a lot of it is dying out. The days have been quite hot recently and we could use a rain. It threatened rain today, but instead just thundered a bit. Thunder does not water the plants! I was happy to see that the Silver Crowder Peas were all poking their heads out of the ground in spite of no rain. Strangely, the one thing doing quite well is the watermelon. A lone watermelon plant started out in the tomato patch, rambled through the bell peppers, past the pole beans and is now entering the pea patch. It is headed toward the house! I will let it wander where it wants unless it starts to become too unruly. We shall see!