The Locals: And the Fauna

 

Mr. Handsome!

I love toads!  Look at that face, so much personality there!  The cabin is near a creek and the general area is in a riparian zone - good toad habitat.  At the right times, toads can be seen hopping around, but you do have to know where to look.  There are a variety of species here; this guy is a Great Plains Toad (Bufo cognatus).  Because I haven't had a dedicated garden area for very long, I don't have a house toad yet.  I'm hopeful with the vegetable garden and it's rock borders, I'll have someone move in next year.  You can't beat a toad for pest control and entertainment value.

Abedus herberti - another handsome guy

I am a big fan of water bugs (Belostomatidae), and this guy I found in the river nearby is typical of males found late spring through summer (with eggs glued to his back).  There are a number of mainly tropical genera found worldwide, but the most common in SW streams and rivers are Abedus and Belostoma.  The insects (true bugs, actually) are voracious predators and if you're not careful handling them, they can deliver a painful "bite".  The bugs capture their prey, jab their hollow mouthparts into it, inject saliva containing digestive enzymes, then suck out the liquefied remains.  Because the proteins in the saliva can break down muscle tissue and the mouthparts are about 1/4" long, if you get jabbed, you can be left with some nasty scars. 

Native bees tucked in for the night.

Because of the wet summer, we had an abundance of thistles growing in the yard this year.  Most were non-natives, but I like thistles, so I let most of them do their thing.  My husband noticed that every evening, each thistle flower had 2-5 bees tucked down in, butts up and sleeping deeply.  It was difficult to rouse them and they tucked back in as soon as they could.  There were a variety of species, all natives, not domesticated honeybees.  Everyone was dusted with pollen and gone the next morning. 

A chubby fence lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) 

New Mexico is lizard central and one thing I miss terribly living out of state is the abundance of reptiles.  At the cabin, lizards and skinks are everywhere.  This cutie met me inside the door when I arrived last August.  He was cool (no place to warm up in the house) so he was easy to catch - still feisty, though.  After a few minutes of close examination, I let him go on the doorstep and he skittered off into the woodpile. 

A land snail; unknown genus

One morning while preparing to prune the apples, I noticed snail trails here and there.  It was a dewy morning, so the little guys were still out in the sun.  During the day, you won't find them anywhere (they hunker down to preserve moisture), but I know they are abundant, due to the large number of shells (left by birds) under trees.  Most of the time, the aridity of the yard prevents their movements and concomitant damage.

I will end with an invertebrate mystery.  Behind the cabin is an old oak with nearly horizontal limbs.  The underside of the largest limb is covered with the empty exoskeletons of an unknown insect.  I never see them "full" or alive (and I check every time I'm there), and yet every year there are more and more exoskeletons under that branch.  Usually I'm pretty good at identifying insects and this one has me stumped.