He's a Jolly Good Fellow!

Scary looking, isn't he? That's what I thought when I almost stepped on him with bare feet while out in our yard! Out of desperation, I called 911 when I realized it was too late to call the nature center for an ID on this creature. We have lots of young children in our neighborhood, and I wanted to make sure it wasn't an exotic snake escapee!

He didn't seem threatening at all when he deflated his head and body. He and I soon came to realize neither one of us was going to hurt the other. Later, he let me follow him to his underground den in our yard.

Satisfied I knew where he hung his hat when he wasn't out hunting, I ran back inside. Looking him up on the internet, the kids and I learned that he's a harmless eastern hognose snake, so named for his upturned nose.
We learned these snakes are one of the best animal actors around. If puffing up its body doesn't scare you and he continues to feel threatened, he may strike at you--with his mouth closed. In spite of his appearance, this snake's species is known to be the least likely to bite! While working out in my gardens, I've often felt a "tap" at one of my legs and now wonder if we've ever encountered each other before!
Another trick he will perform is to roll over onto his back and play dead. He'll open his mouth and hang his forked tongue out to try and convince you of his death. The dead giveaway (pun intended!) is if you pick up his limp body and place him on his belly, he'll roll onto his back, again!
This beneficial fellow has rid of us mice, moles, and sadly frogs, toads, and crickets. They may also eat birds, bird eggs, smaller snakes, and dead animals. He has become an honored guest taking up residence in our yard. --LKR

A Strange Summer, So Far...

This has been a really strange summer, to say the least. The locals agree. If it hasn't been wet and rainy, it's been cool and windy. Today's high was only 68 degrees!!! We haven't had to use the air conditioning at all, so far!

Trees bloomed and leafed out later than normal, this spring, but the melodious croaking of frogs seemed to be on time, in spite of the late April snowfalls. --Yes, that's plural!!!

It was also shocking not to see our lilacs swarming with several species of butterflies, especially the emigrating red admiral and American painted lady. Our sweet smelling mock orange bush, also a butterfly magnet, has surprisingly drawn very little outside of the various bees.

But, the flowers are blooming, the grass is once again green, and in spite of the drop in butterfly sitings, I'm finding eggs on their specific host plants. To see photos of butterflies, moths, and caterpillars, check out the posts on my leps blog at: http://lezasleps.blogspot.com/ --LKR

Bettas and African Frogs

One little African frog.

Another little froggy. Unfortunately, neither of them lived that long.

This is Passion, one of our bettas, named after the purple passion plant. Passion really is more purple than he looks, here. We just lost him two days ago.

This is Pate II. We had another wonderful Pate when we lived in IL that protected our platy fry (babies). He wouldn't let any other fish near the netted breeder they were in! --LKR

First Family Camping Trip

My hubby and I had bought a tent at Venture's going-out-of-business sale over a decade ago, vowing to some day "rough it" in the "wilderness" with our children when they were older. We both enjoyed tent camping while growing up, but trying to find a happy medium of where to actually pound our pegs looked dubious. That is, until we visited Hok-Si-La in Lake City, MN.

"I like what I see!" said my hubby. I agreed. "Really? Do you really think this is doable for you? We can get you an air mattress, and a warmer sleeping bag. You really like this?" This doubt comes from a decade of declines partly due to my chronic (myofascial) pain, allergies, and fibromyalgia (all well managed, now), but more because of over-crowded, noisy campsites we had looked at in the past. In my opinion, when you're trying to get away to relax and unwind, you need more nature and less civilization.

A week later, we were back at this beautiful park. The time had come! It was to be the first tent camping experience for our family of five, and we were all excited! Fido came along with us and was on cloud nine--he'd never gone anywhere with us, except to the vet's--oh, and to puppy lessons (to train the kids more than the dog, mind you!).

We had a beautiful view overlooking Lake Pepin (aka the Mississippi River). Gulls, bald eagles, and fishing herons entertained us while we ate at our campsite. There were lots of frogs, too, and fish were active and visible, as you can see in the top left photo.

The weather was warm, and even hot, in spite of it being overcast the first two days. The predicted thunderstorms were nothing more than a few distant rumbles accompanied by a light shower that lasted maybe an hour. The third day was absolutely gorgeous, and none of us wanted to leave. We can't wait to go back! --LKR