another walk

[asakiyume]

On the way to the supermarket and back I saw three creatures.

First was a northern leopard frog, sitting at the edge of the sidewalk, in meditative contemplation, staring at the grass.

Here is a photo of a northern leopard frog from the Internet (source). Like my leopard frog, he is staring to the left.



He looked like Bodhidharma, who meditated so deeply he lost his arms and legs.

Bodhidharma (source)



Only, my frog's arms and legs were still intact, and the fingers of his hands were pointing inward, like he was getting ready to make a sitting bow.

I kept walking and later I heard a noise like a cat hissing or like a red-tailed hawk screaming--but very quietly (khhhhhaaaaaa!), and there was a rustling in the grass. I looked, and a garter snake slithered away. I hadn't known they could make such a noise!

On the way back, the snake was long gone, but the frog was still there, still doing zazen. I didn't have a camera, so I crouched down to sketch him, but I only managed his hands before he decided he'd had enough and took one big leap into the green.

A little farther on, I ran into a rabbit--who also took a leap into the green, flashing its tail as it went. What a lot of wildlife for a very short walk.

Comments

[roseneko.livejournal.com]

Once, when we lived in Arizona, Brian and I woke up from a nap due to the strangest sound - slightly rough and high-pitched, like cloth tearing. Given that our cats were suddenly very interested in the bookcase in our bedroom (cats are excellent critter-in-the-house detectors), we moved the bookcase out of the way - and I think I jumped about three feet when an honest-to-god coral snake (https://scontent.ford4-1.fna.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/399701_4562765945798_1945365626_n.jpg?oh=4ab8eb63e03ae7fc430d1cd2e0307995&oe=561780F1) slipped out and fled under the bedroom door into the living room. (Venomous as they are, they're extremely shy and don't like to bite except as a last resort. I like to think, on some level, they're aware of the great power gifted to them and do their best to use it responsibly. At the very least, it's probably metabolically expensive to rebuild one's venom supply.)

Anyway, I did a bit of research, and that tearing-cloth sound is the coral snake's warning noise, although it's not a vocalization; it's actually a vibration of its cloaca, which is why when it's looking to warn off predators, the coral snake will hide its head and stick its tail in the air.

And that's how I learned that coral snakes warn you off by farting at you. :)

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Farts do have that effect, even in less venomous creatures :D

But wow. I feel as if somehow the coral snake was lending you its strength by hiding behind your bookcase. Nevertheless, probably good to have go and give that gift to some other location... it would have been terrible if it felt impelled to bite your kitties, or you guys.