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Lighter subject
Apr. 6th, 2020 08:06 amI have a COVID rant all prepared, but I need a break. I think we all do.
So, one of the advantages of the US South is the screen porch. Especially in swampy areas, screen porches are the best way of mediating between the outdoors with its various horrors (ranging from mosquitoes the size of 747s to alligators and copperheads) and the stuffy indoors. If there's a rocking chair, one can even get exercise and meditation (at the same time!) on a screen porch.
One thing that we discovered early in our early spring were what we were calling "the geckos in the backyard." Turns out that a) geckos are an invasive species in the US and b) they weren't geckos. They are instead a native species called anolis carolinensis. I figured it out from the red pouch the males can push out from their neck.
We have three that hang out near the screen porch. We see the male -- whom I've named Anatole -- the most. Caroline -- the female -- and the baby (so far unnamed) are more likely to be inside the screens, but they all do heroic jobs with gnats and mosquitoes. The dogs are being asked not to bark at them as we want to keep their insect eating skills nearby.
I watched Anatole climb to the top of a black metal post that's part of our handrails by the stairs and then I couldn't see him. It took me a minute to realize that while I'd been searching for Caroline and the little one, he'd taken the opportunity to change from his usual bright green to a dark brown that allowed him to blend in. They're fascinating critters.
Also, they are less likely to kill me than alligators and copperheads.
So, one of the advantages of the US South is the screen porch. Especially in swampy areas, screen porches are the best way of mediating between the outdoors with its various horrors (ranging from mosquitoes the size of 747s to alligators and copperheads) and the stuffy indoors. If there's a rocking chair, one can even get exercise and meditation (at the same time!) on a screen porch.
One thing that we discovered early in our early spring were what we were calling "the geckos in the backyard." Turns out that a) geckos are an invasive species in the US and b) they weren't geckos. They are instead a native species called anolis carolinensis. I figured it out from the red pouch the males can push out from their neck.
We have three that hang out near the screen porch. We see the male -- whom I've named Anatole -- the most. Caroline -- the female -- and the baby (so far unnamed) are more likely to be inside the screens, but they all do heroic jobs with gnats and mosquitoes. The dogs are being asked not to bark at them as we want to keep their insect eating skills nearby.
I watched Anatole climb to the top of a black metal post that's part of our handrails by the stairs and then I couldn't see him. It took me a minute to realize that while I'd been searching for Caroline and the little one, he'd taken the opportunity to change from his usual bright green to a dark brown that allowed him to blend in. They're fascinating critters.
Also, they are less likely to kill me than alligators and copperheads.
