Wildlife encounter

[tamtagon]

The most exciting discovery I've had this year came this afternoon when I encountered a beaver in the woods behind my house. A real life BEAVER!!! There's like a small creek running down the hill with a retaining pond to regulate runoff from heavy rainfall, and sure enough the one beaver I saw is building a home.

Who cares about Victory or West Village, I've got a beaver in my backyard!

[rantanamo]

Woke up one recent morning in Panama City and opened the door. I almost took a step when this hermit crab climbed up the doorstep. I have no idea if they exist in the wild here or someone's pet on the loose. The shell was definitely from the beach. Named it Gonzalo. Shared a salad with it. Then it took off towards the water. wonder if it made it.

Last thing that scared the crap out of me was a fishing trip to Lake O' the Pines. I'm reeling away, thinking I caught a good sized bass. Urnnnnt. I pull out a huge water mocassin(sp?), and I slapped a few people with it, when it came out of the water. Haven't fished since.

[RobertB]

In the late '80s, my wife and I got a job housesitting -- through Manpower, as strange as that may sound. All we had to do was spend a weekend in a condo for sale in the Vickery neighborhood, just a couple of blocks from where we lived at the time.

When we went in, it wasn't long before we realized we weren't alone. After some initial concern, we realized that the clanking and scampering wasn't another human bent on Jason/Freddie/Michael style mayhem, and looked around for the source. We looked through all the cabinets and all the rooms before we found the culprit... a possum in the bathroom. It didn't really want to leave, at least not with us watching... as I recall, it had to escape on its own. We never did figure out how it got in.

Nowadays, our favorite wild critter of the many surrounding us is the graceful, majestic buzzard (http://www.accutek.com/vulture/). Really! Check the link -- they're cool.

[mikedsjr]

I think the beaver things is really COOL!

Unfortunately, if anyone else spots it it will probably be shot or killed because people fear wildlife taking over their area, although they love taking over the wildlife's area.

[freewaytincan]

Possums are everywhere in Richardson these days.

[rantanamo]

When I lived on Rio Grande in Austin I lived under this super hot young lady. Ringer for Heather Locklear, she was. Anywho, I hear this strange scratching and scraping sound on the ceiling one day and worry if the young lady is ok. I didn't do anything about it because it stopped. So I'm working on a paper at 3AM, wonder if I let her die or something. Then I get a knock at the door. I couldn't see anything out the peephole, but I hear a faint, "Me...." So I open the door and she flies in, grabs my hand and puts me in a death hug. I'm like, what's the matter. She said, "up there!!" So I look up and there's a tiny black hand scraping a whole around my ceiling fan. So I ask, "did you know what it was, or did you just hear the noise". She replied, "I was sitting on the toilet and this little hand and head break through the tile, so I jump up and ran down here because my cat likes you and I don't know anyone." Though nothing happened, she did at least sleep on my bed that night. Sadly I became the 'F' word to her, lol. But it was fun, and I got a little break on rent for the inconvenience.

[freewaytincan]

I'm really confused. What was it? What just happened? Did I imagine that?!

[rantanamo]

^confused with my post?

A giant raccoon burrowed through the side of the apt building and was being a raccoon between the first and second floor. The hand scared the crap out of me, because it was just like a little person's hand with a black leather glove on it. Yes it really happened. They put cut her floor/my ceiling so it could get out, and set a trap for it. Still the biggest one I've seen city or country.

[tamtagon]

^confused with my post?

A giant raccoon burrowed through the side of the apt building and was being a raccoon between the first and second floor. The hand scared the crap out of me, because it was just like a little person's hand with a black leather glove on it. Yes it really happened. They put cut her floor/my ceiling so it could get out, and set a trap for it. Still the biggest one I've seen city or country.

It's kinda like Sexy Wildlife Encounters.

[rantanamo]

She was sexy in her little boxers and half T, but that's all I saw and the waist grab was all I got. Ahhh, Life long regrets.

[gc]

^ I cannot believe this thread has ten posts...make that 11!?!?!?

I saw a snake once and I have ridden a water buffalo.

[rantanamo]

I like the thread. Most on the board live in the city, so wildlife encounters aren't that common

Others I can think of are:

- walking down a dirt road in deep east Texas two deer spring in front of us from out of nowhere

- while throwing rocks into Carter Lake(east texas again) I saw a huge splash in the water. You guessed it; small crocodilian of some sort

- this little beauty at the PGBT Dart station. It wouldn't let anyone pass until the train scared it off.

[gc]

I hate SNAKES!!!!!

[rantanamo]

^That was the meanest little guy ever. It had the whole station full of people afraid to go across.

[drumguy8800]

The thing's tiny!

I've had possums and rabbits on our front porch in red oak.. plus armadillos and snakes and frogs and the like..

I've seen a road runner run across our yard in Carrollton..

I've been walking through one of Carrollton's greenbelts and I saw a goodsized "pack" of coyotes meandering through the woods..

And.. GRACKLES! DOWNTOWN! GRACKLES!!

[JaeTex]

I like my occasional urban wildlife encounters.

Saw more than a few possum while living in State-Thomas. Hard to believe, but nice to see, that even in such an urban area there's room for the critters. Of course I did have to fish a dead one out of the swimming pool once (and, no, it wasn't playing possum).

Also, my wife heard reports of coyote on a walking trail in Addison.

[gc]

I like birds, rabbits, deer, etc......................but snakes.......i hate snakes....all sizes off them....i hate 'em i hate 'em i hate 'em

[tamtagon]

Snakes are our friends.

Possum, racoon and deer are common sights in my neck of the woods - two miles (as a crow flies) from a large lake and state park. I see bobcat track occasionally, but the beaver is a first for me.

[RobertB]

Snakes are our friends.
Absolutely! Unless you're a rat, you should be happy to see a snake come to visit, especially one like this that is *clearly* non-poisonous. Look at its head -- the poisonous ones in this part of the world have a big head to hold the poison. I'm glad that the train scared it away before someone came along and killed it.

If me and my bunch had been there, I'd have been hard pressed to keep the kids from picking it up to take home.

[sterling]

What a special thread. I'd just like to take a moment to wish all our furry, feathered, animal, vegetable and mineral Dallas friends a joyous holiday and a blessed new year. With love to all. From the rats in the garbage dumpsters, to the roaches that scurry up the garbage chutes, from the wino sleeping in his own pee beside the Mercantile Building, to the wino asleep in his luxurious 15th floor loft apartment... Here's to wildlife!

[drumguy8800]

No. No merry christmas to roaches. One creature I wouldn't mind seeing go extinct.

[texman]

No. No merry christmas to roaches. One creature I wouldn't mind seeing go extinct.

Can't they survive a nuclear holocaust or somthing crazy?

[warlock55]

My family and I love to hike and camp so I've seen everything from tiny fish that live only in Death Valley to black bears.

But my sister's the really lucky one - she's been to South Africa.

[tamtagon]

This is for you gc....

I went looking at stuff in the park near my house, and saw this beauty:

http://img378.imageshack.us/img378/7105/cornsnakeif6.th.jpg (http://img378.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cornsnakeif6.jpg)http://img378.imageshack.us/img378/8804/bengraduationandhowardbla5.th.jpg (http://img378.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bengraduationandhowardbla5.jpg)


It's about 4 feet.

[gc]

This is for you gc....

I went looking at stuff in the park near my house, and saw this beauty:

http://img378.imageshack.us/img378/7105/cornsnakeif6.th.jpg (http://img378.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cornsnakeif6.jpg)http://img378.imageshack.us/img378/8804/bengraduationandhowardbla5.th.jpg (http://img378.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bengraduationandhowardbla5.jpg)


It's about 4 feet.


HA!

Call me Indiana Jones......I HATE SNAKES!

[Spjz]

I went looking at stuff in the park near my house, and saw this beauty:
It's about 4 feet.
Looks like a Texas Rat Snake. Harmless, as long as you don't stick your finger near its mouth. SNAP!

[tamtagon]

I HATE SNAKES!

Better?

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/2747/saveforcd066wf4.th.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/my.php?image=saveforcd066wf4.jpg)

[gc]

Much better, thank you.

Bunnies = good.
Snakes = bad.

[tamtagon]

The turtle - well one of the turtles - living in my backyard laid eggs today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tn_IFU_pqgA

[AeroD]

I could be wrong, but it just seems within the last couple years, rabbits, squirrels and coyotes have decided they are are not retreating.

I remember when we first moved out to Allen back in '93. I did not see any rabbits, squirrels or coyotes. But within the last couple years I have seen them in the front and backyards (except coyotes, those guys are in the open spaces between the subdivisions). I guess people do not realize well-manicured and regularly watered yards provide a more reliable food source for little critters than does a creek which may be entirely flooded one day, or dry as a bone another day.