what is pink and black and LOVES eggs?

[Kali]

I live in the middle of nowhere in a very old house. the doors and windows are "leaky" even when closed, but this time of year the house is basically just shade in the day - it is pretty open, even though there are screens.

there have been all manner of venomous critters in this house at one time or another, in fact I got it good by a scorpion Wednesday night. there have been toads and centipedes and even two or three rattlesnakes, lots of blood sucking things like mosquitos and cone-nose kissing bugs. but tonight we had/have a real beauty.

tonight was the first time in my entire life that a Gila Monster, was not only in the yard, but it even decided to come on into the living room for a visit.





so I decided to feed it some dinner and will relocate in the morning or tomorrow evening.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Aww, he's cute. I love lizards.

I thought Gila monsters were bigger than that, or is this a baby?

[Kali]

3. yeah he seems a bit small, maybe half grown? or a bit more?

a few years ago we had one around that got picked up off a road - that one was maybe a third again as big. and I have seen them occasionally when out and about, usually on a cloudy summer day.

this guy's tail is pretty thin so I am guessing he/she? is needing a little food. today we had quite a bit of thunder and a tiny bit of rain. lots of small toads out tonight too. probably what he was looking for. that or chicken eggs that sometimes get laid under one bush in the yard.

[ailsagirl]

2. Wow!!

He is a beauty!!

[Kali]

5. they really are

and not as rare as people think, but this was a first LOL

[progressoid]

4. Uh, scorpions?

I can deal with most critters, but I don't think I would like to meet a scorpion.

[Kali]

6. not my favorites either.

makes for a shitty nights sleep, I will tell ya!

[progressoid]

7. Of course it would keep my mother in law from visiting.

She once saw just the skin a garter snake had shed and ran out of the yard.

[riderinthestorm]

8. OMG!!! Scary!! You are so much braver than me!!!

Eek!!!

[Kali]

17. not about some things!

we all have some kind of phobias.

[Autumn]

9. What a beauty.

[Kali]

18. they are, aren't they?

freaking pink and black like some kind of Hollywood fashion outfit!

[Blue_Tires]

10. scorpions? where the hell do you live?

[Kali]

19. in southeast Arizona

on an old family ranch. yee haw!

check this out from a few years ago:


if you look close you can see the babies on her back and one down by the roller

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

27. I think if I found a scorpion on my TP

I would be hysterical for hours. Normally, creepy-crawlies don't upset me too much but I DO NOT WANT SCORPIONS ON MY TP.

[Kali]

29. that was an odd one for sure

the one and only time I have seen it happen.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. Nice pictures, my dear Kali....

You must have nerves of steel. Not around this cute little guy.........but scorpions and snakes!

Did it eat the egg?

[Kali]

20. yes it ate the whole thing during the night

it filled up on some of the white and this morning the rest was gone. I just got back from letting it go about a mile below the house. I read that they can travel and it might come back, but they are slow and VERY noticeable so not a big deal if it does.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

22. If it remembers that you fed it.............It might be back!

[Kali]

31. it might, I just wouldn't want it to get run over in the driveway

it may have been around here for years, who knows? some years you see them out a lot and then you can go for 5 or 6 years and never see one.

[Solly Mack]

12. He's adorable and you're a sweetie!

[Kali]

21. they are pretty cool

that is for sure.

[Solly Mack]

26. That toxic problem is a little bit of a mood killer though.

[Kali]

30. eh they puff up and hiss but it is pretty hard to make them even bite a stick

I picked that one up with a plastic grabber tool and it didn't even try to bite it. I have picked them up with a glove on and same, hisses but doesn't actually bite.

[Solly Mack]

33. Oh, don't tell me that! Now I want to hold one.

You get the best critters around your house.

[Kali]

35. ha!

and then there are the imaginary ones the neighbor sees

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12141123

[Solly Mack]

36. And it seems you have interesting neighbors as well!

lol

[Kali]

32. oh yeah,

I think they were making some kind of diabetes drug out of the venom, or something like that. I will have to go ask the google.

found it - http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070709175815.htm

Exenatide, a drug that is a synthetic form of a substance found in Gila monster saliva, led to healthy sustained glucose levels and progressive weight loss among people with type 2 diabetes who took part in a three-year study.

[Solly Mack]

34. Cool! Thanks! I'll pass that along to a relative of mine.

[brer cat]

13. His markings are beautiful.

You are braver than I am.

[Kali]

23. those markings are wild aren't they?

eh, I am probably scared of something you take in stride every day!

[PRB]

14. Holy crap

We only had black snakes in our yard when it got hot. They were trying to get in the basement. They were big ones--about 6 feet.

Gila Monsters in your living room though? That is totally different. Like some kind of movie.

[Kali]

24. this place is kind of a movie alright

part horror show, part nature documentary and a big dose of slapstick comedy!

[a la izquierda]

15. Wow! Gorgeous!

I love lizards. Could live without scorpions or spiders though. Yuck.

[Kali]

25. spiders don't bother me at all

and if the freaking scorpions wouldn't be so touchy and aggressive they wouldn't bother me either.

[a la izquierda]

37. Spiders are my irrational fear.

Okay, maybe not so irrational since a fiddleback killed my dog (slowly and painfully). I've gotten a little better over the years with them, but I always feel like spiders are eyeballing me. Even though we rarely kill any!

[GoCubsGo]

16. Normally, I'd say "Cool!!!!"

But, I wouldn't want one of those fuckers in my house, either. I understand they pretty much have to chew their venom into you. However, I sure as hell wouldn't want test it. That being said, I'm happy to hear that you are relocating it, rather than killing it like many would.

[Kali]

28. I can't believe anybody would kill them??!!!

they are nothing like a rattlesnake. I understand why people kill them and I confess I do too,when they come in the yard (or the house!)

Gila Monsters are just cool as hell, I could never kill one.