One of the very special things about visiting Robin is that her love of nature is contagious. She whets my appetite for learning about plant life as well as animals. This gorgeous tree stands in front of her house to the left of the driveway. I'm sure we were told the species name and all about it. I am interested, but I was learning so much that I just couldn't retain it all.
While we were there, we learned about the wolf spider that builds large long tunnels, one of which ran under Robin's house. We learned that these spiders are loved by some because they kill many unpleasant pests, both insects and very small vertebrates like amphibians and reptiles. When they vacate those tunnels, other animals move into them. What struck me the most is the many varieties of snakes that might now live in that space beneath the house.
I am much less than comfortable talking about these creatures, but Robin assures us they are part of the natural system God designed and they should be respected. Well, I am not one to go out hunting them and I would be sure to exit quickly any area that one occupied. I can't say that I love or respect them, but since I will be as far away from them as possible, I won't do them any harm.
I wish I could remember what we were told about the animals that take up residence in the spider tunnels once they have been vacated by the eight legged creatures. I googled to see if I could find the info, but was not able to come up with it quickly. All I remember for sure was that a very large number of snakes are among the icky things that use those old tunnels for hiding places. I'm not sure which creep me out the most, spiders or snakes. No wait, I do. If I had to walk toward either a snake or a spider, it would definitely be the spider. Yikes what kind of a blog is this anyway. The subject matter is in the pits.
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