Sitting inside all day glued to my computer had made me forget that beyond my window are other living things, but being outside has made me reconnect with some of these little guys.
Cottontails – These little guys are around all the time especially during the spring. A few of them like to hang out in the nopales, and some have even nibbled off the new pads or prickly pears (not often). The little guy in the picture is Thumper, he was caught by our dog. Thankfully, our dog is gentle and did not harm him, only excessively slobbered. Since he was so small and had been removed from his home, we nursed him for a week before returning to the wild. Occasionally, we would see him running around (he had unique markings easy to distinguish) with his little friends in the front yard.
Jackrabbits – These guys are much larger than a regular rabbit. The first time I saw one on the farm, I thought it was a small fox. There was a massive wind storm (haboob) that day, I looked out the window and I noticed an animal darted across the field. At first glance I thought it was a small dog or fox only to realize its ears were massive. He was huge and moved at the same speed of the wind but against it! Later that year my sister and were outside talking when we noticed a group of Jackrabbits not too far from us. There were about 6-8 and they were playing. I did not know they were such social animals. It looked as though they were playing freeze tag, jumping so high up in the air. I have never seen anything like it before and doubt I ever will. It’s one of those memories that gets imprinted in your brain and you replay when you need a good thought.
Horny Toad – Growing up I do not remember seeing many horny toads, and was pleasantly surprised when we discovered that there are quite a few living on the farm. They are so small and hard to see because their coloring is similar to the ground. At first I thought it was a bug but the spikes are dead giveaways. I know general locations of where they live on the farm and try to avoid disturbing them. Horny Toads are a declining species and could go extinct soon, so I just want to make sure I do my part to try and protect them.
Kangaroo Rat – One day as I was squatted down working on a nopal, something sprung out of the ground running quickly towards me. It scared me to death! So much that I jumped back and landed on another cactus. At first I thought it was a Wolf Spider, which I am deadly afraid of, (they are all over the place in Muleshoe……sigh) so of course I wanted to get out of the way. As my eyes adjusted onto it I noticed it was fuzzy. Only then did I realize it was a kangaroo rat. These guys are so small and fast! Since I was already on the ground, I quickly got my phone and snapped a picture. The picture makes him look bigger, but in reality, this little guy was about the size of my thumb. Kangaroo rats have similar coloring to the ground and are incredible fast, so this was really the only time I saw him though I am sure there are more out there.
3 replies on “Farm Friends”
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