Other than some very loud Frogs croaking at night attracting mates, you also get a Broad Banded Water Snake.

At least that’s what I discovered today while I was cleaning the Pond.

Fortunately I still have my Snake tongs from last year.  I stayed pretty calm, went inside to grab the Snake tongs, called Leecy, and back to the Pond I went.

This guy is much smaller than the Broad Banded Water Snake I found in the Pond last year.  It was also much calmer than the one last year.  The one I caught last year wanted to bite me every chance it got.

Not so for this little one.

Broad Banded Water Snake Face Shot

I can’t say I’m really surprised this Snake showed up after last night with all those Frogs croaking.

The Broad Banded Water Snake (also known as the Southern Water Snake) eat Frogs, Crayfish, Fish, and Salamanders.  They grow to about 20-30 inches.  This one was about 20-25 inches.

It also doesn’t surprise me they are drawn to my Pond.  Other than the Crayfish, I have the perfect habitat for them.

Young Broad Banded Water Snake

After taking a few pictures, I released him behind my house in the woods.  I then put some “Snake Away” by the fence.  I have no idea if that stuff works or not, but it makes me feel better.

Here’s some shots of the Snake scenting the air while I was taking pictures.

Broad Banded Water Snake Scenting Air

Broad Banded Water Snake Lifting Tongue

While I was vacuuming the leaves, I accidentally sucked up this little green thing.  It turned out to be that baby Red Eared Slider that I found a few weeks ago.

He/she doesn’t seem to have grown much.

This first shot is from Leecy’s camera phone.

Closeup Of Baby Turtle From Pond

Baby Red Eared Slider Turtle From Pond

Despite the lack of pictures, I can give everyone a verbal update.

The Purple Martin babies (the original 5) all seemed to have fledged now.  There are probably 20 Martins flying around every night.  I think there may even be more babies, but when I contemplate checking the Martin house, the Martins start rioting.  I do need to check the house to make sure the original 5 are doing okay, and check the other nest boxes to make sure all is well.

I don’t see any Pipevine Caterpillars, but I do see a few Chrysalises along the edge of the house between the roof and brick.

The single Monarch that I saw a couple of weeks ago laying eggs has not returned, nor have I seen any Caterpillars from her egg laying.  Leecy and I have been collecting the Milkweed seeds like crazy.  She actually created this cute little seed packet and information card and was giving some seeds to our friends and colleagues.  If we end up having more seeds then we know what to do with, I may offer a first come, first serve type thing for whoever needs some.  There’s no way we could plant all of them and I have a pretty big back yard.  If you’re really desperate for some Milkweed seeds (Mexican Milkweed) then let me know.

MJ, the big female Bullfrog hasn’t been seen in weeks.  I can’t remember if she goes off somewhere in the Summer or if she might be just laying low somewhere in the ground trying to stay cool and moist.  We’ve had very little rain so far this year and I wonder if that makes an impact?

Speaking of Frogs, they are creating quite a chorus at night.  There’s normally a little green Tree Frog on the kitchen window every night.  If we could actually get some decent rain I bet many of them would head over to the Pond to do some mating.

The cute little Red Eared Slider that I found in the Pond a few weeks back hasn’t been seen recently.  The Koi are too small to eat the Turtle and I don’t have any predatory birds around the Pond, so I’m not sure what happened to the little thing.

The Box Turtle that the neighbors brought to my house was released back into the wild behind my house.  There’s lots of vegetation and protective cover back there.

We seen quite a few Giant Swallowtail Butterflies flying around and occasionally laying eggs on the Orange tree, but damn if we ever see the Caterpillars.  I don’t know if some insect is getting to them, or the birds, or what.

Once again, we have some Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillars.  We did have 1 Caterpillar a few weeks ago, but like many things, it also disappeared before it got very big.  It was on the Spicebush plant.  Today we counted 7 Spicebush Caterpillars and some of them are on the Sassafras plant, some on the Spicebush.  They are really tiny.

We have lots of Songbirds (Cardinals, Doves, Blue Jays, Woodpeckers, Mockingbirds) right now and they are eating lots of bird seed.  They also are starting to eat some Tomatoes, Grapes, and Blueberries.  Just once I would actually like to be able to taste one of the Grapes we have each year.  I’m too afraid to put a net on the plants as I don’t want one of the birds to get entangled in the net.  There is also a single Male Ruby Throated Hummingbird hanging around.  It’s been typically avoiding any feeders and going directly to the plants for nectar.

Plant-wise it’s just a jungle in the backyard.  The vegetable garden is being taken over by the Cherry Tomatoes. We pick close to a dozen of them every night.  Oh, we also have a Turnip in the garden.  The problem is we didn’t plant any Turnips.  I’m going to guess this is like last year when we had all these Cantaloupes we didn’t plant.  It’s my guess that those lovely bird poops turn into a plant occasionally.

The rescued Kitten we adopted (Delilah) is growing like a weed (to me).  Leecy asks me every night if I can tell how much bigger she has become.  I just offer the “head bob” and the “of course, Honey” when she asks.  The kitten really likes to play with Chloe (the other cat) and to nap near the dogs.  The only interaction I’m not quite comfortable with is Delilah and Coco (African Grey Parrot). I can’t tell if Delilah wants to play with her or eat her so I need to work with both of them on that.

Last but not least, the reason for my delay in posting is because we got a new TV and entertainment system. On just the 2nd day I had the TV the high definition channels wouldn’t work so I immediately called Comcast to tell them where was a problem as I was looking forward to seeing the Three Stooges in high definition.  The person at Comcast thought I was crazy for calling at 6 am to report that kind of outage:-)

Now how he noticed this little thing in the pond, I have no idea.  It’s just a wild guess of mine, but I’m wondering if this baby Turtle’s mother laid her eggs near my pond because we have had almost no rain lately (and so the creek behind the house is likely dry).

After my neighbor explained what kind of Turtle it was and things about its habitat, we released it back into the pond.

Baby Red Eared Slider Turtle

If I can remember, I’ll do another later in the year so you can see the growth (hopefully).

I’ve got a pretty good supply of milkweed that should get me through the first wave of their (Monarchs) migration through Houston.  I look every day to see if I might have an early visitor, although realistically I expect it may be a few more weeks.

The same is true of two of my bird friends, the Purple Martin and the Ruby Throated Hummingbirds,  I can sit for hours just listening to them and watching them interact.

On both Birds and Butterflies Leecy and I are going to make a real effort this year to catalog what we see.

Just a few more plants and I should be good to go,  I may need another passion vine, and I’m not sure my current one survived,  My Pipevine did survive, but just barely. It’s poking out the smallest of leaves at the bottom of the base, but at least it’s alive.

So note to self for this weekend.

1. Clean up the Martin House and put it back on the housing pole
2. Buy a few more nectar plants (firecracker plant)
3. Consider buying another Passionvine.
4. Mulch the part of the yard I no longer want to mow, and make that area yet another Butterfly habitat.
5. Clean filters in Pond so the Koi can start interacting with their mates again.

I don’t have any nectar plants.  Many of the Butterfly host plants (Pipevine, Passionvine, Milkweed that was not transported) are possibly dead.  Our Cassia tree is looking rather wilted but it is still alive as best I can tell.  I won’t know how things will turn out until the Spring.

The extreme cold has also taken a toll on some of our fancy Goldfish.  We lost two of the Goldfish.  On the bright side of things, these two particular fish appeared to be a little sick before the cold weather appeared.

The backyard Birds are still hanging around and I try and make sure they have fresh food on a daily basis.

Something tells me this will be a very busy Spring with lots of plants that will need to be replaced.

Did I mention I’ve had a couple of rats that come out at night to eat from the bird feeders?

I think I have one less rat now, unless this rat is swimming upside down in my pond.  Not sure how he got there, taking a drink of water, a snake got him, no idea.

Rat In Pond

Yep, it’s dead.

Dead Rat From Pond

I’m walking down the trail to the Wildflower field and noticed this large, green Spider.  On closer inspection I could see this Spider was eating some type of Skipper.  I have no idea what kind of Spider this is, so if you know, please share.

Spider Eating Skipper

I finally make it to the Wildflower field, where it is just covered in yellow from the Black Eyed Susans.

Black Eyed Susan Field

I then started scanning the field, looking for Butterflies.  It’s pretty cloudy outside, and not terribly warm, so I didn’t expect to see many Butterflies.

Then I see some orange movement from the corner of my eye.  It’s a Gulf Fritillary warming up for the day.  It looks as though it’s been around for a while, as it has a torn wing.

Torn Wing Fritillary

I continued to scan the field.  There’s a black and grey speck on some type of weed.  I zoom my lens in for closer inspection.  It’s a Gulf Fritillary Caterpillar. It seems a little lost, as this plant doesn’t appear to be one of its host plants.

Gulf Fritillary Caterpillar On Weed

Last time I was here, it was a warm, bright sunny day, but not today.  Not near as many Butterflies as before.  Since I brought my macro lens, I thought it might be fun to look for smaller insects.

“Hmm, weird looking leaf on that Black Eyed Susan” I think to myself.  “Uh, did that leaf just turn its head?”  “Damn, that’s no leaf, that’s a big ol’ green Praying Mantis.”

Praying Mantis On Black Eyed Susan

Why does that Praying Mantis keep turning its head back and forth?  Does it see some type of prey I can’t see?  “Ah ha, I found it!”  I see what its looking at.  It’s looking at another Praying Mantis.  This one looks much different than the one before, just gray in color.

Gray Praying Mantis

I continue scanning inside other Black Eyed Susans.  There’s something green-like inside of one of them.  “Is that thing moving?”  It is, but I don’t know what it is, other than some green looking worm.  No idea what it is, so I make a mental note to investigate once I get home.

Green Worm On Black Eyed Susan

“Wait a minute, is that another worm inside yet another Black Eyed Susan?”  It is, but this one is yellow.

Yellow Worm On Black Eyed Susan

Leecy calls.  She tells me she can join me.  I tell her I’m in the Wildflower field.  Leecy finally joins me and I show her all the critters I have seen thus far.

Suddenly off to our left, this large bird dives head first into the field of Wildflowers.  What the hell?  I can’t get a picture of that, I have the macro lens attached, not my zoom lens.  “Leecy quick, hold this (my macro lens) while I change lenses!”

That big bird starts flying.  I’m not ready, I’m still changing lenses!  “Leecy, watch where that bird goes” I shout!

That bird lands in a tree, not terribly far away.  Looks like a hawk of some sort (It’s a Swainson’s Hawk).  “Look at this size of those feet” I tell Leecy!

Swainson's Hawk

The hawk starts to fly off, and of course, I wasn’t ready to get a picture.  Oh well.

Leecy starts complaining that her feet hurt from the walk she did this morning.  “Okay, let’s just follow this trail around the pond, then we can head home, okay?”  Leecy agrees.

We round the bend, still on the trail by the Wildflower field, and notice there are lots of Fritillary’s flying around.  They really seem to like this plant that has these delicate white flowers on them.

Fritillary On White Flowers

Besides the Fritillary’s, there’s some Skippers that also appear to enjoy this plant.

Skippers On White Flowers

We finally make it around the pond where there is a bench so Leecy can rest her feet.  I start scanning the pond, looking for any type of movement.  A brown shape gently causes the water to move, then another.  A head pops up.  I know these guys, they’re Red Eared Sliders.  Actually it’s a whole family of Red Eared Sliders (probably 7 of them).  The biggest one starts to rise out of the water.

Red Eared Slider

Leecy whispers she’s getting tired.  “Okay, let’s start heading back.”

We make it back to the main building of the Arboretum.  “Leecy, can I show you where we were when I took my Photography class?”  She nods.

We hear Ruby Throated Hummingbirds, but we can’t see them just yet.  I’m scanning the plants for Caterpillars.

“What the heck is that I ask?”  It looks like a giant green worm with red dots on it.  It’s eating that plant it’s on, whatever it is (anybody know what it is?)

Giant Green Worm

“Look at the lizard Leecy tells me”.  “Wow, this guy is really shedding.”

Lizard Shedding

We both continue to scan the plants for some type of movement.  No movement, but another weird looking Worm or Caterpillar catches my eye.  This one looks like that big green one, but this one is yellow.

Yellow And Red Worm

Leecy tells me again how her feet are hurting and I realize that it’s time to go.  It’s supposed to rain today, so we should probably leave.

And off we go, a fun day at the Houston Arboretum (at least for me, Leecy is now sleeping so I can’t ask her:-)

First some history.  I don’t particularly care for snakes.  Sure, I can look at them and say “what a beauty” (to quote Steve Irwin), but they scare me.  Since I have a pond, lots of vegetation, tons of frogs, and woods behind my house I suppose it’s only natural for snakes to visit occasionally.  Eastern Hognose, Gulf Coast Ribbon, Garter, and Copperhead (I’m still hunting for this one as I saw him just the other day) all inhabit my backyard at one time or another.  A few weeks ago I also saw some type of snake in the pond (I’ll tell you what kind in a moment).  If the snakes are small and I’m 100% sure they are not poisonous, I’ll pick them up by the tail (since that’s what they always seem to do on National Geographic) and toss them over the fence where they can go hang out in the woods.

As I already mentioned, a couple of weeks ago I saw a snake in my pond.  It was a fairly big snake and when I tried to grab him with a stick he easily squirmed away.  That’s when I decided I would investigate what those folks on the nature shows use to grab those snakes.  Turns out they use what’s called “snake tongs.”  Of course I had to buy one (they are not cheap) since I wasn’t sure what kind of snake was in the pond, and there still is that Copperhead somewhere in the backyard.

Today I got the snake tongs in the mail.  I decided I would go vacuum the leaves from the pond and “just in case” I brought my new snake tongs with me.  As I was vacuuming the pond, a snake head pops out right in front of me.  It was the same snake I saw a couple weeks ago.  I instantly grabbed my tongs and snatched the snake!  The snake was strong, but these tongs have a very good grip (fortunately for me).  But, I had some problems.  One, my German Shepherd Sascha was right beside me and as soon as I grabbed the snake, she wanted to investigate.  Two, I didn’t know what kind of snake this was.

Thinking as fast as I could, I block Sascha with my leg, hold the snake (with the tongs) with one hand, and call Leecy (my significant other) with my other hand.  I tell her to come get the dog!  Once she puts the dog away I ask her to grab the camera and the books we have on Texas Snakes.

From looking at the books, it appears this snake was a Broad Banded Water Snake.  This was not the friendliest snake I’ve ever met and he was not pleased about being captured!

Broad Banded Water Snake

Here’s a “belly shot.”

Broad Banded Water Snake Belly

Since the snake wasn’t poisonous (at least I hope) I decided to release him into the woods behind the house.  The snake did not seem very appreciative as he tried to strike me.

Snake Strike

Last but not least, this story wouldn’t be complete without once again showing a picture of my Butterfly/Snake hunting gear:-)

Snake Hunting Gear

End of story