Watch what ya wish for.... LOL

A few weeks ago, I had a box turtle momma and baby show up in my yard. I was discussing it with some friends and we were talking about other critters and oen friend talked about how she has a critter in her yard that keeps digging up her Daylily beds. I jokingly told her to send it my way.

Well, I guess she took me at my word cuz this is what happene d to me yesterday. ........

I had wearing gloves when gardening and had spent the day before weeding nut sedge and oak and hickory seedlings and beery bush runners out of my beds. By the time I got half way through I had manage d to get some nasty blisters. Then was having computer problems, so...

I thought ok I'll go do the second half of the beds and finish them up blister and all, this time arme d with bandaid and gloves. Weedling a bear sometimes but once starte d I enjoy it and the peace and quiet

I steppe d out side and the humidity was unbearable. Ya couldn't breath, so I said the heck with the weeding til it cools down some and headed to check the hummer feeder. I turn around and right in front of my face is one of my hummers. I froze it froze. Shock number one. Never been a few inche s from one for several seconds like that. Decide d to get away from there and let them have some peace to eat.

Over to one of my areas where I got soem newly transplante d seedlings in trays sittign and down I pearche d my "tail" onto a milk crate to watch the hummers feed from a distance. All of a sudden I heard this giant rustle and thought great the neighbor cat headign into my hoop house to try and eat the lizards again. I dash between my two hoops to the back and look around. No sign of a cat. race back to the front and into the hoop house expectign to find a cat.

I froze. My mind went blank. I was in shock. My eye's couldn't believe what they were seeign at first. I literally freaked. I go tryign to race back into the hous e to get the camera. Tripping over pots and pallets and my feet tryign to get inside the trailer and get back outside. The whole time thinking my friend did it.. She really did it.

I tripped over myself trying to get back out there and race into the hoop house, tryign to get camera on at same time. I was like oh no... please.. please... just a few shots. Camera said " Low Batteries" aggggggggg. Back into the hoop house I race and it was gone. Looke d all aroudn and said fudge and thought well maybe it went back out the backdoor. I start between the two houses again to the back and froze for the second time. I almost stepped on it.
I was shakign so bad this is the first pic that I got off

My hands shaking so bad, this creature was going along between the house s and kept burying his head in the leave s until he finally foudn a spot he liked and not but a few feet from wher e I tryign to sit and work decide s to take a nap. he looks like he neede d one bad. All dusty and skin all drie d up.

When he gets himself a meal of ants and whatevr a long nap and a cool drink of water, I gonna pack him a back pack and give him a map and send him back towards my friends house.

My heart attack for the day compliments of my friend or my friends mind over critters.

I got braver. Got about a foot from it saw they have hair on their bellies and it definately needs a manacure for them toenails and a facial mask for the snot.

I checke d just a bit ago and it stil snoozing away out there, but got a feeling it gonna be real hungry when it wake s up.

After seeign this now I definately too afraid to go back out today and sit in the dirt and weed. It seems whenever creature s get discusse d or I look at pic s of folsk critters then I get some " SURPISE YOU"VE GOT COMPANY!" shocks. Don't think I cna handle anothe r one today.

I think this now qualifie s my yard for a national wildlife refudge.

Lesson of the day .... Watch what ya wish for. : ) LOL

OH, my gosh--I didn't know there were armadillos in Alabama! Did he lose his way from Texas? Amazing, the things you learn on DG. Great pictures--congrats on being brave enough to get that close to snap them!

I didn't they were in Alabama either, but they are in Florida, so it isn't that far to go I guess..lol Please don't send 'em to North Georgia...the possums at least don't come out in broad daylight in my garden...just at night..

I knew they had them in Texas, and here, but I didn't know they had them in Florida.

I feel bad sometimes cuz ya se e the armadillos and the possums as road kill all the time. I try not to drive at night if I can cuz that when all the creature s really seem to come out and it very easy to roll your car on some of thes e backroads trying to avoid these critters and the deer.

LOL ella thats something to see!
im wishing for garden toads and box turtles here...send them my way please :)

pamsue

When I have to drive at night, I am always scanning the sides of the roads for little red eyes, and for shadows of deer. Poor babies--they were here first. We are the ones encroaching on their habitat.

Well here ya go PamSue... I'll share.

Thes e guys gave me start and I lost my coffe cup in the sink. Went to fil it with water and just happene d to look out kitchen window and her e was this pair. The female had somehow gotten in betwen the glas s and the screen and couldn't get out and the male was havign fits cuz he couldn't figure out how to get to her. I went outside and broek the screen tryign to let these to kids be able to play.

Her e your box turtle. he kind a hard to see, gott look by piec e of black broken tray. You can se e some of the cros s markign on her back. Gues s she had been to lay her eggs in my bed s again. She was heading back home via under the shed and no way was I gona try and go under there and look. Not with all the snake s around.

LOL thanks!

I've heard of armadillos in southern Illinois... talk about far from home.

Starlight, I'm rolling on the floor laughing! I really enjoyed your story and pictures!

If they make it to Illinois, then they aren't far from Iowa. I sure hope they don't come here!!

Janet,

They're here already....Not too much further to Braselton!

tcs, for real, armadillos in southern Illinois?! Ya mean they skipped Kentucky??? I feel insulted by that somehow...LOL

Ky - I'll happily send you some from around here!!!!! Mississippi is *full* of them.

Why did the armadillo cross the road? - To prove to the possum it could be done!

ps - it *couldn't* be done!

Ooooohhh yeah! Lotsa dillos here in MS. We'll send some to whoever wants them for sure. I love a diversity of wildlife in my yard but will happily do without them. I hate the way they seem to cover every square inch of your yard all the while digging a thousand little holes. You're right starlight--believe your yard would qualify for a refuge, lol.

They dig??? Oh, nooooo!!! The chipmunks would be quite upset that they had competition in that sport! No armadillos, thank you! LOL

They may did, but what they dig is the seemingly never end of mound sof ants down here and all them Japanese Bettele s that make grubs and all them other nasty root eating , planting destroying underground critters, so they can dig all they want in my yard. Lot s easier to replant a plant or fil in a hole from their digging than to watch row after row of plants and shrubs detroyed from bug eatign them, plus they like a organic type of persticide. : )

Great story and pictures, starlight!

I've not seen them yet, but a few months ago I actually heard on the local radio (confirmed by collegues) that the little scondrels have arrived in Charleston as well. I don't look forward to seeing them in my garden. Hope they get lost on the way.

A dillo has dug itself a burrow under a trellis around our pump. Now I have holes all over my yard, but that is ok. Just shove the dirt back in. What it is eating is more harmful than the dillo is. Several yrs. ago I was sitting in a swing my hus. had put up for me out in our woods when I heard something rustling thru the leaves. Finally spotted the dillo coming up the hill toward me. I stayed really still until it got close and then I reached over and petted it. It has sparse stiff hairs all over it and felt like living leather luggage. I petted it again. The 3rd time I petted it, it jumped straight up in the air, swung its backside toward my hand and swatted me with its tail. Caught me right on the thumb where I have arthritis. It hurt big time. Since then I just leave them along.

Several interesting facts - they are near sighted, but have excellent sense of smell. They are not good swimmers, but can hold their breath for a long time and will submerge to the bottom of a river or body of water and start walking on the bottom to the other side. If they run out of air, they will come to the top, get more air and back down to walking again. Most of them get killed by vehicles because when they are disturbed they will jump up in the air and swing that tail around. It worked on my hand, but against a 3,000# vehicle, well you know the rest of the story. LIZ

Interesting info, Liz! Sorry you got smacked on the thumb, though. I hate that wild animals get hit on the roads so often. Can't people watch for them? Armadillos can't be that fast, can they?

Amazing! I'd never see anything like that in the North East of England!

Galanthophile. ... I tell ya computers are a real pain when they don't work right, but I so glad they invented, cuz now we all can se e different plants and animals all aroudn that we never would have before.

Thanks to computers adn forums, I've seen soem amazign things I have nevr seen before or even knew exisited. It awesome!!! : )

I agree completely. Thanks for the education!

As far as I know, armadillos are not hardy to zone 4.....thank goodness. We do have possums tho. I know next to nothing about armadillos. Are they like a big armored rat, or dangerous in anyway? I mean to humans and their domesticated pets......and their domesticated gardens. How big are they? It's hard to tell from the pics.

Mine looke d like it weighed about 5 pounds and I was told mine was just a baby. I have heard of folks that have hit em down here on the road late at night or early in the morning and they have been big enough to knock the tire balance on a car of f if ya hit one.

not sure where Seale is, but when i was stationed in south eastern alabama.....near Dothan, there were always armadillos around, unfortunately usually flattened in the road, but i had the same reaction, THERE ARE ARMADILLOS in ALABAMA??.....great story....

Marie, I got a kick out of your description of them as "a big armored rat". LOL