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Garden journal entry |
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July 31, 2021. Today, Amy had implored me to clean up our back patio, which was not in the presentable state required for a visit by my mother. As a dutiful husband and son, I set out to give the neglected zone some TLC, and was glad I did: As I was sweeping the concrete, I spotted an unfamiliar slithery creature out of the corner of my eye. New vertebrate species sightings in our garden are very rare, so I was excited about this one, and managed to keep it confined to a bare area of the patio long enough for me to take a few pictures (and for Amy and Ben to admire it, too). Turns out this is a little brown skink (Scincella lateralis), which makes it the first skink I've had the pleasure of witnessing outside of captivity. It's apparently a common species, so I hope that our friend and its kin proliferate here. We also had a sighting of one of its legless cousins (a shy non-venemous snake) by Lily a couple weeks ago. I wish I'd seen that one too, but I couldn't find it around our pond when I went out to look for it. Likewise, the geckoish lizard that I occasionally spot around our compost bins has not posed for a photo yet. So for now, skinky is only the second reptilian being featured on Rob's Plants, proudly joining the green anole. |
Last modified:
September 09, 2009
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