Although our vistas are large scale, we spend most of our work time on a small piece of real estate about 20 yards square and have become increasingly aware of the small critters co-inhabiting that space.
Being E.O. Wilson fans, we’ve especially enjoyed watching the 5-6 varieties of ants come and go on their daily business. Observing one carrying a dead comrade from the front of the shelter to its ant hill(about 50 feet in 10 minutes) Erv calculated the human equivalent to be a 5'5” adult carrying an 80# weight 1.5 miles in 10 minutes. And we’re not alone in this ant fascination. One of our fellow site attendants,a Tenn. State student,tossed out pop tart half then counted how many ants it took to pick it up and move it. Our equivalent is ants teaming up to carry away quail parts that fell off the tower as the falcons ate. Fascinating stuff!
While Erv watches ants, I’ve developed a fascination for lizards and beetles (remember the horned lizard photo early on?) and neither of us can help but notice the few, but large tarantulas. We’ve seen lizards eat aunts and the roadrunner eat beetles, but never a face-off with a tarantula.
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