Going Buggy!

I wrote this one in January, 2008.


As usual, wierd things have come and gone in my house. Another school year is half-done, and the fun stuff is about to begin. The 200-odd photos of mammals are gone, since I finally finished that lesson-plan. No feathers strewn hither and yon, since Buster isn’t currently molting. Binocs, spotting scope and field guides are still visible. No skulls presently. (Although I did find a beaver skull in my backseat last month that I forgot to put back on the shelf…)
I have fishbowl of liverworts- a "primitive" non-vascular plant. Another frequently overlooked fascinating life-form. I have a 5 gallon aquarium "phylum garden"- a terrarium with as many different phyla of plants as possible in it. I can’t manage to keep that moss going, darn it!
I am currently in a "buggy" frame of mind. Last fall I did a fascinating program on stinging insects, so I had a few wasp or bee bodies on my desk for study. Nieghbors "donated" them- after spraying the hives. Nuts. I’d rather look at the live ones in the hive- from a safe distance!
And my newest acquisitions are in two more 5-gallon tanks. In one tank are my daughters "pets" - giant cockroaches. One largish male Madagascan Hissing Cockroach, about 2 inches long. He’s a beaut.

The other is "Tuck", a lovely female Giant Cave Cockroach, a wee bit over 3 inches long, with a gorgeous golden shimmer about her shell and antennae that are always waving. She just had 39 babies. (cocroaches, anyone?). These are the perfect pets. They eat anything, don’t stink (really!), and don’t fly, don’t bite, and make no noise. Hiss cost me the grand total of 99 cents! Tuck was given to me.

And in the other tank, is Rosie. Ahhh, Rosie. She’s my new pet tarantula. Hah! She’s very pretty, for a tarantula. She’s a Chilean Rose-haired- her cephalothorax (her "body") is a coppery metallic pink, and her belly is copper. The rest is a beigy-copper. Her toes are velvety black. I do pick her up daily, with respect, since she technically could bite. (Her venom is about equal to that of a bee, so I’m not too concerned about that, but her 1/2" fangs would really hurt!) She’s very mild-mannered. Another cool first pet for anyone with the nerve! (Remember, not all tarantulas are this docile- many will bite first and not bother to ask questions later…. do your homework first!!!)
I have taken my new critters to "bug" programs. (None are actually "bugs", mind you.) I once did a "misunderstood critters" program at a local library. A streak of fiendishness came over me, and I "wore" Hiss on my shirt like a brooch. He’s slow, so I didn’t worry about him scurrying away. The librarian, bless her heart, didn’t notice him until she shook my hand. Hiss took a couple of steps and waggled his antennae. I have never seen a mild-mannered grey-haired librarian move so fast or shriek so loudly! [heeheehee!!] And when I went back to the desk to announce my departure, I was wearing Rosie. Needless to say, the poor woman nearly had a coronary. I’m so bad. A couple of months later, for the next program I did there, I was immediately recognized, and she looked me over carefully-from a distance- before shaking my hand! We all had a good laugh over that. It’s sorta fun earning this "wierd" reputation.
Can’t wait to see the reaction of my highschool students in a few weeks when I bring my critters to class. Who knows… maybe I’ll wear Hiss again. It’s so fun being strange!