Scorpions, Coyotes, and Snakes, Oh My!

I'm happy because I was in the presence of the 3 animals I was most interested in during this trip. Here I have documented my experiences:

-Coyote-
While I could not see it, for a brief moment on 3/17/20 parked on the side of the road with wired fences looming in the distance I heard a coyote call. It was short, and if you weren't paying attention you would not have caught it, but luckily that night was quiet save the periodic passing of cars some yards away, the wind, and excited chatter of the humans around me. Maybe it wasn't that quiet, but it was quiet enough.

-Snakes-
There was one snake that I didn't get to see (aside from photos) that was found during one of our hikes. However, I got to see one at Organ Pipe National Monument. Someone else noticed it and we were able to follow it into the bushes, luring it out with our footsteps. It wasn't scary looking. In fact, it resembled a garden snake. Though the coloration suggested that was not the case. It looked determined to get away from us.

-Scorpions-
I had seen some during the day, but it wasn't until I saw one at night that I, weirdly, felt like I had truly seen one. It was during a group search for scorpions with our black lights parked on the side of the road. It was fairly sizable, calm until it got annoyed with the grasshopper we kept trying to feed it. Its neon glow was enchanting. Watching it move around and interact with the grasshopper during the pitch of night was truly a unique experience. I must say though I do regret the grasshopper's untimely fate.

Posted on March 19, 2020 02:10 AM by ksarandrea