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(I apologize for not writing but I will be taking thanksgiving break off from my blog to spend with family)
November 24, 2020 Framingham, MA
For the first time in months, today, I brought my Leopard Gecko (Eublepharis macularius) out of her cage. There was a sunny spot on our coffee table which looked great for basking. Many reptiles need the UV light from the sun to keep their skin healthy.
I have had cinnamon for 5 and a half years now, and her previous owner, who i bought her from, had had her for an additional 5 years. This means she is AT LEAST 10 yrs old. The average lifespan for leopard geckos in captivity is 15 years, So I would say she has 5 yrs left, but I do not know how many years she was alive for before her previous owner baught her, Hell, she could be OLDER THAN ME!!
Not to be dark, but if she dies before I go to college, I want to replace her with a native reptile. Sadly, there arent any lizards in Massachusetts. I have had encounters with only three reptiles this year.
At an ephemeral pool, I found and photographed a Northern Water Snake
While weeding somebodies lawn, I found a dying, lawn mowed Garter Snake
I kept a baby Common Snapping Turtle as a pet, but released it once I realized I could not get it to eat.
I can not believe that I have not already done a post about cinnamon, I guess im just so used to her being around that i dont notice her the way I pay attention to my newts or my bird feeder.
-Aidan Garrity
November 23, 2020 Framingham, MA
This morning, it was pouring so hard, I could not see 100 feet out my window. Our street is shiny and wet. All of the trees in our yard are dripping.
The birdseed is soggy and wet, I can see out my window.
I decided to look at the storm on Accuweather.com. there are three unnamed small storms right now off the coast of North Carolina. They sent rain and snow up through New England and The Great Lakes.
I do not know this for sure but I think this might just be wave two from Storm Eta a week ago. As I finish typing this, I hear thunder. It is a rumbling noise that continues for about 10 seconds. There are a few dark eyed juncos pecking at birdseed that get startled and fly off. Every time there is a loud enough thunder strike, Our floor literally vibrates.
-Aidan Garrity
November 22, 2020 Framingham, MA
Today was my real day off from remote school. I had decided to play around with new arrangements of the rocks, plants, and oak leaves in the Aquarium.
One of the first things that I did was grab a chunk of moss and throw it out the window. I also pulled out the other blob of it. All of the moss that was still IN my tank. I saw a dragonfly larvae pull itself out of it. I was almost surprised enough to drop the moss. After coaxing it a few times by dunking it's part of the moss underwater, it dove back into my tank. I had had no idea I had dragonfly larvae in my tank. I had not added ANYTHING from local rivers in at least 2 months. That meant that the larva was able to keep itself alive for 2 months on nothing but the invertebrates in my tank.
That was amazing.
I do however understand, as I have about five BREEDING POPULATIONS of native invertebrates. The first, and I think the biggest, would be the bladder snails. They lay clumps of eggs on the aquarium glass.
Bladder snail feeding on algae and cyanobacteria
Clump of snail eggs
The embryos in the eggs start off as microscopic specks, but expand and grow until they are white, visible, clear circles.
The best part about these is that they are native and have a strong population in my tank, meaning, they can help keep my tank native.
They also provide food for crayfish, newts, fish, and other vertebrates.
-Aidan Garrity
November 21, 2020 Belmont, MA
Today I raked Leaves for my grandparents. As I was beginning, We noticed an Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) hiding in some flowers, eating dead plant matter.
I was able to get shockingly close to her. She stops feeding out of fear, but does not run.
This photo shows the rabbit propping her head up to check me out.
I was VERY surprised. Cottontails in framingham are much more alert and energetic, this rabbit was unphased by our presence and stupidly fat. I think that as you go closer to Boston, you will find less biodiversity, and fatter, more bold rabbits. This is not natural. Notice how pigeons in Boston will only resort to flying away when you are just a foot or two away. Through habituation, Birds, rabbits, and squirrels will learn that humans are likely to ignore these animals completely, This means that animals near cities like Boston will see humans as a part of the background.
-Aidan Garrity
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