Bugs, Creatures, and Long Legged Beasties!

[Sigmund]

Hello. Everybody!

I was reading through some old threads in the Social Groups and was reminded how members have bugs, and creatures that others don't know or experienced.

We have horned toads.

Check it out!


http://allaboutfrogs.org/weird/pictures/spdslzrd.jpg

We were used to seeing them and even picked them up and played with them. (We were young and kinda goofy. Ha!)

What kind of creatures do you have in your area that might give us a *heads up* ?

(OOOoooo Palmetto bugs, and charging spiders! Oh, my!)

Thank you!

Peace.

[PatInTheHat]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7yB-eeGviiI/TUxmHWWo0hI/AAAAAAAAIzU/lC5-i8eMSZM/s1600/Kentucky_Fried_Chicken_Logo14.jpg
Way easy to bag 'em, I mean they're the only feathered critter I can think of off the top o' my punkin' head that has it's very own bucket list:rolleyes:.

[fljoe0]

My dad was doing his daily walking in a park yesterday and ran into this.

16752

He was on a trail a few feet above this guy so he wasn't as close as the picture looks.

[atomicinchworm]

We have brown recluse spiders. :| And most people can't identify them. Of course, most people that got bitten by one wouldn't know it. Only 15% of the bites ever go some sort of necrotic, and it is a very rare thing to go catastrophically necrotic.

We also have mink.
http://mdc.mo.gov/media/image/mink-0?popup

And opossum. They are really cute, in my opinion, and don't carry rabies, unlike raccoons.
http://a-z-animals.com/media/animals/images/470x370/opossum2.jpg

Missouri is also home to a lot of pretty little native fishes, including some darters, catfish, and this little guy is a male Northern Stud Fish, which is Missouri's largest topminnow.
http://www.hsu.edu/uploadedImages/Faculty/Nature_Trivia/Animals/Fishes/Fishes_of_Arkansas/Fundulidae/Northern%20Studfish.jpg

[exzel]

I live near ground zero of the slow moving, fearless, intensely annoying and destructive Stinkbug invasion (transplant from Asia) here in the US. And you have to deal with them 12 months out of the year as they find their way into houses and appear throughout your home even in the winter months. And yes they do stink!

http://ts4.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4986737062969799&pid=15.1

And with few natural enemies in the US for the Stinkbug, the last couple of years I’ve now seen a large infestation of a rather large insect that is also slow moving, fearless and feeds on the Stinkbug... The Wheel Bug (a variety of Assassin Bug). But unlike the Stinkbug, the Wheel Bug has a very painful bite that is worse than the sting from bees. And they also stink.

http://ts4.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4618654115823747&pid=15.1

[Dana Jean]

Charging spiders? Oh man! I'd love to see my son run into one of those. I have never in my life seen someone so afraid of a creepy crawly as my 19 year old son is of spiders. If he had one charging him....oh hell, that would be so funny!
(Yes, I am a mean momma.)

[Lily Sawyer]

I apparently moved from the L.A. Zoo to the Nashville Zoo at Grassmere.

There are chipmunks (SO cute!), squirrels, possums, raccoons, fox, coyotes (and here I thought I'd escaped them - not), rabbits (they're redheads! adorable!), and the birds that are always at the feeder:
cardinals
robins
doves
North Carolina chickadees
black-capped chickadees
yellow finches
juncos
acorn woodpeckers
house finches

16753

[smooth operator]

I have no fear of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, or fish, but keep bugs away from me!! I am not bothered by some bugs - lady bugs, honey bees, bumblebees, dragonflies, or butterflies - but the rest freak me out. It probably results from some damage incurred as a child at the hands of a babysitter from hell. Whatever the case, I steer clear of them and they would be wise to do the same for me.

[GNTLGNT]

We have brown recluse spiders. :| And most people can't identify them. Of course, most people that got bitten by one wouldn't know it. Only 15% of the bites ever go some sort of necrotic, and it is a very rare thing to go catastrophically necrotic.

We also have mink.
http://mdc.mo.gov/media/image/mink-0?popup

And opossum. They are really cute, in my opinion, and don't carry rabies, unlike raccoons.
http://a-z-animals.com/media/animals/images/470x370/opossum2.jpg

Missouri is also home to a lot of pretty little native fishes, including some darters, catfish, and this little guy is a male Northern Stud Fish, which is Missouri's largest topminnow.
http://www.hsu.edu/uploadedImages/Faculty/Nature_Trivia/Animals/Fishes/Fishes_of_Arkansas/Fundulidae/Northern%20Studfish.jpg

...that's makin's for a fine possum burrito and "stud fish" was my nickname in High School....

[GNTLGNT]

...these cuddly lil reptiles that smell like cucumbers...

http://www.wf.net/~snake/images/coppback.jpg

[fljoe0]

One of our most famous creatures and a favorite of Siggy

16762

[blunthead]

We have brown recluse spiders. :| And most people can't identify them. Of course, most people that got bitten by one wouldn't know it. Only 15% of the bites ever go some sort of necrotic, and it is a very rare thing to go catastrophically necrotic.

We also have mink.
http://mdc.mo.gov/media/image/mink-0?popup

And opossum. They are really cute, in my opinion, and don't carry rabies, unlike raccoons.
http://a-z-animals.com/media/animals/images/470x370/opossum2.jpg

Missouri is also home to a lot of pretty little native fishes, including some darters, catfish, and this little guy is a male Northern Stud Fish, which is Missouri's largest topminnow.
http://www.hsu.edu/uploadedImages/Faculty/Nature_Trivia/Animals/Fishes/Fishes_of_Arkansas/Fundulidae/Northern%20Studfish.jpgI've heard of this strange fish which poops the alphabet. You see him here getting started.

[Todash]

We have brown recluse spiders. :| And most people can't identify them. Of course, most people that got bitten by one wouldn't know it. Only 15% of the bites ever go some sort of necrotic, and it is a very rare thing to go catastrophically necrotic.

We also have mink.
http://mdc.mo.gov/media/image/mink-0?popup (http://www.stephenking.com/forums/redirector.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fmdc.mo.gov%2Fmedia %2Fimage%2Fmink-0%3Fpopup)

And opossum. They are really cute, in my opinion, and don't carry rabies, unlike raccoons.


Missouri is also home to a lot of pretty little native fishes, including some darters, catfish, and this little guy is a male Northern Stud Fish, which is Missouri's largest topminnow.
I do not think possums are cute. And I never will. Not after I saw a live one eating a dead one. Cannibalism! YUCK. Plus, you posted a nice PR picture, but come on. Those are some sharp-toothed, greasy looking, vampire-eyed midnight road slinkers.

I think most of what we have is common lots of places: white-tailed deer, foxes, coyotes (we can hear them howling at night from our house), skunks, raccoons, the occasional bobcat, rabbits, wild turkey, red-tailed hawks, snapping turtles, various snakes, etc. We do have some nice native fishes. Less seen (because they don't generally hang out on the highways) but still around the area: otters, badgers, beavers.

[atomicinchworm]

Black bears are also apparently making a comeback in Missouri.

[fljoe0]

In Florida, we have our share of non-native animal species. One animal we have here (I've never seen one here) are monkeys. Here is an excerpt from an article I pulled up.


With Florida’s exotic tropical vegetation and ubiquitous palm trees, it seems as if monkeys should be listed among the state’s native wildlife. Well there are monkeys in Florida, but there shouldn’t be.

Monkeys don’t naturally occur in the United States. The closest they get is Mexico, where you might see spider monkeys and howler monkeys in and around the Yucatan.

But you can see free-ranging monkeys in Florida. A well-established population of rhesus monkeys has existed along the Silver River in Central Florida for nearly 80 years. Depending on who you believe, the monkeys were either escapees from the 1933 filming of a Tarzan movie or intentionally released by the manager of the jungle cruise boat ride at Silver Springs. By 1984, the upper Silver River population consisted of some 400 animals, with an unknown number along the Ocklawaha River. These monkeys forage for themselves on a wide variety of native plants and tourist handouts. If you see them while you are canoeing or kayaking these rivers – don’t try to feed them. No matter how cute they look, it’s against the law to feed them and they can be very aggressive, especially when it comes to food.

[not_nadine]

Cicada. Only every 17 years. You don't want to drive a motorcycle thru a herd of these noisy things.

http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4691724348490492&pid=15.1

[fljoe0]

I didn't like seeing this story. We could have some extra vicious mosquitoes this summer.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/51108395#.UT3cfzd3ZCo

[fushingfeef]

I use an electric razor which I rinse out each day and leave open to dry. This morning I pick it up, snap it shut, and start shaving. The shaver makes a strange sound so I turn it off and start shaving again. It keeps making the weird noise like the electric motors are straining to turn. So I stop shaving and open up the blade panel...

and find a STINK BUG has gotten inside of my razor! And I've been shaving with STINK BUG GUTS on my face! YUUUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!

[blunthead]

I use an electric razor which I rinse out each day and leave open to dry. This morning I pick it up, snap it shut, and start shaving. The shaver makes a strange sound so I turn it off and start shaving again. It keeps making the weird noise like the electric motors are straining to turn. So I stop shaving and open up the blade panel...

and find a STINK BUG has gotten inside of my razor! And I've been shaving with STINK BUG GUTS on my face! YUUUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!Only on the Monday after you lose an hour.

[Lily Sawyer]

I use an electric razor which I rinse out each day and leave open to dry. This morning I pick it up, snap it shut, and start shaving. The shaver makes a strange sound so I turn it off and start shaving again. It keeps making the weird noise like the electric motors are straining to turn. So I stop shaving and open up the blade panel...

and find a STINK BUG has gotten inside of my razor! And I've been shaving with STINK BUG GUTS on my face! YUUUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!

:barf: Ewwwwwwww. How in the hell did it get inside an electric razor??

[fushingfeef]

All I can figure is that it must have crawled inside while I had it open to dry since the previous day. It must have been lurking right in there when I snapped the blade panel shut and I just didn't notice it. Yuck! I took a long hot shower after that incident!

[fljoe0]

Non-native lizards thrive in South Florida. It seems like every few years, I see a new species. The past couple of years, I've been seeing this guy around. The red heads are pretty cool. These are very large, close to a foot long.

17270

http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/nonnatives/reptiles/african-redhead-agama/

[Out of Order]

World's Largest Tarantula?

http://news.sky.com/story/1073751/tarantula-the-size-of-a-human-face-discovered

[fljoe0]

World's Largest Tarantula?

http://news.sky.com/story/1073751/tarantula-the-size-of-a-human-face-discovered

Just big enough to cover your entire face while you sleep. Wonderful.

[Out of Order]

Just big enough to cover your entire face while you sleep. Wonderful.

I'm hoping I don't remember this post when it is time for nighty-nights tonight............LOL

[Dana Jean]

:hahahahaha: I am so sorry, but "I've been shaving with stinkbug guts on my face!" hoehaoheohaeohaoheaohea!

Lord. I hope stink-bug karma doesn't make a house call my way.



I use an electric razor which I rinse out each day and leave open to dry. This morning I pick it up, snap it shut, and start shaving. The shaver makes a strange sound so I turn it off and start shaving again. It keeps making the weird noise like the electric motors are straining to turn. So I stop shaving and open up the blade panel...

and find a STINK BUG has gotten inside of my razor! And I've been shaving with STINK BUG GUTS on my face! YUUUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!

[nygene40]

We have this:

17320

[fljoe0]

We have this:

17320

You win! that is the ugliest creature I've ever seen.

[Out of Order]

:rofl:

[fljoe0]

Donald Trump's dog

17321

[arista]

I am not sure what they are called other than gross. The slimy worms that come to the pavement when it rains. They are so gross to smell and walked through.

[fljoe0]

Just what we needed in south Florida, another invasion. Stucco eating snails? :eek2:

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/14/17747269-a-slick-mess-slimy-giant-snails-invade-south-florida?lite

[blunthead]

We have this:

17320
It's not a fungus or other infection. It's hair, believe it or not.

[Robyn the Peanut]

Well we do have some pretty mean looking pheasants around here...I mean those things...*shudder*

Short of that there is an abundance of Chav's and I'd rather tackle any creepy crawly over those idiots anyday.

[fljoe0]

The other day, I saw my dog chasing a snake and I went to check it out and I saw as the snake disappeared into some bushes that it was a coral snake.

I'm pretty sure this is the same snake I saw a few months ago in my yard because of the size of it. A few months ago, I was letting the dog out through the back door and as I opened the door, I saw the snake and the dog immediately started after it. It crawled away fast and it looked like a coral snake but I did not get a good enough look at it before it vanished. I had kind of talked myself out of it being a coral snake because from what I saw of it, it looked too big. All of the coral snakes I've seen have been smallish and fairly thin. This snake was pretty thick.

So anyway, I got a good look at this snake the other day and it is definitely a coral snake. And it was very thick, just like the one I had spotted previously. It is the biggest one I've ever seen. This worries the hell out of me because of the dog. If this is the same snake I saw a few months ago, it means the damn thing is hanging out in my yard. I'm on a mission to try and find this thing but they are really good at hiding. I saw the bush it went into the other day and I still lost him. Coral snakes have small mouths and don't strike so a human has to almost be handling them to get bit but a dog sticking his nose in the bushes can easily get bit. So I'm on high heebie-jeebie alert right now as I do some snake hunting.

[atomicinchworm]

Sure he's not a milk snake, fljoe?

Corals tend to be, like you said, small.

[Out of Order]

Good luck, fljoe0.

Is there an anti-venom available for you and or the dog?

[fljoe0]

Sure he's not a milk snake, fljoe?

Corals tend to be, like you said, small.

I got a pretty good look at it the other day and I'm almost certain (as certain as I'm going to be for as close as I want to get - a shovel distance away :biggrin2:.) We have king snakes around here that have a similar pattern but it was not that. When I was in high school, we used to get them around our house quite a bit and they loved to get on the top step of the ladder in the swimming pool. I have a little history with them and am familiar with the markings.

I'm not sure about now but as of a year or two ago, coral snake anti venom was in very short supply. The company that made it sold out and the new company chose not to make it. A couple of years ago, there were a couple of bites and the doctors noticed there was hardly any anti-venom left in the country. They were in a real panic about it then. I haven't heard anything since, so I don't know if the situation is better or not.