Wow!
I was sitting on the couch, minding my own business, when James burst in.
"Hon! Hon! We have--on the feeder--thing--sugar glider!"
"That's a neat trick," I said, getting up, "since sugar gliders are Australian. What we have are--holy crap, you mean there's a flying squirrel on the feeder!?"
And so there was. Happily munching suet, darting back and forth with astonishing speed, the Southern flying squirrel. I have always wanted to see one, but didn't think it was too likely--they're exclusively nocturnal, and while they're supposed to be pretty tolerant of people coming up to the feeder, and not uncommon, it's just plain tough to see a small bark-colored critter in the dark. But there he was!
His camo was really amazing--we could only see him side on, when the white belly patches were visible, and when he made a bump on the side of the tree. Face on, looking at his back, he might as well have been bark. He moved very very quickly--suet, away, suet, away, suet, munch munch, away, yay, suet! He was painfully cute, even in the dim light.
"I'm putting this on my lifelist," said James smugly. "One flying rodent down!" (Well, I suppose some people specialize...)
I feel privileged.
And now, goddamn it, I can never buy hot pepper suet again...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Flying_Squirrel
I was sitting on the couch, minding my own business, when James burst in.
"Hon! Hon! We have--on the feeder--thing--sugar glider!"
"That's a neat trick," I said, getting up, "since sugar gliders are Australian. What we have are--holy crap, you mean there's a flying squirrel on the feeder!?"
And so there was. Happily munching suet, darting back and forth with astonishing speed, the Southern flying squirrel. I have always wanted to see one, but didn't think it was too likely--they're exclusively nocturnal, and while they're supposed to be pretty tolerant of people coming up to the feeder, and not uncommon, it's just plain tough to see a small bark-colored critter in the dark. But there he was!
His camo was really amazing--we could only see him side on, when the white belly patches were visible, and when he made a bump on the side of the tree. Face on, looking at his back, he might as well have been bark. He moved very very quickly--suet, away, suet, away, suet, munch munch, away, yay, suet! He was painfully cute, even in the dim light.
"I'm putting this on my lifelist," said James smugly. "One flying rodent down!" (Well, I suppose some people specialize...)
I feel privileged.
And now, goddamn it, I can never buy hot pepper suet again...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Flying_Squirrel