My Sunday Ride. Not for the squeamish

[bigflax925]

I am lucky if I can get a good 15 miles in after work around my neighborhood.

Part of my daily loop includes the highest point in our county where all of the TV, radio, and public safety radio towers are located. It's remote only in that no one leaves up there and is across the street from some neighborhoods where the average house runs close to a million.

Here are a few pics from up there. Lots of public dumping and the chip and seal roadway is pretty rough if it's intact and not washed away. This is Deliverance stuff. The climbing is pretty intense (for me) but the downhills are worth it. So is the wildlife...

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/c891af74.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/865bc877.jpg

Yesterday's ride was an early morning one - something I am not used to. I typically ride around 4:00pm-5:00pm. I got to see a lot of wildlife that I typically don't see.

First up…



This nasty looking critter.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/369bbfd4.jpg

I am not afraid of spiders, but I don't cuddle with them either. It's tarantula mating season now, so I am seeing quite a few of them. They are apparently pretty docile unless provoked and are quite curious. I will capture one or two next time. I think my kids will enjoy seeing one.



Next up:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/f88774e3.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/fe0d16a1.jpg

I'm not sure what this is, as I haven't researched it yet. What looks like sequins on it's back are actually babies. Yes, that's the flash reflecting from their eyes. Disturbing.

Those are my keys for scale. Since no one has actually seen my keys IRL, I assure you that's a large spider. That's a Livestrong bracelet on there.



A little bit further in my ride I encountered this roll over accident.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/6045ba6a.jpg

I helped right it and left them to handle with their respective insurance companies. Based on what I saw on my return home, I suspect it might be turtle mating season, too and perhaps I ruined something kinky in the turtle world.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/a0086266.jpg

"Hey thanks for nothing!"



A little bit further up the road was this gem.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/45f2d65d.jpg

I haven't researched this one either. It's probably pretty common around these parts, but it's not a spider that I see commonly.



To round out my day, I got this guy a little bit later while, ironically enough, I was looking for more tarantulas.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/17676f00.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e332/bigflax925/Spiders%20and%20Critters/8783bc65.jpg

Yes, that's a Ball Python. Not indigenous to Arkansas or North America. I believe that a car that passed me going down while I was going up, dumped him off on the side of the road. Snakes are not my favorite things either.

I knew by looking that it was "special" and wasn't one of the typical snakes you see around here: rattlers, cottonmouths, copper head or water snake. That's my shoe in the bottom picture. I attempted to get something relevant to scale. I estimate the length to be almost 5' and weight about 30lbs. He was pretty solid. How did I guess the weight? Well….

…I approached it and it was not defensive and seemed as if it was used to be handled. I touched his tail and all was good. I figured it was of the "Ball" variety, as when I touched him by the head he wrapped himself up in a ball. Clever.

I went home to retrieve a vessel large enough to carry him in (turns out it was a Rubbermaid storage bin) and made arrangements with a friend who's connected with the AR Game & Fish Commission to help. I couldn't keep him at home, as I have small children and small animals. Besides, if it escaped, I'd have to sell my house and I'm pretty attached to it.

He's now resting comfortably in the vet's office and will be placed in the Little Rock Zoo after observation. The vet said he would've died if left outside as our nights are getting cooler.

Heckuva day, I'd say!

What cool critters have you found on your rides?

[Ralph]

Very interesting. Thanks for the report.

[Louis]

Wow - that's really neat. And one lucky snake. Let's hope his next home is better than his previous one.

[AngryScientist]

ahh!

both snakes and spiders freak me the hell out man, there is no way i'd stop anywhere near any of these creatures. yikes!

i am i total animal lover though, good on you for rescuing the misplaced critter before something happened to him (her?).

thanks for sharing yet another landscape i am totally unfamiliar with.

[bigflax925]

ahh!

both snakes and spiders freak me the hell out man, there is no way i'd stop anywhere near any of these creatures. yikes!

i am i total animal lover though, good on you for rescuing the misplaced critter before something happened to him (her?).

thanks for sharing yet another landscape i am totally unfamiliar with.

I have to say that both spiders and snakes freak me out, too. This is my way of conquering that. They really are fascinating.

[rice rocket]

Never moving to the South. :eek:

Good call on the snake though, the Everglades is experiencing python overpopulation because people are doing the same and letting their overgrown pets loose, and without any natural predators there, they're #1 on the food chain and keep multiplying.

[rustychisel]

that's good karma for you, nice work. Spiders I can do without, but the pattern on that python is beautiful.

When I was a kid my brother owned a couple of carpet pythons, the big one - about 12 feet long - was totally tame but the smaller - maybe 5 feet - was a total bitch. Beautiful creatures though.

[vqdriver]

good deal with righting the turtle but no way in hell am i getting that close to a snake. they creep me the F out.

[kramnnim]

Dang...you have tarantulas in Arkansas? Scary.

I think the one with the babies might be a wolf spider? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_spider

[oldfatslow]

My grandfather would stop the car in the middle of the highway, get out, and help a turtle cross the road safely.

I have done the same thing in group rides.

Even ridden along for a few miles carrying the turtle to a safe area on the route I knew. I bet that turtle still dreams about the day he flew like a bird. :)

As for fauna on a recent ride on the tandem my wife and I saw a rabbit haul a@@ across the road right in front of us only to see a fox running full speed after it. The fox saw my us and the long bike, hit the brakes Will-E-Coyote style, turned around, and ran the other way.

You never know what you'll see on your ride.

[Hank Scorpio]

Those turtles are Box turtles if you didn't already know that. And anyone who handles turtles should was their hands afterwards right away. They pretty commonly carry salmonella. Better to use a stick or pump to guide them to safety.

I had a smaller Ball Python when I was younger and it escaped. We couldn't find it for a few days. My mother was convinced that it was in my sister's luggage when she went away for a school ski trip but I later found it wrapped around the clothing rod in my closet.

[kramnnim]

Most of the animals I see on rides are dead. The rabbits, squirrels, cats and dogs don't bother me so much, but the dead birds do... See quite a few smashed box turtles, too. :(

I tried to get a big snapping turtle to turn around instead of crossing the road, but it was disagreeable and I felt kind of stupid wrangling a 15 pound turtle whilst wearing spandex...

I've lived in rural areas for most of my life, and have seen dozens of black snakes crossing the road, etc, and quite a few copperheads, mostly around water...never saw any green snakes until this year. Saw a few dead ones hit by cars, and two live ones a couple weeks ago. Caught a baby green one smaller than a pencil a few days ago...cute little guy.

[GuyGadois]

Awesome wildlife. I don't think our local zoo has the variety of animals you saw on your ride. We have lots of tarantulas around here and they are nothing to be worried about. My older brothers kept them as pets. My 11 year old is fearless around them and lets them crawl on his hands and arms. Such a pity people continue to dump animals when they don't want them anymore. There are plenty of outlets for people to drop their animals off so a new home can be found.

GG

[WR3K]

WOW, the last spider you shot, and possibly the one with babies, is the
Brown Recluse spider..

one of the most aggressive and dangerous spiders in the world. their bite is NASTY

[slowgoing]

Box turtles rock.

[Louis]

This reminds of a ride years ago. I saw a turtle by the side of the road, not in danger of being run over, but close enough that I decided to stop to help hiim/her out. As I got closer I realized that he looked kind of funny. It turned out that he had a big, smooth lump of dried mud stuck to the bottom of his shell. It caused him to tilt over and his legs could barely reach the ground. I knocked the mud off, put him in a safer spot, and sent him on his way.

[thinpin]

And I was wondering why the guy in another post want to charge a spider fee! What a ride.

[Mr. Squirrel]

it is very nice that you stop and leave your bike alone unattended to help other wildlife. what wheels do you have and where do you ride?
sincerely,
mr. squirrel

[1centaur]

I did not know about the tarantulas in Arkansas either, but now I do:

http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2625

[Seramount]

cool report! as a biologist, I find most critters interesting, especially snakes. amazing how much fear there is regarding this animal.

while in college, I helped one of the grad students collect western diamondback rattlesnakes for his thesis research.

we would tank up on several pitchers of beer, jump into his aircraft carrier sized old Chrysler convertible, and head out onto desert roads around dusk...

when a subject was sighted on the road, we'd snag it using a golf club and a pillow case.

driving around with a dozen venomous snakes in the back seat...good times...

[bigflax925]

I did not know about the tarantulas in Arkansas either, but now I do:

http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2625

Interesting reading. Thanks for posting that!

We've got some creepy crawlies here, that's for sure: Cooperative Extension (http://www.uaex.edu/Other_Areas/publications/PDF/FSA-7018.pdf)