Living Outdoors by Bud Jones

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones Many years ago my friend Larry Dodson brought in a strange creature. Larry most always came in with something odd whenever he paid me a visit. This time was no different. What he had was a Scarlet Snake, a reptile that is hardly ever seen in this area. Larry was digging around his yard when suddenly he uncovered, under all the debris, a snake he had never seen before. Scarlet snakes live where there is loose soil. Their nose is more or l...ess pointed and they use it to burrow underground and in loose soil and debris-like leaves, rotted wood, etc. They normally come out at night and in the warmer months. These snakes are covered with more or less bands of red that are bordered on each end by black. In between these bands is a creamy white colored area. The sides are sprinkled with black specks and the head is solid red. They are not venomous. What really sets the Scarlet Snake apart from other snakes is its food habits. Its main food is snake eggs, lizard eggs, and turtle eggs. In the back part of the mouth, in the upper area, are knife-like teeth that are used to slit open the eggs as they are swallowed. It will also take small lizards, snakes, and frogs. The reason we hardly ever see Scarlet Snakes is because of their nocturnal habits and their propensity to stay in burrows or under debris. They seldom bite when captured and mostly suffer when their habitat is destroyed by road building and road traffic. Not much is known about their reproductive biology but the female digs out a place for laying eggs, covers them, and then goes her merry way. See more

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones I was amazed when I saw my first Trapdoor Spider. Over an inch long, it was a shiny black color with an odd looking, flat-shaped rear end. I knew exactly what it was from the many pictures that I had seen. Still, I was not prepared to find one in my own back yard. I searched a long time for its nest but never found it, for it is well camouflaged. Using rough projections on its jaw edges this amazing arachnid (an animal with 8 legs), digs... a tube like burrow. The whole inside of this tube is lined with silk. The trap door itself has a hinge, and is lined with extra silk so that it fits snuggly in the rim of the tube. The top of the trap door is made of silk and debris from the ground and is nearly impossible to see. The Trapdoor Spider lives in its tube, staying right under the trap door. When it feels the vibrations of a close by insect, it rushes out the trap door to catch it, which could be a centipede, an insect, or even another spider. The captured prey is taken by the spider into the tube nest and devoured at leisure. Except to capture prey, the female spider hardly ever leaves her tube nest. The males, however, often wander outside, looking for a female with which to mate. Some scientists suggest that the spider uses its flat ended abdomen to tamp down the silk that lines the burrow itself, which can be several inches deep. There are numerous species of Trapdoor Spiders that are found in the southern United States. These spiders are non-venomous. See more

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones Many years ago when I was a student at North Georgia College, I took a course in Entomology, the study of insects. In this course students were required to make a collection of insects. So every night I would go out and look to see if any insects were collected around the outside light of our dormitory. I collected many bugs this way. One night I went out to look and there was a solid black bug I had never seen before. I was excited for ...this was a new one for my collection. Gingerly I went to pick it up and was immediately rewarded by a great pain to my finger. I mean, it really did hurt and kept on hurting for several hours. This was my first introduction to the Assassin Bug, also called Wheel bugs or Kissing bugs. These insects come in a variety of colors of black, gray, brown, while some are brightly colored. The so called Squash bug belongs to this family. They all possess a sticker, an extension of the mouth by which they can stick into an insect, immobilize it, then suck the fluids from their body. They prey on bugs, bees, flies, and caterpillars. One species can be found in houses and can really be a pest. As I attested to, the bite is very painful and can linger for a while. Though not poisonous, their bite may sometimes have to be treated by a doctor. Assassin Bugs are very beneficial because they kill a lot of harmful insects. However, if you see one, don’t grab it like I did. See more

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones Well, it’s that time again, it is autumn, the season when the weather turns nippy and the summer leaves lose their green color and give way to the beautiful colors of the fall. Normally at this season of the year, I walk out the door to our deck and usually run into a big spider web, which takes me a few minutes to disentangle myself. How forgetful I am because me walking into those big spiderwebs usually happens every fall. These artful... webs belong to the golden garden spider, an animal called an arachnid because it has eight legs. The normal bug, like beetles, butterflies, flies, etc., have six legs. Spread out, the garden spider can be bigger than a fifty-cent piece. Normally they have lots of yellow and black on their body, while the legs sport black bars. This spider builds a big, maybe two foot, web, and it is very intricate. In fact, it is a work of art. Usually it is built in a bush, tree, or porch furniture, and as I know so well, on doorways. Several lines are made across limbs, etc., and meet at a central point. The web is always taut and strong. The spider usually dwells right in the center of the web. When a careless bug gets entangled in the web the spider dashes out and covers it with silk, thus making it impossible for the insect to get away. A few hours later the spider comes back and sucks the juices from the hapless prey. Many years ago I was out one afternoon collecting butterflies when I notices a monarch butterfly entangled in the web of a golden garden spider. At first I said I would let nature take its course. Then I remembered that the monarch butterfly was on its way to Mexico and had a long way to go. So, gingerly I plucked the butterfly from the web and let it go. Happily it continued on its southward journey, at least, I assumed it was happy. I don’t think spiders can cuss, but if they can, when I looked back at the web, I was getting a bad cussing out. Garden spiders are not dangerous but they can give painful bite similar to that of a wasp sting. See more

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones One of the most unique species in the animal world is the Potter’s Wasp. It is less than an inch long and is normally marked with contrasting colors of yellow, white, and sometimes orange or red. The Potter’s Wasp is unique in its habits. The adult builds a little mud nest about the size of a marble. This nest is made of soil and regurgitated water and is usually shaped like a round pot. In this little mud nest are placed the larvae of d...ifferent insects, beetles, small caterpillars, spiders, etc. These animals have been stung by the adult wasp but are not dead, only paralyzed. A string of little round mud nests are often made and only one egg is laid in each nest. The female then seals the nest but leaves a tiny opening. In this small hole one egg is laid. When this egg hatches the larva drops into the nest and feeds on the paralyzed insects. Eventually the larva, after exhausting its food supply, spins a cocoon. In time this cocoon turns into an adult wasp, climbs out the tiny hole, and then goes about the business of being a wasp. Many years ago I had the privilege of finding a Potter’s Wasp building her nest in an outbuilding behind my shop. Every day I checked on her busy activities and was amazed that such a little bitty wasp could carry on such a busy, interesting lifestyle. See more

Living Outdoors By Bud Jones I must have been about 12 years old that night when my daddy took me fox hunting. He had also told a boy in town, Blue Cumby, about my same age, that he could go. I didn’t know Blue very well but daddy had promised him that one day he would take him with us on a hunt. We met the Verner boys, John, Clifford, and Wayne at a place called the mailbox, and we turned the dogs loose. In our type of fox hunting we never caught a fox, but the ple...asure came from hearing the dogs run. Each man knew his own dogs’ bark. There’s old Bullet, one would say. Maybe another would say, That’s Prince, or Dodger. All evening the chase would go on and the men reveled in listening to the dogs run. As the night wore on, Blue and I became sleepy, so we got in the back of Wayne Verner’s pickup truck and went to sleep. On occasion, if the dogs are chasing a red fox, they will go out of hearing. The red fox will lead them on a merry chase. The gray fox, however, will run in a big circle, so there is no chance that the dogs would go out of hearing. The men all got into their vehicles and moved on down the road to a place they thought they could better hear the dogs. Blue and I were fast asleep in Wayne’s pickup truck, but later he woke me up and urgently punched me. Bud, wake up quick! I was groggy but sleepily stood and rubbed my eyes. Where are we Blue? I asked. We-we-we are in a graveyard, he replied. The moon was shining brightly and the tombstones appeared to be moving. My knees were clicking against each other and my heart was thumping. Presently an owl hooted, Hoo-hoo, hoo-hoo. I’m getting outta here, Blue said as he jumped over the side of the truck and took off down the road. Wait on me, Blue! I hollered, as I quickly followed suit. Luckily we ran toward the main dirt road where we met all the men, walking back to their cars. Well, my daddy said, Y’all have a good nap? Yes sir, I replied. Blue didn’t say anything, and as far as I know he never went on another fox hunt. See more