Prolific is the word that comes to mind when I think about the Woodhouse's Toads. It took most of the day but we now have more egg strings along the edge of the pond. CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS? I have to assume this isn't the same female that was laying eggs just 2 days ago.... I can't imagine.
There were 2 male Woody's that were "sing'n" all night long and past sunrise. This morning I discovered them along with the female. Of course it was odd toad out. This couple laid the eggs about the same place as the first pair way back in May.
I was wondering about the consequences of this population explosion when the second batch of eggs hatched and now we have a third batch. Still have no idea how this will resolve itself as the toadlets grow.
New subject. Joe was up early and on station when the sun came up. She apparently didn't eat on Thursday so was attentive to the birds this morning. She did eventually ambush one and retired for the rest of the day. This was after a failed attempt where she sprung out of the water onto the flat stones, missing her target (well, it moved... no fair) and doing a nose dive into the rocks. OOF! It's the sudden stop that gets ya. She's a tough one. No blood. She just crawled back into the pond and started to hunt again.
Earlier she was trying to stalk a pair of Who-Who Birdies, it was very amusing to watch. They caught her attention by drinking in Joe's Pond. Then they moved to the top of the rocks between the pond and the bird feeder. Joe ever so slowly crawled up the rocks until the toes on her hind leg just left the water. She wouldn't go any farther and the birds were far enough away so as not to feel threatened.
Even more news. The bird seed I buy is called "No Mess" which is pretty expensive... about $1.75/lb. It is mostly shelled sunflower seeds and millet. The idea is the birds will eat everything with no waste (like shells) and thus leaving no mess. It works fairly well but not a great as they lead you to believe. It is better than the feed with husks and shells and stuff these species don't eat.
I decided to check out a feed store here in town to see if I could find a better deal. I waited in a short line and when it was my turn the woman at the counter asked what I wanted. I explained about what I had been using and that I was shopping for a like product hoping to save some money. She informed me that they had a similar product but I should just go back to the other store as their product was very expensive. I appreciated the honesty. I also asked what the cost was. It turned out the cost was $9.00 cheaper and the bag held 5 additional pounds of seed! Cost is less than $1.00/lb. I left with seed and the feeling that the sales lady thought I was nuts to spend so much money just to feed wild birds.
Now to find out if the birds like it. If they come across seeds in the feeder they don't like they just dump that stuff on the ground as they search for seeds they do like. That is what makes the mess and the mess draws other creatures besides looking terrible after a while. Cleanup is tough and more of a job for Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs fame.
So a busy day.
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