A not uncommon backyard visitor to I’m sure nearly everyone’s back yard at one time or another. They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder and this guy is beautifully ugly! I was concerned about him when I first saw him in the middle of the day in the middle of my yard. I’ve seldom seen these guys out and about in the middle of the day. Grabbed the camera and went out to get some photos and he didn’t act scared or shy; didn’t try to escape or run away. I probably could have reached down to touch or pet him. I know these guys can “play possum” but a near total lack of interest in my presence (except for maybe turning his head to keep an eye on me) was interesting to say the least. I was beginning to get concerned that he might have rabies so I grabbed a few photos and went back inside to do a little research.
Silly me; I should have known better. Of course they don’t get rabies. And they are great scavengers digging up and eating grubs and other creatures such as ticks that that actually do carry the rabies virus and other things like lyme disease. So you’re a good guy. Thanks for visiting my yard; come back anytime.
Here’s your beauty portrait:
