Hey, I Can Blog From the Airport!

My new laptop has killer battery life!  Most excellent!

So, yesterday's blog was kind of a downer, I know.  Time to lighten the mood with "The Critters of Salmon."  Yes, I've been playing in the dirt in Salmon, ID, for the past few weeks and it is just beautiful!  Salmon (population 3,122), is one of those towns with a farmers' market that has no farmers, but plenty of arts and crafts and ice-cold lemonade with slices of lemon floating on top and the "entertainment" consists of karaoke and a Kung Fu Soo demonstration.

Salmon - the pickup trucks are loaded with dogs; people buy rounds and give you stuff (I got a zipper pull, hybrid onion/garlic bulbs, drink from the whiskey distributor...)  People have multiple jobs to make ends meet (river guide and taxidermist; computer repairman-river shuttle-fuel additive distributor...), but they love it.

Wandering Garter (Thamnophis elegans vagrans).  Pretty common but I like 'em!  I was tempted to slip this little guy into my pocket!

And the wildlife is pretty amazing.  The herpin' is lean, but whilst in the mountains around Panther Creek, I saw does with spotted fawns, elk, coyote pups, eagles, osprey, squirrels, chipmunks, "whistle pigs," butterflies, moths, frogs, bats, mosquitoes, and even a snake or two.  I miss my desert and can't wait to get back and see some serious herps, but the days spent here have been mostly good ones (well, except for the part where I crashed my computer, dented the bumper, and set fire to a bag of popcorn).

This is a Male Royal Moth (Antheraea polyphemus).  You can tell it's a male by the super feathery antennae.

This is either a chorus or a spotted frog.  I'm not very good at ID-ing my frogs.

Anise (yellow), and Pale Swallowtails (Lepidoptera - Palio zelicaon and P. eurymedon).  They were all over sucking up water from the mud on the creek bank.

Yellow-bellied racer (Coluber constrictor).  Head up (periscope), is typical of these species (and they look so cute!)

Handful of Sphinx Moths (I think I've got two females and one male - you do the math)

My last garter of the trip.  This guy everted his cloaca and funked me.  Uggg!  I'm glad I was wearing gloves!