Wildlife: Kicking up a skink

[stephbg]

I was happy to spot a baby skink in my bathroom this morning, but immediately discounted any chance of photographing it. They're fast little beasties.



It then disappeared into the laundry pile which caused a moment's concern, because I was planning on doing some today and I didn't think 2 inches of extremely delicate reptile would be able to cope with a rinse and spin. Fortunately when I came back later it had landed in the bath, so it was safe from the vengeful and capricious sides of my domestic goddess.

It couldn't climb out of the bath so I planned to catch and release it outside, but first I took the opportunity to try and get a picture. This is the best I could do:



I then set to with a glass and piece of paper to catch it. The diameter of the glass was easily big enough for the little guy/girl, but it was so small I had to catch it on a completely flat surface. Even then the glass itself wasn't perfect so it took a stressful minute or so to make the capture. I was also try very hard not to squash it, but sadly it did shed a bit of tail at one point. And I'm horribly afraid I might have caught its head and severed an eyeball :-(

Still, when I let it go it managed to run off so it was alive, but I fear for its chances of survival without stereoscopic vision. This does not feel very good :-(

Comments

[logansrogue.livejournal.com]

So cuuuuute! My cat tries to catch these but fails.

[stephbg.livejournal.com]

My cats *can* catch them (although I think they'd have struggled with this little customer) which is one of the reasons I wanted to get this one out.

[logansrogue.livejournal.com]

Rogue kinda catches them but doesn't manage to kill them because she's not very bright, hunting-wise. She doesn't make the mental leap between hunting something and eating it. Food is bite-sized cooked morsels of food that come out of a can or from the Human's plates, but it doesn't come from the animals you catch. Those are Toys.

Lennon, however, is a mouser of extreme skill and fortitude. He'll bring down giant rats and gobble them up. He is a tiger.