WEIRD WORLD

PART 2

More entries from the Weird File:

√ When I see my dog doing this in the front yard, I’m almost afraid to look up. In this case, there was a ground hog 15’ up in the tree. Makes one wonder about the name ground hog; I don’t think there are tree hogs, even in Iowa County. These guys are famous for digging burrows, not climbing trees. Dogs are one of their primary predators, so this one was not being an alarmist.

These stocky little marmots are also known as woodchucks or land beavers. (So I guess we have to stop teasing my niece about shouting, “Look, a chuck beaver.”) Just like us, ground hogs give birth to helpless, hairless babies, but theirs are ready to set out on their own at age 5 weeks, so maybe we could learn something from them.

√ We all know what causes crop circles in the fields. Less is known about pond circles.

√ String algae is one of the strangest and most wonderful things found on the pond. It’s considered a pest, but come one––one long cell? Amazing.

√ Baby painted turtle yawning. What exactly tired her out? Must be all that racing around––up on the log in the morning, back in the pond in the evening. Whew. (And yes, this did make me yawn; it's a cross-species phenomenon.)

√ Snails that take up residence on turtle shells. Does this get them there faster?

√ Catfish in trees. Do you call firemen to get them down?

√   Ice-skating geese get a 5.9 from the Scottish judge.

A klutz doing a triple-lutz

The Weird File is never fully closed. Stay tuned for more weirdness, coming soon to a blogspot near you.