STUCK UP AN ALMOND TREE.

    My daughter and grandson came running in the other day, saying quick
   "grab a camera and a book on small mammals". So l did. They said that
    there was a mystery animal stuck an almond tree, by the little corral, at
    rear of our neighbour Annas cotijo. The same place as the sighting of the lbex
    eating the very same tree.

     Anna had been alerted by, what she thought was a cat fight between her
    cat and another tabby. They were having a tussel on the ground. So she
    had grabbed a hose pipe and sprayed them to break them up. The mystery
    cat had fled up the almond tree and was looking down at us.

    It had along nose, trangular white markings on its face, under its eyes and
    black markings on the sides of its face.  The ears were large and transluscent
    in the sun.A black line ran down its back. It was generally grey with black spotted
    markings down its body. The tail was long with bands of black. The throat and
    chin were also white. It was rather cat like but had shorter limbs and a longer body.
    A Genet. Wow what a pretty little creature.

     There high in the tree it sat watching us. One does not often see them as they are
    noctural. My daughter climbed onto the roof opposite to take some photos. The inset
    to cocksparrow is this very little animal. So we stayed to look awhile. It moved about
    the tree with great agility, almost like a squirrel. Poor creature, it looked tired. So
    we left. Anna later said that it had stayed all day and left when the sun sank!

    These lovely animals were first bought to Spain as domestic pets by the Maghreb,
    many many years ago. Their diet includes, scorpians, centipedes, lizards, rodents,
    and many other nastys. Also birds, bird eggs, fruit and olives. All in all a very
    usefull pet to have around. If taken as kittens they can be tamed and are very
    loyal to their adoptive humans. But can become quite distraught if separated.
    Captive Genets have been known to live for ten years and much more.

   THE BEAUTIFUL FLOWER,

   was an Asphodelus albus, it is very tall, the flowers on their stem are
   many and look very lilly like.

   The beatiful girl is my grandchild, we were playing a game.

   The Asphodelus is a stunning plant ,it grows wild all over our part of spain,
    it can reach heights of two metres. The leaves are long and thin, growing out of
    the base.It is often grown in gardens.
   
    There is much folk lore attached to it.
     It has great connections with the under world.
     In some parts of the world, Whitches use the stems as a weopon in their dreams.
 
     The stems can also be used to make baskets.
     The leaves used to wrap round soft cheese.
     The flower buds picked, blanched, preserved in olive oil are ued like capers.
     It is also known as 'poor mans potatoes' , the roots being edible.
     Honey made by bees feeding from its flowers, is very delicately flavoured.

     It is also said to be a good treatment for snake bite!.
 

   THE BEAUTIFUL FLOWER.


   High up on the mountain top,
   l rest to take stock.
 
   Such a peacefull timeless place.
   Wherever l look is an open space.

   A young girl appears before me,
   with her hair,
    a halo in the sunlit air.

   She sits down to talk.
   "l'm glad you came on this walk" she said.
   " There is a flower,
   it takes a hundred years to grow,
   not days.
   Shall we wait for it to flower? ".
   She asks.

   "Yes". l reply

   "We can make our home here among the stones", she said.

   So we did and waited.
   Eventually it came.
   It was her height.
   Just the same.

   A huge tall stem.
   With flowers of lilly white.

   We ran to it and said "How beautiful are you".
   We danced around it and and sang ,
   We smelled it's scent.

   The beautiful girl kissed it and hugged it,
   and pulled me in to.

   I'm glad we waited.
   We hailed it Adios,
   then walked back down.

 " CHEEP CHEEP"


   Went to lunch one fine day at my friend Julies cortijo. We were all
   seated outside around a laden table and were about to eat, when
   the lady opposite said to me "Hope you don't mind snakes, but there
   is one dangling from the roof just above your head ! "

   I was sitting with my back to the wall. I turned and looked up. Sure
   enough a snake was dangling from the eves with it's head under the
   tiles. " Oh " l said and moved away to the other side of the table, not
  wanting it to land on my head.!

   We sat back and watched. It was not a ladder snake. It had diamond
   patterns down it's body. Oh a Viperine we thought. But l must admit
   l have never seen one away from water. Julies house stands quite high
   and away from the river bed.

   We coulld hear little nestling sparrows saying " cheep cheep" All at once a
   nestling shrieked, then all was quite. Next we heard another scream .
  A deathly silence followed for sometime. The parents arrived. They protested
   and hopped about. The snake came out. The parents bombarded it. The
   snake left across the roof.

   The parents never entered that nest again. Strangely enough Julie has had
   a few chicken fatalities in the past. On one  autopsy a bird was found
   with two puncture marks on its body. Snake bite had been thought at
   the time.!

 

 

   SITTING  UNDER A FIG TREE.


      As I sit under a fig tree, l watch  a tumble bug or dung beetle
   ( Coprophagous) come tumbling along with a large ball of dung.
   l love these Latin names, my favourite has to be (Turdus Turdus.)

     The figs are not ready yet, but when they are open the fleshy fruits
   to reveal the red succulent interior. This is where the single sexed
   flowers are.. A pollinating beetle (Blastophaga grossorum), enters
   the fruit through a small opening at the apex to lay her eggs, pollinating
   as she moves from one tree to another. When the eggs hatch out the
   grublets eat the fruit. Watch out for them, or " just fignore them" ,
   as my niece would say.

     Half ripe figs are semi-poisonous. On the other hand the fig fruit
   and sap are used medicinally against, boils, skin infections, warts,
   insect bites, stings and of course syrup of figs! Never burn fig wood
  it is hugely noxious.

     The fig tree is mentioned in the Bible more times than any other
   plant. Its leaf being the first garment for mankind. This l rather
   contest. Be carefull the leaves are scratchy and can bring on a
   nasty rash.

     Indeed, as in days of old when Knights were bold and used a blade
   of grass, I was caught short  and having no blades of grass,
   I plucked the nearest green leaf !( a fig leaf ). Minutes later I
   suffered the most dreadful reaction. Luckily there was a water
   channel nearby.

    Fig wood is easily bent and can be used to make bent wood furniture,
   garlands, hoops ect: The wilder Egyptian fig was used , because of its
   light- weight  durability for making mummy coffins.

   THE ILLUMINATI


   Every bug has it's day or night. Last night l was  visited by some noisy,
   brown, half inch long beetles, crashing around the supper table.

   One flew into my glass of ale. I watched it flail and then rescued it.
   For the next twenty minutes it entertained itself running around in
   circles, and falling about. Feeling rather guilty l picked it up to steady
   it, when suddenly two little lights lit up on it's bottom! " A Glow Beetle".

   That's the male, or glow worm the female, so named because she is
   wingless and fairly long in the body. Any thing in olden days , that was
   long and crawling around was named a worm. The females also shine
   at night on the ground below, the last three segments of their body are
   strongly luminescent.

   These beetles belong to the family "Lampyridae", (Lampyris noctiluca)
   "Night Light"!,which also includes the fire flies. The buzzing males
   are the fliers. They have two very tiny light producing organs at the tip
   of the abdomen, these can be turned off and on at will. They are most
   active in June and July, when after having gone through a three year
   process, they appear as adults, " on - masse". Preferring damper
   conditions they emerge to flash their illuminations at one another.

   The  grounded females can attract many suitors, but choose only one.

   The lava feed on snails. Snails are plentiful here, especially after rain.
    l have often found empty shells occupied not by snails but by black
    crawling wingless glow worm lava. These long segmented little
    carnivores track snails down following their slime trails. When found
    they drive their hollow mandibles into the snailsl flesh, injecting  a
    dark fluid, partly paralizing, partly digestive, reducing the snails to a
    predigested soup!

    Sadly modern all night lighting attracts the fickle males away from
    the females, leaving them old maids. This is why they are seldom
    found in large numbers anymore.
.





 
.

   DRIVING OVER TORTOISES.


   After all the recent rains, it has been reported that the Parque Comercial
   was awash with tortoises.

   We also have them here in the Almanzora valley. They have been spotted
   on the hillsides, along the river  bed, down in the fields and in gardens.
   I have found several empty shells showing signs of injuries due to hoeing
   and more recently they have been found crushed by lorry's tearing up the
   Almanzora river bed.

   If found alive it is essential never to remove them from their habitat. They
   are a protected species. They have a daily rountine that is ingrained to
   travel the same path, removing leads to disorientation. Thay are active in
   the mornings and evenings, spending the hottest hours buried in the ground
   or under a stone. Tortoises are mainly vegetarian but will feed on carrion.
   They can eat the dung of others and chalk, the latter nescessary for healthy
   hard shells.

   Far from being slow the tortoise can really move. l was once  sitting in a friends
   garden, several were rampaging around the garden, the males were persuing
   a lone female at a terrific pace. They were throwing  themselves at her,
   nipping her legs and generally molesting her to try to slow her down. Then
   with much clanking of shells they all tried to pile on top. I feared for my feet.  
   Later a male was found splayed out on the lawn, fearing him dead picked him
   up and there hanging pinkly his exhausted apparatus! The females lay up to a
   dozen round white hard shelled eggs, which she buries leaving the sun to incubate
   them.

   There are three types of tortoises in Europe. Hermanns tortoise, found mainly
   in Italy and southern Europe. The similar spur-thighed tortoise found in the
   eastern Balkans and Spain. These are the ones now banned from being sold
   in pet shops. Lastly the marginated tortoises found only in Greece and
   Sardinia. These populations were allegedly a result of them being given as
   gifts to ones fiancee!
 

  PUSSIES IN MOROCCO

   Pregnant, purring,
   petted pussies.

   Sitting in bowls,
   on chairs,
   in windows,
   waiting



     SOUK PUSSIE

      I saw a little pussy cat,
      it's fur all grey  and fluffy.
      l watched her as she played all day,
      with bits of cast off stuffy.

      l called her Souk and
      wanted her for my own.

      Purring on the rubbish pile.

      So next day,
      l passed her way,
      to see if she was there!

      But o no,
      what's that,
      a little flat,
      squished
      pussie cat!