Something funny I saw on the way to the forum
It is lovely and hot in Italy today. After a few days in the UK, with some hail and lots of rain in Wales, it is a shock to be back and to be hitting the warmth over here. Since it is hot, the type of animals that I have seen here are really very different to those that I see back in the UK. So, today's post is to discuss the type of creatures that commonly crop up here. A list:
Snakes - fairly common. This one is only a little one, but we used to have one that hung out by my office - until it was run over by a car! This is a photo of one I saw whilst out cycling - as you can see it is very small. This alarmed me. The others I have seen are about 3 or 4 feet in length and I have been told that the big ones are fine, but the small and scared ones are poisonous - gulp. We did see a large black headed one disappearing into a well in Pompei and I had an overwhelming compulsion to pull it out by it's tail but I am glad to say that I was not totally overwhelmed!
Crazy insects - this bad boy was small, but the antlers were crazy in length compared to the rest of it. How did it do anything? How could it go through a door? What is the point? I see similarities with the ladies at Ascot with their florid hats but they can take them off at the end of the day, after 20 glasses of Pimms and get on with their lives - not these insects.
Porcupines (istrice) - these spiky funny creatures are great fun to see. One night I was driving and nearly ran them over. Very large they are too and very bouncey when they run. Apparently the meat is very delicious, so you will never see roadkill porcupine as the Italians will stop immediately and take it home!
Coypu - well this was up north, but it still counts. The coypu is a water based mammal, which used to be very common in East Anglia (it is the UEA rowing club mascot) but I think is now not found in the UK.
Toads - everywhere. Some huge ones in Sicily but that is for another post.
Rats - never. Interestingly I have never seen a rat in Italy. Despite the sometimes chaotic approach to rubbish disposal I have not seen one of these, thankfully. They are all too common in the UK nowadays.
Wild boar (cinghiale) - these are very common and very good to eat! Wild boar ragu with the local spagghetti (pici) is the main dish in Siena. Wild boar is hunted a lot, any small wood will have khaki'ed men with guns all weekend, and we can hear the guns roaring from where we live.
Birds - plenty, and some interesting ones. Firecrests (smaller even than goldcrests - in fact when I saw one hovering by the car window at the office, I thought it was a hummingbird!), hoopoe are everywhere with long beaks for digging insects out of crevices, woodpeckers, bright red heads and banging on wood. And of course a few pigeons!
Lizards - lucertola - everywhere. There seem to be a few different types, some all green, some all brown, some brown with green tails, and vice versa. And of course there are the gheckos, which look like lizards but have big flat hands - maybe from too much high fiving! Lizards are everywhere, and wherever you go there is a rustle in a hedge from a lizard dashing away. Some of the smaller ones are bouncey and do some good jumping! Recently we were on the beach not far from here and we saw some amazing footprints and tailprints in the sand, and were a little disappointed when we saw that it was small lizards creating the patterns!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Funny_Thing_Happened_on_the_Way_to_the_Forum
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