My dear hubby worked hard at getting some repair work done this weekend. He was re-building the block wall he had to knock down a couple of weeks ago when he was looking for the source of a leaking water pipe. The repair job wasn't quite as easy as he hoped and he was head-down trying to get it sorted.
At the same time, I was about the place trimming back some plants and pulling out some weeds that had exploded after the arrival of Cyclone Ita's downpour, when suddenly, I heard my name being called.
Some little visitors had crept up behind hubby and decided to help a little with some trimming back of the plants in the garden beds. No doubt they thought it was the right thing to do!
No, these are not our goats but belong to our neighbour. Occasionally the goats will wander into our bush paddock or front yard, but we don't really see them all that often. Yesterday, they just didn't seem to want to leave and they found all sorts of lovely things to nibble on and chew through.
They loved the Ardisia leaves and the berries.
They also loved the Daylily leaves, but they were told off in no uncertain words that they were off limit. They looked decidedly forlorn then.
Apparently there was something rather tasty in the wheelbarrow as well.
I didn't mind at all having them gobble up the weeds growing in the yard,
but I wasn't all that keen on seeing the leaves shredded on the Acalyphas in the front garden bed.
They took some convincing to move on!
Well, those were yesterday's visitors. Today we saw a creature that didn't inspire the same feelings of good cheer.
We were cleaning up in the shadehouse and it took quite some time to notice this creature. It was huge and hairy. It would have been about the size of my hubby's hand, maybe a little larger as we didn't quite get to see all of it. Not only is it bit and beastly looking, but it was damn quick too. We've no idea where it headed off too, but we gave the shadehouse a bit of a wide berth for a while. I think it might have been a Bird-Eating Spider.
So, there you have it. We can get some interesting visitors here.
That was lovely seeing the goats made me smile looking at them nibbling away happily at your lovely plants then you just had to go and do it .......my tablet and I nearly fell off the sofa OMG!!!! That's one horrendous spider now I am a right scardy cat when it comes to those eight legged terrorists that can hold you to ransome at 100 paces nasty little ( or in this case not so little ) critters ugh!!! Still shivering at the thought of it. Think I would sooner have the snakes. Nice legs M. !!
ReplyDeleteLol, sorry Sue. I should have given you a little warning about what was coming up!!! It was a super sized spider. I'm pretty sure it was what is called a Bird-Eating Spider and they're called that because they big enough to actually eat little birds! I have to admit I'm not a big fan of the hairy ones or the huge ones, and this was both!
DeleteBTW, we did see a snake as well today. It was rather a large tree snake, but my camera wasn't within easy reach when we spotted it. It took off pretty quickly as well.
M appreciates your compliment. ; )
I love the goats, it is neat seeing how they are able to climb all around. The spider looks huge! Great post and photos, have a happy day!
ReplyDeleteEileen, they had not trouble climbing over the brick pile and at one point they climbed into the garden bed at the back. The spider was huge, bigger than my hand at least.
DeleteThe goats are cute and if they would eat only the weeds they would be more of a treat in the garden. At least they enjoyed snacking on something different for a little while.
ReplyDeleteThat's a big spider and very similar to the smaller Tarantula which we see in Texas. They look scary but it's mostly show compared to smaller poisonous spiders.
Shirley, I would love them visiting if they just ate the weeds. What a bonus that would be. They certainly enjoyed the snacks they had at our place. They stayed for quite some time.
DeleteThe Bird-Eating Spider is a type of Tarantula, so that's why it's similar to the ones you see. While they are venomous, they're not venomous to humans thankfully.
Oh Bernie, that spider is horrendous ! I would stay inside with all doors and windows shut if I knew it was on the prowl ! Would it bite given half a chance ? The goats, on the other hand, are very cute AS LONG as they remember to eat only the weeds and not the good stuff!
ReplyDeleteJane, I'd better not tell you that the Bird-Eating Spiders are around all the time, but they generally stay in their burrows. I haven't seen them out and about very often at all. If I tell you that you'll never drop by for a visit when you head Downunder, lol!
DeleteIf they're feeling threatened I'm sure they would bite, but they also whistle quite loudly to warn you off.
The goat photos were great! Hope they won't make a habit of daily lunch at your lovely diner.
ReplyDeleteA spider as big or bigger than your husband's hand!!!!! That gives me the creeps big time. Hope he vacated the premises.
I saw a glass snake today, but he slithered into the hedge. :-)
I got buzzed right by my left ear by a parent mockingbird yesterday morning. That freaked me out as it came out of nowhere and I didn't even know where the baby was.
Have a lovely Easter ~ FlowerLady
Lol, I wouldn't mind my place being a diner if the goats only ate the weeds, Lorraine. I can see though that they much prefer a smorgasbord!
DeleteThe spider headed off to its burrow, wherever that may be. I know there would be a few of them around our place, but they don't come out very often at all. They tend to stay inside their homes whenever we're about.
Snakes are a common sight around here. The tree snake we saw yesterday was one of the biggest I've seen in a long time. Obviously lots of tasty morsels for them here.
I can imagine the fright you would have got when buzzed by that mockingbird. The kookaburras do that to me as well, and I often jump a few feet off the ground! Cheeky things.
Long weekends are good for spending time in the garden, I can imagine your surprise to see the goats in your backyard, and the sheer horror of discovering that spider, if it was me I would never go near the shade house again.
ReplyDeleteLove, love long weekends, Karen. I haven't spent such a long time in the garden for months now and it was just wonderful. We got a lot of things done.
DeleteThe spider took off so I wasn't too worried about wandering into the shadehouse again. It's the snakes the lurk in there that really worry me most of the time, although since the wallabies have started using it for their bedroom at night I haven't seen one snake in there!!!
Good on you for photographing the bird eating spider. I have never seen one myself. Sounds quite harmless, but it might make pets or children really sick if bitten. Probably indicates a healthy eco system at your block.
ReplyDeleteVery glad that all is now neat and tidy after the visit from Ita.
Unless they feel threatened these huge spiders are generally harmless, although they are venomous to little creatures. I think they would give humans a rather nasty bite as well. Yes, I think we do have a rather healthy eco system here given the wildlife around. There have been a load of butterflies and dragonflies lately too, but they're too quick for my ageing camera and I just haven't got any good shots.
DeleteEverything is very neat and tidy now. It's a great feeling. I've just got to finish planting up some of the corners of the new garden beds and I will be very, very happy.
The spider you can have, but the goats are a different story. We would love to have a few goats to clean up the wild blackberries.
ReplyDeleteYou are having some critter antics and frightening visitors...I have crazy birds right now. Never a dull moment.
ReplyDeleteAnother day in the garden of Bernie.....never a dull moment! The goats will eat you out of house and home but I can live with them. Now that huge spider would have to go!
ReplyDeleteUgh! I thought we had big spiders here in Britain – that thing is massive!!
ReplyDeleteI say the same as others here, keep the spider but I wouldn’t min a goat or two, well, if I had a slightly bigger garden that is!
pretty nice blog, following :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful world you are living in ! Mind you I don't want to meet that horrible spider !!!!
ReplyDeleteThe goats are cute. Hope they rewarded you with some fresh manure! The spider can help catch away the garden bugs.
ReplyDelete