In all my years on the road as a lineman and out in the woods all over the U.S. the only time i've ever seen one of these guys was just outside of Huntsville, alabama while climbing a 60' pole hanging fiber optic cable for knology...it was an old pole with many holes and at about the 40' point this thing jumped out of a hole and took (a literal flying leap off of my shoulder) what i thought was a death jump for the wide open road bout 20' behind me...Shaken, I turned round to watch it literally soar ACROSS THE ROAD!!!!...AN amazing feat.............When we moved here to nowhere Maine...I happened along a bunch of kittens while horse back riding about a mile from the house here at a log cabin....took them home and kept jist one.........MURPHY!!!! She was a lot of fun but at the age of (approx) 6 mos. she started a killing spree of which i can honestly say i've never seen the likes of....I can say that i'm a true nature lover but am glad oto ahve her round because with the horses and chickens and one goat runnin round there is plenty of grain to raise many a family of unwanted vermin...Her first victims were mist mice and then things began to escalate...HUGE RAT'S that we didn't even know were round....more mice ...baby rat's ..and one of my favorite pastimes....watchin chipmunks run and play..started to show up on the doorstep!!!!Very worried bout my 2 mos. old chickens she got a rude awakening!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!She got chucked!!!(literallly) into the chicken pen!!!!!! You should've seen her reaction.... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif...She spent 2 day's in their habitat "being and becoming a chicken"!!!!!no food or water but what they had ....and to this day she steers clear of them...GUESS SHE HAD ONE TO MANY PECKS ON THE HEAD.. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
MY DOG OAKLEY WAS TREATED IN THE SAME MANNER...And Murphy was her first "family" member ......Oakley was tought 2 be loving to murph..and she would as a pup literally carry her round the yard and GENTLY!!! play with her!!! To this very day they always sleep together and when Murphy had her litter of kittens 2 mos. ago ,,,,........Oakley became a "Grandmother!!!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
The runnin round the yard with the "grandkids had to b put to a stop though as with 8 kittens...and very young at that ....
I got real tired of runnin down back to see which of the "grandkids" was meowin and wanting to git back to the house when it was gittin dark!!!!!!
Anyway..........Murph comes strollin up to the house yesterday afternoon as I had jist finished with the quonset venture and was enjoyin a cold one and i spyed her and whipped out the cam!!! She didn't want any part of "typical female" the pic's and when she saw me she headed but still in the general direction of the porch as that's where the kittens hang....She kept a watchful eye for me but was only interested in givin her young(4 of them adopted by her) a"live" ....playtoy....Now if this playtoy had been a rat or a mouse i would've jist let it go at that but I could'nt believe it !!!!A HUGE SUGARGLIDER!!!!!!...latin= FLYINGUS SQUIRRELUS!!!!!!!!!!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
I actually thought it was dead and she growled like heck when i took it from her.......when i grabbed the cam agin to take a pic of it i realized that it's heart was still beating........LIKE CRAZY!!!!!!!!!.......... He had obviously been playin possum and had actually
s@@@ himself !!!!! BIGTIME!!!!!!!!.......I didn't realize how literally alive he was till i aimed the cam at him and the flash went off .....AND HE BLINKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!......Thinking at this point that i was going to have to put him "out of his misery" i picked him up off of the log...(prior pic) and his claws actually gripped my shirt!!!!!! At that point I knew and after lookin him over fairly well ..........that he was relatively un harmed ...other than a cut on his ear, IE: the blood .....I immediately put on a pair of gloves!!!!........THese guys are one of the most ...all squirrels ,mice and other rodents...disease and !!!!flea...he was loaded!!!!!withem!!!! carrying animals you'll ever git near......!!!!!!!!!
I then knew he was not going to b a play toy!!!!started taking him up to a big hemlock and he jist perched on my glove!!!!ie: the nxt pic!!!!!!...When the flash went off ...this time he jumped!!! and glided to the ground where he lay....(still in shock)...until i piked him up again and brought him up to the tree where i prepared to git a "release shot of him!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif By the time i put him on the tree and pushed the "on" button ........He was bout 50' up ... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Anyway he was a full grown male and hop to not have to see his tail on the front porch!!!(that's usually all i see)
as Murph has brought me 2 of these tails in one night ........I could'nt figure out what the first tail belonged to but when she showed up with a half eaten oneofem last summer i realized that up here we have a population of these little night flyers!!!!! I think they are as cool as they git and wanna keep the population up if possible.....Gonna have to git some night vision goggles though!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Don't know how Murph got one during the day but I'll bet he'll definitely b more wary in the future as i'm glad to have been the rescuer and allowed him to use up one of his "9" lives...Or do cat's jist git them?????? /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Take care guys and have a great and sare mem day wknd!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
TODD from flyinus squirrelus territory!!!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif