Hello pals  

We’re just heading into tarantula mating season. You might see one around the barn, or –more likely – crossing Santiago Road. My mom as been known to stop traffic to let one of these slow ambling critters cross Santiago Road safely. I hear that we generally see the males out walking around. They’re hunting for females to mate with to carry on the species. Mating is pretty risky business as she would just as soon EAT the male as mate with him, so after the mating he skedaddles pronto  

And as if this wasn’t hazardous enough, there is a certain kind of wasp that is out looking for tarantulas. The wasp is called a ‘tarantula hawk’. It is about two inches long when flying, beautiful shiny black with dark brown wings. The wasp is only seen individually- never in groups or swarms. The wasp tracks a tarantula back to his den (tarantulas live in holes in the ground mostly – an abandoned gopher hole works very nicely) stings it once to paralyze it, lays one wasp egg on the tarantula, seals the ‘door’ of the den and leaves permanently. The maturing baby wasp eats the tarantula alive !!.....ewwwww !!!.....what a horrible way to go!

Well, I hope that if you get to see this rare sight, that you help the tarantula on his way. They’re very slow and plodding- not at all aggressive or quick to run away.

Happy Trails – see ya next time.

Kadin, Shirley and Jesus