At least this wildlife was outside...

Here in Fallbrook where there is lots of open space, there are a lot of critters around the house. Usually they are outside, although it seems more than a fair share of spiders find their way inside. Lots of crickets, too, and once - a lizard.

Outside, various critters have been spotted: an owl , a hawk, hummingbirds, finches, and orioles (among other birds,) gophers, rats, mice, rabbits, scorpions, a tarantula, and more than one kind of snake, including rattlesnakes. Two summers ago, I came much closer to a rattlesnake than I ever wanted to without a thick layer of glass separating us.

Today, I noticed this guy right outside the window:


Isn't that just great? I actually heard him before I saw him... well, I heard some scuffling outside when he attacked the unfortunate critter that became his lunch. Later, he slithered off toward a patch of sunlight, presumably for an after lunch nap, and I snapped this photo. This is a gopher snake, and I'm guessing he's about 5 feet long. These aren't poisonous, and they are actually useful for controlling the population of rodents, so I left him alone after snapping a few photos.
-- Originally posted at: http://rebeccasmiscellanies.blogspot.com/