Is it possible that you saw the world's largest earthworm/nightcrawler? That's a Giant Gippsland Earthworm. Of course, that's nothing compared to the South African Giant Earthworms -- the recordsetter there was 22 feet long! The Twinkie looked very yummy, then the naked rat ruined my appetite...damn...lol. ;-) Meh. Naked mole rate are nothing. If you want weird looking, check out the Star-Nosed Mole: Of course, Naked mole rats are a pretty cool species. They live more like a hive of bees -- one big breeding female and a ton of workers. And just like with bees and ants, different moles have different jobs -- tunnellers, guards, etc. The female gets really long when pregnant, rather than fat, so she can still fit through tunnels. And what tunnels they are -- a single colony's tunnels can be miles in length and cover the area of a football field. And they can burrow through concrete -- literally. They're also cold-blooded -- they regulate their body temperature by moving into higher or deeper tunnels. They feed by chewing bits out the cores of tubers, but then packing them back full of soil so that they'll regrow. Here's a couple more pics :) Homely, yes, but kind of cute in a way.

I'm on two acres in semi-rural central Massachusetts, bordering conservation land (wetlands). This is the first time I've thought about itemizing what I've seen in my four years, here. It's a long list, and I'm sure it's just a fraction! We have a pond, and keep half the property meadow. (Maybe, by some standards, the whole thing is a meadow....) I've been putting up birdhouses, lately. We see (in rough order of how interesting...) great blue herons, red tail hawks, egrets, a large flock of cedar waxwings, redwing blackbirds, barn sparrows (how do they know it's a barn?), downy/hairy/piliated/red-breasted woodpeckers, orioles, juncos, nuthatches, and the usual finches, bluejays, cardinals, yadda yadda yadda. A wood duck down the road, and I wish he'd visit. Spring peepers (I can't wait for them to come back!), leopard frogs, other various frogs and toads, garter/ribbon/maybe milk snakes, 4-toed salamanders. Turtles nearby, but not at my pond. In the pond, various snails, leeches, more frogs, infinite insects (especially mosquitoes). In the orchard, every pest an apple tree has ever known. Mice, groundhogs, rabbits, grey squirrels, flying squirrels, chipmunks. Coyotes, foxes, deer. Neighbors have seen a bear and reportedly minks, but not me. Beavers have us surrounded, but they are not my own yard. Some lovely spiders, and some plain ones too. Lots of paper wasps and various bees. More mosquitoes. In fact, mostly, we have mosquitoes. And worms. --Jonathan

To all posters: especially Jillmcm an vonyon, thank you so much for your input on this subject. I live in a wooded area. I love watching all the wildlife,- turkey, deer, and especially the birds, we have blue bird, martin and wren houses, and several bird baths. I have suet feeders, finch feeders, and a hopper feeders, along with several bird baths. I enjoy the birds so much, and spend many hours watching them. Then last summer a pair of phobees built a nest on a window sill on the second floor of our house. What a delight! They would swoop down and eat tons of insects. When I saw a hawk in a tree next to our house eyeing the baby phobees, it was too much, I went over the edge. I was obsessed with how to keep them out of our yard. All of the posts on this forum have been so helpful to putting things in balance. I am going to rethink my pattern of feeding the birds. Although the Phobees don't eat at bird feeders,they do use the bird baths, and the mere fact that there is a concentration of birds, attracted the hawks. By the way, the hawks nested in the woods next to us, and I heard the baby hawk calling after it's mother for food and say them hunting together, so I know they have to eat too. Thank you, again!

Here in eastern KS I have seen flocks of Am. Robins all winter long. They have been vocalizing for at least a couple of weeks. What was noteworthy to me was the vocalization of the No. Cardinals in early February. A bit on the early side. I saw Red-tailed Hawks beginning their courtship and working on their nests in mid-Feb. Also a tad early. Then we got about a foot-and-a-half of snow, but love is still in the air. P.S. I am originally from NE Ohio myself (Trumbull County).