Alligator In The Sink

Day 22: Every now and then, a Northern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coerulea) manages to get in my house. How? I have no idea. They generally wind up in one of two places, either on the stone fireplace hearth or in the kitchen sink. Over the years, Skunk managed to catch a couple, or I should say caught the tail, leaving me to rescue rest of the lizard and return it safely to the yard. I don't recall that Tippy has ever caught one, although there was one amusing episode where the three of us were running a foot race with Liz in the lead. During the summer, I find them hanging out under the garbage bin, beneath pieces of wood, under flower pots and such in the yard, but as colder weather approaches, they sneak indoors. I was rather startled when I went to put a dirty coffee mug in the sink and nearly set it on this little critter. The lizard was understandably upset and was not easy to capture, trying to run up the sleeve of my sweater as I tried to grab it gently around the body instead of by the tail. After several minutes of frantic fumbling, a rescue was effected, and Liz was returned to the great outdoors.

Share The Trail

Day 161: Spring has sprung, and that means the herps and amphibians will be out enjoying the warmer weather just like the rest of us who like to take walks on the Bud Blancher Trail. This little Northern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coerulea) was going hell-bent-for-leather across the path and only paused long enough for me to get a photo. Fairly common in the Pacific Northwest, this lizard prefers the damp forest, but is frequently found around house foundations, under flower pots or sheltering beneath buckets, birdbaths, trash bins or any other object which provides a hideout. I usually find one or two inside the house every year, sometimes even in my kitchen sink. Like many other lizards, Northern Alligator is able to regrow its tail, a process well into development on this specimen.