After a few weeks of absolutely zero fiddler crab sightings in our tank, I headed back to the feed store to procure a few more. I was thinking that adding a few more more might convince the other two to be a tad more social. And really, one can never have enough crabs.
The normal aquatics guy wasn't there, so I was helped by a sweet younger guy that 
unfortunately had an almost debilitating crab phobia. Every time he swooped in the tank with his net, the crabs would angrily scatter while waving their claws at him, and he'd visibly shudder. Every once in awhile he'd actually catch one, but it would jump out of the net and cause him to simultaneously jump away from their tank. After about 20 minutes, he decided it would be okay to skirt the company rules and let me just reach in and grab whichever ones I wanted.
unfortunately had an almost debilitating crab phobia. Every time he swooped in the tank with his net, the crabs would angrily scatter while waving their claws at him, and he'd visibly shudder. Every once in awhile he'd actually catch one, but it would jump out of the net and cause him to simultaneously jump away from their tank. After about 20 minutes, he decided it would be okay to skirt the company rules and let me just reach in and grab whichever ones I wanted.
I've always had a soft spot in my heart for crustaceans, but I fully admit that when I came home and swapped out the filters in the tank, I screamed like a little girl when Luigi came lurching off the top of the filter and onto my hand. Apparently he'd climbed up the filter hose and decided it made a fine home. Plenty of algae to eat, a dry spot at the top of the filter box, tons of privacy... everything a crab could want in a living space. At least now when he disappears again I know where to look first.
But Luigi isn't the only critter to come out of hiding around here. Now that I've started running the sprinkler in the evenings, I've noticed a huge increase in the number of dragonflies darting around the farm. I love to watch them hunt, and apparently they enjoy playing in the sprinkler. So do the robins and gold finches. They exhibit so much gleeful abandon when I turn it on that I don't even grumble when it takes me close to three hours to haul it around the yard.
Ceri, on the other hand, takes her sprinkler love to the extreme. We were so worried she 
was going to drown herself that we bought one especially designed for dogs. Of course, the box is covered with cute pictures of puppies playing in the water, but it definitely brings out the puppy in our 100-lb Shepherd. I'll turn it on for her during the hottest part of the afternoon, and she would play for hours if we let her.
was going to drown herself that we bought one especially designed for dogs. Of course, the box is covered with cute pictures of puppies playing in the water, but it definitely brings out the puppy in our 100-lb Shepherd. I'll turn it on for her during the hottest part of the afternoon, and she would play for hours if we let her.
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