The Nature Center At
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© copyright 2004-2005
by Lin Stone
Brandon Jordan, the weekend naturalist at the Nature Center is
studying to be a herpetologist.
His personal knowledge of the live animals in this region is virtually all
inclusive. All of the
animals in the Nature Center can be found on the Robbers Cave State Park. He
has made
friends with all of the snakes on exhibit there and adds to their comfort by
knowing their
private preferences. "That doesn't include putting the cottonmouth in with the
rattlesnake and
the copperhead because he would just dive down into the little pool there, and
no one would
ever see him."
Brandon has an especial appreciation of the king snake in his care. "Even when you put this guy in with much bigger rattle snakes, he would probably come out the survivor. King snakes have this unique ability to absorb the poison from other snakes."
Brandon put the king snake back into its cage then unrolled five feet of rattlesnake skin. His finger pointed out the curved, venomous fangs. "Right behind these you can see a new set of fangs ready to drop down if these should get yanked out by its prey.
Brandon gladly takes time out to help youths with their school projects. He has a simple way of explaining things so that anyone can understand the subject the first time.
His Oklahoma Boomer lizard is a special attraction for everyone. "Just give this little guy a chance and he'll flip his tail back and forth like a cat, and show off for an hour. Out in the wild they can get up on their hind legs and run like a dust devil. When they do that they look just like a miniature T-Rex on the prowl."
Brandon let the Boomer climb all over his shirt then showed off the muscles in the lizard's hind legs. "He's really sharp. In here he acts just like a pet that wouldn't leave you for the world, but you give him a glimpse of freedom outside and he tries his best to get away."
The Oklahoma Boomer is the State lizard. "They are aggressive and will rush at you, and try to bite you when provoked. However it is unusual for them to be able to break the skin."
Their preferred diet is fresh meat, with young ones starting on crickets and freshly molted worms. Larger Boomers feed on small rodents. "They will cheerfully chomp on any small vertebrates, including other lizards and snakes. Like teenagers, they will eat greens and vegetables when forced into it."
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Right next to the Oklahoma Boomer's cage was another cage. The occupant therein looked just like a snake at first glance but something jerked my gaze back for a second look. "What is this?" "It is not a snake," Brandon assured me with a laugh. He hauled it out and let it lunge back and forth from his hand. In motion, it looked almost like a snake trying to get away, but the motions were different. "How do you know it isn't a snake?" Kyle demanded suspiciously. Brandon caught up the animal's head and showed it to him close up. "Watch the eyes and you'll see them blink. Snakes do not have eyelids. This animal also has ears. See? Therefore this is a legless lizard." The legless lizard is also known as the glass lizard or glass snake. They are found all over the world but scurry away so quickly that most people just believe they have seen a snake.. One of the boys heard Brandon call the tarantula "she" and asked how he knew it was a she. Brandon picked the tarantula up and pointed out the front feelers. "If there is a little hook on the end the tarantula is a boy. If there isn't, the tarantula is a girl." The boys decided not to explore the world of sex education any farther.
Kyle and RJ both tried it, and both boys had success. The turtles followed their fingers like well-trained blood hounds. Brandon fetched a container of red wrigglers and put two of them in, one for each turtle. "Turtles have no teeth so they have to swallow the worms one little gulp at a time," he explained. The worms did not go down to defeat without a writhing fit. Ineffectively they even wrapped their long bodies around the turtle's neck and hung on for dear life. Alas and alack the worms went down for the count and disappeared forever. "How many worms will they eat in a day?" asked Kyle. "As many as I put in there," Brandon assured him. He went on to feed the much larger Alligator Snapper turtle in the next aquarium. "Given time and enough to eat, turtles like this one can eventually weigh as much as a hundred pounds -- and they are extremely dangerous. Even if you pick one up by the tail he can still curl up and bite you. Once they clamp down on some part of your body they are unwilling to let it go." |
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There used to be minnows and small fish in the tank with the Snapper but all of them died from some cause and the tank had to be cleaned.
On rare occasions black bear and cougar sightings have been reported. Strange (to me) is the fact that cougars here are reported to maintain a territory of about 50 miles, the same amount of territory as they claim in sparse Arizona. Along the same line but a little more plentiful, there are some bob cats around here. Brandon pointed out two mounted bob cats at the Nature Center and the one that isn't showing to the public is the best posed.
Other animals in this area include coyotes, fox, beaver, white tail deer, squirrels, rabbits, mice, raccoons, opossum, and badgers.
Badgers look friendly, even cuddly, but are in fact vicious fighters, being kin to wolverines. In certain circumstances a badger can tear an inquisitive coyote to pieces. When they are protecting their young I had just about rather face a bear. Not only does the badger come equipped with formidable fang and claw on the one end, if all else fails she can swap ends in an instant and spray you with a blinding musk enabling a last ditch getaway. Those front claws are sharp and effective; in the Arizona desert I have seen one dig a hole six feet deep in less than half an hour.
Hunting inside the park is a No-No, but you can fish for those delicious black and white crappie, trout, perch, bass, catfish, and bluegill sunfish in nearby lakes Carlton, Wayne Wallace & Coon Creek, (189 Lake Surface Acres, all told). The record fish is a 12 pound 5 ounce largemouth bass caught in 1997. Fishing licenses are available at the grocery store if you arrive here without one and are overwhelmed by the sudden temptation to try your luck.
There are more than 60 pictures to be seen in the rest of the story, and a free ScreenSaver as well. Don't miss it. Click HERE for the continuing saga Jesse James and Gangs. * Read How Churches (and other large groups) camp out at Robbers Cave. * Discover the wonderful camps for families and individuals. Explore the other beautiful activities available in this area.
Click HERE to discover the real stories of desperadoes and lawmen of
Oklahoma.
Click HERE for
the story of "Pretty Boy" Floyd.
Click HERE for chronicles of
the Bill Doolin gang.
Lin Stone is an author, writer and photographer living in Noble Oklahoma You can have immediate, and free, reading of many more pieces when you send your little surfer scooting to Lin's home page at http://www.talewins.com/StoneSoup.htm where he keeps stirring up more good things for the soul.
Brandon
led the boys down to the aquarium where two red-eared turtles were kept.
"Put your fingers up against the glass and move it away from the turtles.
If they are hungry they will follow your finger."