Reptiles at Risk

Day 4: Lot-o-Libraries!

Posted by Mary-Ellen Peckham on July 17, 2007 at 5:13 PM

Bonjour!

Today was a super fun day! It was so neat we got to go to THREE different libraries and talk to people about reptiles at risk (sounds like we are doing our job...) we were in Westport, Lyndhurst and Lansdown! We started out with a group of about 60 in size in Westport, they were really interesting and we heard lots of great stories about encounters with garter snakes, black rat snakes and turtles! Lots of people there have turtles nesting in their yard which was great to hear as they were often helping out the eggs by keeping raccoons away! This is great to hear as raccoons are a BIG predator of turtle eggs and with their populations declining they can use all the people-help we can give them!

Our next stop was in Lyndhurst where we had a small but enthusiastic group, they were about 15 people in total stopped by to hear what we had to say and to share their own experiences. There was one little girl who was sooo excited to hold a black rat snake, and the snake was about two times longer then she was tall...it was very cute!

We had about 80 people! There were even a few people who were nervous to hold the snakes that decided towards the end to give it a try. I always love when this happens; it is really great to see people tackle their fears head on. It is so encouraging *Round of Applause for them*! I know I am terrified of thunder...it is so loud and scary.. I am trying to get better with it, but I still find it scary. Sarah Jane is scared of deep water, but she did great the other day when we were out canoeing. Jeff is apparently not afraid of anything...I bet Boss Man has something, but he does not want to tell us because it really scares him! Sarah B is afraid of small spaces, but we are helping her overcome that this summer; because she is the smallest of us we have her sleeping in the top bunk of our trailer. There is NOT much space there at all; in fact she has measured it to be the same height as her elbow to her hand! *Sarah B is now shuddering at the thought of it*

Smiles and Laughter
Mary-Ellen