by PAULINE TOM
Why was Mayor Curnutt in her backyard one night last week wearing rubber boots and carrying a shovel? Their dog, Bravo, discovered a coral snake. Tiffany heard the commotion.
Other than “Coral Snake Slayer,” do we call her “Mayor Curnutt” or “Mayor Tiffany” or “Tiffany”? She prefers “Tiffany.”
How did Tiffany Curnutt become mayor? No one ran for the mayor position in our city election. Our mayor pro tem preferred not to serve as mayor. So, in a council meeting, Tiffany volunteered that she was willing to step up to the plate, following in her mom’s footsteps. The council appointed her as mayor, and she was sworn into office by her mom, Judge Beth Smith.
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As we stepped onto our front porch on Sunday morning, a gigantic centipede’s writhing caught our attention. It matched the description of a “Texas Giant Centipede”: red head, dark body, yellow legs.
Time to research.
Googleing, I found a Hays Free Press photo of this colorful species taken in the Ruby Ranch subdivision this past April.
A centipede is not an insect; it has more than six legs. It belongs to the arthropod order of animals grouped under the class Chilopoda – “many-footed.” Centipedes may have up to 300 legs; the Texas Giant Centipede (Scolopendra heros) has either 21 or 23 pairs of legs, never 22 pairs.
The Texas Giant Centipede is venomous. Its two curved hollow fangs inject venom. It reportedly carries more of a wallop than a wasp or scorpion, but not as severe as a venomous snake. Humans are not attacked unless they disturb the centipede.
Also, according to Texas A&M’s website, “Scolopendra can harm a person with the sharp claws of its many walking legs. Each walking leg is tipped with a sharp claw capable of making tiny cuts in human skin. A poison produced from the attachment point of each leg may be dropped into the wounds, resulting in an inflamed and irritated condition.”
Centipedes eat crickets – and, scorpions!
When my right leg went into a hard cast on Friday, I mentioned to the nurse a phobia. “What if a scorpion crawled into my cast?” A few hours later, settled in front of my computer, I felt something crawling on my left leg. With a calm flick, I knocked a scorpion to the floor, where I promptly put my new cast to great use. Heebie jeebies crawled all over me; I now securely cover both open ends of my cast.
On Saturday, KissMe (a.k.a. The Scorpion King) alerted us to three scorpions in the dining area in less than two hours. On the third, after a thorough search of the rug and under the rug, RonTom accused KissMe of a false alarm in an attempt to get another treat. Ron walked away. Away scampered a tiny scorpion that was camouflaged on the rug.
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Ron Tom and KissMe, both tuxedo’d, attended the premier of “Frankenweenie” at the Alamo Drafthouse last week during FantasticFest. The souvenir Frankenweenie collar fit around KissMe, and kept his tuxedo in place.
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Reminder: NNO at The Smith’s house, 116 Cedar, from 6-8 p.m. Oct 2.
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Usually, I can fit any tidbit into “Montage,” finding some way to weave it in if it relates in any way to Mountain City. Please send tidbits to [email protected] (with “Tidbit” in subject line) or phone (512) 268-5678.
