Feral Fables

It happens every year-----in July and August we get these large, black bugs in and around the yard. We have always called them "heat bugs" because you hear their buzzing during the heat of the day. They are God awful, ugly! Think of a fly that is 2 inches long----yuck. Anyway, Kibble, the "princess diva" is a master bug catcher. She stalks them, watches them, catches them and of course----brings them home to me. Sometimes they are dead, and sometimes they are not. The fun is in playing with them-----batting them around and jumping at them if they fly. All the cats will gather around the bug for the entertainment. It is the one time I don't see any conflict among them. They are all focused on the bug! The heat bugs are the sloths of the bug world------very slow moving. Sometimes it is difficult to tell if they are even alive or not because they are so inactive. I have observed Kibble sit under a tree watching a bug until she finds an opportunity to nab it. This morning when I went out to the porch------there were three of these bugs. Two dead, one alive. I do the right thing and herd the living ones off the porch (even though they give me the creeps!). The smart ones fly away. The other ones------well, they just may find themselves back on the porch for another round of play.