CORRECTION:ORIGINALLY BELIEVED TO BE A "LEGLESS LIZARD", THIS SPECIMEN WAS IDENTIFIED BY A HERPETOLOGIST* AS A BRAHIMY BLINDSNAKE. THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN UPDATED.

When Gordon and I were at the garden on Monday, June 8th, Gordon made a great find - a Brahimy Blindsnake.  Wish you all could have seen it, quite lovely.  

I applied for and got the designation of "Wildlife Habitat" for our garden, from the Wildlife Federation, because we fit most of the criteria for that. For example: native plants, shrubs which can provide nesting material and hiding/dening places, plants providing nectar, berries, leaves for insects and birds, water (we have a bird bath dish in the orchard - we need to remember to rinse it out and refill with fresh water each time we're there). 

I'm really interested in documenting the wildlife we have residing or visiting our garden.  So speak up when you spot an interesting insect or reptile.  Two years ago, I spotted out of the corner of my eye, an Alligator Lizard, and have been looking for it since, to photograph.  I am surprised we don't have the common Western Fence Lizard yet. 

- Florence

*Greg Pauly is the herpetology curator at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles. What he said:

That is the non-native Brahminy Blindsnake. This is actually a species I am studying, tracking its rapid expansion across Southern California. They were first observed in California in 2000 near Ballona Wetlands, and they are now found in Ventura, L.A., San Diego, Riverside, and Kern Counties. They are moved around in the soil of nursery plants as well as in bags of soil. 

If you come across another (dead or alive) please save it for me, and I'll add it to the collection.