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Last night I went for a walk at sunset. (that's 9:30 PM here) As I was walking in the waining light, I saw what at first I thought was a leaf blowing across the ground in front of me. But, when it turned around and went back in the other direction I knew I was blessed with the sighting of a shrew. These tiny creatures are quite amazing. Did you know that they can eat five times their own weight every few hours? They are one of the fiercest creatures alive. Good thing they are so tiny.

Also saw what I think was bear scat on the road. It was getting too dark by the time I was heading home to tell for sure. I'll have to walk out there in the daylight to know for sure.

Rose

I looked up shrew in the dictionary this evening. Shrew - a woman of violent speech and temper. I guess since the small mammal shrew is so fierce, that's how they came up with the name shrew for a woman of such temperament. Or did Shakespeare coin the term with his "Taming of the Shrew"? I have only seen pictures of them, I can't recall having seen a live one.

Bear scat - what a lovely, comforting thing to find as you're hiking. I guess I would have to know how fresh it was as to whether I would get nervous or not. Someone sent me an e-mail once describing how to tell the difference between black bear scat and grizzly bear scat. It said that black bear scat will have berry seeds in it and smell slightly like decaying vegetable matter. Grizzly bear scat will contain hiker bells and smell like pepper! <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> They sent that to me after my close encounter with a mama grizzly and her three cubs in Glacier that inspired me to purchase hiker bells and a large can of pepper spray.

Lois, upon seeig the scat, I started singing my a very loud list of songs. Some opera, show tunes, etc. LOL Bear bells work in some really remote areas. But, in more human populated trails, they can attract bears. Hikers have been known to toss their packs upon seeing a bear. The bear finds food in the pack and connects the sound of bells with food.

The pepper spray is worth taking with you. We have four cans of the stuff. One in each vehichle and two spares. We don't hike without them. Grizzly bears are common in our area. Sometimes even more than black bear. Pepper spray has stopped charging grizzly. I trust it more than I trust me carrying a gun. Easier to carry and have at the ready, and I don't have to worry about hitting a vital area to stop a bear. There area accounts of a charging grizzly covering over 300 feet AFTER being shot in a "kill" zone. The bear ran even while, for all practical purposes, was dead.

As for the connection between the shrew (rodent) with the shrew woman, maybe someone else here will be able to find the history. LOL For me, being a shrew happens once in a while.

Rose

I remember singing very loud songs while hiking around the two lakes in Glacier after having been left behind by the boat. We clapped and TALKED REAL LOUD to each other. It was fun though. I also remember reading all the warnings about how bear can travel 300 feet in so many seconds. You don't have to tell me about carrying the pepper spray. Some of my friends just have warped senses of humor and like to tease me.

The word shrew:

[Old English scr&#275;awa, of unknown origin. The sense �quarrelsome woman� derives from the belief that the shrew had a poisonous bite.] The original word was meant for both sexes, but soon became only associated with women.

Marian