Back when we lived in an ordinary Dutch residential neighbourhood, spotting a duck or a goose on the path was already a small event. A funny moment, maybe a photo, and then back to the day. Now that we live on the Galician countryside, our “backyard zoo” looks completely different and honestly, we still haven’t gotten tired of it.
The ocelot lizards that join us for lunch
Two ocelot lizards, around thirty centimetres long, live on our property. At first we’d jump a little when something suddenly moved between the stones, but by now they’ve gotten used to us. If we sit still, they simply walk past us looking for a fallen cherry. One quick, unexpected movement on our part, though, and they’re gone in a split second so we’ve learned to sit very still.
They’re not just fun to watch, they’re also useful: most of their diet is insects, with an occasional cherry as dessert. We’ve noticed they’ve divided up the territory between them: one mostly sticks to the south side of the house, the other to the north. Every once in a while they disagree, and suddenly there’s quite a bit of noise coming from the garden a short scuffle, after which both dash off to their own side again.
The shy neighbours on the walls
Besides the ocelot lizards, smaller lizards also live on the walls around the house: the Iberian wall lizard. These are tiny, only about five centimetres long, and quite shy. We really only catch a glimpse of them, since they dart away the moment we walk past.
A less welcome encounter: the viperine snake
Not every animal encounter here has been quite as charming. During one of our walks, we crossed paths with a viperine snake right on the trail. That one we liked a bit less. Our natural defensive reaction to snakes kicked in immediately. Fortunately, the snake moved off the path right away and what struck us was just how fast they actually are.
Afterwards we looked it up, and it turned out the snake wasn’t dangerous or venomous at all. It mostly feeds on frogs and other water-dwelling animals, despite the rather intimidating name and appearance.
Birds of prey over the Miño
One of the best things about our new location is the view: from the house we can see for kilometres, all the way across the Miño river. Many birds of prey live above that landscape, and by now we’ve worked out which species we see most often: the black kite, the osprey, and the common buzzard.
Usually we see them circling, on the lookout for prey, but the best moment is actually when the local farmers are out mowing. The birds of prey follow right behind them. Our guess is that all sorts of small animals, normally hidden, suddenly start moving making for easy prey.
The osprey in particular is impressive. Every so often one flies past just ten metres or so from the house, and that’s when you really notice how big these birds are. What stands out is that the different species don’t attack each other, at least not that we’ve seen. Sometimes they even circle the same patch of land, as if there’s simply enough food to go around for everyone.
A different kind of outdoor life
From a duck on a bike path to ospreys over the river, lizards stealing cherries out of our hands, and the occasional snake crossing our trail — it’s become a completely different way of looking at nature. And the best part is: the longer we live here, the more we learn to recognise and understand what lives around us.
