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SOME OBSERVATIONS

 SOME OBSERVATIONS

 

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

 

10/X/2022

 

            One loves to take an early morning walk. The cool desert breeze, when it touches the skin is bliss. Most morning walkers come out when I have finished walking.

 

            It is now time to sit in the veranda and plonk on the ‘Mudha’. It is also time to start wishing Good Morning to Tom, Dick, Harry, Mary, and the good looking Quite Contrary. At least one induces a smile on faces, still busy watching videos on their mobiles. Some charming ladies smile back & make your day.

 

            As I get busy with the passers-by, it is time to become Roger Federer. With a ‘black racket’ in hand, a good forehand shot is lovely to begin with. Then a back hand return, a slice, a drop shot and then a smashing volley to finish with. How can one compare oneself to the legend. Kahan Raja Bhoj, Kahan Yamuna Mali…...

 

My tennis gets active when I get hold of the ‘mosquito killer racket’. Invariably, I miss the damn insect. After a few misses, which I generally don't do with a flyswat, one realises that the damn thing must be turned on. In the interim, many of those ‘’blackies” do what they are best at doing. Bite and leave an inflamed skin to scratch. It becomes a game of a scratch and a miss.

 

            Once you get the hang of this racket, the opponents are doomed. This racket glows when it comes in contact with an insect like lightning. Even the sound is like the pistol we fired during Diwali as kids. Crackers embedded in those red strips which were wound like a ‘clock spring’ fired from a pistol is the closest sound created when the racket meets a mosquito.

 

My observation started when one had killed a few. They fell dead or half dead on the floor. I am not sure of the alarm system of ants but within minutes they gathered for the feast. What I noticed was that ants do not like to take mosquitoes. If there is a dead fly, within seconds they carry it away.

 

Novice or fresher ants are sent to scavenge mosquitoes. Probably mosquitoes are too light to carry or they do not taste good, like how children detest eating ‘Karela.’ Maybe, there is not enough meat in a mosquito, I am not sure. When ants do not find anything then only they lift this insect.

 

In the meanwhile, they leave a ‘guard ant’ on each fallen mosquito. This guard holds to it with all the strength it has. Even if that mosquito tries to take off, this ant is like tying additional weights to a helicopter to bring it down. The mosquito makes a last attempt but then ‘ant ke paapi pet ka sawal hai.’

 

Be that as it may, another insect one observed was the spider. One has fallen in love with it. The way they build their web is a God gift. Their planning and placement of their web is a masterpiece in siting of defences. Any enemy who dares to trespass will trigger an alarm. One struggle and you are caught in the web.

 

Within seconds the spider wraps its prey with its sticky threads. If there is another alarm somewhere else, it leaves this one entwined and rushes to the other to catch the fresh target. Then it returns to repair all threads which got damaged during the action. The web is again ready for prey.

 

The smaller spiders take advantage of the bigger web. They site their webs at slightly different angles, on the fringes of the main web. Just in case an insect manoeuvres around the bigger web, it gets caught in the smaller one. This is a kind of defence in tiers. Game, set and match for all those who dare to flyby.

 

The best observation of today was that spiders wind up their webs at daybreak. The anchor points from where this neat geometrically designed spider web is stuck, are the only points from where the remnant web keeps hanging from. As the sun grows stronger, the spider moves into a hiding.

 

Before it left, it wound up most of the threads. Those threads were coiled on its hump, folded so neatly. Reminded me of when we used to fold our camouflage nets on the BMP so that we could deploy it again quickly. It collected its web section by section. One could only see main strings left, maybe to rebuild a fresh web on those foundations. Slowly it descended to rest, recoup, and refit for the day.

 

To help it find food, I picked up a few slain mosquitoes and hung them on its web. The spider did not react. Could she be suspecting me for laying a trap or she didn’t like the taste too? I wonder!!!!!!!

 

JAI HIND

© NOEL ELLIS





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