A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Feet

Once in a while a critter will break into the Feed Room and steal kitty food. We still store it in the giant popcorn tin that Kim used for years. It's kinda beat-up, so the lid doesn't always fit tightly. More than once I've caught a skunk with its head in the can. Naturally I just let them eat. Also, this year has brought a lot of foxes to Chantry Flat, so I wouldn't be surprised to catch one munching kibble. But I never expected what I saw today.

I left the lid off the cat food can because sometimes The Girls fight over the bowl, and they can eat off of the lid with room to share. Sitting casually amongst the left-overs tonight was a Giant Millipede. I have seen them on several occasions over in Eaton Canyon near Altadena. Some are twice the size of this one. They crawl all over the rocks at the base of Eaton Falls on misty days. I've also found a couple in my mother's moist garden on New York Drive, also in Altadena. This tells me they like to come out on wet days, like the newts do. And today was a very foggy, drizzly day. So why was it in the middle of a bone-dry hay room? And why was it in the cat food?

My guess is that one of the cats captured it and brought it to the dinner table. It was released unharmed because they have a defense mechanism. Some millipedes excrete fairly caustic and toxic substances. The ones we have here are not dangerous, but they do excrete a liquid when handled. This yellowish juice is undoubtedly very foul-tasting, even to cats. Or maybe Millipedes taste like feet. Either way, the bug was spit out on the plate.

Click on the photo to get a better look at the millipede.