my new friend, starnosed mole

SO. Allison and I have been collecting stones lately for a stone wall we're building (the township we're in is called "Stony Point," and it ain't fer nothin' - the ground is nearly more rock than dirt). Yesterday afternoon I was down by the pond across the road collecting rocks, and caught a glimpse of what I thought at first was a little black mouse. Then I saw it didn't really move like a mouse... and the nose seemed bigger, and pinker... and the tail was different... anyway, I followed it for a little while as it ran along, and finally it just stopped and let me get a good look at it.

WOW.

That nose is unmistakable.

I came back home and looked it up in our mammal book - and lo and behold, look who it turned out to be: STARNOSE MOLE.


http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~rmacarth/starnose.html

http://www.wildcam.com/guides/critter.jsp?animalid=131


I think they're common but, according to various websites, rarely seen - so I feel lucky I got a good, close-up gander at one. I have three times seen, around (outside) the house, these little black mousey things that don't quite look like mice - but they moved too fast for me to see them -- so, I think these guys are around here.

Do you like him too? I wanted to share my find.