Guide to Local Fauna

Oryctologus cuniculus
Common name: Mopp. Acquired by the Streets in April from a school librarian. Adored by nearly everyone (the exception being Josie, who sported four parallel scratches on her right cheek for nearly a week after a failed snuggle attempt), but especially by Linda, who is about half-way done knitting a luxurious angora hat from her fur (Mopp's, that is). Remarkable tunneling abilities make long-term confinement a challenge. Reported AWOL last Saturday by a series of breathless neighbors of increasing size, starting with Ioan and culminating in a gleefully agitated Dylan. Eventually located in the yard, cornered under the back deck, and corralled into her pen by Bryan, Dylan, Ioan, Simon, Menna, and Josie.

Capra hircus
We were first alerted to the presence of these creatures during the search for Mopp, when a bearded gentleman on his way to shul told Linda, "No, I haven't seen a rabbit, but I did see a couple of goats up on the hill the other day."

The following evening, Simon reported, "Me and Ioan were sitting on the couch, and Ioan saw this weird white thing outside the window, and he said, 'Is that a dog?' Then he looked closer, and he said, 'No, wait, that's a goat!' It was running toward the side yard, so we went and looked out the kitchen door, and we saw it run across our terrace."

A review of neighborhood listserves turned up several posts with titles like "Anyone lose a goat?" and "Are these your goats in my yard?" along with an explanation: according to the kind folks at the Lakewood Community Club, the goats were rented from The Goat Lady to clear blackberries from a hillside plot on Upland Terrace, but "part of the herd got loose and they are showing up around the neighborhood... There have been quite a few sightings and they are hard to catch." If you see one, call Josh at 425-445-0404.

Lepidoptera libera
Reported by Josie: "Do you know what Ioan just said? We were sitting together on the grass in the bunny's pen, and there was hardly any room. And there was this little moth, and it was trapped under this piece of grass, and Ioan was like, 'Oh no! We have to help the moth!' and he moved the little piece of grass, and he was like, 'Go, Moth! Live your life! Go! Live life! Breathe air! I know somehow you're gonna get there!' And then it was crawling around in the grass, and he was poking it, and saying 'Go, Moth!' and then it flew away."

Felis saveus, Rattus infelicus
Face down on the hall rug at midnight, halfway through my two-pose pre-bed yoga routine, I hear the pitter patter of Nikki coming in through the window, and look up to find her dangling a large, bloody rat inches from my face. I am unable to muster up any of Ioan's tender encouragements for this unfortunate rodent (who, it turns out, is past the point of ever breathing air again), though I do manage to sputter a few spirited exhortations of my own, mostly directed at the cat.

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