Imagine my surprise this weekend when I found this delicate little creature in my garden! I always thought the fresh little holes in the dirt were dug by squirrels. And they can be but they also get a little help from these benevolent garden guests.



You can see how tiny and shy she is. In fact, they are all very shy and a little like hermit crabs. Each one collects different lichens, bark and moss to grow on their back as camouflage. They have very tender, soft skin – a little similar to a salamander although not wet or sticky. Some have spots like this one but others can have stripes or shift colors.
She has chosen to grow one of my favorite lichens, the Pixie Cup Lichen, as her camouflage. We spent a quiet moment enjoying the garden and then she quickly hopped out of site.