Yesterday, during a mild drizzle, I was walking past the 'back porch garden' when I noticed something very, very tiny moving very snake-like. Since I have a mild snake phobia, I had to bend down and watch it for a long time-In other words, I was trying to decide if I needed to kill it. Fortunately it was small enough that I felt confident I could smash it and the whole plant it was on with one quick stomp.
I watched this hairlike 6" long thing move down from leaf to leaf and finally crawl away on the dirt. It was whitish with bright yellow on both ends. It gave me the creeps but it was starting to rain harder so I went inside.
I'm not sure what it was --perhaps a Horsehair Worm (Nematomorpha commonly called Gordian Worms). But, everything I found on the Internet said the Horsehair Worm is often confused with Mermithidae which are in the nematode family. Both have larva that eat things I don't like so I can live with them here. I would be happier if it lived more by the pond than my back door but I can adapt (and maybe have Jeff move it for me if I spot it again).
My thing looked a bit like this but was whiter with bright yellow on each end for about 1/2 inch. ( I stole this picture from the web, I would never pick it up) Creepy.
