{"id":406480,"date":"2026-07-21T11:56:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:56:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/406480\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T11:56:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:56:18","slug":"scorpions-crickets-tarantulas-unlikely-visitors-make-their-way-into-reporters-home-san-diego-union-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/406480\/","title":{"rendered":"Scorpions, crickets, tarantulas: Unlikely visitors make their way into reporter\u2019s home \u2013 San Diego Union-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is the Trail Report, a weekly email newsletter from reporter Maura Fox about hikes and San Diego County\u2019s outdoors.\u00a0Sign up<\/a>\u00a0to get it in your inbox first, every Friday.<\/p>\n

After brushing my teeth the other evening, I was shocked to see a tarantula waiting just outside the bathroom door.<\/p>\n

A tarantula! In my home! My initial bout of fear gave way to confusion as to how the not-so-little guy had gotten in. Days later, it\u2019s still a mystery.<\/p>\n

But he wasn\u2019t my first visitor. Since moving back to East County \u2014 and into a space converted from a garage \u2014 I seem to have welcomed all kinds of critters: scorpions, crickets, stink bugs and a few lizards that scurry out, casually, once I tell them to leave. I\u2019ve checked the door and window seals and am perplexed as to how they are getting in.<\/p>\n

The whole experience makes me feel very at one with nature. No, I don\u2019t want a tarantula in my room, though I do have a soft spot for them. But I\u2019m developing a soft spot for all my visitors.<\/p>\n

Am I alone in this? What kind of wildlife have you found in your home? I\u2019d love to hear from you.<\/p>\n

The weather this week was brutal, and I wasn\u2019t too inclined to hike. But I did take a short walk at Flinn Springs County Park<\/a>, complete with shady oak trees, picnic tables and a year-round stream. There\u2019s a trail network, but on especially hot days, I\u2019d recommend just bringing a book and reading under the trees.<\/p>\n

There are a few stories I wanted to share with you this week. But one that really piqued my interest looks at how endangered wildlife in Iran has been further threatened<\/a> by the war. And as wildlife season kicks into full swing, here\u2019s a guide<\/a> on how to protect yourself from the smoke.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s all from me. See you next week.<\/p>\n

\u2014Maura<\/p>\n

Hike of the week: Pick up a book and read under the oaks at Flinn Springs County Park<\/a><\/p>\n

UCSD surgeons perform first-of-its-kind operation on San Diego Safari Park gorilla<\/a><\/p>\n

How to protect yourself from the bad air caused by wildfires<\/a><\/p>\n

Why San Diego filmmaker Elliott Kennerson co-directed a film about lesbian seagulls<\/a><\/p>\n

War and economic crisis complicate efforts to protect Iran\u2019s rich but endangered wildlife<\/a><\/p>\n

Pier to Cove Swim in La Jolla draws hundreds<\/a><\/p>\n

Hike of the week: Quiet trails at Famosa Slough are a no brainer for an easy summertime stroll<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This is the Trail Report, a weekly email newsletter from reporter Maura Fox about hikes and San Diego…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":406481,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[7,18116,74,84,76,75,420,1696],"class_list":["post-406480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-california","tag-hiking","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-county","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news","tag-things-to-do","tag-top-stories-sdut"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=406480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406480\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/406481"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=406480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=406480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=406480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}