Haybles

Haybles are a common life-form found in rural areas. Almost anyone who has driven along a country road in autumn has seen one. However, these extremely slow moving creatures have been documented only for the last few hundred years and are still very misunderstood.

 

Although often confused with hay-bales (note the different spelling), haybles are most closely related to haystax (a close cousin of European descent). Even though basic evolutionary traits show that the hay-bale and hayble have similar body structure, hay-bales are much smaller, more boxy in shape, and utilize an evolutionary trait called "twine" which the common hayble does not exhibit. In like manner, haystax also do not exhibit "twine". At best, the hay-bale can be considered a distant relative, but not a direct descendant of haybles and haystax.

Haybles' natural habitat consists exclusively of recently mowed fields of hay and wintering areas near barns. Appearing alone (rarely) or in herds (most common), they subsist almost exclusively on hay [see MYTH, below] and can clear a field in a matter of hours or days.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MYTH: A common myth in rural areas is the story of the farmer who is killed and eaten by a renegade hayble. These stories are simply an urban legend. The rise of these tales probably originates from the occasional sight of a pair of boots sticking out of the end of a hayble. Not to worry - the farmer inside is most likely alive and well. This haybilian defensive behavior, called "rolling", usually occurs when a hayble feels threatened and envelops a farmer in a show of superiority. Although frightening to the farmer, this defensive maneuver is rarely fatal. The farmer simply waits until the hayble has calmed down, and then is free to wriggle backwards out of the hayble's embrace.

 

 

 

 

 

In Haybles, Part II:

• Natural Enemies of the domestic hayble
• Award-winning hayble photography
• "Piling" behavior explained
• Frequently asked hayble questions

Go to Haybles, Part 2

 

 

 

 

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