Something Completely Different

Not the Pink Floyd album. The things that make life so enjoyable.

What are your favourites? What kind of animals do you see in your country or town?

Recently I saw a video of a cow showjumping like a horse and I just wanted to hug it, and I am trying to befriend a local fox by feeding it.

I like many animals but the one thing I cannot stand is rats.

What about you?

I'm a cat guy but I love all the animals. Love dogs the second most. My favourite cat breed is a long haired tuxedo and my favourite dog breed is golden retriever.

One of our neighbours is always letting their dog run around the neighbourhood. It's a little unnerving when he runs up to you, he's a big dog, but he's pretty friendly.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 09:18 PMI like many animals but the one thing I cannot stand is rats.

I love rats. They are the greatest pets :) really smart, cute, cuddly (especially older boys) and aggression towards handlers is rare. They're like kind little bean bag people.

Other than that, I've been fascinated with animals for most of my life, which is more or less why I became a biologist (I'm more zoologist than botanist or mycologist). What fascinates me most in general is marine or terrestrial invertebrates like ribbon worms or sea slugs, tapeworms or insects.

From a theoretical point of view, I find the megacolony forming species of ants to be interesting (me and jwb discussed them at length on MB).

Cats for me duh, though I also love dogs. I think foxes are cool and man if I could have a wolf for a pet! Like badgers too and quite a lot into birds, mostly crows and magpies but it's great to watch little sparrows and starlings flit around the feeder. I've seen many feeding their young by bringing up the seed to them as they're too young to be able to get it themselves. That is so cool. Got to love sharks too, and alligators/crocodiles. And dinosaurs. Oh. Wait. Well anyway, most animals really. Donkeys are also great.

Quote from: Guybrush on Jan 31, 2023, 10:11 PM

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 09:18 PMI like many animals but the one thing I cannot stand is rats.

I love rats. They are the greatest pets :) really smart, cute, cuddly (especially older boys) and aggression towards handlers is rare. They're like kind little bean

Should have been clear, I mean street rats. I did have a fancy rat for a pet when I was a child and he was great. But street rags are something else. Absolutely terrified of them. In summer I sometimes see them in the garden in the daytime and I try to befriend the local cats so that they patrol the garden.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 10:58 PM

Quote from: Guybrush on Jan 31, 2023, 10:11 PM

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 09:18 PMI like many animals but the one thing I cannot stand is rats.

I love rats. They are the greatest pets :) really smart, cute, cuddly (especially older boys) and aggression towards handlers is rare. They're like kind little bean

Should have been clear, I mean street rats. I did have a fancy rat for a pet when I was a child and he was great. But street rags are something else. Absolutely terrified of them. In summer I sometimes see them in the garden in the daytime and I try to befriend the local cats so that they patrol the garden.

Yes, I put pet rats in that special category of pets that easily become very tame, like cats and dogs. They really stand apart from other pets their size, I think. Of course being extensively bred for safe handling in the lab helps a lot.

We've had quite a few rats and also took care of a wild one turned pet once. All I remember now is they'd found her at a shopping mall and decided to take her for some reason?

She was unusual in that she'd give you a nip if you showed any hesitation when picking her up etc. As long as you were confident and clear in your intentions, she was fine.

Quote from: Guybrush on Feb 01, 2023, 12:18 AM

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 10:58 PM

Quote from: Guybrush on Jan 31, 2023, 10:11 PM

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jan 31, 2023, 09:18 PMI like many animals but the one thing I cannot stand is rats.

I love rats. They are the greatest pets :) really smart, cute, cuddly (especially older boys) and aggression towards handlers is rare. They're like kind little bean

Should have been clear, I mean street rats. I did have a fancy rat for a pet when I was a child and he was great. But street rags are something else. Absolutely terrified of them. In summer I sometimes see them in the garden in the daytime and I try to befriend the local cats so that they patrol the garden.

Yes, I put pet rats in that special category of pets that easily become very tame, like cats and dogs. They really stand apart from other pets their size, I think. Of course being extensively bred for safe handling in the lab helps a lot.

We've had quite a few rats and also took care of a wild one turned pet once. All I remember now is they'd found her at a shopping mall and decided to take her for some reason?

She was unusual in that she'd give you a nip if you showed any hesitation when picking her up etc. As long as you were confident and clear in your intentions, she was fine.

Yeah I've noticed that about animals, if you have any fear near them they feel threatened. When I was little I got scared of a dog being walked in the other direction and he nipped me.

https://imgur.com/a/wAEQjzA

If you'll allow me to gush about my own animals...

This is my darling Lucyfur, who passed away last year after 14 years of being a perfect angel. I've had cats all my life and she was the softest, most loving kitty I've ever had the privilege of knowing. Her meowing had a unique staccato sound, not unlike what a dolphin sounds like. I got her in college on a complete random impulse to go to the pet store. It was destiny, or something. I still miss you every day, my angel Lucy.

^Cute cat, Lady :) Also love the name!

I found a way to break ChatGPT today. It's easy! Just ask it about the evolution of megacolonies in ants.

(https://scd.community/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FMI3dtcEh.png&hash=ce8a176160d99c6afdcc5a3b75f4cf96a5d124aa) (https://imgur.com/MI3dtcE)

You may be able to break your entomology professor by asking the same question.

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DfPdn_rUYAAU1Nj.jpg)

You realise of course this was not an error? You unwittingly stumbled across one of the most closely-guarded secrets of the insect world, and while, when they are ready, they will deal with you and ensure you are no threat to their new world order, they're not quite there yet. So they shut the system down.

Quote from: Mrs. Waffles on Feb 01, 2023, 03:34 PMhttps://imgur.com/a/wAEQjzA

If you'll allow me to gush about my own animals...

This is my darling Lucyfur, who passed away last year after 14 years of being a perfect angel. I've had cats all my life and she was the softest, most loving kitty I've ever had the privilege of knowing. Her meowing had a unique staccato sound, not unlike what a dolphin sounds like. I got her in college on a complete random impulse to go to the pet store. It was destiny, or something. I still miss you every day, my angel Lucy.

Beautiful cat, and such a cool name! You do, by the way, know you can embed the image? Click the icon above, beside the YouTube one, or just use the usual [img] tags, same as in MB.Terribly sorry for your loss; Eddie, the last of the Three Amigos, passed two years ago. He beat the odds and lasted longer than his brother and sister, but eventually cancer took him down. We miss him like crazy, but he lives on in our imaginary make-believe world, as do Ritchie and Millie.

I love raccoons, but I also hate them for being totally inconsiderate assholes. God damn them and their soft, fluffy fur, adorable little built-in domino masks, and cute little black gloved hands. 

^Yeah, I wish we had 🦝 here.

Quote from: Trollheart on Feb 02, 2023, 03:55 AMBeautiful cat, and such a cool name! You do, by the way, know you can embed the image? Click the icon above, beside the YouTube one, or just use the usual [img] tags, same as in MB.Terribly sorry for your loss; Eddie, the last of the Three Amigos, passed two years ago. He beat the odds and lasted longer than his brother and sister, but eventually cancer took him down. We miss him like crazy, but he lives on in our imaginary make-believe world, as do Ritchie and Millie.

Thank you! I lost my Lucy to cancer as well, it came on very suddenly and she was suffering greatly. I have a ton of pictures and memories of her thankfully. Sorry for your loss as well. I actually tried to embed that image but the preview wasn't showing it for some reason.

Quote from: Janszoon on Feb 02, 2023, 04:41 AMI love raccoons, but I also hate them for being totally inconsiderate assholes. God damn them and their soft, fluffy fur, adorable little built-in domino masks, and cute little black gloved hands. 

I kid you not, one night about six years ago I went into my living room to close the blinds and saw a gang of about seven raccoons just standing there on their hind legs, completely motionless. It was the weirdest thing.

Quote from: Mrs. Waffles on Feb 02, 2023, 07:54 AMI kid you not, one night about six years ago I went into my living room to close the blinds and saw a gang of about seven raccoons just standing there on their hind legs, completely motionless. It was the weirdest thing.

Beware the cult of the trash panda.

Raccoons are the highwaymen of the animal world.

Quote from: Trollheart on Feb 03, 2023, 06:17 PMRaccoons are the highwaymen of the animal world.

Very cute highwaymen at that.

Frogs appeared in my pond a few weeks back but have disappeared again. Just European brown frogs/common frogs.

Hopefully they will be back.

I've named them Fernando, Felipe and Fabrizio. They just like to chill and croak.

Really hope that I get loads of frog spawn and have a large amount of them but I do have fish also and I guess they'll be snacking on the spawn.

This evening I watched a grey heron perch on my shed roof and stalk my fish in the pond, before swooping down and then flying away.

Big birds. Really impressive.

^We have them here too by the coast. They're cool birds.

And Heron is kind of an interesting band too 🤔

Spotted tonight when I went into the garden shed. The previous night I had heard rustling and I believed it was a rat. Sprinted back to the house in fear.

I have been pleasantly surprised. Just as I walked to the steps it's right there in front of me, arm's distance away. He was very chilled out and allowed me to take a photo before walking away.

His name is Herbie.

(https://i.ibb.co/7V4gY8Y/IMG-20230418-214022.jpg)

Herbie!!! <3

Quote from: Marie Monday on Apr 19, 2023, 12:56 AMHerbie!!! <3

As you know I got a hedgehog house last year to encourage them to set up home in the garden. Nothing went in there over winter so I'm going to move the hedgehog house to where I saw Herbie. Surely he will work it out?

They are so cute. I saw a picture of a baby hedgehog though and it looks like a soft cock!

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Baby_Erinaceus_europaeus_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Baby_Erinaceus_europaeus_%281%29.jpg)

(https://i.ibb.co/4YF2dWc/IMG-2858.jpg)

Speaking of hedgehogs, my sister sent me this. I absolutely need to make these.

The one coloured as Sonic is a nice touch :laughing:

I stumbled across this pic yesterday...






Looks like a very skeptical dog.

As seen in my new avatar, this is my favorite bird, the rose finch. It's interesting how an otherwise fairly ordinary looking bird can look so much more exotic with an uncommon color.
(https://i.ibb.co/BZyShB9/E31c3uwhvct61.png)

I love it.

'Vicious' peacock escapes Bronx Zoo and bites onlooker (https://nypost.com/2023/04/27/vicious-peacock-bites-onlooker-after-escaping-bronx-zoo/)

Quote"It bit me!" said the victim, who only gave the name Mike while recalling how he thought he was "buggin" when he first saw his fowl attacker strutting a West Farms street just before 8 p.m. Wednesday

Mike told an onlooker in a video interview at the scene that he'd been "standing outside chillin', smoking and whatever" when he saw the large, colorful pheasant casually strutting its stuff.

"I thought I was buggin'! I was like, Yo, there goes a motherf—in' peacock!" he recalled, saying he assumed he was just too "high."

As he and others started filming, the peacock fled. "It started running up the hill toward traffic and we had to keep the bird safe," Mike said in the Citizen app video.

"We chased it," Mike said, with him and others trying to corner it next to a gate to stop it running into traffic.

"It pecked me! Grabbed my pants and s–t," the ruffled-sounding victim said. "Then the motherf—er flew in the tree! I didn't know they fly!"

Bearded vultures are so baddass looking.

(https://64.media.tumblr.com/dc39b94ad51ae3f4d6f3b023d8d9a4b9/tumblr_inline_pb25oeQNug1rx3jxn_1280.png)

Looks like he listens to hardcore punk.

Elephant goes bananas! Woman gets smashed by giant animal after teasing it with fruit (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12025549/Elephant-goes-bananas-Woman-gets-smashed-giant-animal-teasing-fruit.html)

Serves her right.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Apr 28, 2023, 11:25 PMServes her right.

Yeah. :laughing:

I'd like to give that elephant a big basket full of bananas for that righteous move.

Scientists Taught Parrots to Make Video Calls — Now They Won't Stop Calling Their Friends (https://www.oddee.com/scientists-taught-parrots-to-make-video-calls-now-they-wont-stop-calling-their-friends-66527/)

(https://i.ibb.co/tHLvc7g/EA2368-E5-4-F49-45-DE-9-CBC-B08843-A23175.jpg)

There are times I regret I didn't study marine biology instead of terrestrial invertebrates. Marine invertebrates are so fascinating, from jellyfish and comb jellies, sea slugs, squids and octopi, amphipods and isopods, polychaetes, the list goes on and on.

One fascinating taxa of animals are the Gorgonocephalid brittle stars. These are starfish with branching arms that sometimes resemble living plants and who filter and snatch detritus and small crustaceans etc. out of the water using their arms.

(https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5028/5659323348_ce31ae2d15.jpg)

For our folk bands debut EP, we just used Ernst Haeckel's illustration of a Gorgonocephalid as our cover art as it was more than old enough to be in the public domain.

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Haeckel_Ophiodea_70_Gorgonocephalidae.jpg)

Notice also the typical starfish pentameral symmetry.

Gorgonocephalids aren't the only fascinating, somewhat plant-like echinoderms either, but I can save some for another post 🙂

By the way, @Jwb , not sure if you're interested in megacolonies still, but ChatGPT gives some credible answers now on why these colonies don't get disrupted by the proliferation of selfish ants with selfish strategies.

It mentions things already considered like kin selection, division of labor, recognition of nestmates using pheromones, but one thing I had underestimated was the extent and effect of policing. The chatbot claims:

"Ants within a megacolony often exhibit policing behavior, which involves detecting and suppressing selfish behavior or cheating. If an individual exhibits selfish tendencies, it may be identified and punished by other colony members. This policing helps maintain cooperative behavior by deterring individuals from acting in their self-interest at the expense of the collective."

This is essentially enforcing altruism and does seem like it would be very powerful in terms of keeping selfishness down.

ChatGPT also rightly mentions the importance of things like genetic similarity, absence of predators and abundance of resources as factors that enable megacolonies. If these things change, that may promote selfish strategies and, I assume, a collapse of the megacolony, although I would expect a collapse to be local (possibly not the whole colony) and perhaps even temporary.

I read a story today, just published, about a Norwegian Osprey (called Fru (Mrs) Rauer) and her trek to Africa.

It was brilliantly written and very engaging, so I dropped it into Google Translate on the off-chance that some of you might like to read it as well.

https://www-nrk-no.translate.goog/dokumentar/xl/fru-rauers-reise-1.16314326?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp

Well worth reading till the very end and so brilliant I had to send the author an email and commend him on a job well done 🙂

Here's a bumblebee from our garden this morning:

(https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1LUTomqh-7J0QhNXibGkPAz_RmMXlmjbn)

And here's our crab spider Nina 🙂

(https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1LXfrRxqMJPQWW6BQASt3tRiEPAsrilYU)

@Guybrush Whoa, that's a crazy looking spider!

Quote from: Janszoon on Jun 04, 2023, 03:07 PM@Guybrush Whoa, that's a crazy looking spider!

Yes, it's a family of spiders called crab spiders. Their front pair of legs are longer and often splayed out. They patiently wait for something to come within reach and so they can often be found in flowers where they wait for bees or flies.

I believe this is a female Misumena vatia (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misumena_vatia). They're quite common here if you know where to look 🙂 They're relatively small spiders, so she's a big one.

Wild goat pushes woman off cliff, knocks friend unconscious in rampage (https://nypost.com/2023/06/06/wild-goat-pushes-woman-off-cliff-knocks-friend-unconscious-in-rampage/)  :devil:

Quote from: Psy-Fi on Jun 06, 2023, 08:51 PMWild goat pushes woman off cliff, knocks friend unconscious in rampage (https://nypost.com/2023/06/06/wild-goat-pushes-woman-off-cliff-knocks-friend-unconscious-in-rampage/)  :devil:

Says she was 65.

Got me thinking, do you reckon you could take a goat in a fight?

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jun 06, 2023, 09:02 PMSays she was 65.

Got me thinking, do you reckon you could take a goat in a fight?

Depends on the size of the goat. Some of them are pretty big!

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jun 06, 2023, 09:02 PMSays she was 65.

Got me thinking, do you reckon you could take a goat in a fight?

A domestic goat once accidentally punched me in the chest with its two front hooves and it totally knocked the wind out of me. I can imagine a wild angry goat could do a lot worse.

Quote from: Janszoon on Jun 06, 2023, 11:32 PMA domestic goat once accidentally punched me in the chest with its two front hooves and it totally knocked the wind out of me. I can imagine a wild angry goat could do a lot worse.

 :laughing:

Glad you're OK though.

You wouldn't think they could do so much damage.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Jun 06, 2023, 11:49 PM:laughing:

Glad you're OK though.

You wouldn't think they could do so much damage.

It was pretty funny. I was taking care of my girlfriend's two goats while her and her family were out of town. I went into the pen with a big can of food and the male goat was so excited that he kept going up on his hind legs to look into the can. Then he lost his footing, fell forward, and slammed his hooves right into my chest.

Egypt mummifies shark that ate Russian man to display in museum (https://nypost.com/2023/06/13/egypt-mummifies-shark-that-ate-russian-tourist/)

(https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1XneYbFsdVBELqLGwTgOvIcsZ_11-ry1L)

We saw this beaver gnawed tree yesterday 🙂 my wife says it's typical beaver behavior. Instead of felling the tree, they almost fell it and then let nature / weather take care of the final push needed.

"It won't do anything... AAAAAAH!" (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12232509/Terrifying-moment-shark-bites-Florida-fisherman-dragging-boat-water.html)

You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a protester around here (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-zealand-feral-animal-hunt-dead-cats-swung-at-protesters-activist-says/)

Dozens of whales slaughtered in front of cruise passengers as company apologizes (https://abcnews.go.com/International/dozens-whales-slaughtered-front-cruise-passengers-company-apologizes/story?id=101271543)

It does look awful, but for myself I find it a bit difficult to be too critical of it as I, by being a meat eater, support the industrialized killing of pigs and other farmed animals.

I'd rather be a pilot whale killed on the Faroe islands than a slaughter pig.

Apparently, cheetahs are more docile than other large cats and easier to tame. Not as much of a danger to humans. They can also purr and meow.

They are the cheekiest cats.

(https://scd.community/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.cincinnatizoo.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2FCheetah-D0036.jpg&hash=22cf99046c55298d30beea93d9e6796c8bf45e98)

Imagine having a cheetah as a pet. Taking him up the park and throwing a tennis ball and him bringing it back in 0.2 seconds. I'd die happy.

(https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/b/tame-cheetah-14155964.jpg)

QuoteThey are wild animals, and although they are usually non-aggressive towards people, one should never approach them in the wild. On the other hand, captivity cheetahs can become friendly and affectionate to their breeders and caretakers if trained properly.

QuoteYes, it is possible to domesticate cheetahs. Domesticated cheetahs have been known to display dog-like behavior. They will sniff, rub cheeks, and even lick their humans. In earlier days, cheetahs have primarily been tamed for hunting purposes, hence the nickname, 'hunting leopard'.

🥺

I'd rather have cheetos than cheetahs.

My favorite animals in the local zoo are the two tapirs that they have. They're kinda ugly, but also very cute and cuddly on occasion if it's not too busy. When we visit, they sometimes come over for scratches and cuddles and I know just how they like it.

Lebanon baby found in bin bag being carried by stray dog (https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/lebanon/2023/07/19/tripoli-baby-found-in-bin-bag-being-carried-by-stray-dog/)

QuoteA baby girl was found dumped in a black plastic rubbish bag being carried by a stray dog near a municipality building in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli early on Wednesday morning.

The finding prompted shock and outrage across the country.

The bag in which the infant was dumped was being carried by the dog when a passer-by heard the baby crying, local media said.

Quote"Some say that the dog is an unclean animal and, of course, this is not true," one commentator, Farid, said on Twitter.

"The dog has much more humanity, kindness, cunning and intelligence than some satanic mutants in human form."

Quote from: Psy-Fi on Jul 21, 2023, 02:08 PMsatanic mutants

Marvel, get on this concept now.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cuhp4AmLwFD/?igshid=YzcxN2Q2NzY0OA==

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/45/f7/68/45f768a9ecc96b186988f623f4320da4.jpg)

Guys what about bald cats? Are you a fan?

I absolutely love them. I know someone with a sister who just got one, and it is so fucking cute 😭

I want to touch one. Have you ever touched one?

I was walking down the street one night and as I walked past a window I saw this crazy alien shape moving in my peripheral vision. There was a split second of my brain struggling to comprehend what I was seeing, then I realized it was the back of a hairless cat. It seriously was the most horrifying thing imaginable in that moment. That said, do love cats, so I guess I'd like the hairless ones too.

all cats deserve love but I really prefer the hairy ones

Imagine spending $20k to become a dog and end up like this.

I thought it was a real dog.

20k well spent imo 8)

Quote from: Nimbly9 on Jul 29, 2023, 02:57 PMImagine spending $20k to become a dog and end up like this.

And isn't man the strangest animal of all.

So it seems paleontologists have uncovered an animal that was, on average, larger than the blue whale. This makes it the currently largest known animal.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.scientificamerican.com/article/bizarre-looking-colossus-whale-may-have-been-heaviest-animal-ever-sorry-blue-whales/%3famp=true

It's a whale ancestor and the art is very speculative as they only have bones from the middle sections of the animal so far. The rest of the animal is an educated guess.

Still very cool news 🙂

Ahh yes noticed this story on the website of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation...

(https://i.ibb.co/vm7SBYP/F2ij6ck-Xw-BILQ-W.png) (https://ibb.co/FJSFWVw)

Damn https://www.instagram.com/reel/CuI5RNigRuY/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

:(

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Apr 19, 2023, 12:16 AMSpotted tonight when I went into the garden shed. The previous night I had heard rustling and I believed it was a rat. Sprinted back to the house in fear.

I have been pleasantly surprised. Just as I walked to the steps it's right there in front of me, arm's distance away. He was very chilled out and allowed me to take a photo before walking away.

His name is Herbie.

(https://i.ibb.co/7V4gY8Y/IMG-20230418-214022.jpg)

Herbie has been here again recently twice. I've changed his name to Arnold because he is huge and I'm sure he's been lifting weights. Couldn't get pics cos he ran off, when they sprint you can see their little feet flapping about it's so funny 😂

Gonna set the wildlife cam up next to the hedgehog house so I can watch what goes in and hopefully if I'm very, very lucky I could see some hoglets.

Just seen a fox go past my house, back down and then back up again, walk up my drive, see me stood there and then ran off 😂

I love foxes BTW.

Trolls posted a thread once asking what we like and dislike about where we live and I should have said our range of wildlife. Nearly all of it is harmless and adorable.

(https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/23/2010/07/GettyImages-671702530-d9032ee.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413)

Unfortunately these are really shy and run off but if they were not as scared I'd definitely feed them chicken wings.

We have red foxes here too, but they seem more common in England.

When I was living on Svalbard, there was sometimes polar foxes around. They haven't had a lot of evolutionary time to adapt to human presence, so they're not too scared.

Once when we were out camping and doing fieldwork for a week, one came up to me when I was taking a pee. It kept a distance of maybe 2 metres or so. It was weird, but very cool. I guess they get bored up there 😄

Quote from: jadis on Aug 13, 2023, 01:17 AMDamn https://www.instagram.com/reel/CuI5RNigRuY/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

This made me hungry for bear all of a sudden. It tastes good!

A polar bear gets shot on average maybe once a year on Svalbard. These are bears that have a behavior that makes them a particular risk to people. The meat sometimes ends up at the local restaurants.

I'd love to try black bear, but the polar bears' meat is so high in various pollutants/heavy metals, I'd worry about it being very unhealthy.

I love most animals, but these guys are my favorites.

(https://imgur.com/OtGUs2m.jpg)

(https://imgur.com/1k6Pu0d.jpg)

^Yes, who doesn't love octopi and capybaras :)

In the local zoo, the capybara share a space with the tapirs which are also very cute in an ugly sort of way. If there's not too many people to tire them out, they sometimes come up to the fence to get cuddles and scratches.

An insect I found inside at work today was the common wasp, Vespula vulgaris. Like this cute girl:

(https://s3.amazonaws.com/media.jungledragon.com/images/2771/36704_small.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=05GMT0V3GWVNE7GGM1R2&Expires=1696464010&Signature=3qt%2FBQcZqMV4K00aDc7ONBwxzbI%3D)

Or this saucy minx (a queen):

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Vespula_vulgaris_queen.jpg)

Here, V. vulgaris seems to be the most common Vespidae species along with V. germanica which is a little more yellow and prettier.

I used to work on yellowjackets and did a lot of species identification, so I still remember some of that. This one's fairly easy to identify; the jaws come right up to the eyes, identifying it as the genus Vespula, and the black anchor shape in the face (clypeus) along with the yellow edge behind the eyes (gena) disturbed by black markings is a good indicator for the species.

Whenever yellow and black wasp appear, I become interested and so I like them, but I've discovered that most people do not.

I believe I've mentioned them somewhere on the forum, but I love little primates, and none more than the littlest of all, the pygmy marmoset.
(https://i.ibb.co/d2v5KJg/Feat-marmosets-04-1024x650.jpg)
My heart. My absolute heart.

(https://www.reconnectwithnature.org/getmedia/bbf87a4f-2bb7-48ca-b948-8ebff37dc835/Great-horned-owl-Shutterstock_1.jpg?width=1500&height=1084&ext=.jpg)

(https://cdn.britannica.com/53/162453-050-97CD513B/Brown-pelican.jpg)

What I refer to as the Northern Australian psycho bird. Also know as a Cassowary. :laughing:

(https://www.birdnote.org/sites/default/files/Southern-Cassowary-800-Larry-Hubble-CC.jpg)

Here's a weird, fascinating group of flatworms that I assume most people know nothing about; the hammerhead flatworms.

"Tiger King" star Doc Antle pleads guilty to federal wildlife trafficking charge (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bhagavan-doc-antle-tiger-king-pleads-guilty-wildlife-trafficking-south-carolina/)

I have recently set up a wildlife camera to monitor a hedgehog house I have.

I leave hedgehog food out and have done so the past three days.

First night, a magpie ate it.

Second night, a fox visited and I was so excited (there is a fox that appears roughly the same time every night and I have named him Franco Fox). Later that same night a squirrel visited too.

Today I left the food out at about 5pm and not long after, I see a big fat rat has eaten it. And not only has the cheeky fat shit eaten it, he has set up home in the hedgehog house.

I've been watching him inside it moving about getting comfortable, making himself at home and popping out then returning to his new abode. It's like he is mocking me.

Seething.

I heard that rats don't like mint, I have peppermint essential oil so I'm going to put that round there tomorrow.

Tried to upload the pics and video but not working, I'll try again tomorrow.

^ hedgehog house :love:
Franco Fox :love:
magpie :love:
squirrel :love:
rat :yikes:
peppermint essential oil :devil:

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Nov 10, 2023, 01:53 AMI have recently set up a wildlife camera to monitor a hedgehog house I have.

I leave hedgehog food out and have done so the past three days.

First night, a magpie ate it.

Second night, a fox visited and I was so excited (there is a fox that appears roughly the same time every night and I have named him Franco Fox). Later that same night a squirrel visited too.

(https://i.ibb.co/f41VNwB/20231109002354-IM-00008.jpg)

(https://i.ibb.co/HdV23sY/20231109082142-IM-00026.jpg)

QuoteToday I left the food out at about 5pm and not long after, I see a big fat rat has eaten it. And not only has the cheeky fat shit eaten it, he has set up home in the hedgehog house.

I've been watching him inside it moving about getting comfortable, making himself at home and popping out then returning to his new abode. It's like he is mocking me.

(https://i.ibb.co/hH8jtwX/20231109185042-IM-00090.jpg)

😡

Haha! Well, I like rats so I'd think like.. what do you need the hedgehog for when you got a nice rat?

Guessing it's a dude too, though a picture where you can see his balls will confirm that in a jiffy.

Have you given him a name yet? May I suggest Raoul?

Quote from: Guybrush on Nov 13, 2023, 11:16 PMHaha! Well, I like rats so I'd think like.. what do you need the hedgehog for when you got a nice rat?

Guessing it's a dude too, though a picture where you can see his balls will confirm that in a jiffy.

Have you given him a name yet? May I suggest Raoul?

The reason I don't like them is because of the diseases and how quickly they breed. They can give you Weils Disease which is serious. If one sets up home in the garden it doesn't takeong before a possible infestation occurs and that is a nightmare. There are young children both sides of me and I'd feel devastated if they got bitten.

Maybe you can reassure me or explain why I'm being irrational? You seem like you live in a rural place but I don't and the last thing I want is rats in the garden.

Anyway I may as well keep track of my animal watching in this thread.

I named this cat The Black Panther. He's about sometimes. Doesn't do much and is scared of people but looks glorious like a tiny panther.

(https://i.ibb.co/3rP21dY/20231114072550-IM-00126.jpg)

This is Redhead. He's a grey squirrel but he has a red head. Cheeky as fuck and likes to dig up he bark you can see next to the pavement which I have to sweep up and put back where it is. I can't hate him though. Also, when I'm in the shed training I sometimes hear him jump out of the trees onto the shed roof :laughing:

(https://i.ibb.co/D5430V5/20231114102108-IM-00127.jpg)

Franco Fox again. When he eats he politely takes three or four biscuits out of the tray, has his share then leaves. He is so elegant and polite. How anyone can want to hurt and hunt these animals is crazy to me.

(https://i.ibb.co/0FLTvZh/20231114222818-IM-00137.jpg)

Animals I want to see: Hedgehogs, obviously. Stoats, sparrowhawks, herons, frogs, owls, kittens, grass snakes or adders.

I hate to play favourites but I like Mr Franco Fox.  Elegant is the word.  Eating biscuits like a proper gent.  :love: 

Fox hunting should be outlawed.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Nov 15, 2023, 12:24 AMThe reason I don't like them is because of the diseases and how quickly they breed. They can give you Weils Disease which is serious. If one sets up home in the garden it doesn't takeong before a possible infestation occurs and that is a nightmare. There are young children both sides of me and I'd feel devastated if they got bitten.

Maybe you can reassure me or explain why I'm being irrational? You seem like you live in a rural place but I don't and the last thing I want is rats in the garden.

Nah, you're not irrational, but the way I see it, rats come with the territory - sort of - when you start putting easily accessible food out.

We got rats in our chicken pen cause of the feed and also in our vegetable garden when my wife started burying this bocacci (?) compost. They never tried to get inside, though. At least I never found any indication of that. I don't think that's normal, at least not here.

I've never known anyone who's actually gotten bitten by a wild rat, so.. I tend to think that risk may be a little exaggerated.

The camera lets me see exactly who is eating the food and only once has a rat eaten it so that's good. One rat in over a week, seems good to me? I thought we had more rats here than that.

I may move my camera anyway and do some bird watching because I have a feeling it's too cold for the hedgies and they've already gone to hibernate for the winter.

Lots of wildlife in my neck of the woods. Top photo is a young female white-tailed deer in my backyard. Other two pics are of a red squirrel on my porch.

You took these? These are great. Post more! Squirrel looks like he's waiting at a bus stop and his hands are cold so he's warming them up.

Quote from: jimmy jazz on Nov 15, 2023, 09:48 PMYou took these? These are great. Post more! Squirrel looks like he's waiting at a bus stop and his hands are cold so he's warming them up.

I've got more on my spare hard drive. I'll start posting some here and there when I have the time to look through them. I think that squirrel had some type of nut or seed in its hands when I took that shot.

It's getting close to the Thanksgiving holiday on this side of the pond, so here's a timely pic of a wild turkey from my backyard...

 :laughing: look at his little head.

Another squirrel pic. Might be that same red squirrel from my porch. Just relaxing on a branch and letting it all hang out...

Three chipmunk pics from my porch and backyard. Not sure if it's the same one in all of the photos. They all tend to look alike to me.  ;D

They are snazzy animals. I like them. They've got character.

Really beautiful photos, @Psy-Fi.  I especially love the young deer and stripey chipmunks.  I envy you having wildlife right in your own back yard.   :)

Quote from: ribbons on Nov 18, 2023, 05:57 PMReally beautiful photos, @Psy-Fi.  I especially love the young deer and stripey chipmunks.  I envy you having wildlife right in your own back yard.  :)

I'm always amazed at the variety of wildlife I see in my yard and neighborhood. I even saw a black bear in my driveway, once. It ran off before I could get a pic of it, though. Probably the only critter I haven't seen yet is a moose.

A hungry snake trying to eat more than it can swallow...




I saw this life-or-death struggle between a toad and snake one day while I was doing some yard work. I figured there was no way that snake would be able to swallow that toad. I checked back on the scene every few minutes to see what was happening and after a while the snake gave up and moved on. The toad was left with a slimy right leg but ended up hopping away eventually.

Me at Christmas dinner.

Quote from: Psy-Fi on Nov 21, 2023, 04:32 PM

(https://i.postimg.cc/66H7gPDK/T-S.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/V5CLbKfZ)

Nice, it just got its ass sucked on. Probably really scary, though.

A chipmunk holding onto a piece of a dead vine lodged between my foundation and siding...




And the reason it was holding onto a piece of a dead vine between my foundation and siding...

Spoiler

(https://i.postimg.cc/9MMDRWVt/C-C3.jpg)

(https://i.postimg.cc/KY9nsp8f/C-C4.jpg)

[close]

Wolf spider lays eggs in man's toe, baby hatches inside: 'Eating its way out' (https://nypost.com/2023/11/28/news/wolf-spider-lays-eggs-in-mans-toe-baby-hatches-inside-eating-its-way-out/)  :o

Quote from: Psy-Fi on Nov 29, 2023, 02:31 PMWolf spider lays eggs in man's toe, baby hatches inside: 'Eating its way out' (https://nypost.com/2023/11/28/news/wolf-spider-lays-eggs-in-mans-toe-baby-hatches-inside-eating-its-way-out/)  :o

Immediately when I saw this, I thought that can't possibly be true 😄

Why? How? It doesn't fit with wolf spider ecology at all. A baby spider can't eat human meat etc.

I had to Google a bit and found a lot of reporting of this. In the middle of the noise was this article:

https://www.nationalworld.com/health/did-wolf-spider-lay-eggs-in-mans-toe-causing-it-to-swell-experts-wade-in-on-gruesome-claim-4426680

As the late sir Terry Pratchett said: A lie can run round the world before the truth has got its boots on 🙂

Quote from: Guybrush on Nov 29, 2023, 05:53 PMImmediately when I saw this, I thought that can't possibly be true 😄

Why? How? It doesn't fit with wolf spider ecology at all. A baby spider can't eat human meat etc.

I had to Google a bit and found a lot of reporting of this. In the middle of the noise was this article:

https://www.nationalworld.com/health/did-wolf-spider-lay-eggs-in-mans-toe-causing-it-to-swell-experts-wade-in-on-gruesome-claim-4426680

As the late sir Terry Pratchett said: A lie can run round the world before the truth has got its boots on 🙂

There goes another good urban myth up in smoke.

An American Tree Sparrow on the ground by my porch, blending in with the surroundings...

^ Psy-Fi, as a bird lover I have to say this photo makes me melt!  Lovely.  You're a great photographer, too.  Thanks for sharing!   :)

Quote from: ribbons on Nov 30, 2023, 08:21 PM^ Psy-Fi, as a bird lover I have to say this photo makes me melt!  Lovely.  You're a great photographer, too.  Thanks for sharing!  :)

:beer:

Mystery tire slashings had tiny Italian town fearing the Mafia — but it turned out to be a dog with gingivitis (https://nypost.com/2023/12/06/news/mystery-tire-slashings-in-italian-town-turned-out-to-be-dog-not-mafia/)

A pic of my cat enjoying a siesta on top of my truck on a sunny day...

Some photos of a Spiny Flower Mantis which I stumbled across online while I was looking for something else. It makes the green type of Praying Mantis that we see around my yard look boring in comparison...

Few know about Marky Mark's entomological endeavours.

Yes, some funny species names out there. One I remember well, and which some conceivably could consider racist, is Villa hottentotta, a fly.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hottentot_(racial_term)

In Norwegian, the common name for this is still Hottentot bumblebee fly. I've no idea why.. it's not like it lives in Africa 🤔 its distribution is European.

Who knows what Carl Von Linné was thinking back then.

There's also a Villa occulta, like a house of witches or something.