Monthly Archives: October 2010
Teaching Crows to Contribute to Society.
Joshua Klein had an idea. It was an idea that could revolutionize the world, and, at the same time, revolutionize how we perceive one of the most maligned creatures inhabiting the skies: the corvid.
Corvids are known tool-users.
For centuries, crows and ravens have symbolized death, poverty, trickery, theft, and a million other negative things. In reality, corvids are extraordinarily intelligent, discerning creatures. Like other animals that man hates most, corvids do not simply survive alongside us; they thrive, even in areas that we devastate. Read the rest of this entry
Fall Photos, Batch 1
I finally got outside with my camera and took a few fall photos, which I find to be highly reparative for the soul. If you’ve been outside enjoying this fleeting season with your camera too, leave a link to your photos in the comments section.
From a distance, Rabbitbrush is a pretty nondescript plant. But up close…
Weekly Photo Wunderbar
Even though winter is a hard time for me (the long, dark hours make it hard to do anything but sleep and read books) – like a lot of people – autumn possesses some very real magic. What I notice the most is that the increasingly sideways position of the sun casts a beautiful slanted light onto everything, and some days it feels like a perpetual sunset.
Besides that, the colors that come through in deciduous plants is breathtaking and if I’m not careful, I go driving off the side of the road, entranced. Big fat clouds, sometimes thick and dark with rain, roll through, creating a drama of light that is unparalleled in any other season. I’m not very good at capturing it on (what we used to call) film, but I give it my best. (And then completely oversaturate everything post-process, really, so that it will match how I see it in real life: full, deep, and rich.)
Few things scream autumn like the fire of an aspen tree against a blue sky.
In Praise of the Heron.
Recently I’ve been fascinated with the many varieties of heron and have come across some equally fascinating photos. Herons are marsh birds with long legs, long necks, and long beaks. They remind me of pterodactyls in flight and are extremely patient hunters. They stalk slowly through the shallows in search of just about anything they can fit into their mouths and down their throats – which are stretchy enough to allow some pretty big fish passage. Enjoy!
It may look like they’re having fun, but only one of them really is.
Vintage Owl Eye Candy
I’m not feeling very educational tonight, so I think instead I’ll just present you with some vintage owl eye candy. These sweet finds are all located on the awesome Etsy website, one of my favorite places to piddle around when I have an extra ten minutes… or four hours. (ahem)
If you’re not familiar with Etsy, it’s a great site. There are two flavors of items that people can sell on Etsy: vintage and handmade. I’m always in support of vintage and handmade because both reduce pressure on the environment (vintage by reusing and handmade by reduced fossil fuels) and put money into the hands of local craftspeople (or antiquers), rather than overseas mass-suppliers.
You can search for pretty much anything on Etsy, and you’d be surprised at what you can buy handmade rather than mass-produced. You can also create a wishlist for things you want, or to use as a holiday gift list for your loved ones. Etsy is a haven for fun nature stuff and tonight I’m feeling like vintage owls. Enjoy!
Vintage owl, from scoutHOME.
Weekly Photo Wunderbar
Hello friends. You can tell I’m stuck on summer (even as the heat comes on in the house above my head) because I refuse to get outside and take photos of autumn-type things, but maybe that will be this week’s task… le sigh. Oh, how I hate to see summer go!
Here’s some lupine leaves from my garden – I planted a 1 gallon plant that was maybe 12 inches tall. In one season it grew to about 5 feet tall and about 4 feet wide. I’ve never seen a lupine (or any other plant that isn’t a noxious weed) explode like that, but I guess it liked the spot where it was growing. They have some of the most beautiful leaves in the plant kingdom (imo) and it somehow managed to keep its leaves all winter, despite the fact that I’m almost positive the species I have is not evergreen. Ah, lupine. What an awesome, poisonous plant you be!
Three Venomous Mammals That Will Blow Your Mind
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to dispatch your enemies with no more than their keen knowledge that you possess a deadly venom? No? Oh. Well, nevermind then.
Anyway, as it turns out, there are in fact venomous mammals on this planet right now! (Which is the coolest thing you’ve learned all week and we both know it.)
via Wiki. Credit: E. Lonnon
The Roaming Naturalist 