Nature's Children

[Mark]

"The flower is the first known plant in which pollination is entirely self-directed, with no outside agents or forces—such as bees or breezes—playing a role."
Orchid Has "Active" Sex With Itself -- A Flower First?
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... d-sex.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... 74629.html

[Mark]

Scientists Reconstruct Brains’ Visions Into Digital Video In Historic Experiment
http://gizmodo.com/5843117/scientists-r ... n-activity

[Mark]

Southern California's rare squid invasion a bizarre nighttime spectacle
"These northbound forays -- perceived by some scientists as an attempt at permanent colonization -- are believed to be spurred by a warm current or some other anomaly."
http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/304 ... spectacle/

[Mark]

Eight foot octopus in a 15 inch box
http://scienceblogs.com/zooillogix/2009 ... ch_box.php

[Mark]

Armadillo Invasion: Warm-Weather Critters Expanding East
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... vironment/

"The giant armadillo--snapped by a camera trap in northeastern Peru on June 8, 2008--can weigh up to 71 pounds (32 kilograms)."
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... 00x450.jpg

[Mark]

Devil's Hand Tree
http://www.strangewonderfulthings.com/170.htm

[Mark]

Note a little more than a third of the page down the animation of air flow in parts of the lungs goes one direction only. I wonder how a jam jar or snorkeler would run if you could design one like these lungs ...

"The air sacs permit a unidirectional flow of air through the lungs. Unidirectional flow means that air moving through bird lungs is largely 'fresh' air & has a higher oxygen content. In contrast, air flow is 'bidirectional' in mammals, moving back and forth into and out of the lungs. As a result, air coming into a mammal's lungs is mixed with 'old' air (air that has been in the lungs for a while) & this 'mixed air' has less oxygen. So, in bird lungs, more oxygen is available to diffuse into the blood."
Avian Respiration
http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/birdre ... n.html?v=1

[Alison]

Written for children who love animals, Getting to Know…Nature's Children takes an up-close look at the planet's most amazing wildlife. Whether the animals slither, crawl, jump, or fly, Getting to Know…Nature's Children is a fascinating animal library. Written by a team of experts, this exclusive series informs, entertains, and sparks young imaginations. Each 90-page volume in the 28-book set is actually two books in one, featuring two different animals with incredible, full-color photos and eye-opening facts. By taking advantage of the club's special introductory offer, you will get one hardcover book, plus a kids-sized wildlife T-shirt completely free of charge.

Open the Natural World for Your Child

Kids love animals and facts about animals! Getting to Know… Nature's Children is the most comprehensive wildlife library your children will ever own. It’s also a fun and exciting way to increase your child's knowledge about the natural world. This spectacular series takes young readers deep into the ocean and high into the mountains. They'll explore the natural habitats of dozens of creatures including penguins, zebras, kangaroos, monarch butterflies, and many more. Children will learn how each animal sleeps, eats, hunts, and hides. Most importantly, children will learn how to be good stewards of the environment.

[Mark]

David Attenborough - Wonderful World - BBC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8WHKRzkCOY
http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... -american/

[Mark]

David Barth, Vogels ("Birds" in Dutch), 2008 (at age 10)
from an email from David's mother to Jill Mullen:
"His drawings often represent his current obsessions. In the attachment I send you, it's not hard to guess what's keeping him busy right now. There are almost 400 birds on it and he knows the names and Latin names of most of them."
http://50watts.com/1375518/Drawing-Autism

[Mark]

Helps to watch in full screen
Adorable Chipmunk in Slow Motion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jO3dwUKU ... ature=plcp

[Mark]

Just a spider I found outside in the hill country of Texas the other day. Oh and a visitor in my bathtub the next day. And a picture of the surroundings/terrain at my sister's house/ranch.

"Not all adult female black widows exhibit the red hourglass on the ventrum or underside of the abdomen — some may have a pair of red spots or have no marking at all. Female black widows often exhibit various red markings on the dorsal or top side of the abdomen, commonly two red spots."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latrodectus

[PyroJoe]

A little taste of texas wildlife.
Have had a few of those scorpion close encounters, those yellow/tan ones sting about like a bee. Not to bad unless your in bed asleep. They like to reside in mailboxes also.
Its wise to knock the critters out of your boots before putting them on. I once had a scorpion inside my boot from 6:30 A.M. until 11:00 A.M. before it wiggled into a position to sting my ankle.
The widows keep to themselves pretty much.

[Mark]

Yes, the hill country of Texas is a bit different than Florida. One time an emu got on the ranch somehow and my sister fed it for a few months before it disappeared. There are mouflon sheep, axis deer, wild pigs, wild turkeys, rabbits, coyotes, and on two occasions a cougar spotted on the ranch. One time one was seen leaping over a fence and the other driving on her road, a deer jumped across in front of her with a cougar right behind it. The place has so many animals it's kind of like a subtle or subdued Africa, I suppose there would always be plenty to eat if you were a cougar, deer every place you look. Because the axis deer are not native, they are hunted year round. There are large vultures making a living too. The deer are hit all the time by cars.
When I was there this dog hijacked a ride with my brother. He had gone fly fishing and the dog ran alongside the car and when he stopped it went under the car. He coaxed it out with a sandwich and it jumped in the Avalanche. So he brought it to the ranch, cut off a ton of matted hair, and took off the old stiff red collar and gave him a new blue one. It had no tags. It's a very shy dog but I was glad to have him when I went for long walks, he stayed right behind me to my left but occasionally would scout up ahead and then return to his position. On one walk it trotted after an armadillo, getting right behind it and I softly said stop and he came right back to me. It seemed like he might have been abused, but I got attached to him in the few weeks I was there. I guess my sister is going to keep him. They notified the lost dog directory but got no calls. We let the dog come in the house at night and in the day too if it wanted to, but it was shy about that and often sat behind some furniture or low profile place. It was very hard to take a picture of him, for my camera made him slink away no matter how I approached the activity. Once when walking, the dog and I heard very faint gunshots, and it seemed to make him jumpy. But he liked to be loved up when he trusted you and would lift his paw like he wanted a handshake. And his little nub of a tail would wiggle happily when you praised and petted him. He sometimes licked my hand.

"Distribution in Texas. Native to India, where it is known as the "chital," the axis deer was introduced into Texas about 1932. In 1988, free-ranging herds were established in 27 counties of central and southern Texas. At this time, it also occurs as a confined animal on ranches in 67 other counties. Axis deer are the most abundant exotic ungulate in Texas."
http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/cervaxis.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chital

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouflon

[Mark]

Starting your morning off right for a change
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2011 ... f_righ.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eXS0o6r-Wk