Category Archives: Animalia
Nose to Proboscis
Dogs get really close when they want to check something out. Noses twitch and nares gape when air is being drawn from an object of curiosity across their olfactory epithelium, which can sense far more odors than we can ever … Continue reading
Tiny Terrors
Peel back the soft green cover, and you might find menace skulking in a Virginia garden. A neighbor picked up a copperhead by its tail, which turned round to bite him (can you blame it?). Large wolf spiders enjoy nipping … Continue reading
Posted in Animalia, Biomedical
Tagged Centers for Disease Control, ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, medicine, naturalist, ticks
2 Comments
Seventeen Year Itch
Back in 1996, Bill Clinton was still in his first term of office, Charles and Diana agreed to divorce, the Unabomber was apprehended, and Ella Fitzgerald died. That year I hadn’t even dreamed of moving permanently to North America: I … Continue reading
Posted in Animalia
Tagged Bible, birds, cicada, Death, eggs, locust, mast seeding, naturalist, Richmond, science
7 Comments
Cardinal robes
As winter marches towards spring, two male northern cardinals have set up territories in our yard, keeping an eye on their mates but not getting along with each other. They watch, emblazoned against a blue sky, from a favorite perch … Continue reading
A Dog’s Dinner
Banana Joe stole the show! No, not the LA radio presenter, I mean the affenpinscher from Attleboro who won Best in Show last week at the Westminster Dog Show in NYC. I’m not a pooch person, prefer big mushy dogs, … Continue reading
