Caturday felid trifecta: cat survives 8 days in mailed box of DVDs. the craziest of all Cat Ladies, epic crow-instigated cat fight

April 2, 2016 • 8:30 am

Meet Cupcake, a part-Siamese cat that spent eight days in a box of DVDs as it made its way from Cornwall to Sussex. Fortunately, the cat was microchipped, and you can see the one-minute video of Cupcake’s joyous reunion with her owner by clicking on the screenshot below.

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Reader Heather Hastie sent this video, adding this:

Since you’re been so busy, I posted a couple of cat stories myself – one about some African Servals, and another about some Clouded Leopard cubs – but this one is pure WEIT. You won’t believe this woman:

All the cats look healthy, so she’s clearly doing a great job, but the numbers just boggle the mind. It’s like she’s changed them into herd animals.

Mr. Das in Bangalore has had up to 85 cats at a time (most not living in his house), but here’s Lynea Lattanzio a woman who runs a no-kill shelter housing 800 cats. She gave up her home to the cats and moved to a trailer on the property. Lattanzio claims she’s housed 28,000 cats over her life—surely a record!

Heather also sent the photo below the video, which makes the unwarranted implication that males over 40 aren’t interested in cats! (I recently finished a week in Bangalore with 40 moggies!)

If you want more information about the Cat House on the Kings, or would like to donate, go here.

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Here’s the most epic cat fight I know of on YouTube, one made doubly intriguing because the crows seem to be egging on the cats to fight. Could that be possible? The incident took place in Russia, and it looks as if neither cat suffered greatly from the encounter.

The story in English is here, and there are some strange comments on the video, including this one:

This is the reason cats will never rule the world. A cooperative species would gang up on the common enemy (crows). Instead the dumb bastards fight each other and let the crows get away with it. Cats are fucking stupid.

h/t: Matthew Cobb, Barry

Readers’ wildlife photos

April 2, 2016 • 7:30 am

We have some insect photos from a new contributor, reader Kurt Andreas from Queens, New York, whose Instagram site is here. His descriptions are indented below.

Hickory Tussock Moth (Lophocampa caryae) caterpillar; New Paltz, NY (October 4, 2013). David L. Wagner’s Caterpillars of Eastern North America lists Hickory, pecan, and walnuts as some of this caterpillar’s favorite food, although they can be found munching away on virtually any wooden plan. Their bodies are covered in urticating hairs, and they’re responsible for most cases of dermatitis caused by caterpillars in NA. The spines come off easily when handled, and besides getting stuck in the skin can easily be breathed in.

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Here’s a photo of the adult moth taken from Wikipedia:

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Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa); Glendale, NY (March 24, 2016); One of the first butterflies of spring, emerging as an overwinterwing adult as the weather gets warmer. Widespread throughout NA, but after living in upstate NY for over a decade I never saw one until moving to suburbia. Adults are the longest-lived butterfly in NA, living for almost a year.

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Oleander aphids / Milkweed aphids (Aphis nerii); New Paltz, NY (September 19, 2013); sap suckers of the Dogbane family, including milkweed. I don’t know how they deal with the latex secretions of milkweed that deter other insect pests, (with the exception of certain specialists like the Monarch caterpillar). These aphids are entirely parthenogenic, with males never produced, and unlike most other aphids they very rarely produce overwintering eggs.

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Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) male [first photo]; New Paltz, NY (July 6, 2013).

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) male [second and third photos]; New Paltz, NY (July 3, 2013).
Two of perhaps a dozen or so species of Dragonflies I documented watching one small pond in New Paltz for 6 years. Dragonflies aren’t the easiest subjects to photograph, but during mating time the males use a scramble resource strategy, and are very reluctant to flee whatever part of the pond they’ve staked out. Any good locale will inevitably be taken over if they abandon it for any amount of time, and when not resting the males are constantly patrolling their area, chasing off rivals, and waiting for females.

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Saturday: Hili dialogue

April 2, 2016 • 6:30 am

by Grania

Good morning!

Jerry should be in the air right now, but he has several posts prepared for today.

We’ll check in with the Princess this morning, as it is the only way to start the weekend. Just a wee smidgen of hubris there.

Hili: I’m thinking about the essence of natural laws.
A: Have you reached any conclusions?
Hili: Yes, they are all laws that by right are mine.

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In Polish:

Hili: Zastanawiam się nad istotą praw naturalnych.
Ja: Masz jakieś wnioski?
Hili: Tak, to są wszystkie te prawa, które moim zdaniem mnie przysługują.

 

The Godless Spellchecker is traveling too and sent Jerry this.

I’m currently in Rome taking in the sights. A few cats live in the Colosseum. Managed to snap one. Can you find it?

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The Stanford Review manages to offend everybody (well done)

April 1, 2016 • 2:39 pm

by Grania

It’s an April Fool’s joke, but it’s also satirical and rather pointed. It’s guaranteed to offend a lot of people who will claim they are skewering sacred cows; but at least this is pretty good evidence that #NotAllStudents are Special Snowflakes.

Like all good satire, it comes uncomfortably close to being indistinguishable from the real thing, while also being clearly absurd in other places.

 

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Give it a read.

Nothing can go wrong with this gun, can it?

April 1, 2016 • 10:00 am

After all, it’s very clever: a two-shot gun disguised as a cellphone, and manufactured by Ideal Conceal, whose motto is “Because the right of self-defense is the first law of nature.” And if it happens in nature, it must be a right, no?

Here’s the gun: a .380 caliber double-barreled derringer, which is a “transformer” cellphone:

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The transformation:

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And it’s only $395.  A pittance to buy yourself peace of mind.  However, it is a concealed weapon, and to carry it you’ll need a concealed carry permit. The ad for the gun almost makes it seem that this gun evades that regulation, though it doesn’t:

The best gun is always the one you have with you. 

In today’s day and age, carrying a concealed pistol has become a necessity. But what if you didn’t have to conceal?

That’s where Ideal Conceal comes in. Smartphones are EVERYWHERE, so your new pistol will easily blend in with today’s environment.  In its locked position it will be virtually undetectable because it hides in plain sight.  ~ Always check your State and local concealment laws.

Note the caveat in the last sentence. So what’s the advantage of this? I suppose because it isn’t obvious, and it’s slim. However, consider this: even if you agree with the nonsense that carrying a concealed weapon is a NECESSITY, there are real guns, containing up to 10 rounds, that are so small you can slip them in your pocket. If you’re mugged on the street, and this cellphone gun is all you have, I wouldn’t count on your being able remove it from your pocket (what’s a mugger going to think when you go for your cellphone?) take off the safety, “transform” it, and fire it before your assailant gets you first. Since this is not a “home defense” or target weapon, it seems unusually cumbersome.

And what could go wrong? After all, even if you leave it lying around the house, there’s no chance your kids could mistake it for a cellphone, accidentally unlock the safety, and. . . . BANG! Right?

h/t: Gravelinspector

Readers’ wildlife photos

April 1, 2016 • 7:30 am

Stephen Barnard has sent photos over the last week days, so I’m stringing them together in sequence for a single post. If you sent photos earlier, don’t worry; I have them all and will start posting them when I return after Sunday.

We have some worries about the pair of bald eagles, Desi and Lucy (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), who nest yearly on Stephen’s property.

First, Lucy from March, 27:

With developing eggs, probably. Things are going as usual. She’s hanging out in the nesting area during the day.

Lucy

Like Mallards and Robins, Red-tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) are underappreciated because they’re so common, at least compared to other raptors. I’m guilty of that, but I think this photo shows off the beauty of their underwing plumage. This is an especially healthy specimen, I think. They’re nearly swarming here now, after a tough winter weather compensated for by an abundance of voles.

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Here’s another of the same bird. Different pose.

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Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus). I get hairies and downies, about 50/50. They’re very similar, but you can tell the difference by the length of the bill and the size.

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And now, some possible trouble. . .

Osprey (Pandion haliaetus). I’m a little worried about the eagles. I haven’t seen Desi in several days, and this osprey shouldn’t be hanging around so insolently. They’re deadly enemies.

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Start worrying.

Friday: Hili dialogue

April 1, 2016 • 6:00 am

by Grania

Friday at last, thank goodness! And a happy Spaghetti Tree Day. Back in 1957 the BBC perpetrated one of the first April Fools’ jokes that went viral thanks to television. Google apparently tried an April Fool’s prank this morning with a  Gmail Minion mic drop gif (pronounced …) but pulled the stunt when people complained. Consider yourself warned – today is that day when otherwise sensible people come up with silly pranks and stunts. Let’s be skeptical out there today.

Over in Poland Hili and Cyrus are having serious discussions again. I suspect that Hili subscribes to the theory “What’s mine is mine, and what’s yours is mine too”.

Hili: Look, only my forepaws are on your half of the bed.
Cyrus: This whole bed is mine.
Hili: That’s just a theory.

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In Polish:

Hili: Patrz, mam tylko przednie łapki na twojej połowie materaca.
Cyrus: Ten materac jest cały mój.
Hili: To jest tylko teoria.

Leon on the other hand is thinking of literary things.

Leon: I’m preparing the cover for “The Catcher in the Rye”.

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As a lagniappe, you can watch the old BBC April Fool’s broadcast here, complete with 1950s BBC accents and everything.

From Jerry: I’ve just arrived back at Bhubaneswar from Bhitarkanika National Park on the coast, where we were allowed to stay in a Forest Guest House of the National Park (thanks to my kind hosts at the Life Sciences Institute), and saw chital (spotted deer), lots of monkeys, and several HUGE saltwater crocodiles lazing on the banks (it’s hot now, so they spend most of their time in the water). Here’s one of the big salties I saw at about 7 a.m. More on the park and animals later. (I also saw scat from a leopard cat.)

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And some lovely chitals:

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