Readers’ wildlife photos

June 25, 2017 • 7:45 am

Today we have some nice insect and plant photos taken by Stephen Barnard in Idaho. His captions are indented:

A few photos from the wildflower field. I don’t know the species of the insects.

First, a Blue Flax (Linum lewisii) blossom. This plant visually dominates the garden (if you can call it a garden).

A bumblebee (Bombus sp.) in flight. Noticed how laden it is with nectar and pollen.

Three different flies. The last one is tiny, iridescent, and I think quite beautiful.

Finally, a small wasp preying on some sort of larva.

Another insect from the “garden”. Honeybee (Apis mellifera) on a wild rose.

 

Squirrel update

June 25, 2017 • 7:12 am

What with the warm weather and the 35-pound bag of sunflower seeds I bought, along with weekly purchases of peanuts, I’m attracting a lot of squirrels to my windowsill. I leave the window propped open when I sweep the sunflower-seed husks off their ledge and replenish their water dish, and when I do that they sometimes they come inside, impatient for a peanut. (They tolerate the seeds but really love the nuts.) Once, when I left the lab untended and the window open, what must have been a whole scurry of squirrels made off with two pounds of peanuts sitting on a cart five feet away from the window. I would have liked to have seen that!

There are so many sciurids that I can’t recognize them all. Here’s one sticking his noggin into the lab for a peanut this morning:

Sunday: Hili dialogue

June 25, 2017 • 6:30 am

Good morning on Ceiling Cat’s Day: Sunday, June 25, 2017. It’s National Strawberry Parfait Day, which leaves me cold, and World Vitligo Day. So it goes.

On this day in 1876, the Battle of the Little Bighorn took place, resulting in the death of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and all his men. It was “Custer’s Last Stand.” In 1910, Stravinsky’s ballet “The Firebird” had its premiere in Paris, and on the same day, the U.S. Congress passed the Mann Act, prohibiting the interstate transport of women for immoral purposes. Many were prosecuted under this ambiguous statute, including, I believe, the famous geneticist Calvin Bridges. On June 24, 1940, France officially surrendered to Germany. And, something of note for Matthew and me, who are diehard Krazy Kat fans: on this day in 1944, the final strip of that comic was published, two months after its creator George Herriman died. It had run for 31 years. A concise summary of the “plot”, such as it was, from Wikipedia (this shows that Wikipedia really does have some stuff that’s both accurate and well written):

The strip focuses on the curious relationship between a guileless, carefree, simple-minded cat named Krazy of indeterminate gender (referred to as both “he” and “she”) and a short-tempered mouse named Ignatz. Krazy nurses an unrequited love for the mouse. However, Ignatz despises Krazy and constantly schemes to throw bricks at Krazy’s head, which Krazy interprets as a sign of affection, uttering grateful replies such as “Li’l dollink, allus f’etful”, or “Li’l ainjil”. A third principal character, Offisa Bull Pupp, often appears and tries to “protect” Krazy by thwarting Ignatz’ attempts and imprisoning him. Later on, Offisa Pupp falls in love with Krazy.

The graphics are unique and wonderful, based on the landscape of the American Southwest that Herriman often visited. Here’s that last strip, in which Offisa Pupp saves Krazy from drowning as Ignatz looks on. But did Krazy really survive his immersion? We’ll never know. Herriman knew his health was failing when he drew this:

If you haven’t seen Krazy Kat, check it out; you’ll either be entranced, like Matthew and me, or will be indifferent.

On this day in 1947, The Diary of Anne Frank was published; do visit the house in Amsterdam where the family hid from and then were captured by the Nazis. On June 25, 1948, the Berlin Airlift began, a day after the Soviet blockade of that city, and in 1978 the famous “rainbow flag” was flown for the first time at the Gay Pride parade in San Francisco. Here:

Finally, in 1993 Kim Campbell was sworn in as Canada’s first female Prime Minister.

Notables born on this day include Antoni Gaudi (1852), Walther Nernst (1864), Louis Mountbatten (1900), June Lockhart (1925; still alive at 92), Bert Hölldobler (1936; I know him), Carly Simon (1945), Anthony Bourdain (1956) and Ricky Gervais (1961). Those who died on this day include George Custer (see above), Thomas Eakins (1916), Johnny Mercer (1976), Michel Foucault (1984), Jacques Cousteau (1997), Lester Maddox, (2003), and Farrah Fawcett (2009). Eakins is, I think, an underrated painter; here’s one of his great paintings, “Max Schmitt in a single scull” (1871):

And his most famous work, “The Gross clinic” (1875):

Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili’s gone down to the Vistula River, but she knows she could be home, and at her food bowl, in about three minutes:

A: You love wild nature.
Hili: Yes, but with a possibility of a quick return to civilisation.
 In Polish:
Ja: Kochasz dziką naturę.
Hili: Tak, z możliwością szybkiego powrotu do cywilizacji.

And from reader Laurie I got an email titled, “The weather’s cooled off and he’s back on the coffee.”  “He” is Theo, the London-dwelling, espresso-drinking cat. More:

. . . And characteristically hiding his eyes from you! 😂

His whole head is in the cup! 😂
Yes, that’s black espresso, Theo’s favorite tipple:

Theo’s latest doings are reported on Laurie’s site, A Classicist Writes, in a short post called “Theo’s being a jerk.“

Giant “paleoburrows” dug by extinct mammals

June 24, 2017 • 3:15 pm

In the last few years, geologists have been finding—mostly in Brazil—large “paleoburrows” that were almost certainly dug by large, extinct mammals such as giant ground sloths. These burrows can be up to 3000 feet long (!) and 5 feet wide, though the very long ones were surely dug by many individuals over many generations. The shape of the burrows, and the fact that they bear distinct claw marks, are sure signs they were dug rather than being natural caves (the beasts could also have “improved” existing caves, but geologists think that’s unlikely).

Here’s what the excavations look like, from a summary of paleoburrows in Discover Magazine (captions from the site):

Looking into a large paleoburrow in Brazil. (Courtesy: Heinrich Frank)
Inside the first paleoburrow discovered in the Amazon. It’s nearly twice as large as the second-largest known burrow, located elsewhere in Brazil. (Credit: Amilcar Adamy/CPRM)

Here’s evidence that these are the products of animal activity: claw marks:

Claw marks are clear signs from the engineers who dug the tunnel. (Courtesy: Heinrich Frank)

A close-up of the scratches (sadly, there’s no scale, but you can see from the above that the animals must have been BIG.

A closer look at those claw marks. (Courtesy: Heinrich Frank)

The caves are at least 8,000 to 10,000 years old, which is when the suspected excavators went extinct. And those suspects are both giant ground sloths (Megatherium) and giant armadillos (glyptodonts). The sloths, one of the largest land animals that ever lived, were this big (below) and, at least according to Wikipedia, could weigh up to 4000 kilograms (4 “tonnes”) and stretch 20 feet from head to tail. Some were as big as modern elephants, and, like the pachyderms, they were herbivores:

Another candidate, the giant armadillos, or glyptodonts, were also huge, weighing about 2 “tonnes” (2000 kg) and extending about 11 feet: they were the size and weight of a VW Beetle. Here’s one:

But the caves with scratches on the roof were probably made by sloths, which could rear up on their hind legs. Based on the shape of the excavations, Heinrich Frank, a Brazilian geologist, thinks they were made this way:

But why did they need these caves, particularly such long ones? It’s still a mystery:

. . .  the sheer size of the burrows is something that Frank and his colleagues are still trying to explain. Whether prehistoric sloths or armadillos were responsible, the burrows are far larger than would be necessary to shelter the animals that dug them from predators or the elements.

The giant armadillo, the largest living member of the family, weighs between 65 and 90 pounds and is found throughout much of South America. Its burrows are only about 16 inches in diameter and up to about 20 feet long.

“So if a 90-pound animal living today digs a 16-inch by 20-foot borrow, what would dig one five feet wide and 250 feet long?” asks Frank. “There’s no explanation – not predators, not climate, not humidity. I really don’t know.”

You tell me! It’s cool enough that we have fossil habitats like this.

h/t: Michael

Bill Maher interviews Maajid Nawaz

June 24, 2017 • 12:15 pm

In this 17-minute video, Bill Maher, who’s in bad odor with Lefists for using the n-word, interviews someone who’s even more demonized: Maajid Nawaz. Nawaz is a man I much admire, as he began his adult life as an extreme Islamist but now runs the think tank Quilliam, devoted to tamping down extremism—especially among Muslims. Because he’s a moderate Muslim in a suit instead of a bearded imam clutching a Qur’an, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) named him, along with Ayaan Hirsi Ali, as one of several “anti-Muslim extremists”. That decision was ludicrous, and the SPLC really should have reversed it.

Here Nawaz announces that he’s taking the SPLC to court for defamation. I doubt whether that’ll succeed:  I don’t really know libel law except that the statement made has to be “knowingly false” and must damage someone’s reputation (for damages, it has to reduce your worth or income). But isn’t it a judgment call to say he’s an “anti-Muslim extremist”? Even if he’s a Muslim, which he is, I suppose some twisted mind can find a way to call him “anti-Muslim”, although you’d have a hard time characterizing Nawaz as an “extremist.”

At any rate, Nawaz’s criticism of the SPLC and its decision is right on the mark. (You can read the SPLC’s indictment of him here and see what you think. Most if its reasons aren’t compelling; I found one of them disturbing, but still not rising to the level of “anti-Muslim extremism”).

Nawaz goes on to indict the high level of homophobia (about 100%) among British Muslims, which should be a matter of concern to liberals, and even more so to what must be the many gay Muslims who must cower in the closet. At 15:25, Nawaz proffers what he sees as “the only long-term solution” to Islamist terrorism.

Say what you will about Maher and Nawaz (I get weekly emails from deranged loons trying to convince me that Nawaz is really a closet terrorist, sympathetic to ISIS), you have to agree that this is a rational and reasonable discussion of the sort you don’t hear on Leftist television and journalism, outlets largely devoted to not uttering “Islam” and “terrorism” in the same breath.

h/t: BJ

Medusa Magazine is probably a hoax

June 24, 2017 • 11:00 am

Yesterday I may well have spent a lot of time attacking a strawman—or rather a straw woman: one Nicole Valentine, who supposedly wrote a piece at the Medusa Magazine site on why white women owed it to women of color to abort their white fetuses, reducing the number of white “family units” and freeing up white women’s time to help their sisters of color.  The piece was outrageous, a call for racist eugenics, and I took it to be part of the “let’s demonize/attack/kill white people” attitude that seems to be increasingly frequent among racial activists.

Several readers suggested that Medusa (motto: “Feminist Revolution Now”)  was in fact a hoax (I don’t call it satire because satire is both funny and susceptible to discovery), but I wasn’t so sure. For instance, their article on Bret Weinstein and Evergreen State, “Patrarchal conformity and the invasion of The Evergreen State College“, is not funny, and is completely indistinguishable from the many Control-Left pieces that expressed similar sentiments. Does this final paragraph sound like a hoax or satire?:

So, for all of his claims of being a progressive, Bret Weinstein essentially invited the fringe-Right extremists onto the campus.  His ridiculous stance, followed by cries for attention to the right-leaning press, created a climate (and continue to create a climate) of fear at the campus, to the point where students have to carry baseball bats to defend themselves from the Alt-Right who are descending upon the campus.  At this point, I cannot understand how this man continues to have a job, let alone a job at that college. The staff at the college should be ashamed that they haven’t done more to oust him, and the board of directors should be ashamed that they let a professor insult their students to the media without holding him to account.  It undermines the safety of the campus, it undermines the very concept of the campus, and it undermines the ability of students to safely and effectively learn. For the campus to heal, Bret Weinstein must be removed.

And there once was a real Medusa Magazine. Reader Craw noted that in a comment:

Well I think my analysis of the Father’s Day is convincing, but I did some more checking. This is ambiguous, but take a look.

http://medusamagazine.blogspot.com/2013/04/we-have-re-branded-and-moved.html

Note the 1 April date. [JAC: it’s actually April 22; I think Craw got April 1 from the fact that on the right there are the number of posts for April as “April (1)”]

But I admit this is still inconclusive. As far as I can tell from other searches there (probably) was a real Medusa student magazine at Syracuse University, but the trail stops in 2012. It seems to have ended then. This new Medusa starts after that, as you can see.

and Craw added this in another comment:

Let me explain my theory more carefully. There was a Medusa. It was a radical feminist magazine, of the type many would wish to satirize. It had a FB page. In 2012 the wind went out of its sails. In 2013, on April 1, someone with the FB password put up a post linking to the this new site, which is a satire site, in an act of magazinal identity theft.

Note the sly comment about rebranding, and the lack of any further link to Syracuse. I think the satirical nature of the site is evident, having read a bunch of its articles.

On the side of “hoax” is also the fact that none of the authors’ names link to real people.  And there’s also this comment by reader “Bortwell”:

Hi, Jerry.

It’s easy to prove that this website is fake. For example, take this article: https://medusamagazine.com/are-military-combat-roles-really-best-suited-to-men

The author is “Hailey Altmigi”, who supposedly has a journalism degree, but whose name appears nowhere else on the Internet. Also, “migi” is the Japanese word for “right”. So her family name translates to “Alt-right”.

Definitely a fake website, although Poe’s law makes it very difficult to tell.

Finally, reader Chakravarthy commented:

This website is satire, PCC.

The site is registered in the name of one Elijah Adiasany. This is the guy who runs the website Age of shitlords. Looking further: https://www.sockt.com/php/ageofshitlords.com or here: http://whois.easycounter.com/ageofshitlords.com

Age of shitlords is a website that is dedicated to criticizing these “SJW” types.

To me, all of this has the piscine odor of a hoax, though Chakravarthy hasn’t yet told me how he/she figured out that the site was registered in the name of Elijah Adiasany (exactly the same claim appears on another site).

If the last finding proves to be true, then I come down on the side of “big hoax”.  But I’m not sufficiently convinced of that that I’d bet on it now. But if it is a hoax, is it a good one? Well, since to some of us it’s indistinguishable in the main from other sites that are Control-Left, yes, it fooled me—and others.  In that sense it’s a “success” in the same way that Alan Sokal’s piece, or the “conceptual penis” article of Boghossian and Lindsay, fooled journal editors.  And that shows something: that you can make up really outrageous and extreme stuff, and yet it’s indistiguishable from extreme true stuff from the Regressive Left.  That says something about the Regressive Left. But we knew that already.

But if it’s a good hoax, it’s not good satire for two reasons: most of the pieces aren’t in the least amusing, and good satire is not only amusing but detectable as satire.  So I’ll say to the readers that while I may well have wasted my time criticizing “Beyond pro-choice: The solution to white supremacy is white abortion”, I await further information before I’m fully embarrassed.

Caturday felids: NY Times bureau cats; dirty moggie rescued after four days up a chimney, British cat steals underwear

June 24, 2017 • 9:00 am

It’s Caturday again, and there’s a trifecta of items for ailurophiles. The first is an article from the New York Times (click on the link) about the cats that inhabit its foreign bureaus:

The cat above is “Spotty/Dotty, an adopted stray, on Dionne Searcey’s desk in Dakar, Senegal (Photo by Dionne Searcey).  Here are three more, with captions from the paper:

A Baghdad bureau cat with a litter of kittens, in 2007. Photo: Edward Wong
Fatou Diop, Lydia Polgreen, Candace Feit and Joe Quayson in Dakar in 2006. Ms. Polgreen, who is now the editor in chief of the Huffington Post, was The Times’s West Africa bureau chief at the time.
Jane Scott-Long holding Purdah, one of the many cats she adopted, in the Islamabad bureau, in 2001. Credit Walt Baranger/The New York Times

What I want to know is why there are no cats in the American or other Western bureaus?

**********

From reader Laurie we have a link to a 2-minute BBC interview with the owner of Pumpkin, a Cardiff cat who steals the neighbor’s underwear (and other clothing), apparently not from the laundry line but from within houses. The thieving calico favors “knickers” (what Americans call “panties”), and has amassed quite a collection (see picture below).

Click on any of screenshots below to hear the brief but hilarious interview:

Pumpkin returning with her “prey”
Some of Pumpkin’s purloined underwear

Here’s a letter that Pumpkin’s owner wrote to her neighbors, alerting them to the stolen clothing:

*********

Finally, the Liverpool Echo reports on a kitten rescue by a nice man from the RSPCA:

This RSPCA inspector wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty in order to rescue a kitten who had been stuck up a chimney for four days.

Matt Brown managed to free Lola after a gruelling four hours rescue after she got stuck 8ft up the chimney of her home in Crosby.

Mr told the ECHO: “We got the call at 8.30am and we finally managed to free her at 12.30pm. By the time we got her out, we were completely covered in soot – but getting her safely freed was worth a dirty uniform! She came out looking bedraggled and dazed.

 

“Lola had been trapped up there for four days. Her owner initially thought she had gone missing – but it wasn’t until she heard her crying that she realised she was inside the chimney.

Lola lives in Fairfield Drive, and had not long been adopted by her owner before she made her way up the chimney. It is thought she might have been looking for a place to hide after becoming bewildered by her new surroundings.

Lola was taken to the RSPCA’s Greater Manchester Animal Hospital, where she will be checked over, microchipped and neutered before going back to her new home.

The rescue, which took place on Friday, was filmed by Channel 5’s The Cat Rescuers, and will feature on the show later this year.

A happy man and a filthy kitten (she’s rather large for a “kitten”):

 

 

h/t: Amy, Graham, Laurie