Enrichment humor for nerdy animal freaks

On a zookeeper's message board on Yahoo:

OP: "I am looking for some ideas about the enrichment of Termites. Does somebody have ideas???"



peanut gallery #1: "I love this. Try putting an ant in the nest once a week. You may end up with neurotic termites but they will definitely not just sit around digesting their protozoans."

peanut gallery #2: "How about giving them sticks to poke chimpanzees with."

Now I'm eating pastries

How gross do you consider this experience:( Read more... )

Holiday leftover

It turns out I won't use this pic for the project, so I'll just share it. Here's my dad in front of a big oak in Bushnell park in Hartford. You can see the Connecticut state house in the background.

Its tag said it was a turkey oak, but the little research I just did makes me doubt it. It's a nice tree anyway.

365 Urban species. #356: Red Osier Dogwood

Photos by urbpan. Location: the Riverwalk, Hartford.

Urban species #356: Red osier dogwood Cornus sericea

Most of the invasive species covered here so far have been Eurasian species that are problematic in North America. Japanese knotweed, buckthorn, and burning bush are all attractive shrubby plants that were deliberately introduced to the new world, and then spread out of control. Red osier dogwood is native to North America, and has been introduced to Europe, Australia, and other places. It's considered invasive in New Zealand and Great Britain, and has been put on a "black list" of invasives by the Swiss Commission for the Conservation of Wild Plants.

In northeastern North America, the native range of red osier dogwood, the shrub is planted along rivers and other wet urban areas. Its ability to spread vegetatively and form thick stands makes it unwelcome in Switzerland, but is useful for stabilizing streambanks and preventing erosion. Its also chosen for its bright red color, which stands out especially well in winter. White berries decorate the fiery stems, until they are eaten by birds. Red osier dogwood is one of several species of dogwood shrubs used as urban ornamental plants.

( more pictures )