The Urban Pantheist

Franklin Park Zoo held a special event on May the Fourth, as many places did. The zoo invited two cosplay groups to come and greet the guests. I don't work on Sundays, but you can bet that I was there just to meet all the characters!

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"First thing every morning, Harry and I would climb the fence into the zebra paddock and collect the velvety, dew-drenched crop of mushrooms that had sprouted there in the night. These Harry would cook in butter in a little saucepan, and we would devour them for our elevenses. They made a delicious meal, but the hazards involved in mushroom collecting with a couple of murderous zebra stallions in the paddock with you were extreme to say the least. We worked close together, with a pitchfork handy, and when one was bending down to pick mushrooms the other was watching the zebras. One morning there was a particularly fine crop and we had filled half a bucket and were congratulating ourselves upon the enormous feed we should be able to have at eleven o'clock. I was just bending down to pick up an exceptionally succulent mushroom when Harry shouted, 'Watch out, boy! The bastard's coming!'

I looked up and the zebra stallion was thundering toward me, his ears back, his lip pulled back over his yellow teeth. Leaving the bucket, I followed Harry's example and ran like a hare. We scrambled over the fence, panting and laughing. The zebra scudded to a halt by the bucket and glared at us, snorting indignantly. Then, to our extreme annoyance, he swiveled round and with immense accuracy kicked the bucket in a great swooping parabola through the air, scattering white mushrooms like a comet's tail. It took us half an hour to collect the mushrooms again."

From A Bevy of Beasts, by Gerald Durrell, 1973.

A Grant's zebra foal nurses in Dorchester.

I could do something productive while I wait for Alexis to come home, but I think I'll share some links (and clear the tab-clutter away) instead.

Everyone likes multi-species interactions in zoos. That's why this photo of a zebra eating stuff out of a hippo's teeth made the BBC's website.

Speaking of animal photos, a camera trap in a small chunk of Southeast Asian forest caught a record 7 cat species. Kind of amazing biodiversity of predators, considering there are also other in the same forest, including dogs and civets.

Another photo essay from that part of the world shows a biodiversity of living animals in the local market, including dogs (but no civets).

Contrast that with this Portland farmers' market, which includes at least three species of mushroom.

Mushrooms are big business in Tibet, where they apparently make up 8.5% of the GDP. I haven't seen any comparisons, but this must be some kind of record. More interesting than that, is Tibet's second biggest mushroom crop is the insect parasite Ophiocordyceps sinensis (referred to as Cordyceps in most sources). The fungus infects adult moths, who pass the infection to their offspring. The insect lives a normal life (3 or 4 years, according to this article) until it's a full grown caterpillar, then the fungus consumes its body, and changes its behavior. Instead of avoiding dessication by burrowing deep into the soil, the caterpillar stays just under the top layer. When the infection is complete, the caterpillar dies, and the fungus sends an antenna-like mushroom to the surface to release more spores. Tibetan harvesters look for these tiny mushrooms and dig out the caterpillar-shaped fungal mycelium, which is used for medicinal purposes.

When I worked at Drumlin, I posted pictures from work all the time. With all the restrictions on what I can publish regarding my work at the zoo, I haven't posted hardly any.

This past Monday was rainy and very warm--it reached 60 degrees. Here are some pictures from Monday:


I keep finding hidden groves of witch hazel in unused parts of the zoo. ( Read more... )