A fandom farrago

菊（きく）

Our fucked up dolphins

Our fucked up porcupines

Our fucked up snakes

This

[Q: Why did you decide to do this experiment?

A: Snake behavior has been generally neglected as a field of research, especially in Brazil. And most studies don’t examine what factors make them want to bite. If you study malaria, you can research the parasite that causes the disease—but if you don’t study the mosquito that carries it, you will never solve the problem. Up until now, the popular wisdom was that the jararaca would only attack if you touched it or stepped on it. But that was not what we found.

Q: Why did you need to be the victim?

A: The best way to do this research is to put snakes and a human together. In this case, the human was me. We put the snakes inside a ring on the floor of our lab until they got used to it, then I stepped in wearing special protective boots. I stepped close to the snake and also lightly on top of it. I didn’t put my whole weight on my foot, so I did not hurt the snakes. I tested 116 animals and stepped 30 times on every animal, totaling 40,480 steps.]

Cutie… patootie... agouti? You might know the capybara, but what about its distant cousin the red-rumped agouti (Dasyprocta leporina)? This wide-ranging mammal can be found in forests throughout northern South America including Colombia, Brazil, and Venezuela. Though smaller than its more famous relative, this hefty rodent can weigh up to 13 lbs (5.9 kg). It dines on a diet of fruit, nuts, and seeds. Like a squirrel, the agouti will bury surplus food to save for a later date. But sometimes this critter forgets to come back for its stash, spreading seeds throughout its habitat as a result. 

Great blue heron update: it is injured and hiding on my neighbor’s property with nothing to eat. I have made some calls and am working on having it taken to a wildlife rehab. It came out from hiding for a moment and I got this picture.

Viola × wittrockiana (garden pansy)

Plant of the Day

Sunday 19 July 2026

The tender perennial Pelargonium abrotanifolium (southernwood geranium) has deeply divided, grey green leaves with aromatic, wormwood scent. The red stems have a lax habit that develop a woody structure when mature. It is very free flowering and will tolerate cooler temperatures if kept dry but is highly drought tolerant.