Chimerical

Allow me to introduce the new characters:

This piece of lint precious child is Rhombophryne maraorao, a little burrowing species from the northeast of Madagascar. It is very similar ecologically to R. coudreaui, a long-known species from further south. The name maraorao means ‘rough to the touch’ in Malagasy, referring to the rough skin of this species. They do a weird thing where they straighten all of their limbs and go stiff in self defence. Think pumpkin toadlet post-launch mid-air stiffness, but… in the hand?

This beautiful creature is Rhombophryne mavokely, a little leaflitter-dwelling species from the northeast of Madagascar. The name mavokely is the Malagasy word for ‘pink’ but literally translates as ‘small yellow’ (mavo = yellow, kely = small). I LOVE this bizarre etymology, and also this species is small and sometimes pink and sometimes yellowish, so the name seemed extremely apt. This species was the first Rhombophryne I ever saw alive—I caught the first ever specimen immediately underneath my hammock on Marojejy in 2016!

This shiny boy is Rhombophryne sonaliae, a rather well known species from eastern Madagascar that has previously been called R. alluaudi—until we showed in 2019 that the correct use of that name was for a Plethodontohyla alluaudi from southern Madagascar! We dedicated this species to Sonali Garg, in recognition of her fantastic work especially on Asian frogs.

This forbidden truffle is Rhombophryne anatiala, a very poorly known species very closely related to R. sonaliae but found further north and differing subtly. The name anatiala means ‘in the forest’ in Malagasy, referring to the forest habitat of these frogs.

This bumpy beanbag with his go-faster chevron is Rhombophryne kotrobaratra, an interesting species from northeastern Madagascar with rather unusual anatomy, especially its quite long and strong hindlimbs. The name kotrobaratra means ‘thunder and lightning’ in Malagasy, and refers to the inclement weather that seems to bring these frogs out (true for all Rhombophryne, really) .

This coffee bean is Rhombophryne quentini, an orange-thighed species from high-elevation forests in northern Madagascar that resembles R. ellae. Back in 2020 I named R. ellae after my partner, Ella, and I thus took particularly great pleasure in naming this new, closely related species after our four-and-a-half year-old son, Quentin. A little family of frogs. :3

This little pebble is Rhombophryne kilonjy, a small, poorly known and obscure species related to R. ellae and R. quentini but found in lowland forest close to the coast in northwestern Madagascar. The name kilonjy means ‘pebble’ in Malagasy because, well, just look at it.

Even way back in my tumblr posts from 2013 and 2014 I think you would find mentions of the work I had begun on this monograph. I had no notion that it would take more than twelve years to complete. But I cannot express my joy at finally being able to share these charming, round frogs with the world. I hope you approve of the names!

He did a wonderful job, but as he was returning my plant to my custody, he explained "I watered her every other day, I gave her new dirt, moved her into the sunshine, prayed the rosary-"

"What?"

He looked at me, confused. "Isn't she a plant you pray with?"

"No," I said slowly. "She's a prayer plant. That's the... colloquial name of the plant."

Upon seeing his stricken face, I realized something went wrong. Turns out, this entire time, he's been including my plant in on his prayers and leaving her near icons.

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Also, more often than you might think, they’re not actually promoting bigotry so much as “didn’t consider all the implications of something” or just used words that were polite then but considered offensive now.

Hello! I'm one of you. When I was younger, I would have so much trouble having friends. I'm still not very good at it, but I will tell you what has made it better.

1. I learned the local sign language alphabet. When people are talking, my head fills up with things I want to say. I used to either interrupt people, or I would be so focused on not interrupting and waiting for my turn that I wouldn't actually listen to them.

Now, I use the sign alphabet to remember what I want to say. So if I want to talk about dolphins, I hold the D shape. I leave the remembering to my hand. This lets me listen to what the other person is saying. You could use a notepad or a phone, as long as you do it quickly.

2. I learned how to engage the other person. This is so hard. I want to ramble on and on! But people generally don't like that. They want to talk with you, not be talked at.

I would make pauses in my speech, so they could talk. I would ask questions. I wasn't very good at asking questions at first. I would say, "isn't that cool?" That doesn't give someone much to respond to. So...

3. I learned to ask open ended questions, like "What do you think about this character's choice?"

4. I learned that I needed to find common interests. I'm lucky because I can talk about a wide variety of topics. If you can't, I suggest you find clubs or forums for your special interest. You could also try to find something related to it. For example, if you like Steven Universe, and the other person is interested in gem stones, you could ask them about the real life properties of diamonds versus pearls and things.

As much as I want to talk all day about the show I just watched, I need to find someone who wants to hear it. If I'm with someone who doesn't like that kind of thing, I need to talk about something we both like. If I just met them, I can ask what their hobbies or favorite shows are, or I can ask them if they like my favorite stuff.