Florida Cold Snap

Vladimir Beregovoy writes: “My son came for spring break vacations. He told an interesting story about mass mortality among exotics in Florida. They had a prolonged period of unusually temperatures there as far to the south as Florida Key, about 40 Fahrenheit for a few weeks. As a result at least 90% of huge Southeast …

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Found Object

From the PO floor. I’m not sure what is funnier or sadder– a company that advertises usurious loans to people on welfare, or that it continues the process after it appears to know the subject is dead, even if it can’t spell “deceased.”

Larissa

Larissa came to visit last week with the Peculiars. We ate and drank and danced at the bar and had fun. We also went to the rifle range. Here is a photo by Mr P of me coaching her with the .45; Mr P rather unkindly called it “Boris and Natasha”. She IS 6’2″. Here …

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The Politically Correct Pet

When Mr P came down for the sheep, he brought a piece of humor he and I had collaborated on when he was in High School. I don’t know what it says about our minds, or that this is the first venue we found for it… Introducing TAPEWORMS— the politically correct,animal- rights- safe pet of …

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More Links

Despite some recent data from Africa, it seems that southeast China still looks to be the most likely point of dog origin. But they might have eaten them at first, as some people there do today. HT Reid. They are looking for the Mongolian Death Worm again. I must say more people THERE believe in …

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Links #1

Perhaps the ridiculous, the risible, and the maddening first? Che’s daughter poses nude (but armed) for PETA. Copenhagen decides that walking helmets for pedestrians are a good idea. Chas knows who the dope growers despoiling National forests are: it’s those pesky Finns! Scroll down to the second photo. I should probably take this one more …

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“Eagle Warrior”

And while we are on weird images, Sari Mantila sends this from Finland, with that title. Actually it is an un- retouched photo of a Cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus). But doesn’t it look like some weird ape- raptor conflation?

Early Learning Experiences?

Darren recently sent me a delightful photo of his baby daughter Emma perusing some new work by paleo- artist Luis Rey, a fine scene of a Deinonychus killing a Tenontosaurus (brother Will works on Legos in the background). Will she grow up to be a paleontologist or at least a naturalist? I find it quite …

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Bio shorts

Komodo dragons (and their recently- extrict giant Australian relatives) may actually be venomous. Carl Zimmer directs us to not just one but two galleries of zombie- creating parasites.