One bright day in late autumn a family of ants were bustling about in the warm sunshine, drying out the grain they had stored up during the summer, when a starving grasshopper, his fiddle under his arm, came up and humbly begged for a bite to eat.
“What!” cried the ants in surprise, “haven’t you stored anything away for the winter?
I started collecting insects when I was in Junior High School, so roughly 1984 or so. Like most beginners, I collected conspicuous and familiar species in my neighborhood, including of course butterflies and moths. Among the Lepidoptera my favorites were members of the family Pieridae, commonly referred to as whites, yellows, sulfurs, and orange-tips due to their delicate off-whites and pastel oranges and yellows.
Cepaea nemoralis is a common and familiar species of land snail. It goes by several common names, including brown-lipped snail, grove snail, and lemon snail. It occurs throughout much of Europe, north to Sweden and east to Ukraine, including the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. It has also been introduced to North America (Northeast and Pacific Northwest) and Venezuela.
With today being St. Patrick’s Day, I thought it would be fun to look at an animal that hails from the Emerald Isle. I decided to go with the red deer (Cervus elaphus), Ireland’s only native deer and its largest native land mammal. The red deer ranges across much of Europe, into western Asia, and Northern Africa where it has the distinction of being Africa’s only deer species.
While commonly referred to as the ‘Old World swallowtail’, Papilio machaon has a very wide distribution, widest of any of the Papilionidae, covering most of the Palearctic and into western North America. Part of the species’ success is its tolerance for a variety of habitats and host plants. The butterfly can be found in forests, grasslands, hilltops, Alpine meadows, tundra, wetlands, disturbed areas, parks, and gardens.
Lobsters are not super common as toys, at least not as produced by major manufacturers as realistic figures recognizable at the species level. Most of them that have been made (AAA, Safari Ltd., CollectA, Kaiyodo) represent the Maine lobster, Homarus americanus. In 2021, Papo extended its ever-growing collection of arthropods with a European lobster (H.
Growing up on a cattle farm there was one piece of advice I always heeded and never questioned, beware of the bull. While the cows were typically approachable and docile the bull was the polar opposite of that. A hulking, testosterone infused beast, the mere presence of the bull was intimidating enough to keep you at bay, no cautionary advice needed.
Yes, that is the name of the collection…
The Great Pyramids of Egypt. What was their grand purpose and influence? Merely grandeur tombs for Egyptian royalty? Conduits for alien visitors? A regeneration site for En Sabah Nur? Or maybe they are just giant piles of cow sh*t! Yes, really! Ever notice how a pyramid is shaped like a cascading pile of cow dung?
The Berkshire pig (Sus scrofa domesticus) is an English breed that originates from county Berkshire. The breed dates back to the 1600’s and is said to be the breed fed upon by General Oliver Cromwell and his troops whilst camping in the Thames valley. Those Berkshires were quite different from the modern breed, however.
Review and images by Saarlooswolfhound; edited by bmathison1972
Happy Holidays everyone! Whatever you celebrate this season, I do hope that it is holly and jolly and fun! Just like this special edition Schleich reindeer model (Rangifer tarandus). Released late in the year of 2021 as part of a holiday special release, it is a festive reindeer model.
It’s Halloween and what better way to end our spooky season than by looking at one of its most symbolic animals, the common raven (Corvus corax). The common raven ranges around the northern hemisphere and lives in all the varied habitats therein. As a result, it also features in the varied mythologies, folklore, and religions from wherever it lives.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Wolves (Canis lupus) are burdened with an unjustly sinister reputation for a variety of reasons and one is the centuries-old myth of werewolves. One most frightful tale is that of Peter Stubbe, ‘the Werewolf of Bedburg.’ In 1589, he confessed under torture to having received a wolfskin belt from the Devil that allowed him to transform into “the likeness of a greedy, devouring wolf, strong and mighty, with eyes great and large, which in the night sparkled like fire, a mouth great and wide, with most sharp and cruel teeth, a huge body, and mighty paws.” I will not go on to describe the many horrific crimes Stubbe committed, or the equally horrific punishment that was meted out to him on October 31, but suffice it to say, you shouldn’t read the entire story if you’re squeamish.
