by Loti | Jun 21, 2013 | Animals, Art, United States
Boston, MA. I just can’t get enough of the glass models created by the Blaschka’s back in the late 1800’s. In addition to the thousands of flower and plant models they made, there is a whole series of jellyfish, octopuses and other invertebrates made from glass by the father and son. > This glass octopus is in The The Harvard Museum collection and is stunning to view. So what exactly is an invertebrate? Well, 97% of animal species alive today are invertebrate, meaning they have no backbone. Really! I had no idea. > This includes insects, crabs, snails, starfish, and of course octopus. With 8 arms equipped with suction cups, 2 eyes and a beak much like a bird’s beak (the only hard part of their body), the octopus is a highly intelligent animal. They use both short and long term memory to solve mazes and problems and are the only invertebrate to use tools. In one study, they were given a coconut shell which they took apart and reassembled as a shelter. And they make great designs on pants. Take Billy Horschel in the last round of the U.S. Open. While he didn’t win, everyone was talking about his Ralph Lauren octopus pants. A brilliant marketing strategy on the part of the Ralph Lauren folks. Now how cool is that! > > > > > ...
by Loti | Jun 17, 2013 | Flowers, United States
Palm Beach, FL. It is always interesting when you move a plant. This plant was a little green shoot until I moved it one foot into the sun about a month ago and then it exploded into this beautiful flower. Oh, and I have had the plant for 8 years and this is the first time I have seen it bloom. It just goes to show how tweaking something can bring spectacular results. A little to the right, a little to the left. Trying something new. Now I just have to figure out the name of the plant. No easy task. I thought it would be readily apparent with all the Internet resources. But after several hours of searching, including reviewing some new plant identification apps, I came up empty. So if anyone knows the name of the plant, let me know. In the meantime, I am just going to enjoy its beauty. Just picking my head up, fine tuning the small things and falling in love with life. Now that is good! Enjoy! UPDATE: The flower is an orange allium. ...
by Loti | Jun 11, 2013 | Animals, Reptiles, United States
Wilmington, NC. My what an interesting place, a serpentarium. Well that is a new one for me. A zoo that specializes in snakes may not be on everyone’s list of things to do, but it was high on my list when in town for my niece’s wedding. The Cape Fear Serpentarium is recognized as a leading world reptile collection with over 150 snakes, crocodiles and lizards. Cobras, pythons, mumbas and even a man eating crocodile. Very cool and kinda creepy at the same time. Pictured is a timber rattlesnake which is very prevalent in the Eastern US. Dean Rika, the owner and herpetologist (a person who studies reptiles) of The Serpentarium, devised a 5 scull and cross bone rating for how dangerous each snake is depending on venom, aggressiveness, and other factors. This snake gets 3 sculls which means you might die if you get bit and will likely have lasting debilitation. One scull means you will generally recover and 5 sculls (the max) means you will probably die or wish you had if you get bitten. Best not to have to try the ratings out! ...
by Loti | Jun 6, 2013 | Africa, Animals
Africa. Caught in the middle of a big herd of Cape Buffalos, our guide advises us to be still. There are hundreds of them and they just appeared out of no where. These animals are 6 feet tall, weigh 1,500 pounds and can run 35 miles an hour. Sit still, really! African Buffalos are considered one of The Big 5. I have often heard the term, but wasn’t sure what it meant. Big game hunters coined the phrase to reflect the ferocity of a group of animals when hunted. So we have the lion, elephant, leopard, rhino and cape buffalo making up the Big 5 and luckily today, most of the hunting is done with a camera. Although we know the hippo is the most dangerous animal alive, some experts consider the Cape Buffalo to be even more dangerous than the hippo as it kills more humans, on average, a year. And here we are, in the middle of them, in an open jeep. Yikes. Since a wounded Cape Buffalo is one of the few known animals that will purposely circle back on their own trail to lie in wait and hunt their pursuer, its a good thing we were only watching them. I wonder how they learned to do that? Pretty smart. Another of life’s many fascinations. ...
