Does this Count as Irony

Nothing to do with herps or the environment, but ...

A person of interest has been named in the video-tapped molestation of a little girl.

And what is his name? ... Chester ... Chester the Molester. Seriously.

Fluffy Dinosaurs

A new study out of the American Museum of Natural History suggests that velociraptors, the evil dinosaurs of Jurassic Park were actually feathered, looking a lot like birds.

The dinosaurs, portrayed as horse-size in the movie Jurassic Park, were actually not much bigger than a modern-day turkey.

"If people saw this animal now, they would think it's a really strange-looking bird," said study lead author Alan Turner, a paleontologist at the American Museum of Natural History in New York and a graduate student at Columbia University.

"Instead of the more reptilian-looking versions that Steven Spielberg used in Jurassic Park, these would be much fluffier, much [more] feathery animals with what looks like wings on their forearms."

Raised Knobs

Turner and colleagues examined a velociraptor fossil in Mongolia's Gobi Desert and found the forearm had regularly spaced bumps that would have held the quills of secondary feathers.

The velociraptor fossil was found in 1998, buried in 80-million-year-old sandstone deposits.

Photo by Flickr user Djenan used under a Creative Commons license

Top 100 Effects of Global Warming

Via Thinkprogress.com the Top 100 Effects of Global Warming from the Center for American Progress.

Say Goodbye to Fly Fishing
As water temperatures continue to rise, researchers say rainbow trout, "already at the southern limits” of their temperature ranges in the Appalachian mountains, could disappear there over the next century. [Softpedia]

Say Goodbye to Pinot Noir
The reason you adore pinot noir is that it comes from a notoriously temperamental thin-skinned grape that thrives in cool climates. Warmer temperatures are already damaging the pinots from Oregon, “baking away” the grape’s berry flavors. [Bloomberg]

Say Goodbye to That Snorkeling Vacation
The elkhorn coral which used to line the floor of the Caribbean are nearly gone, “victims of pollution, warmer water and acidification from the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide seeping into oceans.” [Denver Post]

Say Goodbye to That Tropical Island Vacation
Indonesia's environment minister announced this year that scientific studies estimate about 2,000 of the country's lush tropical islands could disappear by 2030 due to rising sea levels. [ABC News]

And maybe the worst ...

Say Goodbye to Guacamole
Scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory predict hotter temps will cause a 40 percent drop in California’s avocado production over the next 40 years. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab]

Photo by Flickr user xmascarol used under a Creative Commons license

Lost at Birth

From Liberal blogger critic of media reporting and political spin, Brendan Nyhan, a Bush Administration official calls Barack Obama "intellectually lazy." I thought the problem was that Obama was too intellectual for the simple folk. I cannot even say this is a case of the pot calling the kettle black because, well, only one of these guys is black, and the other is intellectually lazy.

But more importantly, were Brendan Nyhan and Jeff Corwin twins separated at birth?


Ed note: This was my first time to Nyhan's blog and after reading more posts, I decided that it was not fair to describe Nyhan as a "liberal blogger." He is pretty tough on spin coming from both sides of the aisle

Petaluma Reptile Bazaar

Guest photoblogger Mike D. takes some pictures at the Petaluma Reptile Show this past Saturday.

My mom, holding an American Alligator from Classroom Safari in Petaluma.

Loki showing off a Ball Python

Carlos giving the answers to all those questions

North American Wood Turtles looking out at the exhibit hall.

A Cowboy Afraid of Horses?!?

According to the ex-President of Mexico Vicente Fox, George W. Bush is no cowboy, as he is actually afraid of horses.

President Bush may like to be seen as a swaggering tough guy with a penchant for manly outdoor pursuits, but in a new book one of his closest allies has said he is afraid of horses.

George W Bush saddles up,
but where is the horse?

Vicente Fox, the former president of Mexico, derided his political friend as a "windshield cowboy" – a cowboy who prefers to drive – and "the cockiest guy I have ever met in my life".

He recalled a meeting in Mexico shortly after both men had been elected when Mr Fox offered Mr Bush a ride on a "big palomino" horse.

Mr Fox, who left office in December, recalled Mr Bush "backing away" from the animal.

''A horse lover can always tell when others don't share our passion," he said, according to the Washington Post.

Mr Bush has spoken of his fondness for shooting doves and cutting brush on his Crawford ranch in Texas, which he bought in 1999.

The property reportedly has no horses and only five cattle.

This video from last year, already showed us that he is not a fan of "the devil horse" Wait for it at the end.


Photo by Flickr user Lori Greig used under a Creative Commons license.

Seriously?!?

Wow, this was pretty dumb. Can we say Darwin Award winner?

Snake collector Matt Wilkinson of Portland grabbed a 20-inch rattler from the highway near Maupin, and three weeks later, to impress his ex-girlfriend, he stuck the serpent in his mouth.

He was soon near death with a swollen tongue that blocked his throat. Trauma doctors at the Oregon Health and Science University saved his life.

"You can assume alcohol was involved," he said. Actually, not just beer. It was something he called a "mixture of stupid stuff."

Photo by Flickr user gwarcita used under a Creative Commons license.

ht JL

Ancient Reptile Hearing

260-Million year old lizard-like reptiles had large tympanums and a true inner ear, using a strong sense of hearing to hunt other land animals.

The earliest evidence yet of modern ears in terrestrial vertebrates has been discovered in reptile fossils from central Russia, paleontologists say.

The animals may have been among the first nocturnal vertebrates, using their advanced hearing and large eyes to communicate with each other and hunt insect prey at night.

This would have given them a niche during a time when Earth was crowded with animals.

The reptiles lived 260 million years ago, during the Permian period, which lasted from 299 to 251 million years ago.

That's about 50 million years earlier than modern ears were thought to have developed in terrestrial vertebrates.

Photo by Flickr user cwulmer used under a Creative Commons license.

More Pictures

Dendrobates pumilio
Isla Bastimentos, Bocas del Toro, Panama

Damn Girl

New World Record!

A female bar-tailed godwit was recorded to have flown from Alaska to New Zealand non-stop. That's 7,145 miles of continuous flying. That must have been one sexy kiwi waiting for her when she arrived.

It's the longest nonstop bird migration ever measured, according to biologists who tracked the flight using satellite tags.

The bird, a wader called a bar-tailed godwit, completed the journey in nine days.

In addition to demonstrating the bird's surprising endurance, the trek confirms that godwits make the southbound trip of their annual migration directly across the vast Pacific rather than along the East Asian coast, scientists said.

Photo by Flickr user jvverde used under a Creative Commons license

Pretty Picture Posting

Spectacled Caiman (Caiman crocodilus) Bahia Honda Creek, Isla Bastimentos, Panama

Pretty Picture Posting

Dendrobates pumilio
Bastimentos Island, Bocas Del Toro, Panama
Taken by me.

Go Bears!

45-31

Despite all of the tree-sitters making Berkeley look more like the stereotype every one holds of us rather than a less crazy truth, the National exposure was nice and a big win felt great. This is a very exciting team. Revenge was sweet.

Back ...

From a month in Central America. I'll be posting pictures in the coming days. Semi-regular blogging to resume.