ahh i actually havent ! at first i thought you were actually talking about a CATERPILLAR that looks like a snake, and said cocoon on accident (specifically the caterpillar of the hemeroplanes triptolemus, or snake-mimic hawk moth)
but it TURNS OUT theres a species of butterfly that takes it way further, to the point where all the other caterpillars are like “is this really fuckin necessary”
its the chrysalis of the daring-owl butterfly ! a species thats found in trinidad and spends a good portion of its young adult life trying to convince other things that its not actually completely helpless
LOOK at the detail thats gone into this though- i cant even imagine the journey this look mustve taken, with lightly less-snakelike chrysalises being eaten over time again and again until youve got something with definable eyes and scales
apparently if disturbed theyll also rock violently back and forth, furthering the idea that this is a very dangerous pitviper with the tiniest body imaginable
the adult butterflies are much less exciting but honestly they dont need to be with a history like that a+ bug
1) This is Finley my artisanal heritage fancybastard, you can tell how fancy he is by the way his pin bones can cut real diamond and by the nose milk he produces that is definitely not pasturella.
2) This red motherfucker right here is the bane of my whole existence, he is bad, his unclefather was bad, but he has a half decent hindquarter and if he doesn’t drop dead of artisanal fancybastard disease before the end of this sentence maybe I can make a nice rabbit out of him.
“Look at them! They dance with others of their species they’ve never met before just for their shared love of certain sound patterns! That is so sweet!”
—
“The humans have told me that this process is called ‘hugging’, and it involves simply holding each other to release endorphins. Isn’t that precious? Look how happy they are!”
—
“Humans have a physical response called ‘laughter’ to indicate high positive emotions and humor. It seems to be infectious, as one laughing human can easily cause laughter and endorphin responses in other humans!”
—
“They pack bond so easily, even with inanimate objects. A human companion of mine recently purchased a small ‘cactus’ plant simply because it was not shaped as perfectly as the rest and she wished to give it a home. She has named it Bartholomew.”
“Yes, my own human friend has displayed this tendency as well. When I questioned her, she expressed that she has pack-bonded with me. I felt I must perform a ‘hug’ in order to express how adorable she is.”
—
“My human companion has adopted another, smaller Earth predator into his home. I frequently find him carrying it around or napping with it simply to share companionship and feel the vibrations the creature produces. He very often expresses how adorable and precious the feline is, though he does not seem to realize that he is similarly so.”
—
“The humans record themselves playing pretend and telling stories so other humans can watch them. I have samples of these ‘movies’ to share with the rest of the observation party. For research purposes.”
Not my normal post, but please spread this around!! I live fairly close to the fires and I know that is bad and how frightened they are! I lost my house in a fire once and the experience was traumatic. So if you, or someone you know lives in the area of the Paradise, or Malibu fires, please do this or share it if you don’t!
No no no no no. Do not leave food and water out for the animals. Definitely bring your animals in because the wild ones will be more frequent in your area but do not leave out food and water for them. They will become dependent on people and if that happens then they cannot survive on their own which harms them more in the long run. The department of wildlife has warned of this as it gets spread through social media every time we are on fire. The animals will be fine. They can find what they need.
Actually, you should probably leave out pans of water, because these animals are fleeing fire and need to cool down and recharge. Food, no; water, yes. They will be able to find food, but leaving some water out for them won’t hurt anything, I don’t think.
water is probably fine, I think? but absolutely avoid any contact with wild animals who show up. keep your own animals indoors out of reach, and stay out of their way and let them go about their business. stay safe out there!
OK we do this pretty much every year in CO and this is how it goes:
WATER IS FINE, WATER IS GOOD. Animals fleeing the fire are more dehydrated than anything else. I reccomend filling up a kidde pool with a couple inches from the garden hose, and leave a couple large rocks in to stablize the pool/let things like birds and bees drink from it. Also include a 2×4 with one end in the pool and the other over the edge to be an escape route for smaller animals. I also reccomend leaving some plates with a bit of water in them for really small animals like spiders, snakes, toads and other things that would have difficulty getting into the pool.
Beyond the necessary stuff to keep your own house safe in the event of fire, SKIP THE YARD WORK- you probably shouldn’t be exterting yourself in the smoke anyway, and fleeing animals will appreciate the additional cover.
LET THEM NAP. Most animals that come to your yard will usually keep moving within a day or so and are only there to rest until they’re well out of the smoke. If you find an animal in your yard that isn’t obviously injured or ill, just give it a wide berth and let it rest. If it’s in EXACTLY the same place after 48 hours, then you should call animal control.
KEEP FOOD, PETS AND CHILDREN INSIDE. Keep your trash in the garage, bring in birdfeeders, and if you let your cats roam… just don’t in general, but right now is a super bad time becuase there’s hungry coyotes about. Stick your head out the back door and give your yard a quick look before letting the dog or children out and supervise them while they’re outside.
EXCEPTION TO THE FOOD RULE: GARDENS. When animals learn there’s food in houses or trash cans, that’s not great. Foraging food off of plants like munching your tomatoes and that zucchini you weren’t going to eat is less of an issue, because it doesn’t really teach them to associate humans and houses with food. Let them monch your crops.
SECURE YOUR HOUSE COMPLETELY- lock doors, block off any pet doors you have, cover your window wells, and lock all your windows, even the ones on the upper floors. This will keep both displaced wildlife AND smoke out of your home. If possible, see if you can seal off your attic. If not, make sure your attic acess is secured. Racoons and bears are sneaky.
OBEY ANY AND ALL EVACUATION NOTICES, BURSH-CLEARING INSTRUCTIONS AND ANY OTHER INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO YOU BY EMERGENCY SERVICES. Stay safe kids.
“celebration”: bit of an overstatement. soundwave: merely going about usual duties with slight sense of renewed determination from having passed new milestone of survival. and also wearing party hat
laserbeak: appreciates her own extra hat as well. apparently this makes her “double the forgeday-haver” as myself. this is blatantly false but i will allow it if it makes her happy
BettSplendens Tumblr Evac 