PSoTD

At least at this point in time, most are online here.

Hope and pray for the Gulf Coast.

I live in an "insecty" household. By that, I mean I'm a entomologist wannabe, and my interest in the bugs and other animals that many might call "pests" appears to be taking strong root in both our kids.

Our daughter has a "pet" toad (it will be released in the next few weeks) that a friend gave her. It's a young wild toad, and we've been dutifully catching crickets in our back yard and throwing them in the terrarium so he/she can eat. The toad's name is Oscar, although I call him/her Totally Toadly. I just like the way it sounds.

Anyways, we're having problems now with the crickets. A week ago you could walk in my backyard barefoot and crickets would jump on your feet, they were that numerous. Last weekend they became harder to find. Now we're struggling to catch enough to feed TT. They literally have disappeared from the yards - ours and our neighbors. Two weeks ago was a animal population peak I've never noticed before (not that I was looking for crickets before) and I'm not sure if now it's the natural end of summer cricket generation, or if it has to do with the fact that we're in an unofficial drought. But it is a population crash, as far as the toad's concerned. Our homeowner's association is on pace to spend half the money it did last year on mowing, and that's because last year was wet, and this year's been dry. And the past 10 days have been particularly dry. So it could be the rain situation.

I'm hoping that in the next week or two, we'll release Totally Toadly in the woodsy area on the other side of the creek. Should be a good location for him. I don't really plan on buying crickets to feed him.

If you have any general info on crickets you think might be appropriate for this post, feel free to post - I know the kids and myself will be interested.

If you're going to be near State College, Pennsylvania, on September 24th of this year, then I have a great deal for you. Well, great if you consider insects and other similar critters entertaining and interesting...

The 2005 Great Insect Fair

It's put on by Penn State's Entomology Department, is basically free, and provides a great learning experience for anyone who wants to know more about insects. Lots of live displays, plenty of exotic mounted displays, and a heck of a lot of activities that are kid-friendly. Last year my daughter and I went, and one of the eye-openers for me when we got there were all these little kids getting out of their cars with their families, clutching a bug cage or a can with holes in it or a shoebox. They all had insects they wanted to identify.

This year I'll be taking our 8 year old and the to-be five year old as well. It's a bit of a drive but I know the kids will love it, and so do I. I might actually work up the courage to hold the scorpion this year if allowed.... maybe.

or Nudist Blogs...

I have a suggestion to American Association for Nude Recreation - create a blog, which will also suggest to your members that they consider creating a blog to support this recreational choice. It may help generate interest in the activity, which I would think would be important to AANR, since they're concerned about a generational dropoff in membership.

The National Parks have a pretty decent promotional program going. Most state parks don't. So, here's your chance to talk about your favorite...

From The Daily Progress:

This livestock doesn’t have four hoofs. Or even legs.
You can’t brand it.
You can’t milk it.
You can’t shear it.
You can’t eat it - well, you could, but we don’t recommend it.
You can, however, turn it loose in your garbage and reap compost as the end - and we do mean end - result.
Yes, worms are livestock, officially recognized by the government of Oregon. A bill was just signed listing worms as a one of the state’s tax-exempt farm products.
Worm rancher Dan Holcombe says it’s about time his livelihood gets the recognition it deserves.

Now now now. Not so fast about not eating earthworms - the day is coming where humanity will accept it. It will be a matter of food economics. Seriously, how bad could this be?

Earthworm Patties

1 1/2 lbs. ground earthworms (Place live worms in flour for 24 hours to purify, boil for 10 minutes, then grind.)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon lemon rind, grated
11/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons soda water
1 egg, beaten 1 cup dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup sour cream

Combine earthworms, melted butter, lemon rind, salt, and pepper. Stir in soda water. Shape into patties and dip in beaten egg, then in bread crumbs. Place in heated butter and cook for 10 minutes, turning once. Place patties on hot serving dish. Serve with heated sour cream on top.

I wondered about this.

West Nile Virus...

From KATC:

It's not just a neighborhood or two: West Nile is everywhere

SHREVEPORT, La. (AP) - Some people want to know whether West Nile virus patients live in their neighborhoods. But state health officials say the information is irrelevant.

77-year-old George Houston of Shreveport says he'd like to know which part of town the two Caddo Parish patients are in, so he could be sure to avoid it — or take extra precautions if it's his neighborhood.

But Dr. Raoult Ratard, the state epidemiologist, says the virus is a permanent fixture throughout Louisiana, and everyone should be taking precautions against mosquito bites.

That's part of the reason state health officials are releasing fewer details about people who have been diagnosed with the virus this year than last.

From Durango Herald:

West Nile quieter across U.S. this year

The number of Americans hit by West Nile virus is down nearly 75 percent from this time last year, but health officials warned Friday that people should not drop their guard because the peak season is still ahead.

“We don’t want people to get complacent,” said John Pape, an epidemiologist with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Nationwide, 109 human cases have been reported this year, compared with 406 at this time last year, said Dr. Theresa Smith, a medical epidemiologist with the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Fort Collins.

Smith cautioned that the West Nile season usually peaks in August, “so we do have some wait-and-see.” The mosquito-borne virus, which can cause serious neurological diseases, first appeared in the United States in New York City in 1999 and spread west. Since then, the CDC has counted 16,814 human cases and 659 deaths nationwide.

The reasons for the slow start this year aren’t clear.

“I don’t know that I have that answer, or that anybody has that answer,” Pape said. “We’re still trying to feel our way through this.” He said many local health departments have learned effective ways to fight the disease by starting mosquito control early and eliminating standing water where the insects can breed.

He said the experience of Eastern states shows West Nile is unlikely to disappear anytime soon.

“In none of these states has the virus gone away. What we expect, as with most mosquito-borne diseases, is this virus will stick around.”

The image to the right is one of several milkweeds I have growing in our butterfly garden at the side of the house. This particular plant has a few tiny monarch caterpillars chomping away at its leaves, however, there are lots of ants and aphids on the plant too, and I'm wondering if the ants will soon discover the caterpillars and attack them.

I was talking to a neighbor of mine - an amateur horticulturalist - about butterfly gardens, and we began talking about milkweeds. You don't see much of this plant in Pennsylvania anymore, but you used to, and she could remember as a kid during World War II collecting the milkweed pods and dropping them off somewhere for collection as part of girl scouts.

It sounds like a tall tale, but it's true:

During World War II a call went out from the government for milkweed pods. Boy and girl scouts, civic groups, farmers and collectors all over North America scoured the countryside for milkweeds, collected and dried the pods, and shipped them to central collecting stations... Milkweed floss is 5 or 6 times as buoyand as cork, and it was soon discovered that a life jacket containing a few pounds of this floss could hold up a 150-pound man in the sea. It is warmer than wool and 6 times lighter. Flying suits lined with milkweed floss are warm and light-weight, and, if an aviator falls into the ocean, the suit will act as a life preserver.

Milkweed has been used in our country for other purposes as well, but it not only not utilized much now, but it is opposed by lawnkeepers as a weed to be rid of. It's a shame, because it grows quite easily and is an important food plant for the Monarch Butterfly. There's been some effort to figure out if it could developed into a commercial crop, but only a few such ventures exist.

It's a shame that Americans cannot let a few milkweeds grow in a "wilder" section of their properties. The benefits - Monarch butterflies visiting your yard - are well worth the plant's appearance, which isn't that bad.

Petcareship is something every child should go through. There are the lessons of responsibility, of care, of maintenance of another who is dependent upon the child. There's the humanizing and bonding that can develop an appreciation and love of animals and nature for the rest of their lives. And there's the cycle of life lesson as well.

Our daughter, who will turn nine in a few months, has just learned the hardest lesson of petcareship - the finality of the cycle of a pet's life. Her hamster, Chestnut, died this morning of an unknown cause after a good 2+ year life. Whatever it was took him over the course of a couple of days - he became very lethargic on Sunday evening, Monday he ate little, moved little, and did not seem physically capable of much, and this morning he died, sometime between the time I checked on him before waking up our daughter and after she had finished eating breakfast. She found him in his house, not breathing. She cried, we curled up together on her bed and told stories about Chestnut and about some of my experiences with my pets when I was growing up and how it always, always hurts when a loved one - including a pet - dies and that it's okay to cry, it's okay to be sad, but to remember the good things. Dwell in happiness whenever possible.

I find my daughter's emotional attachment to animals and zoology very heartening. I see a lot of me in her in this way. She is the bugcatcher in our house - not to kill, but to study... or to feed her pet toad, which is not the pet of choice of many young girls. She wants to take care of more animals, but we have to explain that nature usually allows them to take care of themselves in the manner appropriate. A household dog is in our near future, which I know she will nurture and mother in a way. She, at 8, has shown a trait that seems it will be lifelong - a love for animals, great and small. It is a trait I am quite proud of but realize that it makes moments like this pretty tough for her.

Chestnut was a good hamster and a good friend - and important lesson - for her. He'll be missed, and more importantly, remembered fondly and strongly, by her for a long, long time. Thanks, Chestnut.