World fiddles while grasshoppers munch NINGBO, China; NAIROBI, Kenya––A much deadlier plague than the COVID-19 coronavirus is sweeping westward from China through Pakistan, across Central Asia, and throughout the Horn of Africa, flying 100 miles a day, devouring crops enough to feed as many as 34 million people, according to the United Nations Food […]
“Cry Me A Cockroach”: Valentine’s Day sadism & the San Antonio Zoo
Cockroaches & rats named after ex-spouses to be fed to snakes SAN ANTONIO, Texas––San Antonio Zoo executive director Tim Morrow and staff appear to be going full speed ahead with a Valentine’s Day “Cry Me A Cockroach” event, despite complaints from around the world that it is mean-spirited, sadistic, and misleading, promotes a hostile […]
Who killed 2.9 billion birds since 1970? Not cats, says a look through the glass!
Who killed cock robin? Clues are transparent. CORNELL, N.Y.––The Southern Tier city of Corning, New York, noted for glassmaking since 1868, may hold one of the key clues to the loss of 2.9 billion birds from U.S. and Canadian habitat in just under 50 years. Corning lies at one end of the Finger Lakes, […]
Exploiting starving orcas to push a boondoggle
Habitat “restoration” scheme likely to hurt more than help Small fish were jumping by the dozens in the shallows tonight at Hidden Beach, near Greenbank, Washington. Speakers from Northwest Straits and the Island County Marine Resources Committee with alphabet soup behind their names had just alleged only minutes before, to about 50 attendees at an […]
Rising to screams: the buzz on bee-killing neonicotinoids
Canada, Europe act, but Trump administration doesn’t give a flying damn OTTAWA, WASHINGTON D.C.––Bees busily harvesting pollen from almost every flowering plant as the summer of 2018 fades seem oblivious to the buzz against neonicotinoid insecticides, even as the pitch rises to screams everywhere else from down on the farm to courtrooms and the […]
Study authors miss own findings about soaring cost of dog attacks
26% jump in dog attacks as percentage of deaths caused by non-venomous animals. STANFORD, California––At least fourteen major news agencies worldwide and even the authors of a newly published study entitled “An Update on Fatalities Due to Venomous and Nonvenomous Animals in the United States (2008–2015)” appear to have overlooked data included in the study […]
Naming Nature: The clash between instinct & science
by Carol Kaesuk Yoon W.W. Norton & Co. (500 5th Ave., New York, NY 10110), 2009. 344 pages, hardcover. $27.95. Reviewed by Merritt Clifton Though you may never have heard of either “taxonomy” or “cladistics,” the two central concepts in Carol Kaesuk Yoon’s 2009 opus Naming Nature, it remains a fascinating read for […]
Hurricane Irma: Hemingway cats & dolphin rescuer Rick Trout rode it out in the Keys
Hemingway house cats supplied the grace, staff the courage (See also Hurricane Irma: first reports on animals in the Caribbean islands.) KEY WEST, TAVERNIER––Having famously remarked that “Courage is grace under pressure,” and almost as famously doted upon the six-toed cat Snowflake, also called Snowball, who roamed his Key West home during his years there, […]
Tropical Storm Harvey: helping animals caught in harm’s way
Harvey the Wallbanger busts some animals out of confinement, traps others in need of rescue (See also Hurricane Harvey: who is doing what for animals?, Brian Davies puts $49,562 toward Harvey animal rescue, challenges others to match it and Which Hurricane Harvey animal relief charity took the Labor Day weekend off? More updates will follow as quickly as possible.) […]
Remove bees, wasps, or hornets without getting stung
First, don’t go bugs by Merritt Clifton For years I was the fellow whom people would call for help when they had problems with bees and closely related species. I never had much trouble handling bees, wasps, or hornets, but even though handling them may not be hard, there is not any one simple […]