everytime I remember that lesbian couple that have a marble statue of the two of them embracing and sleeping on a bed together over where their graves will be because the artists didn’t believe they would be able to be married before they died, so what they couldn’t have in life they could have in death, I fucking breakdown
“on july 24th, 2011- the first day that same sex marriage was legal in new york state, particia cronin and deborah kass got married. that same year the marble ‘memorial to a marriage’ was replaced with a bronze version. rainwater pools in the space between their two sculpted bodies, and falling leaves catch on the metal in the autumn. the two women sleep peacefully through snow and ice, and the scorching days of summer. over time the hands of cemetery visitors will wear down the bronze, burnishing it into a smooth shine. one day this will mark the final resting place of the two women. and someday people will have to remember that there was a time, long ago, when this was a memorial to a marriage that two women never thought they’d have.”
- Caitlin Doughty, on the Death in the Afternoon podcast
not 2 be corny but. sometimes i think my purpose on this earth is to love people, make them laugh, be kind and share joy. that feels like enough to me sometimes
do you have any other cursed biology facts about good animal dads?
sure, and the answer may surprise you: wolverines!
like many other carnivorans, wolverines are solitary predators that roam huge swaths of territory alone, with a single male’s territory overlapping several females that he fathers kits with on a yearly basis. (a male wolverine’s territory can be over 500 square miles, which is a lot of Dude Room.)
however, UNLIKE other solitary carnivorans, male wolverines don’t call it quits on their progeny once they tip their hats to the ladies and scram, so to speak. instead, a male wolverine will stop by the homestead of each of his mates in turn when he’s in the area, and will check in on the kits and even borrow them for a day or two of Dad Camping to make sure they’re getting enough to eat and to beef up their survival skills!
(and also sometimes he’ll just sit on them, I guess.)
and wolverine paternalism doesn’t end when the kits grow up, by any means- wolverine dads will also keep an eye on their young adult children and step in if they seem to be having trouble making ends meet, or if baby manages to get themselves trapped by a bunch of biologists in a tagging program.
(not pictured: angry wolverine father just inside the treeline, waiting for the unwary scientist to turn his back.)
so that’s something to keep in mind if you ever run across a baby wolverine and try to pick it up like a total dumbass: watch out, you’re about to have your limbs pulled off by not one, but TWO angry adult wolverines!
I’m a zoology student, currently working on my dissertation. If you’re 18+ years old, I would really appreciate it if you could participate in my questionnaire about cetacean-based (whales, dolphins and porpoises) tourism interests. It doesn’t require any prior knowledge and shouldn’t take longer than 10-15mins!
I would love to hear your opinions! Also, if you have any questions or want to discuss the topics in the questionnaire further please comment or message! I hope you find the questionnaire interesting and thank you so much for your time!
These extraordinary fish, which are a type of ray, are vanishing in many countries due to overfishing.
They are the most extraordinary of fish, resembling "hedge trimmers with fins".
The sawfish, which is a kind of ray, is also among the most endangered of the fish living in the oceans.
Once found along the coastlines of 90 countries, the animals are now presumed extinct in more than half of these, according to a new study.
They are vanishing due to habitat loss and entanglement in fishing nets, experts have said.
Their "saws", which evolved to sense and attack prey, have now become a liability, making them prone to being caught up in fishing gear.
"Through the plight of sawfish, we are documenting the first cases of a wide-ranging marine fish being driven to local extinction by overfishing," said Prof Nick Dulvy of Simon Fraser University (SFU) in British Columbia, Canada.
Of the five species of sawfish, three are critically endangered, while two are listed as endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
Previously widespread, the sawfish are now presumed extinct in 55 nations, the study said.
There are 18 countries where at least one species of sawfish is missing, and 28 more where two species have disappeared.
The list of countries where sawfish are extinct now includes China, Iraq, Haiti, Japan, Timor-Leste, El Salvador, Taiwan, Djibouti and Brunei.
The US and Australia appear to be the last strongholds for the species, regarded as "lifeboat nations," where sawfish are better protected.
The study, published in Science Advances, also identified eight nations where urgent action could make a big contribution to saving the species through conservation efforts.
These are Cuba, Tanzania, Colombia, Madagascar, Panama, Brazil, Mexico and Sri Lanka.
"While the situation is dire, we hope to offset the bad news by highlighting our informed identification of these priority nations with hope for saving sawfish in their waters," said Helen Yan of SFU.
She said it is still possible to restore sawfish to more than 70% of their historical range, "if we act now".
International trade in sawfish is prohibited under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna, but targeted and accidental killings still occur.
Sawfish fins and teeth are sold as trophies, food or medicine, and as spurs for cockfighting.
Sonja Fordham, a researcher of the study and president of Shark Advocates International, said there were opportunities to "bring these extraordinary animals back from the brink".
But she warned that in too many places, "we're running out of time to save them".
Please stop using this guy as a person who actually cares or knows enough about the climate crisis in order to take him as an referent and not as part of the 1% of the population that pollutes the most/ has enough money to almost solve the problem.
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