Mahiingan

🌾🌸Nature Blog🌸🌾 Viewer discretion is advised. Nature is both beautiful and brutal. Enjoy all things nature As well as my not-so-common hobby of bone collecting.

[sleepy-bebby]

Shedding 🐍

[grizzlyadventures]

Snope (snake pope)

[pereczke]

I worked on this instead of paying attention in class.

[pereczke]

I made a quick animated version. 👻

[wayward-delver]

Baby Tyrannosaurus Rex and its father at the beach.

Prehistoric Planet (2022) airing on May 23

[theladyregret]

god damnit I can’t wait fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff

[audhdspacewizard]

[mahiingan]

Arkham

MAR2022

[dimetrodone]

African elephant calves vs Asian elephant calves 

[inkysparrow]

Very Accurate

[riverwindphotography]

A young female Bison grazes on winter grasses, Shoshone National Forest, Wyoming

© riverwindphotography, January 2022

[crawfordwb]

Cropper

(2014)Six years ago, Cropper was found in the street after a fight with dogs. Seriously injured and ill (toxoplasmosis), Cropper was nursed back to health by this man’s patience, love and determination. Not strong enough to return to the wild, Cropper spends very happy days with his human friend.

[is-the-fox-video-cute]

Rating: Not Cute Out Of Context

This is an interesting one and a story I’m a little mixed on so I’ll just explain the situation.

The man in the picture is Mike Trowler, who worked with The Fox Project in the UK. The Fox Project rescue and rehabilitate sick, injured and orphaned foxes in the London and Surrey area and are considered a reputable rescue (although I have some issues with a few of their practices). Trowler would help raise orphaned cubs and also had a few permanent resident foxes who were unrealisable due to either being too tame or having a condition called toxoplasmosis. These are foxes that would otherwise have to be euthanised. 

The caption is incorrect about the date. I’m not sure exactly when Cropper was rescued, but he died in 2007 after many years in Mike Trowler’s care. When Trowler had Cropper social media wasn’t a thing and I believe he only ever gave the odd interview, so at the time his ownership of a fox was not harmful. The problem is when pictures like this get shared without further context that explains the unique situation.

Toxoplasmosis changes a fox’s brain so that they essentially become like a domesticated animal. They become very docile and tame and do not act like a normal fox. They tend not to have the hyperactivity or destructive nature of a normal pet fox, are usually easy to handle and rarely show aggression. This makes them unique in being able to live in a captive setting, even a house. Cropper didn’t actually live in the house, but had a large, outdoor enclosure. He only came indoors for part of the time. Ideally foxes with this condition should go to a wildlife park or sanctuary (and most do), but at the time there was no other options for Cropper. 

Here is a video clip of Mike Trowler and Cropper where you can see how different his behaviour is from a normal fox;

One thing that’s commonly noted about foxes with toxoplasmosis is that they have a far off stare and often look like they’re not all there. You can definitely see that in this clip. 

Ultimately this is a very unique situation that does not apply to a normal pet fox, and was done under the supervision of a wildlife rehab. Pictures and video of Cropper should not be shared without proper context. 

[fellowshipofthenoodles]

*elevator music*

[seabeck]

Dark woods

[mahiingan]

I will follow your fluffy pants anywhere

[antiqueanimals]

Jens Juel

[voidpaws]

@rulerofpurple

[visualjunkee]

TIGER COLOUR SPECTRUM

photo credit: Dr Bhagavan Antle of The Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species (T.I.G.E.R.S), photographs 4 varieties of Bengal tigers

[probsjosh]

printer ran outta ink

[everythingfox]

Terror in the sky

(via)

[dykecadence]

every moment of every day i am thinking about this tiktok

[purrfectly]

Lumpfish come in a variety of shapes and colors.

[He scoops up the fish, it spits water and he turns it toward the camera]

This one is stumpy and green. Very beautiful, very powerful.

[He picks up another fish and turns it toward the camera]

This is what a normal lumpfish looks like. It is more elongated, but still a vibrant blue color. Very beautiful, very powerful.

[He picks up another fish and turns it toward the camera]

This is one of the stumpiest ones we have. Its hump is very high. It is very stumpy, but yet very beautiful, and very powerful.

[He pans over a lot of fish, all looking up at the camera]

My fish army is ever growing, and soon I will over throw the world. Very beautiful, very powerful.

[saint-batrick]

because of this tiktok, i frequently murmur “very beautiful, very powerful” at myself, and i cannot recommend it enough.

[cloverpatchthecat]

This dude, the one who’s tiktok this video came from, is the greatest. The lumpfish dont flop all over the place like most fish would because theyre USED to being held, so they can be weighed and measured. He also keeps crabs, urchins, shrimp, lobsters, and starfish. He might have more, idk its been a while since I checked his tiktok.

But he’s pretty great and I love this video so much, very beautiful, very powerful.

[5laz]

this is the best werner herzog impression I’ve ever heard

[rhubarbes]

bensimonrehn

More on RHB_RBS

[teathattast]

[teathattast]

It's funky crab friday!! 🦀 🥳 🎊 🎉

[everythingfox]

Golden tortoise beetles

(via)

[subdio]

So pretty! Also fun, apparently (though Wikipedia says citation needed) these beetles play dead when disturbed.

@elodieunderglass

[bogleech]

The gold sheen of these beetles is achieved because at the microscopic level, the shell is made of multiple layers with fluid filling the gaps, so what we’re seeing is the sunlight reflecting off that fluid like the sparkling surface of a lake!

These beetles can “tighten” their shell layers to divert the fluid and instantly reveal their true natural coloration, which is usually a duller red or brown. This confuses predators, who think the shiny beetle has suddenly disappeared, because, interesting fact, most animals are stupid