earth

Crystal jelly (Aequorea) is a genus of pelagic hydrozoans.

The Natural History of Bodega Head: Gaze into my crystal bell

Crabapple tree is just orgiastic in its blossoms this year. Never seen it so thoroughly covered that I can recall. Last year the apple tree was like this, but this year it's got basically nothing yet. I guess they tend to alternate years of more and fewer flowers. If you didn't know, the two can actually cross-pollinate, which is neat!

Dont find these in town often. Mostly further out in the boonies amongst the mesquite and scrub oak. These guys bite if you pick them up. Not super painful but youll know when they do it. This one was about 1.5” long. They get about twice this size fully grown.

The photograph doesnt do it justice. Its the darkest black, with a bright yellow streak down its back, with orange and red and green spots/stripes.

Out for a walk, found a Giant American Millipede.

The largest ever recorded leap in the amount of carbon dioxide laden in the world’s atmosphere has just occurred, according to researchers who monitor the relentless accumulation of the primary gas that is heating the planet.

The global average concentration of carbon dioxide in March this year was 4.7 parts per million (or ppm) higher than it it was in March last year, which is a record-breaking increase in CO2 levels over a 12-month period.

“It’s really significant to see the pace of the increase over the first four months of this year, which is also a record,” said Ralph Keeling, director of the CO2 Program at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. “We aren’t just breaking records in CO2 concentrations, but also the record in how fast it is rising.”

Look we may not have solved all of climate change but we're heading in the right direction, okay?

"We must be as radical as reality itself." -Lenin

Link to the article

It's a very hot year. I made a similar post a couple months ago. That is to say, shit's still fucked.

Batagaika crater

The NYT

From space, it resembles a stingray impressed on the coniferous forest. Already more than half a mile deep and about 3,000 feet wide, the Batagaika crater is growing as the ground beneath it melts. The cliff face retreats 40 feet every year, revealing buried treasures once locked in the ice.

Venus' flower basket

Look at this majestic mollusc

Isn't nature spectacular?

Google is a wasteland of crap for the usual reasons plus sites are full of rank speculation for SEO even though only a skull and some teeth were found. The Wikipedia page is a horrible read. Edited for readability.

Andrewsarchus

Andrewsarchus is an extinct genus of ungulate that lived during the Middle Eocene in China. That's 47.8 and 41.2 million years ago. Only known from a largely complete skull as well as isolated teeth, It is notable for being estimated as the largest terrestrial, carnivorous mammal, but that status has been disputed. Andrewsarchus mongoliensis was named by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1924 for a partial skull from the Irdin Manha Formation of Inner Mongolia. The genus was named in honor of Roy Chapman Andrews, the leader of the expedition on which it was discovered, with the Ancient Greek archos added to his surname.

A related post by the photographer - https://subium.com/profile/banditelli.org/post/3kst3og57id2b

On vacation in Seattle

Saw a bee that was especially yellow

They're a part of the Viverridae family and are related to civets, genets and them all. And Viverridae a part of Feliformia

Here a vid on them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Tniytx0ow0

and more can be read here to https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Arctictis/

Being solitary, this arboreal species spends most of the day curled up in the trees. Most activity takes place early in the morning and at dusk. Their large body sizes do not allow them to be agile enough to jump/swing between trees. Instead, binturongs climb up tree trunks with the help of their retractable claws and prehensile tail to find a branch to rest on. As previously mentioned, binturongs are usually solitary, but it is also common to observe a mate pair and their offspring living together.