Starship Asterisk*

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantis wrote:

[b][color=#0000FF]M. C. Escher's woodcut Dream[/color][/b]

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<<Mantodea (or mantises, mantes) is an order of insects that contains over 2,400 valid species and about 430 genera in 15 families worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. All Mantids belong to the insect order Mantodea. Mantodea comes from the Greek word μάντις (pronounced mantis) meaning prophet [plus] the Greek word εἶδος meaning form or shape. The English common name for any species in the order is "praying mantis", because of the typical "prayer-like" attitude with folded fore-limbs, although the eggcorn "preying mantis" is sometimes used in reference to their predatory habits. In Europe and other regions, however, the name "praying mantis" refers to only a single species, Mantis religiosa. The closest relatives of mantises are the termites and cockroaches (order Blattodea). They are sometimes confused with phasmids (stick/leaf insects) and other elongated insects such as grasshoppers and crickets.

One theory for the evolution of the species is that mantises evolved from proto-cockroaches, diverging from their common ancestors by the Cretaceous period, possibly from species like Raphidiomimula burmitica, a predatory cockroach with mantis-like forelegs. Possibly the earliest known modern mantis is Regiata scutra, although more common (and confirmed) is Santanmantis, a stilt-legged genus, also from the Cretaceous. Like their close termite cousins, though, mantises did not become common and diverse until the early Tertiary period.

One of the earliest mantis references is in the ancient Chinese dictionary Erya, which gives its attributes in poetry (representing courage and fearlessness), as well as a brief description. Western descriptions of the biology and morphology of the mantises had become relatively accurate by the 18th century. Roesel von Rosenhof accurately illustrated and described them in the Insekten-Belustigungen (Insect Entertainments). Aldous Huxley made philosophical observations about the nature of death while two mantises mated in the sight of two characters in the novel Island.

The naturalist Gerald Durrell's autobiography My Family and Other Animals includes an account of a very evenly matched battle between a mantis and a gecko. Based upon empirical evidence, the Australian mantis has been known to strike fear amongst the native Australian gecko causing great avoidance tendencies as it marks its territory.>>

geckzilla wrote:Say goodbye to the warmth, old man mantis. Soon you'll be dead. But not before I can grab you and take a photo of you like the silly human I am.

Beyond wrote:

geckzilla wrote:Say goodbye to the warmth, old man mantis. Soon you'll be dead. But not before I can grab you and take a photo of you like the silly human I am.

Hey! ya missed one.

geckzilla wrote:I love those little baby mantises. Back at my dad's house they would appear every year so I've actually seen a lot more baby mantises than adult ones. He was still hanging out on the window screen when I checked at dinner. What's an old mantis to do with himself as the weather grows colder and the prey disappears?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedgehog#Predators wrote:

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<<As with most small mammals living around humans, cars pose a great threat to hedgehogs.

Hedgehog bones have been found in the pellets of the European Eagle Owl.

In 2006, McDonald's changed the design of their McFlurry containers to be more hedgehog-friendly. Previously, hedgehogs would get their heads stuck in the container as they tried to lick the remaining food from inside the cup. Then, being unable to get out, they would starve to death. Domesticated hedgehogs display this behavior by getting their head stuck in tubes (commonly, lavatory paper tubes) and walking around with the tube on their head. Hedgehog owners often refer to this as "tubing" and promote the behavior by supplying clean tubes. Most owners are considerate enough, however, to cut the tubes lengthwise so as to prevent the hedgehog from remaining trapped against their will. Curiously though, some will still knowingly get themselves stuck for a few hours.

Hedgehogs are a food source in many cultures. Hedgehogs were eaten in Ancient Egypt and some recipes of the Late Middle Ages call for hedgehog meat. In the Middle East and especially among Bedouins, hedgehog meat is considered medicinal, and thought to cure rheumatism and arthritis. Romani people supposedly still eat it, boiled or roasted, and also use the blood and the fat for its supposed medicinal value. During the 1980s, "hedgehog-flavour" crisps were introduced in Britain, although the product did not contain any hedgehog.>>

• . Macbeth Act 4, Scene 1

• . King Richard III Act 1, Scene 2

• Thou mayst be damned for that wicked deed!

• . A Midsummer Night's Dream Act 2, Scene 2
  
  [The Fairies sing]
  
  You spotted snakes with double tongue,
  Thorny hedgehogs, be not seen;
  Newts and blind-worms, do no wrong,
  Come not near our fairy queen.
  Philomel, with melody
  Sing in our sweet lullaby;
  Lulla, lulla, lullaby, lulla, lulla, lullaby:
  Never harm,
  Nor spell nor charm,
  Come our lovely lady nigh;
  So, good night, with lullaby.
  Weaving spiders, come not here;
  Hence, you long-legg'd spinners, hence!
  Beetles black, approach not near;
  Worm nor snail, do no offence.
  Philomel, with melody, &c.
  ------------------------------------------------------------

• . The Tempest Act 2, Scene 2

• From bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall and make him
  By inch-meal a disease! His spirits hear me
  And yet I needs must curse. But they'll nor pinch,
  Fright me with urchin--shows, pitch me i' the mire,
  Nor lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark
  Out of my way, unless he bid 'em; but
  For every trifle are they set upon me;
  Sometime like apes that mow and chatter at me
  And after bite me, then like hedgehogs which
  Lie tumbling in my barefoot way and mount
  Their pricks at my footfall; sometime am I
  All wound with adders who with cloven tongues
  Do hiss me into madness.

orin stepanek wrote:It rained last night! We actually got some rain! The storm rolled in last night at about 2:30 AM CDT; and with very loud thunder and bright lightning flashes; dumped an inch of rain! I guess we're beginning to live right again! Why the ground was actually still wet at sunup!
Picture from wiki!

Click to view full size image

TNT wrote: I should try carving a figure of a praying mantis in a pumpkin for Halloween this year.

TNT wrote: And catfood?! Hedgehogs really eat catfood? I didn't know that!

geckzilla wrote:You ever taste cat food? I was curious one day. Not much flavor.