March Madness Brought A Plethora of New Species

Being a science nerd, I spend a good deal of time most mornings trolling the science blogs, news outlets, and magazines. Maybe it's just me, but March seemed to be the month for new species to come out of the woods, or whatever habitat they call home. And these aren't just in one area of the globe, but all over the freaking place. Heck, a highway being dug in California even netted us the remains of a new and previously unknown whale species. But, I'm not talking fossils here, people. I'm talking living breathing beings we had no idea existed until now. Isn't that amazing? With all our technology, we are still discovering. So, I give you some new wonders of the earth, ocean, and sky to ponder. Hooray for March Madness.

Photo Courtesy of Avi Klapfer

First, may I introduce a new, and apparently unnamed deep sea jellyfish. This was recorded by the submarine DeepSee while exploring around the island of Desventuradas off the coast of Chile. The discovery is being credited to Enric Sala.

Photo Courtesy of Peter Kappeler

And as usual, Madagascar just keeps turning out the wonders. There are now two new species of Madagascan mouse lemurs on the books. Here you have the Marohita mouse lemur caught on film for the very first time.

Photo Courtesy of Philippe Verbelen

Meet the Rinjani Scops Owl and, okay, I admit, this one is a little bit of a cheat. They've known about this little guy who lives only on Lombok Island, a resort island off the coast of Bali for, like, ten years. It has a very similar species it lives with, and scientists had to have time to verify that this is indeed a different species entirely. As it turns out, this little owl sings an entirely different song. So the truth is in the music. At last, it has been confirmed as it's own species.

Photo Courtesy of Ranil Nanayakkara

And not to leave out the insects, I give you a brand new giant tarantula who just happens to be venomous. Woot. Isn't he gorgeous? From Sri Lanka, it is on average the size of a human face. Wow! This guy lives in the trees of the forest and is now threatened by deforestation. Guess what people, when you cut down their trees, where do you think these babies are going to go? Under the house, perhaps? One more reason to leave their habitat alone, if you ask me. I mean, he's pretty, but I'd prefer he keep to the trees, thanks.

So, there you have it. A few new species making the official science books here and there. There are plenty more where these came from. Can't wait to see what April brings.

My New Position as an Internet Sommelier

I'm very excited to announce that I have been given a new and prestigious position on an up and coming project with Google. My former zookeeping experience and my contacts in the zoo community have really paid off this time! As of today, I am proud to be one of Google's Internet Sommeliers specializing in exotic animal scents. This is, of course, a new and unexpected turn for my career, but well, Google made me an offer that I simply couldn't turn my nose up at. If you haven't experienced the wonders of Google Nose, I highly recommend trying the Beta. And, I can promise you, just as soon as I am able, there will be all kinds of zoo smells for your senses to enjoy. Must go, have to begin gathering scentibytes. But, make sure you check out Google's video about the new project.

Lights Out!

Earth Hour happened yesterday, as I'm sure many of you already know. But, did you realize how seriously people around the globe took it. If you haven't already seen the video, check out some of the skylines that went dark to raise awareness about Climate Change.
After last summer's freak derecho, today I am sitting in Virginia on Palm Sunday in something like six inches of snow, and we don't get snow here in the valley that often, and very rarely this late in the year. So, I have a pretty big investment in raising awareness. If it takes a skyline going dark every now and then to get people to pay attention, then I'm all for it. Let's plan the next one!

In other news, I am being featured this coming week on True Colorz website along with my other co-creators of The Ravens Crossing, Andi Lea and West Thornhill.

Stop by and leave a comment and you are automatically entered to win our books. The Ravens Crossing, Book One and The Ravens Crossing, Books Two will both be part of the free giveaway.

Pop over to True Colorz and say hello.

One Degree from the Cool Kids!

A long-time fan of all things Cornell, I recently discovered a friend of mine is now working over at their Lab of Ornithology. I went all geek girl, telling everyone about my one degree of separation, like this somehow meant I could now play with the cool kids who are doing amazing things for avian research. Anyway, said friend informed me she was working on the lab's new Bird of Paradise Project. So, of course, I've been over there snooping around for days. Now, they've unveiled the new site publicly, and it's amazing. 35 high definition videos of Birds of Paradise in their natural habitats in Papua, New Guinea. In case you don't know, that area of the world is vigilantly protected by natives (go natives), so getting westerners in to collect data isn't easy.  Check out one of the new vids from the Bird of Paradise Project website. Without further ado, I give you the most amazing sounding Curl-Crested Manucode. Make sure you watch for the bit on the anatomy that makes their wacky vocalizations possible. It's pretty wicked.

Love and a Kiss on the Head

Sending out love and peace and a kiss on the head this Valentines Day. 

Hope you all have a happy and safe holiday! As always, thanks for reading. =D

I Squee for Birds: Meet the Spoon-billed Sandpiper!

A long-time bird lover and ex keeper of birds, I admit to being a sucker. But, I have totally fallen in love with  the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, one of the most endangered birds on the planet. This is all Cornell Lab of Ornithology's fault. Well, them and Gerrit Vyn who trekked out onto the Russian tundra to film this fantastic footage. Stick with it and you will get to see the first ever film of the little fledglings coming off their nest. So amazing. Read all about it at the Cornell site! Sign up for their newsletter. They always share the coolest stuff.

The Ravens Crossing Turns One!

Over the next two weeks, The Ravens Crossing is celebrating turning one with a giveaway to thank all of our fantastic readers. You are the best. Head on over to www.theravenscrossing.org to enter and thanks for reading and for helping us spread the word about TRC! 

This past year has been a wild ride. When I look back, I'm shocked to see how much can be accomplished when friends come together to create something they truly believe in.  Exactly one year ago, TRC was born a small idea that grew into an amazing adventure. There are not enough words to thank my fellow writers and college alums Andi Lea, and West Thornhill, for making me a part of this project. We have managed to create a whole science fiction/fantasy world, present it in an innovative format, and provide affordable reading about diverse characters to young adults and people of all ages. All of the volunteers on this project have spent untold hours planning and writing our adventures and helping build and run a website to publish our serialized stores six days a week. The project is now in it's third season, and there are plenty more adventure planned. The future looks bright. For those who have just found us, you can purchase the previous seasons from the website in ebook format on Amazon and Smashwords.