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what's your favourite short game?
  • Tsuro is always our go-to short game for when folks are getting to game night and getting into the mood. We also like to play Uno at the end of the night when our brains are fried or Jackbox.

  • Gamers. What was the game that got you into the hobby?
  • Neverwinter Nights and Roller Coaster Tycoon when I was a little kid. I watched my dad play Neverwinter and had to indulge in my own tiny fantasy to play as a "dragon." Still at it.

  • Cleric/moon Druid gish builds in 5e
  • I always go for a druid-type in games (I have a druid of the coast in a 5e game and now a moon druid in BG3) and I too am frustrated that I can't really do spells while Bear. But it's okay, because I am Bear.

  • Red Shouldered Hawk - Venice, FL
  • Since roadside hawk is an actual species in Latin America, I might stick with calling our red-shouldered hawks by their own common name, even if they do tend to be on the roadside a lot! I was excited for a moment since I hadn't heard of a rare raptor in Florida.

  • Anti-trans legislation and public schools
  • But they're preventing that with this legislation.

    /s, Florida is pulling so much shit right now too.

  • What made you choose your instance?
  • It was a battle between my queer identity and my biologist identity. For regular browsing and posting, science won out. But I have an account with blajah.zone too to discuss the queer agenda.

  • Value aside, do people actually like gold-looking things?
  • I consider myself a people, and I prefer my body jewelry to be gold if I can afford it. A few pieces are gold-colored anodized titanium (which are fading), but very prominent pieces are solid gold. I like yellow gold, not rose gold. I actually think titanium/"silver" looks more tacky than gold.

    But that's just for pieces of jewelry that go into my body. For bracelets and such, I prefer brass, leather, and shades of brown. I don't wear necklaces.

    Gold cars are disgusting though.

  • Bluebird Houses - Successful House Sparrow Prevention!
  • I wonder if this would work for my feeders, how clever! They're such a menace.

  • Which super popular game were you utterly disappointed by?
  • Same with me and Catan. I generally do not like resource-hoarding "competitive" games anyway, and Catan did not help that.

  • Little parula
  • I definitely have my fair share of close crops, especially herps! I also posted a close crop (because it was just that close) of a brown-capped rosy finch to the wildlife photography community today too.

  • Little parula
  • I like to leave some habitat because I find it adds interest and complexity to a photo. Plus, sometimes the birb no longer appears smol if so focused in the photo! I've gotten more comfortable with even more distant shots of birbs, too--sometimes I can make raptors look illegally smol.

  • Favorite Birding Experiences?
  • Many of my friends are biologists themselves, but not all are as well-verse in birds, so I'm definitely the bird guy there. Or wildlife guy, as in the case of my family. Kinda why I started bird ID and snake ID communities here when I didn't see them (not sure how to link to them on mobile).

  • Favorite Birding Experiences?
  • I like to post pictures to get the community more active, but I'm also down for discussion.

    Laat year, I was a teaching assistant for a study abroad course to Honduras. One of our stops was PANACAM, one of the best national parks in the country (I spent about ten days there this year, such a beautiful location). We only had half a day there. The class happened to contain only women, and the day we visited, we learned of the US Supreme Court's decision regarding abortion access. Demoralized, I led a group to a bird tower in the forest in our remaining time. They were largely uninterested in birding, but they were into the more charismatic species. In the span of an hour on that tower, we only recorded ten species, but the experience was quite exceptional. I located three king vultures far in the sky and was able to show them to the students. A dozen or so swallow-tailed kites swooped around the tower. I photographed a dark morph short-tailed hawk with a lizard in its bill across two passes (a publication I'm working on). The students located a keel-billed toucan before I did. And best (for them) of all, a white-nosed coati decided to pop up in the leaves just 20 feet from us.

    I love birding, but I really love getting others into it and making cool observations with them. It was a memerable day for sure.

  • Accipiter ID - Sharp-shinned vs Cooper's

    As hawk watch locations across North America start hiring and counting migrating raptors, the raptors themselves are gearing up to head wherever. I've had the opportunity to see and photograph a lot of raptors in the past two years. The two common accipiter hawks, the sharp-shinned hawk (or "sharpie") and Cooper's hawk are often mistaken for one another. While the sharpie is usually considerably smaller than the Cooper's, size can be difficult to judge in the field. Sharp-shinned hawks often travel in pairs during migration.

    I hope this graphic helps you to visualize some of the differences between these two species.

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    Other than the age, What are the things that made us feel less happier, less in the moment, less energized and more depressed than the last decade?
  • The gain and then subsequent slashing of human rights based on fascist beliefs and lack of representation (and possibly over representation by fringe groups that capture the news cycle). Across the world, populism and fascism is gaining in popularity - again. It felt like we'd gotten past this point for a minute.

  • There are many things you want to consider when identifying snakes, and it can become intuitive with practice
    www.africansnakebiteinstitute.com How to Identify Snakes? - African Snakebite Institute

    Some people seem to think that identifying snakes is a supernatural skill that only experts have, but it is not that difficult to learn. There are a few very important factors that go into identifying a snake.

    How to Identify Snakes? - African Snakebite Institute

    A link to the African Snakebite Institute, a great organization dedicated to snake identification and education in South Africa.

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    Snakes @lemmy.world cadamanteus @mander.xyz
    Imantodes cenchoa, a crowd favorite

    Only a favorite because they're so skinny and wiggly, I like showing the blunt-headed tree snake to students because they're just not what people new to snakes think a snake looks like. There are definitely weirder species out there, but the big eyes and shoelace appearance amuse the non-herpers.

    Honduras, June 2023

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    Brown-capped Rosy Finch in Colorado

    I was amazed at how close these birds got. I had given up most hope on locating one (I wasn't sure where local birdfeeders were), but then I found a handful of em at a parking lot up the mountain.

    Colorado, USA, May 2022

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    Tiny teal

    I don't get tired of little ducks like teal. Two cinnamon teal on the left, blue-winged teal drake on the right.

    Colorado, USA, May 2022

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    Migrating Merlin

    Merlins kinda breed in my area, but you're more likely to find them during migration. I believe we found three on this day.

    Pennsylvania, USA, Oct. 2022

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    The common Lepidophyma flavimaculatum

    In the right habitat (a pile of rocks near buildings at somewhat higher, but not quite cloud forest, elevation), the yellow-spotted night lizard can be easily spotted... at night. They have a pretty nice chomp. They always look to be in shed.

    Honduras, June 2023

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    Little parula

    Sometimes warblers don't care how close you are. This one was probably ten feet away. They are truly smol, and I like to crop my photos.

    Honduras, April 2023

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    One of many Zammara smaragdina emerging and screaming

    This cicada is such a brilliant emerald with gold tints. And they screm.

    Honduras, June 2023

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    Melanistic eastern gartersnake from northern Ohio

    I was hoping for Erie watersnakes, but this was a nice find anyway. This area is known for having melanistic garters.

    May 2022

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    Almost time for fall warblers!
    www.audubon.org How to Recognize Six Warblers in Their Fall Feathers

    Study the finer details of migrating warblers with our handy photo guide.

    How to Recognize Six Warblers in Their Fall Feathers

    Few warblers retain their breeding plumage into fall. Most warblers transition into a nonbreeding/winter plumage after their young have fledged. Some look kinda close to their breeding plumage, but others look radically different.

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    It's almost baby snake season

    A lot of baby or small snakes can be confusing if you're not sure what you're looking for. Fortunately, in the US, they're all relatively easy to ID with photos of decent enough quality.

    In the eastern US, Dekay's brownsnakes are super common, both juveniles and adults. Their range largely overlaps with the eastern copperhead and only slightly overlaps with the cottonmouth. Both the copperhead and cottonmouth will have yellow tail tips as juveniles, and even when young, they are considerably larger than juvenile (and some adult) Dekay's brownsnakes. This brownsnake also usually has a pale neckband as a juvenile in addition to a spotted or chain-link pattern on its backside.

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    Are we posting hair pics here yet?
  • Thanks, I've spent too much time figuring out what works for them, haha.

  • Are we posting hair pics here yet?

    Routine:

    • As I Am Dry & Itchy shampoo and conditioner
    • Scrunch in LA Looks Extreme Sport Gel on wet hair, a dollop for front and back
    • Scrunch dry with microfiber towel
    • Diffuse with low heat, then cool, until about 70% dry or I'm bored
    • Air dry, then scrunch out the crunch
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    what's a reasonable sort for lemmy?
  • There is not yet enough content for your sort selection to really matter. I sort by new because at least I'll see more content as stuff is posted throughout the day.

  • I missed photographing male scarlet tanagers this year, so here's one from last year
  • Wow, great image! I'm amazed at how similar the Brazilian tanager is to the scarlet tanager despite being in different families.

  • Snakes @lemmy.world cadamanteus @mander.xyz
    Guatemalan neckband snake (Scaphiodontophis annulatus) is such a boring name for such a neat animal

    Honduras, June 2022

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    he do a flip

    Sometimes I don't even know what I'm photographing. This is a male blue-black grassquit doing a "I'm sexy" dance as he calls.

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    Lenca emerald spiny lizard, Sceloporus esperanzae, endemic to Honduras

    Abundant in the right habitat/locality and handsome as adults, we found quite a few of these. Definitely saw more juveniles/females than adult males, though.

    June 2022

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    Black-headed trogon in Honduras, June 2023
  • Thanks! 90% luck, 10% skill!

  • Brought some of my plants outside to enjoy the sunshine
  • My plants are (mostly) loving the sunshine! Plant lights can only do so much.

  • Many many many many snow geese
  • I looked and looked, and I didn't spot any Ross's geese nor overhear other birders gasping at the sight of one. I did scour my images. A few are spotted at Middle Creek (where this event occurs in Pennsylvania) every year, but obviously, they're hit or miss when you have to sort through tens of thousands of individuals that generally all look the same.

  • cadamanteus cadamanteus @mander.xyz

    they/he

    science account

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