These squirrels have been introduced (presumably from Taiwan, where they are also non-native) to many locations in Japan. Some populations have been eradicated, but the one on Izu Peninsula is too well established for that. But what are they? (1/3)

A fun fact: the 1976 graduating class of the Turbostroyitel (Turbine-Builder) Judo Club of Leningrad, which Putin attended at the time, has given the world more billionaires than the Harvard Business School in its entire history.

I'm trying to go through our photos from Japan before the next trip. Here are some more: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Chinese octopus (Octopus sinensis) living in a discarded bottle. Izu Peninsula, Japan.

More plants, animals and fungi from Honshu: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

My book Wildlife Spectacles is almost sold out: there's just one new copy left on Amazon for US$11 and a few I still have at home. You can snatch the last one from Amazon or get a signed copy from me for the same price plus postage. www.amazon.com/Wildlife-Spe...

Japanese greater horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus nippon) in an old road tunnel, Izu Peninsula.

More Japanese flora & fauna: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Breaking: zohran mamdani has converted trump to islam

Caterpillars of giant silkworm moths of genus Rinaca built really cool cocoons. They are very durable and can oten be found on the forest floor long after the moths hatch. Izu Peninsula, Japan.

Amur hedgehogs (Erinaceus amurensis) went extinct in Japan at the end of the Pleistocene for unknown reasons, but escaped pets occur around Honshu and are established on Izu Peninsula. We found this female on a road through Komuroyama Park in Ito; my kids were delighted and quickly befriended her.

More plants and animals from Japan: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Foraminiferans are large single-cell organisms mostly living on the seafloor. But one Antarctic species uses planktonic diatoms as balloons to stay afloat. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

More photos from Japan: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Last night the auroras happened on the same time of night, and the patches were in the same NNW direction, even similar in shape. But they were much less bright, barely visible to unaided eye except for one 3-min outbreak.

Auroras last night, the way they actually looked. They were much less impressive than in May 2024, but near the end there was a very bright outburst. Waiting for more tonight :-)

Small rivers in the Pine Barrens are usually blackwater streams; diving there is like swimming in strong tea. But once in a while you stumble upon a clearwater creek. Fish are sparse, but once I found this chain pickerel (Esox niger). Pickerels are 2 species of dwarf pike unique to E North America.

More photos from Japan: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Forest tree frog (Zhangixalus arboreus) and its foam nests. Hakusan National Park.

The first batch of photos and stories from my trip to Japan last summer: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

A few underwater photos from Musconetcong Gorge: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

LeConte's sparrow (Ammospiza leconteii) is a rare visitor to New Jersey. For over a week, this remarkably tame individual has been delighting dozens of birders in Alpha Grasslands Preserve. To see it, go there 15 min before sunrise and look for a small crowd of people with big cameras :-)

I didn't think I'd be posting any more insect photos from New Jersey this year, but Saturday night found this northern flatid planthopper (Flatormenis proxima) in Musconetcong Gorge.

Fish horrors: dinets.home.blog/2025/10/29/a...

Went diving Friday night (probably the last time this year). It didn't go as planned. Here are some photos and videos. Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Putin's Russia is the main driving force of global environmental destruction. Now calling for environmental protections is being considered high treason, punished by decades in gulag. Yet another reason Trump and his GOP minions worship Putin. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Ever since I saw a "Siberian" weasel in Taiwan I couldn't believe it wasn't a separate species. Local zoologists insisted that their molecular results showed it to be the same. The situation is compounded by populations of introduced mainland weasels on the island. A new paper vindicates me 🙂 (1/2)

I didn't get outdoors much this fall, but here are a few photos from around New Jersey: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon), Pine Barrens, NJ.

Went diving Friday night before the storm. The water was warm, the viz decent by our standards, and I had some encounters that made it worth 6 hours of driving. A few photos: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

How exactly do greater noctule bats hunt birds half their weight? Turns out they turn their lack of hollow bones into an advantage during dive chases. richardconniff.substack.com/p/tally-ho-e...

On a separate note, Hamas is obviously even more afraid of Barguti than Israel is. And it should be. Just like both our parties are rightfully afraid of Mamdani who exposes the sad fact that both of them are hopelessly obsolete.

I have to admit that Trump deserved it more than Obama. Not that it changes my general opinion on either of them.

Roundleaf greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia), Franklin Parker Preserve, NJ.

This autumn is very dry, so I thought there'd be no mushrooms. I was wrong. There are some; two weeks ago I saw numerous hens-of-the woods, a.k.a. maitake (Grifola frondosa), in Great Swamp NWR. This one had red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus) inside, probably looking for slugs & millipedes.

Juvenile white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus noveboracensis), small but already independent. Great Swamp NWR, New Jersey.

Do stable flies mimic houseflies to sneak up on their victims? Why do they look so similar?

This introduced American bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) was hunting baby crabs around a tidepool on a beach near Kanazawa, Japan. I had no idea they are so tolerant of saltwater.

Japanese badgers (Meles anakuma) used to be difficult to see, but last summer I saw a lot of them during night drives and even in daylight. I don't know if it was a particularly good year for them, or they are becoming more common in general.

Last summer I found a great spot for True's shrew-mole (Dymecodon pilirostris) in Chubu-Sangaku National Park. This tiny cutie probably isn't that rare in Japanese forests above 1500 m, but is very difficult to find (there were no reports on iNaturalist). On the photos are multiple individuals.

Large-billed crows (Corvus macrorhynchos japonensis) are abundant in Japanese cities. In Tokyo wastebins have to be covered with mesh at night to prevent the contents from being scattered early in the morning.

I am getting a distinctive feeling that we are being prepared for Vance presidency. Yeltsin's last year was also full of mysterious malfunctions.

A few underwater photos from Delaware River: Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din... Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...

Wiki article of the day: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_v...

In separate news, Bolsonaro was found guilty of attempted coup today. I bet Trump is now trying to find out of Otto Scorzeny is still available for hire.

A lot of people were killed in the world yesterday. Most of them were innocent. I feel sorry for those people, and not for some Nazi shit who totally deserved it.

I've seen a lot of northern short-tailed shrews (Blarina brevicaudata talpoides) this year. Despite being away half of the summer, I've seen five live ones (including the first one ever in my backyard) and twice as many dead ones on roads. (1/2)

Many spiders build hammock-like webs. Flying insects hit thin, tight, non-sticky vertical threads above the hammock and fall into it. The hammock itself is sticky above but not below; the spider runs on the underside and bites fallen insects through the hammock. (1/2)

Joke of the day: The first rule of Article 5 of the NATO Treaty: you do not talk about Article 5 of the NATO Treaty.

Carolina grasshoper (Dissosteira carolina). Its hind wings, black & yellow (like in mourning cloak butterfly), are exposed in flight but vanish instantly when the insect lands, making it difficult to follow visually (I can't remember the term for this). M use songs and display flights to attract f.