Gan Chris Grinter, on September 8th, 2010 While I work on a more substantial post, you can name this butterfly – and the plant should be pretty easy too. Extra bonus if you can guess the county (state won’t be too impressive) in which I took this photo. This was pre-DSLR, but my old beat up canon point-and-shoot did manage to get some good ones.
Gan Chris Grinter, ar Medi 7fed, 2010 
Mae stori drist newydd wneud ei ffordd i fyny o Belize – y Noddfa Addysg Crocodeil America wedi llosgi i'r llawr. Ar yr olwg gyntaf, dim ond adroddiad anffodus oedd hwn am gyfleuster ymchwil a chadwraeth a gollwyd mewn tân trasig. Hynny, fodd bynnag, nid yw'r stori gyfan. Mae'n ymddangos bod dorf o Mayans brodorol wedi hedfan i mewn i dicter a thorrodd y cyfleuster. Pam? Oherwydd bod seicig wedi dweud wrth y perchnogion wrthyn nhw wedi llofruddio plant a'u bwydo i'w crocodeiliaid!
Roedd fel rhywbeth allan o ffilm Frankenstein,” Dywedodd Cherie Rose ddydd Mawrth. “Pe baem gartref, byddent wedi ein lladd ni. Fe ddywedon nhw eu bod nhw'n mynd i'n torri ni a'n bwydo ni i'r crocodeiliaid.”
Mae heddlu cenedlaethol yn cadarnhau bod pentrefwyr brodorol Maya yn gweithredu ar gyngor seicig a ddywedodd fod gan y Rhosynnau rywbeth i'w wneud â'r mis Awst. 7 diflaniad Benjamin Rash, 9 oed, a'i chwaer 11 oed Onelia.
Mae'r cwestiwn yn codi'n aml – “pa niwed ydyw mewn gwirionedd?” – o ran y math hwn o woo gwrth-wyddonol. Rhan fwyaf o'r amser, nid oes unrhyw ddifrod wedi'i wneud mewn gwirionedd, heblaw am y llyfr poced. Ond, bob tro mewn tro, mae rhywbeth trasig yn digwydd a byddai'n hawdd bod wedi osgoi'r cyfan gyda hyd yn oed y darn lleiaf o feddwl neu ddisgresiwn rhesymegol. Roedd y seicig yn y dref ymhell a thu hwnt yn ddi-hid wrth feio'r gringos hyn – a hi a ddylai ddyoddef y canlyniadau i'w gweithredoedd. Fe wnaeth hi feio dau berson diniwed yn fwriadol am farwolaeth plant lleol, a arweiniodd yn gyflym at golli eiddo personol yn ddifrifol. Diolch byth, Roedd Cherie a Vince Rose i ffwrdd ar y pryd yn achub crocodeil – efallai na fyddent wedi dianc rhag y dorf flin pe baent gartref. Mae enghreifftiau o hyn bob amser yn fy ngwneud yn drist, ond ailgynnau fy angerdd am chwalu'r lladron a'r troseddwyr hyn.
Awgrymaf ymweld â gwefan ACES a blog a naill ai rhoi neu ysgrifennu nodyn o gefnogaeth. Pe na bawn i'n wyddonydd toredig fy hun, Byddwn yn cynnig mwy o gymorth ar gyfer eu hymdrechion i ailadeiladu. Nawr – a fydd yn helpu i addysgu'r pentrefwyr hynny cyn i hyn ddigwydd eto?!
Gan Chris Grinter, on September 6th, 2010 For regular readers of my blog you might already know my stance on the monarch, ond catch up here if you’d like to. Yesterday I came across yr erthygl hon in the LA times – regarding the overwintering colonies of monarchs in Pacific Grove, CA. Out here, west of the continental divide, there are quite a few monarchs that migrate to coastal California and Baja del Norte instead of traveling into central Mexico. Not all monarchs from California stay in the state, but there are dozens hundreds of known roosting sites (.pdf) up and down our pacific coast.
Pacific Grove has one of the best known localities and has built the local economy around their seasonal migrants (yet no one is deporting these Mexicans). Yn fyr, the town government hired an arborist to cut back dangerous eucalyptus growth. Why was that necessary? Yn ôl i mewn 2004 a limb from a diseased native-pine had fallen and killed an 85-year-old woman while on a walk with her grandchildren. In wake of the million dollar settlement paid to the family of the deceased the town decided to preemptively cut back old tree growth. But now everyone is running around screaming foul, the trees were trimmed hefyd much. Oes, the precious homes of the monarchs were disturbed and it has riled the townspeople into a fury. What if the monarch’s don’t return?
Don’t worry, local filmmaker Bob Pacelli has a solution. Let’s just scatter as many eucalyptus trees as we can find into the grove to attract more butterflies.
In desperation, Pacelli came up with a plan: Find boxed trees — preferably blue gum eucalyptus — around 20 feet high and place them at strategic spots to help shelter the incoming monarchs. But the city has been slow to respond, Pacelli said. One official, Pacelli said, wrongly accused him of stepping on a butterfly, a violation of city code. No charges were filed.
For those paying attention, ie, the city council of Pacific Grove has a law on the books that imposes a fine of $1,000 on anyone who molests a butterfly. Good things monarchs don’t roost in catholic churches.
Continue reading Monarch Madness
Gan Chris Grinter, on August 27th, 2010 Mae'r athrylith hwn o'r wasg yn arbennig iawn, nid am ei anhawster, ond am ei ddiswyddiad. Cefais yr un stori ar ddwy ffynhonnell ar wahân, gyda gwahanol ddelweddau – a'r ddau yr un mor anghywir! Gallaf ddychmygu na fydd yn cymryd yn hir i rywun nodi yn union beth sydd o'i le ar y straeon hyn (awgrym, Mae yna 2 pethau).
Dyma y cyntaf o'r drych.co.uk “Gwyfyn prin enfawr a ddarganfuwyd yn Nyfnaint”.
A'r ail o'r Daily Mail ar-lein ” Gwyfyn Luna prin a ddarganfuwyd yn Nyfnaint…”
Gan Chris Grinter, ar 24 Awst, 2010 Ac wrth i mi ddal i fyny gallwch wylio Isabella Rossellini iasol yn ail-greu strategaethau paru llau gwely. Dylech chi hefyd ddarllen, os nad ydych wedi ei ddal yn barod, y erthygl llau gwely ardderchog ysgrifennwyd gan y nodedig (a'm cyn-athraw) Mai Berenbaum.
[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MakIB_IJnu0&nodwedd = chwilio]
Gan Chris Grinter, ar Awst 14eg, 2010 Heno, os ydych yn San Francisco, dylech wneud eich ffordd i Showdogs bar (ger y SoMa) i amheuwyr yn y dafarn gyda'r anrhydeddus James Randi! Byddaf yn bresennol, ynghyd ag ychydig o gyd-gyfeillion entomolegydd. Try this facebook link – ond os bydd hynny'n methu, mae'r digwyddiad yn dechrau am 9pm.
If you’re not in SF, enjoy some Randi videos instead!
[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9w7jHYriFo]
Gan Chris Grinter, ar 10 Awst, 2010 
Yn y llun yn ddu-gwythiennau gwyn (Aporia ssp crataegi), and it is currently being returned to the Korean Institute of Biological Resources. Benthyciadau cael eu dychwelyd, ag y dylent fod, bob dydd – a gall hyd yn oed yn rhif yn y miloedd o sbesimenau. I myself have a few hundred moths out on loan from a handful of museums that are pending research. As soon as I finish my work (or request an extension), the specimens are promptly returned accompanying my paper. Unfortunately it is not a rare occurrence where loans have gone out, and remained out without permission, for decades. At least in one case to my knowledge (names and institutions redacted) the loaned specimens were out so long they created a small international incident. Foreign ambassadors had to formally request the specimens, which had to be presented in person by our ambassador to their country.
This butterfly, fodd bynnag, I don’t believe was part of a loan. So why is it going back to Korea?
Continue reading A Disturbing New Trend?
Gan Chris Grinter, on August 9th, 2010 This one is just hefyd easy. The billboard is on I-35 south of Burleson, Tecsas.
I don’t know the true provenance of this image, but it came my way from Omar Bocanegra via Mike Quinn on the Texas Lepidoptera list-serv.
Gan Chris Grinter, ar Awst 8fed, 2010 
Yr wyf yn baglu ar (nid ar stumbleupon) mae'r delweddau SEM lliw hyn ar y Tudalen we Telegraph heddiw. Rwy'n hoff iawn o'r ddelwedd hon o larfa Calliphoridae yn arbennig (Protophormia sp.) mae hynny'n ymddangos yn fwy allan o ffilm ffuglen wyddonol gradd C na natur. Mae'n fy atgoffa o gymeriad Freakish Star Wars a Muppet ar yr un pryd. Mae gwyriad sydyn oddi wrth bensaernïaeth corff mamalaidd safonol yn gwneud pryfed yn brif ymgeiswyr ar gyfer estroniaid arallfydol. Mae'n rhaid bod pryfed wedi'u defnyddio fel canllaw ar gyfer ffilmiau fel District 9, Starship Troopers, Estron, Galaxy Quest… dim ond i enwi rhai diweddar. Yr wyf yn siŵr bod arall, mwy achrededig, gall geeks ffuglen wyddonol feddwl am enghreifftiau gwell fyth. Yn yr un modd rwy'n cofio'r delweddau hyn a dynnais o chwilen Cerambycidae isod – Moneilem gigas. Roedd hyn yn nyddiau cynharaf fy nghamera newydd felly ni allaf edrych yn ôl arnynt fel lluniau perffaith.
Continue reading Muppet Monsters
Gan Chris Grinter, on August 6th, 2010 
Here is a hill-topping male Papilio zeliacon, or Anise swallowtail. This butterfly is widespread in the western Pacific states and is probably much more common than it once was. After the introduction of fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), and subsequent escape from horticulture, the anise swallowtail took hold as a common California butterfly. Perhaps before this plant overtook our roadsides the zelicaon may have been restricted to the Sierra foothills, now you can find it across gardens in all of California. Er bod, things seem to be reversing themselves in southern CA where this butterfly is disappearing from urban areas. Recent introduction of the gypsy moth to the Ventura/LA areas has initiated insecticide spraying regimes – not to mention the appearance of an invasive parasitic Tachinidae that loves larger leps. Out on the east coast this parasitic fly and heavy spraying has extirpated the Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) from much of it’s range, leaving it endangered in most of New England.
Continue reading Butterfly Porn
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Amheuaeth
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4 sylwadau - (Sylwadau ar gau) 
Entomoleg 
Glöynnod Byw, Cadwraeth, Rhywogaethau Ymledol, Lepidoptera, Brenhinoedd 
