My first animated GIF

... which I refuse to pronounce "jif."

Melanoides tuberculata, or red-rimmed melania, for your viewing pleasure.

Further Nature-inspired Art and Amusements

One post wasn't enough for the entertaining signs and amusements I've seen around Louisiana and Alabama. So without further ado, here are some of the more "nature-inspired" things I saw around.

Barnacle-covered driftwood on Dauphin Island, Alabama

Magnolia flower from outside my apartment

Cypress knees from our lab aquarium covered with dried (probable) cyanobacteria

African iris (Dietes) planted around Baton Rouge

Water hyacinth covering the swamp at Buffalo Cove

Chanterelle mushroom found near the office and its light spore print

American beautyberry, one of my favorites

Small snake in the middle of the log.. hard to tell from the pic, but I think it was a water snake (Nerodia)

Roseate spoonbill feather that probably belonged to the bird that I saw fly off as we approached in the boat

Giant crawdad statue at the LSU Hatchery

Pumpkin butt scarecrow

Ducks at the LSU lakes (mallards + muscovy)

The total (partial) eclipse, viewed on a sheet of paper through my binoculars

Baton Rouge: Life in the Big Greasy

I'm trying to make "The Big Greasy" stick as a nickname for Baton Rouge. Despite the fact that Baton Rouge is generally cleaner than it's more cosmopolitan neighbor New Orleans (The Big Easy), Baton Rouge's relationship (dependence) on the oil/gas/chemical industries is on full display with its skyline as you cross the main I-10 bridge. It's half city skyline to the south and half Exxon refinery to the north.

 Anyways, this post is just a mish-mash of some of the different things I took pictures of in BR.

I didn't believe some redneck telling his little kid that Huey P. Long was buried under the massive statue in front of the capitol building, but it turns out that guy was right. (Geaux Tigers!) Despite ol' Huey's stated desire for a small, simple grave marker, he got a whopping statue on a pedestal with tended flower displays. (He allegedly requested a very simple grave, so maybe this was another middle finger from his political enemies.. but maybe not.)

And of course, here's the capitol itself (not to be confused with the Old State Capitol that I shared a picture of previously), the tallest state capitol in the US as of 2017.

View from the top, of the grounds below, with Huey P. Long's memorial in the hourglass-like shape in the middle.

Three ships side-by-side here: the USS Kidd on the left, whatever that boat that played the Black Pearl in Pirates of the Caribbean is called, and one of the casino riverboats (Belle, I think) on the right in the distance.

Hilarious old photo of a researcher from the 1970s measuring trees at one of our sites in the Atchafalaya River basin. No shirt, no problem.

Great example of Cajun ingenuity on the swamp: just work with what you've got (especially if what you've got is an old school bus and some empty drink syrup barrels), and voila, you've got your floating houseboat/fish camp!

Zoom in close to the pier, and you can see a logjam's worth of lumber strained out of the river (unintentionally).

Long-horn cow at the LSU Rural Life Museum.. definitely a place worth checking out, and not just for the cow.

Someone decided to speak for our lab truck and declare to the world, "I'M DIRTY".

And speaking of Cajun ingenuity, just DIY your own home repairs: grab a bobcat and rip up that annoying concrete-slab driveway.

Bugs and other creepy crawlies

A photolist of some of the insects/bugs/critters I saw recently in various locations:

My mayfly friend getting a free ride while I was driving the boat through Buffalo Cove

 Snake skeleton near Ramah, Louisiana

 Paper pondshell mussel (Utterbackia imbecillis) from LSU lakes

 Cow killer outside LSU

 Xenox tigrinus (Tiger bee fly) in Mobile, Alabama

 Fish fly, rescued from the office building

Green tree frog near the LSU lakes

 Okay, these last two are just coffee mugs picturing insects, but I'm still counting them. Apparently a previous visiting researcher from Asia had a thing for entomology and left these mugs as his legacy. (Honeypot ants and leaf cutter ants)

Signs and Wonders, Gulf Coast Edition

I love graffiti, weird signs, and cool old artwork, and the Deep South has not disappointed on any of those fronts. Check out my collection of signs and wonders!

Not sure who wanted everyone to know about Resa Burden's cheating heart, but they put the message all over downtown Mobile, Alabama.

Beautiful artwork built into the sides of the "new" capitol building in Baton Rouge

Old entryway downtown in Baton Rouge

Who dat Buc-ee?! I haven't been to a Buc-ees, but I hear everything's bigger in Texas, including Buc-ees. (It's like a Flying J trucker stop times 10.)

Cracker Barrel: the gas station that has more than you'd expect. Allegedly.

MSG "for sell" in the Mobile Winn Dixie (Note: words in quotes are mine, not Winn Dixie's)

One of my bros and I created this masterpiece in the sand in Florida.

This person loves their family... heartwarming graffiti from Bellingrath Gardens, I think.

No smoking during meals on the USS Kidd.

Are there interesting augers?

Y'reckon God's in this church? at the Rural Life Museum

Another message from Mobile, Love has returned!

Open your eyes, by the Baton Rouge lakes overpass

Belling Wrath

Evan and I paid a visit to Bellingrath Gardens outside Mobile, Alabama, during a sweltering summer day. (We're still unclear whether it's pronounced "Bell-in-grath" or "Bell-ing-wrath," as we figured the staff wouldn't understand what on earth we were talking about if we asked them.) There was a wedding being hosted there that day, and I pity those poor wedding party members who were wearing long sleeves having their photos done. (Or the guests who were going to be sitting out in full sun, for that matter.)

Bellingrath's landscaping is pretty spectacular, and my photos don't do it justice, but here are a few pictures of some noteworthy things we saw there. Above: an example of some of the plantings that line all the walkways on the meticulously-managed property.

Fountain in the middle of the rose garden

Plumeria, which I think look like little fondant flowers (and smell amazing)

A two-tiered hibiscus flower, with pentas flowers in the background

Dragonfly camouflaged against leaf

Mermaid fountain at the end of a stone walkway

Ridiculous sign in the Asian garden that says in rough katakana "Drink Coca-Cola".. dot. dot. dot.