Category Archives: JD

The Grand Canyon In My Hand

Posted on June 12, 2013 by swarm

Is there anything more magnificent than viewing an organism in its natural habitat? For years I have wanted to view horseshoe crabs alive and swimming, but never found a reason to visit the East Coast during those beautiful Spring months… … Continue reading →

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The Surreal World of Insects

Posted on June 25, 2012 by swarm

Last Saturday’s opening of The Surreal World of Insects at Terraria was a total hit. More than a simple wine-and-cheese affair, it became a huge party of insect artists and natural history enthusiasts that lasted long into the night! The … Continue reading →

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Sundews and Sun Rings

Posted on June 7, 2012 by swarm

This is my second post about our trip to Quincy. Frankly, my Darlingtonia… The native California pitcher plants (Darlingtonia californica) are a thing to behold, especially when they’re flowering. The blooms, hanging heavily from high straight poles, have flapping green … Continue reading →

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The Black Petaltail of Butterfly Valley

Posted on May 22, 2012 by swarm

I have returned from an epic nature adventure with many friends, combining events celestial and botanical! The timing of the annular eclipse of the Sun coincided with the blooming of native pitcher plants in Butterfly Valley, a place my wife … Continue reading →

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Making Iron Gall Ink

Posted on February 13, 2012 by swarm

After reading my series of holiday posts on galls, my friend Karima excitedly reminded me of one of the earliest forms of gall art: INK! And this month we finally made some! Karima Cammell owns and operates Castle In The … Continue reading →

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Raise a Glass of Insects

Posted on January 5, 2012 by swarm

  Happy New Year! Though perhaps everybody is perhaps a little tired of celebrating things by now, I finally have time to talk about my favorite insect-laced booze, so let’s go! For a few years now I have been rounding … Continue reading →

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Sing a Song for Stenopelmatus

Posted on December 13, 2011 by swarm

Happy Birthday to me! In celebration, I want to share with you all a very special friend of mine, a beautiful and noble beast who is tragically loathed and feared by nearly everybody I know, even friends who otherwise love … Continue reading →

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Deck the Galls

Posted on December 6, 2011 by swarm

If you asked me what insect truly embodies the spirit of the holiday season, I wouldn’t hesitate for an instant. What other insect decorates trees in festive baubles, spreading joyful great glowing red ornaments and brilliant translucent spheres? That’s right, … Continue reading →

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Next Instar

Posted on November 14, 2011 by swarm

And we’re back up! (whew) Thanks to the kind support of the folks at DreamHost, The Endless-Swarm now has more robust behind-the-scenes blog tools. Once our wings have hardened, and we’ll be ready to fly!

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The Golden Fleece

Posted on October 3, 2011 by swarm

Like the endless nature documentaries that invariably used a football field as the default unit of measurement for flea-jumping, nearly every educational book or film that mentions spiders always talked about the incredible unrealized potential of spider silk. “Pound for … Continue reading →

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