nevillepark – Page 17

Debate Night

My Storify of the first leaders’ debate for the upcoming federal election. As promised, all fluff and snark, zero substance.

Cllr Layton’s “House of Cards” moment

Just one of those little moments that make council-watching worth it: Cllr Layton breaks the fourth wall during the 2015 budget debate. I’ve included his whole speech for context; skip to around 3m40s for the good stuff.

Pardosa update

So I went back to the meadow where I found all those wolf spiders in the hopes of finding a few Pardosa in various stages of motherhood. Enjoy!

Here’s a female wolf spider that, judging by her big round abdomen, is gravid (pregnant).

While I saw (but failed to capture) a couple spiders carrying around young, I did see some that still had egg sacs. I wonder how long it takes for them to hatch?

I had given up on catching and photographing a wolf spider with her young. I was taking a stroll by the pond before heading home when I spotted this tiny wolf spider scurrying along the pavement. It was only when I was taking the picture that I realized she was carrying a few spiderlings on her back! Usually they have more, smaller ones, but you get the picture.

Jumping Spiders I Have Known

Most wild animals are either indifferent or fearful towards humans, preferring to run away when they realize a human has noticed them — or attack when they cannot escape. Spiders are no different in this regard. Many of them are too short-sighted, or live on too small a scale, to recognize humans as other animals and not, say, unusually mobile parts of the landscape. If they do, they deduce that we are neither food nor fellow spiders (for spiders, generally antisocial creatures, these overlap considerably), and they try to get out of our way.

All this means that watching spiders is generally a one-sided relationship. Jumping spiders (family Salticidae¹) are an exception — spiders that watch back. Continue reading Jumping Spiders I Have Known

The Cheat Sheet: July 7 City Council

Because we’ve apparently got to re-hash every major debate we had last term, this month’s big item will be expanded gaming at Woodbine. However, there’s many other important things on City Council’s agenda for this meeting before the August break, including the Poverty Reduction Strategy, childcare funding, flood management, new bike lanes, and more.

Continue reading The Cheat Sheet: July 7 City Council

7 Things To Name-Drop In Your “Laudato Si” Thinkpiece

Pope Francis’ much-hyped encyclical drops today. Are you prepared to sound smart? Here, in no particular order, are 7 references that will convince your readers you didn’t find out what an “encyclical” was yesterday. THANK ME LATER, PUNDITS. Continue reading 7 Things To Name-Drop In Your “Laudato Si” Thinkpiece

The Cheat Sheet: June 10 City Council

I am going through a bit of a Thing and almost considered skipping this month. I’m not, obviously, but please forgive me if this month’s preview is a bit lackluster. Anyway, without further ado, my picks from this month’s agenda. Continue reading The Cheat Sheet: June 10 City Council

Wolf spider photoshoot!

After finding a meadow chock-full of wolf spiders on the southeastern edge of High Park, I resolved to go back and catch a few so I could take more detailed photos. It took planning and a bit of trial and error, but I’m very pleased with the results and am going to try it again sometime! Continue reading Wolf spider photoshoot!

Risotto for one

Risotto has been taking over my life ever since I realized I could make mushroom risotto—one of my favourite dishes—at home. This recipe has been a godsend.

Spring Spiders

Well, after a seemingly eternal winter, flowers are blooming and birds are singing and everything is crawling with life. I’m looking forward to a summer of spider-watching. Most of the orb-weavers (Araneidae) have only just started hatching, but in the meanwhile there are plenty of other kinds of spiders out and about! Meet a few of them after the jump. Continue reading Spring Spiders