You’re Gonna Die Out There

A Scatter Hoard of Nutter Butters

Hey there Nature Nerds! Enjoy this week's full episode all about Squirrels! Also, think of Jen and Megan as they grab some Nutter Butters and hunker down for an incoming Typhoon! <3
Organization to Support: Red Squirrel Survival Trust
https://www.rsst.org.uk/
RED SQUIRRELS ARE HEADING FOR EXTINCTION
Red Squirrels are the UK’s only native squirrel and have lived here longer than humans
TOGETHER WE CAN SAVE THEM
The Grey Squirrel
The introduction of grey squirrels from America between 1876 and 1929 and their rapid spread had a devastating impact on red squirrel populations in the British Isles. In contrast to the red squirrel which has evolved in Britain over millennia, the heavier grey squirrel lives in denser populations than British woodland can sustain.
Food
The higher population density of the larger grey squirrel results in a higher daily food requirement from its habitat. It can eat a greater variety of plant foods at an earlier stage of maturity. For example, red squirrels find unpalatable the tannin in acorns, a plentiful and high energy food source favoured by greys which will also eat all the other foods eaten by reds. The outcome is inevitable: the red squirrels are literally starved out.
Disease
Grey squirrels are carriers of squirrel-pox virus and often remain asymptomatic. The disease is devastating for red squirrels and an outbreak can wipe out the majority or all of a local population. Infected individuals can take up to two weeks to die, often starving to death as they are unable to feed themselves.
They aim to:
· Raise awareness of the plight of red squirrels
· Protect red squirrels by keeping red and grey squirrels apart
· Fund research on how to secure the long term future of the red squirrel in the UK
· Encourage successful populations of red squirrels
· Reintroduce red squirrels within the UK where conditions are right
· Secure the red squirrel’s natural environment by ensuring our woodlands are healthy
References:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-59819349
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/08/squirrel-attacks-nyc-neighborhood-fear
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/buckley-grey-squirrel-stripe-attack-biting-village-wales-residents-b974135.html
https://www.nola.com/news/vicious-squirrel-attacks-elderly-slidell-man-causing-significant-injuries-authorities-say/article_abbe15e0-c627-11ec-85e6-4b5c44d8f87a.html
https://6abc.com/squirrel-attacks-aggressive-squirrels-queens-rego-park-65th-drive-and-fitchett-street/9233808/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/carleton-place-squirrel-1.6385340
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/alabama-mans-trial-keeping-meth-fueled-attack-squirrel-delayed-rcna13654
https://fox59.com/news/national-world/vicious-squirrel-attack-sends-louisiana-man-to-hospital/
https://blog.nwf.org/2015/01/10-nutty-facts-to-make-you-appreciate-squirrels/
https://www.treehugger.com/happy-squirrel-appreciation-day-4868817
https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/7-fascinating-facts-about-squirrels/
https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/10-nutty-facts-about-squirrels/
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/squirrels
https://www.vice.com/en/article/jgp9x4/the-story-of-primal-astrology-how-one-man-created-an-entire-horoscope
https://www.primalastrology.com/
https://www.primalastrology.com/squirrel.html

Nature Nugget: Super Pigs

This week Jen talks about free range super pigs from Canada!
References:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/20/us-threat-canada-super-pig-boar
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/destructive-super-pigs-from-canada-threaten-the-northern-us-180981692/
https://freerangeamerican.us/canadian-super-pigs/

A Pump for the Fetid Water

This week Jen tells us the survival story of Deborah Scaling Kiley and Brad Cavanagh! Batten down the hatches and sit tight for this lost at sea tale!
Organization to Support: The Pelorus Foundation
www.pelorusfoundation.org
The Pelorus Foundation is addressing the unique opportunity to pair marine scientists and conservation experts with private yachts to conduct vital research. If you are a yacht-owner, work on board or know scientists with a prospective project, please contact us by emailing support@pelorusfoundation.com.
References:
https://explorersweb.com/great-survival-stories-shipwreck-sharks-and-deborah-kiley/
https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/lost-at-sea/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/646229/what-actually-happens-if-you-drink-saltwater#:~:text=Guzzling%20saltwater%20would%20cause%20a,in%20a%20sea%20survival%20situation.%E2%80%9D
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Scaling_Kiley
https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?306743
https://www.newsweek.com/we-just-hear-this-shrill-scream-then-it-was-over-sharks-1760348
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/9671851/shark-week-attack-survivor-ate-friends/
https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/i-watched-sharks-eat-friends-24531975

Nature Nugget: Mosquitoes

Sorry for the delay for this nugget! Technical issues!
This week Megan talks the science behind why some people are tastier to mosquitoes than others!
Reference Articles:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/02/230221113012.htm

A Bottle of Monkey Butt Powder

This week Megan tells us the incredible story of Hugh Glass! Prep your pants to avoid chaffing and enjoy!
Organization to Support: Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend
https://indigenouspeoplesofthecoastalbend.org/
Learn more and follow indigenous groups on social media! It goes a long way- you can also find out more at https://karankawas.com/
They list social media profiles to follow as well and a blog to learn, support, and watch their modern story unfold!
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Glass
https://kids.kiddle.co/Hugh_Glass
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hugh-Glass
http://hughglass.org/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2016/01/06/who-was-real-hugh-glass-leo-dicaprio/78293022/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW-yVdlT3Tg&themeRefresh=1
https://www.historyvshollywood.com/reelfaces/revenant/
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/real-story-revenant-is-far-867620/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karankawa_people
http://www.texasindians.com/karankf.htm
https://www.texastribune.org/2021/10/04/karankawa-corpus-christi-texas-artifacts/
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/karankawa-indians
https://www.rosenberg-library-museum.org/treasures/galvestons-first-settlers-the-karankawa-indians
https://texashighways.com/culture/people/karankawa-descendants-are-reclaiming-their-heritage-after-being-written-off-extinct/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pawnee_people
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pawnee-people
https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=PA022
https://www.tribalpedia.com/us-tribes/m-r/pawnee-tribe/
http://www.native-languages.org/definitions/ree.htm
https://www.legendsofamerica.com/na-arikarawar/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arikara
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arikara
https://www.nps.gov/knri/learn/historyculture/arikara.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sioux
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sioux
https://blog.nativehope.org/sioux-native-americans-their-history-culture-and-traditions

Nature Nugget: Larvae

This week Jen talks about the man who survived 31 days in the Amazon by eating worms? or larvae?!
References:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-64811309
https://www.wettropics.gov.au/worms#:~:text=Three%20classes%20of%20worms%20we,in%20an%20animal's%20intestinal%20tract).
https://www.rainforestcruises.com/guides/eating-suri-in-the-amazon
https://delamazonas.com/en/fauna/insects/edible-insects/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jhonatan-acosta-says-survived-month-lost-amazon-eating-insects-drinking-urine-fighting-off-animals/

A Toothbrush in Your Pocket

This week Jen talks about "Miss Unsinkable," Violet Jessop along with some other unsinkable stories!
Organization to Support: PDSA – pdsa.org.uk
The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) is a veterinary charity in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1917 by Maria Dickin to provide care for sick and injured animals of the poor. It is the UK's leading veterinary charity, carrying out more than one million free veterinary consultations a year, and was until 2009 the largest private employer of fully qualified veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in the UK; only those living within the PDSA's catchment areas can use their services.
LINKS:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_Jessop
https://medium.com/maiden-voyage/miss-unsinkable-the-woman-who-miraculously-escaped-death-aboard-the-titanic-and-her-sisters-b9ed36f9a98
https://medium.com/maiden-voyage/the-story-of-titanics-unsinkable-sister-24c0a2a6ffbb
https://nomadflag.com/violet-jessop/
https://houstonmaritime.org/happy-birthday-violet-jessop/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/titanic-survivor-violet-jessop-facts
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/britannic-sinks-in-aegean-sea
https://allthatsinteresting.com/unsinkable-sam
https://www.historynet.com/judy-the-english-pointer/
https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic-survivor/assad-alexander-thomas-tannous.html
https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/stories/titanic-dogs
https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/news/remembering-dogs-titanic/
https://www.iizcat.com/post/4296/The-legend-of-Unsinkable-Sam-the-cat-who-served-on-and-survived-3-sinking-ships-during-WW2
https://www.bitesizedbritain.co.uk/unsinkable-sam-also-known-as-oskar-or-oscar-is-the111/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judy_(dog)
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/judy-the-dog-who-became-a-prisoner-of-war

Nature Nugget: Pallas’s Cat

This week Jen talks cats! Specifically the Pallas's Cats found on Mount Everest!
LINKS:
https://newsroom.wcs.org/News-
Releases/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/18604/First-Report-of-Rare-Cat-Discovered-on-Mt-
Everest.aspx#:~:text=The%20DNA%20analysis%20of%20scat,food%20source%20for%20Pallas's%20cat.
https://animalia.bio/pallass-cat

Transformer Cow with Lasers

Hey there Nature Nerds! This week, Megan continues her X-files obsession and talks alien abductions and cow mutilation, yikes!
Organization to Support: Scratch.org
Scratch is the world’s largest coding community for children and a coding language with a simple visual interface that allows young people to create digital stories, games, and animations. Scratch is designed, developed, and moderated by the Scratch Foundation, a nonprofit organization.
Scratch promotes computational thinking and problem solving skills; creative teaching and learning; self-expression and collaboration; and equity in computing.
Scratch is always free and is available in more than 70 languages.
References:
https://enigmaticfragments.medium.com/why-do-aliens-visit-farms-and-take-cows-7b34ff40e529
https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2013/11/27/247220595/probing-extraterrestrial-abduction
https://www.history.com/news/first-alien-abduction-account-barney-betty-hill
https://contravientojournal.org/why-aliens-have-such-beef-with-our-cows-a-veterinary-perspective-by-dr-howard-adrian-pijoan/
https://www.history.com/news/cattle-mutilation-1970s-skinwalker-ranch-ufos
https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/nope-jordan-peele-animal-science-aliens/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattle_mutilation
https://www.wondriumdaily.com/bizarre-cattle-mutilations-revive-interest-in-extraterrestrials/
https://science.howstuffworks.com/space/aliens-ufos/cow-abduction.htm
https://www.npr.org/2019/10/08/767283820/not-one-drop-of-blood-cattle-mysteriously-mutilated-in-oregon
https://vault.fbi.gov/Animal%20Mutilation
https://dailyyonder.com/alien-experiment-violent-crime-or-natural-occurrence-cattle-mutilations-in-the-west-continue/2021/06/11/
https://www.space.com/9704-ten-alien-encounters-debunked.html
https://www.rd.com/list/ufo-myths/
https://knowledgenuts.com/2013/11/03/the-first-reported-alien-cow-abduction-was-a-hilarious-hoax/?amp=1
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_reported_UFO_sightings
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_abduction
https://www.livescience.com/alien-discoveries-2021
https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/science-and-technology/27-weird-ufo-facts-that-will-leave-you-scratching-your-head-2729669/

Nature Nugget: Space!

This week Megan talks space travel and how it can alter the brain!
References:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/02/230217103939.htm
https://whoisinspace.com/
https://www.nasa.gov/specials/60counting/spaceflight.html