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<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>It is
seldom and delightful when I get to see something in nature I had never seen
before. This week I saw two things.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>My
folks have a toy poodle and a housecat. Both were outside when the
neighbors' dog strayed over (a mongrel beast) and attacked the poodle (although
without intent to slay or seriously injure.) The poodle yelped, resulting
in the housecat charging the attacker, clearly *with* the intention of causing
maximum harm (yowling and hissing with murder in her eye.) In all the
years I have observed pets, I have never seen a housecat angrily attack a much
larger dog. From the usual evolutionary altruism explanations, I don't see
why the cat did this. It is entirely possible she thinks she is a dog,
having never seen a mirror.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial>Observation 2, just today, I learned that earwigs can fly! I
never even knew they had wings. I wasn't sure I was believing what I saw,
until I googled and found the following comment on Wiki:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>"<FONT
color=#000000> Earwigs rarely fly, even though they are capable of </FONT><A
title="Insect flight" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_flight"><FONT
color=#0645ad>flight</FONT></A><FONT color=#000000>."</FONT></FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT size=2 face=Arial><A
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earwig">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earwig</A></FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I have
seen thousands of these things, and it wasn't until today I ever saw one
fly.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial>spike</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375060420-31052010><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
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