Cara Cannon Byington
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ccbyington.bsky.social
Cara Cannon Byington
@ccbyington.bsky.social
Writer @ Cool Green Science. NatureNerd. HistoryNerd. Hiking, Kayaking, Photography. Out and about looking at all the things.
Pinned
New to BlueSky, but still writing for The Nature Conservancy and hanging with @matthewlmiller.bsky.social and @justinehausheer.bsky.social thoughts and opinions my own
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Elon Musk's friends have infiltrated another government agency: the General Services Administration.

His former employees are trying to use White House credentials to access GSA's tech, giving them the potential to remote into laptops, read emails, and more:
Elon Musk's Friends Have Infiltrated Another Government Agency
Elon Musk’s former employees are trying to use White House credentials to access General Services Administration tech, giving them the potential to remote into laptops, read emails, and more, sources…
wrd.cm
January 31, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Look, Trump is trying to oversaturate us with nonstop chaos so we can’t react meaningfully to any one thing.

But Friday's global stop work order on almost all U.S. aid is dumb and murderous. You need to know about it.

1/ A short🧵on this evil.
US freezes almost all foreign aid effective immediately | CNN Politics
The US State Department has frozen nearly all foreign assistance worldwide effective immediately days after President Donald Trump issued a sweeping executive order Monday to put a hold on such assist...
www.cnn.com
January 28, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Today’s much needed tidepooling was figuring out my new underwater camera.
This photo is not from it, I haven’t looked at those yet but I suspect they will all be super blurry.
This guy was too close to the surface to use it anyway, a #hiltonsaeolid #nudibranch
February 1, 2025 at 6:12 AM
Gar Question to settle a bet @solomonrdavid.bsky.social in the Everglades this week—Florida gar? Or nah? (Toe of shoe and dock for scale—about 2-feet long)
January 31, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
If any PI or department has flexible funds & wants to help create this #openaccess sound analysis app, our goal is to raise $6k. Any major supporters would be able to have their own logo & example data built into the app & guide us in finalizing the design & functionality 🧪🔊
👋 Fans of #bioacoustics, birdsong & #openaccess education!

We need help funding a FREE web app to bring sound analysis to any classroom! Developed by @galacticpolymath.com for grades 6-university 🔈🧪🦉🐋

Test BETA app👉 soundlab-gold.vercel.app
Email if you have funds 🙌 soundlab@galacticpolymath.com
January 25, 2025 at 3:23 AM
Bodie says goodnight, Bluesky.
January 25, 2025 at 3:52 AM
How I’ve been getting thru the week (and the winter). blog.nature.org/2025/01/21/h...
How To: Go Snow Day Birding (with Merlin)
Or how I learned to love winter wildlife watching (with a little help from technology and the perfect pair of mittens.)
blog.nature.org
January 25, 2025 at 3:40 AM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
My latest for @newscientist.bsky.social is a response to a reader question about how we know that dark matter isn't just dust! It's a nice thing to take a break with, given everything else happening in our corner of the universe.

Ask your library for access!

www.newscientist.com/article/mg26...
Why we should talk about invisible matter, not dark matter
The word "dark" is misleading when it comes to dark matter, because it suggests there is some kind of absorption of light happening, says Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
www.newscientist.com
January 24, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Somebody yelled at me for posting about Ganymede instead of /the state of things/ last night.

I know we’re (almost) all on the same page here, but a Bluesky without cute cats, science facts, and dumb jokes would be bad for everyone.
January 24, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Preorder. This. Book! 👇
November 20, 2024 at 5:45 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Welcome immigrants from X interested in science to the friendlier skies of @bsky.app, as documented by a new @nature.com survey (but you already knew that 😉)
"Bluesky is much better for science. There is much less toxicity, misinformation, and distractions."
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
January 24, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Sunrise above a small island in the vast Sagebrush Sea.

In this cold high desert with all the creatures in their subterranean nests waiting for summer’s warmth. All the life –not considered by many– but obsessed on by few.

Snakes, lizards, seeds.
Cicadas, wasps, spiders.

All there. Waiting.
January 16, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
NEW: Now you can look up detailed demographic information about thousands of private schools across the country and compare them to nearby public schools.

By @cerealcommas.bsky.social, @natlash.bsky.social & @schwanksta.com
ProPublica Releases New Private School Demographics Lookup
Now you can look up detailed demographic information about thousands of private schools across the country and compare them to nearby public schools.
www.propublica.org
January 16, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
I've spend the past year writing a book on Australia's fantastic threatened fauna. w/ 9 months to go before deadline (eek!) I thought I'd share some highlights from my reporting so far... 🧵
November 23, 2024 at 9:15 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
"For the first time, Ethiopian wolves have been documented feeding on the nectar of Ethiopian red hot poker flowers. This is the first large carnivore species ever to be documented feeding on nectar."

Sweet tooth: Ethiopian wolves seen feeding on nectar www.biology.ox.ac.uk/article/swee... #wolves
Sweet tooth: Ethiopian wolves seen feeding on nectar
www.biology.ox.ac.uk
November 24, 2024 at 3:05 AM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Glad I cruised the yard for insects this afternoon. Found this "oil beetle," probably Meloe campanicollis, clinging to the base of our backyard wood fence. New one for our less-than-half-an-acre property in Leavenworth, Kansas, USA. We're over 1,600 animal taxa in 3.5 years.
November 24, 2024 at 3:01 AM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Something wonderful for the weekend!

About 40,000 years ago, during the #IceAge, this tiny figurine was sculpted from mammoth ivory. Imagine the artist at work, sitting by the warmth and flickering light of a fire, carving what is the world’s oldest known sculpture of a horse!
📷 by me

#Archaeology
November 23, 2024 at 12:15 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Sam Vimes knows. #discworld #TerryPratchett
November 22, 2024 at 3:35 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
A large swath of northwestern CA experienced (record-breaking) 48-hr rainfall exceeding estimated 100-yr recurrence interval (using methods that do not account for climate change) from this slow-moving #AtmosphericRiver event; heavy rain remains ongoing in some areas. #CAwx
November 22, 2024 at 9:38 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Yes, the tattoo will be based on a medieval bat from a manuscript in our archives! Yes, we will keep you updated on this important developing story! YES OF COURSE we will be referring to it as a battoo and asking to see it every time we work with @liber-ray.bsky.social.
November 22, 2024 at 3:13 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
This is a fascinating and charming history the 25 most important American recipes of the past 100 years slate.com/life/2024/11...
The 25 Recipes That Changed It All in American Cooking Over the Past 100 Years
A century of American braising, baking, and imbibing, just in time for Thanksgiving.
slate.com
November 22, 2024 at 12:27 PM
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1... if you’re having a bad day, here’s a story about a Japanese shoe-stealing weasel.
Paws up! Police find shoe thief at a kindergarten is actually a weasel.
Police in southwest Japan installed cameras after nearly two dozen children’s shoes went missing from Gosho Kodomo-en kindergarten in Fukuoka. The culprit? A weasel.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 22, 2024 at 12:39 PM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Half a Woodpecker!! A very shy Great Spotted! Back garden Birmingham UK - 20-11-24 #birds #ukbirding #ornithology #nature #uknature #ukwildlife #canon #woodpeckers
November 21, 2024 at 6:40 PM
Velvet ants? And Ireland? Automatic follow.
Did you know?

Ireland has one species of Velvet Ant, which is actually a wasp and not an ant!

Why could it be confusingly called a Red-headed Black-headed Velvet Ant? Read the ALT in the first image for more...

BTW: In future, I will just add the text "ALT+" to encourage you to read the ALT.
November 22, 2024 at 11:19 AM
Reposted by Cara Cannon Byington
Word of the day is ‘quiddler’ (19th century): one who pays great attention to trivial matters as a way of avoiding the important ones.
November 21, 2024 at 12:14 PM