Jennifer W. Hanson
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jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Jennifer W. Hanson
@jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
1.3K followers 870 following 6.6K posts
Copyeditor & indexer specializing in books on birds/birding. Writing a NJ moth guide. NWS weather spotter. Free-range birding librarian/archivist. She/her.
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jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
"Two Green Monsters" in which Cthulhu takes in a ballgame at the hometown ballpark. #baseball
A Cthulhu plushie looms over a paper model of Fenway Park. Cthulhu looms over the right field stands.
November 2, 2025 at 6:58 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Well, we hit the 5” mark in Eastham and went a bit over. I just emptied out the gauge so we can measure what is yet to come. #mawx Spotter #21-241 @wx1box.bsky.social @capecodweather.net
A rain-spattered plastic rain gauge on a wooden deck, the base stuck between the deck planks. The gauge’s background is dark blue, the lettering is white. There is lightly over 5” of accumulated rain in the gauge.
October 14, 2025 at 2:36 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Now we’re up to about 2.70” in my Eastham rain gauge. Windy and drizzling aggressively. Spotter #21-241 #mawx @wx1box.bsky.social @capecodweather.net
A rain-spattered plastic rain gauge stuck into a wooden deck between planks. The rain gauge has a dark blue background with white lettering and measurement lines. The gauge leans slightly to the left and contains about 2.70” of water.
October 13, 2025 at 6:56 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Breyer Stablemate mare, glossy red chestnut with four white socks, “Nadira” from the 2023 Stablemate Collectors Club. Mold originally sculpted by Maureen Love for Hagen-Renaker. #modelhorse
Arabian mare facing right, head down, white socks on all four legs. Dark reddish chestnut, glossy finish.
September 26, 2025 at 9:26 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
This Breyer western prancer was one of the first models I ever got (probably at a house sale). #modelhorse
A buckskin horse facing right with its left foreleg lifted up high. The horse has black points and a short eel stripe on its back near the tail. A bridle without a noseband is molded on; when new, the model had chain reins. The horse’s face is mostly white. There are no white markings on the legs.
September 23, 2025 at 8:54 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Another photo of this gray classic Arabian stallion. Would probably look better against a different background.
Breyer classic Arabian stallion facing right. Steel gray with black points and four white stockings.
September 23, 2025 at 8:25 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Not really a shelf, just some papers on top of some books, but here’s a conga of Breyer classic Arabian stallions. Second from the left is a Toys R Us special run from the Drinkers of the Wind set in steel gray with black points with white socks. #modelhorse
Four Breyer classic Arabian stallions in a row. The mold has a lifted left foreleg. The mold was originally sculpted by Maureen Love for Hagen-Renaker. From left to right: chestnut with flaxen mane and tail, steel gray with black points, fleabitten gray “bloody shoulder,” glossy dark bay.
September 22, 2025 at 6:41 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Banded Sphinx (Eumorpha fasciata) at Plainsboro Preserve. A southern species. I found this one in 2008 the morning after Tropical Storm Hanna passed through.
A large brown moth with yellow stripes on its body and pointed wings. It is perched on a gray wooden wall.
September 15, 2025 at 11:09 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Olive Arta (Arta olivalis) at Whitesbog, NJ.
A triangular pale green moth sits on a white person’s thumb. The moth is smaller than the person’s thumbnail. The viewpoint shows a back view of the moth’s folded wings, which are crossed by two thin pale green lines and bordered by a thick reddish brown line at the ends of the wings.
September 7, 2025 at 9:40 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Unkle’s Service Center. Goshen, NJ.
Sign reading UNKLE’S SERVICE CENTER. Black letters on white, bordered on the top by a white band with silver ovals (that probably were once logos). Up top, there is a rectangle with a barely visible Coca-Cola logo. Behind the sign is a dark blue building with white trim and brackets underneath the roofline.
August 30, 2025 at 6:08 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
This isn’t one of the yard voles but one we saw at Manasquan Reservoir. It had a nice little burrow near the birdfeeders. It’s pretty cute.
A small brown vole peeks out of a burrow. It looks very round. The burrow is surrounded by dried yellow grass.
August 25, 2025 at 12:44 AM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
The Pink-Streak (Dargida rubripennis) at Franklin Parker Preserve in Chatsworth. A Pine Barrens specialty.
A moth perched on a brown wood background. The moth is overall light golden brown in color. There are wide magenta streaks down the middle of the forewings and magenta shading on the outer edges of the forewings towards the wingtips. Also, there are magenta triangles on the outer edges of the forewings that do not connect to the magenta forewing stripes but are closer to the outer edges of the wing stripes One magenta front leg is stretched out on the right side and a black eye is visible on the left side.
August 9, 2025 at 11:13 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Ailanthus Webworm Moth (Atteva aurea) on goldenrod at the NY side of Liberty Loop at Wallkill NWR.
A micromoth climbing on yellow goldenrod flowers. The moth is tube-shaped with black legs and antennae. The folded wings of the moth are orange with bands of white spots outlined with black.
August 2, 2025 at 10:07 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Maple Spanworm Moth (Ennomos magnaria) at Plainsboro Preserve.
An orange moth perched on a wooden railing. Its folded wings point downward toward the ground. It is lightly mottled with dark brown speckles and the outer edge of its wing is scalloped. It looks very much like a dead autumn leaf about to drop. The stout body is the same mottled orange color as the wings.
August 2, 2025 at 10:31 AM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
And here’s a late afternoon photo from there, looking out over the salt marshes in May. Photo by me.
Overlooking a salt marsh. Farther off is light green marsh grass lit by the sun. Closer is open water reflecting the sky, appearing dark gray, though the sky (which can be seen over the marsh) is blue with one large gray cumulus cloud. The vista is loosely framed by branches and green leaves of woodland vegetation. A dark green line of trees can be seen along the horizon.
July 25, 2025 at 2:51 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Horrid Zale (Zale horrida) in Plainsboro.
A dark brown moth is perched on a pale brown building wall. Its wings are spread. The wings are mostly dark brown with a hint of obscure patterning (like velvet). The outer edges of the wings have a thick border that has saw-toothed patterns within it. The inner edge of the forewing border is wavy. The border looks like dark gilt. The total effect is similar to what a Mourning Cloak butterfly looks like.
July 25, 2025 at 12:01 AM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Chickweed Geometer (Haematopis grataria) at Plainsboro Preserve.
A yellow moth is perched on a brown grass seed-head with its wings spread. The outer edges of the wings are bordered with a magenta stripe. There are two other magenta stripes running across the moth’s wings (both forewings and hindwings are visible) and the line closest to the moth’s head is wavy. Each forewing has a magenta dot above the innermost line. Out-of-focus green grass can be seen in the background.
July 24, 2025 at 3:47 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Smaller Parasa (Parasa chloris) at Plainsboro Preserve. One of my friends once described this species as like a Key lime crossed with a woolly mammoth.
Side view of a micro moth perched on a window and facing rightward. It is mostly brown and standing on four (visible) thick and fuzzy legs. The wings are folded over the back and the face is not visible, though one brown antenna is folded along the moth’s side. The head is lime green and there is a wide green patch with rounded edges in the center of the folded wing. There is an indistinct reflection underneath the moth on the window, which looks dark.
July 23, 2025 at 4:59 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Pondside Pyralid (Elophila icciusalis) perched underneath some grass at Ryker Lake.
A micro moth with a yellow ground color and wavy white spots and lines on its wings. The white markings are outlined in black. The moth is perched head downwards on the underside of some green grass blades, which are enormous compared to the moth. The moth’s eye is black. The outer edges of the moth’s wings are white with a border of black dashes on the inner side.
July 23, 2025 at 1:15 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Showy Emerald (Dichorda iridaria) at Plainsboro Preserve.
A pale green moth perches facing downward on a two-toned wall. The lower part of the wall is dark green, the upper part is white. The moth has bold white stripes running diagonally across its wings. The longest set of white stripes runs from the forewings down across the hindwings; this line has a darker line inside it on the side closer to the moth’s head. There are other stripes on the forewings that do not continue onto the hindwings; these lines are closer to the moth’s head and have a darker line alongside them on the outer edge, on the side nearer the outer edge of the wing. There are two tiny black dots, one on each hindwing. The moth’s head is small and looks white, the antennae are tucked under the forewings. The outer edges of the moth’s wings look pale.
July 23, 2025 at 1:38 AM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Carmine Snout (Peoria approximella), a glamour shot from Plainsboro Preserve. If you change the name to “Carmine the Snout,” it sounds like a bit character in The Sopranos.
Side view of a micro moth standing with the front part of its body tilted upward on a white sheet under a bright light with its wings folded. The moth is narrow and shaped a bit like a dart. It has long palps (mouthparts) sticking out in front of its face. The head and palps are magenta (or maybe carmine). A wide cream stripe runs down the leading edge of the folded wing. The cream stripe is outlined by a hint of a narrow black line. There is a magenta wash further inward on the folded wing, further inward the rest of the wing is cream-colored. The moth’s eye is dark translucent reddish. The moth’s legs are magenta and cream in color. The moth’s thin antennae lie along the folded wings and are cream-colored.
July 23, 2025 at 1:07 AM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
This horse is driving me crazy. I want to do a couple of repaints on this color and mold. But this one is OF (original finish) & I want an OF in the collection. Don’t want to buy more horses to repaint right now, especially since there are others to paint. #modelhorses
Black Breyer Stablemate Arabian “Akilah.” The model is a black Arabian facing right with its head lifted up and the right hind leg cocked.
June 22, 2025 at 7:32 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
@themerl.bsky.social Here’s an absolute unit for you. #modelhorses Brown gloss Beswick Shire sculpted by Arthur Gredington. #modelhorses
A sculpture of a bay draft horse facing toward the right. The horse has a white blaze on its face and white socks on all of its very feathered legs. There is a green and gold oval Beswick sticker in n the horse’s hip.
June 22, 2025 at 6:45 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
This is the little corner of the garden containing the plants that I’ve bought from elsewhere rather than planting myself. Left to right, they are sweet basil, rosemary, spearmint, and tarragon. A pot in the back has dead-looking branches in it with seed heads on them. That is Thai basil.
Five pots of herbs on a wooden deck next to the door of a building that is covered in cedar shingles.
June 8, 2025 at 8:43 PM
jenniferwhanson.bsky.social
Book mail. It’s always nice to unwind with a gull ID guide.
Front cover of The Gull Guide: North America by Amar Ayyash.
May 19, 2025 at 10:03 PM