vladimirdinets.bsky.social
@vladimirdinets.bsky.social
31 year ago, in December 1994, Russian army invaded Chechnya. At that moment it became obvious to me that the Russian Empire could only be destroyed, not changed. (1/4)
December 13, 2025 at 9:19 PM
A Soviet joke updated:
Trump gathers his cabinet & other prominent conservatives and declares:
"To make America great again, I've come up with a 2-part plan. Part 1: deport, kill, imprison or enslave all women, non-whites, and Democrat voters. Part 2: replace Calibri font with Times New Roman."(1/2)
December 12, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Cleaner wrasses take about as long to recognize themselves in the mirror as mirror-naive humans: link.springer.com/chapter/10.1...
When Exactly Do Cleaner Wrasse Recognize the Mirror Image as the Self?
Thus far, we have provided a comprehensive picture of cleaner wrasse MSR behavior. One fundamental element, however, remains unclear. That is, when exposed to a mirror, exactly when in the process do ...
link.springer.com
December 10, 2025 at 5:15 AM
I recently learned a new English word :-) I stopped on a roadside in northern Florida to photography a pocket gopher, but instantly walked into some coastal sandburs (Cenchrus spinifex), and had to walk back to the car to get painful little burrs out of my feet. (1/2)
December 9, 2025 at 5:02 AM
I once wrote a paper (with K. Asada) suggesting that some brown rats in Japan are not introduced but an ancient native population. This was just confirmed by a mol study showing the population on Iturup (an island connected to Hokkaido in Pleistocene) is 50+ ky old.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Genomic insights into adaptive evolution of Island brown rats (Rattus norvegicus): evidence from Iturup Island in the Russian Far East - BMC Ecology and Evolution
BMC Ecology and Evolution - The global spread of Rattus norvegicus has been shaped by human activity and climate change, with island isolation driving unique evolutionary paths. Understanding...
link.springer.com
December 8, 2025 at 3:24 AM
Reposted
This week, Russia once again showed who truly holds power over Trump.
My latest…
Trump Has Turned the U.S. Into Moscow’s Newest Satellite State
This week, Russia once again showed who truly holds power over Trump.
open.substack.com
December 6, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Winter is the most boring time in our forests. I went for a hike in Great Swampyesterday and the only interesting thing was flat- this clubmoss (Dendrolycopodium obscurum) producing spores. The only interesting mushrooms I found recently were in my backyard: Cyathus striatus and Pholiota aurivella.
December 5, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Many (possibly all) diurnal tree squirrels of subfamily Sciurinae have good night vision and can be active at dusk and occasionally at night. Here's an eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis carolinensis) out and about on a moonlit night. Paynes Prairie SP, Florida.
December 5, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Scarlet-bodied wasp moth (Cosmosoma myrodora), Ichetucknee Springs SP, Florida.
December 4, 2025 at 7:14 PM
December 4, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Southern barred owl (Strix varia georgica, Paynes Prairie SP, Florida) vs. northern barred owl (S. v. varia, Great Swamp NWR, New Jersey).
December 4, 2025 at 5:17 AM
More fauna from the wonderful Santa Fe River basin of Florida:
Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
December 4, 2025 at 5:08 AM
Back from a 4-day trip to Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. One of the high points was swimming with bowfins. Bowfins (a.k.a. "poor man's coelacanths") are ancient fishes that were very diverse and widespread from Jurassic to Eocene, but today are endemic to eastern North America. (1/2)
December 3, 2025 at 1:40 AM
Reposted
Energy transitions can happen faster than we think:

In 2000 almost 90% of Denmark's electricity was from fossil fuels.

In 2024 less than 10% of Danish electricity was from fossil fuels.
December 1, 2025 at 4:18 PM
My review of Zootopia 2: dinets.home.blog/2025/11/29/z...
November 29, 2025 at 3:35 AM
November 27, 2025 at 2:08 AM
These squirrels have been introduced (presumably from Taiwan, where they are also non-native) to many locations in Japan. Some populations have been eradicated, but the one on Izu Peninsula is too well established for that. But what are they? (1/3)
November 26, 2025 at 3:32 AM
A fun fact: the 1976 graduating class of the Turbostroyitel (Turbine-Builder) Judo Club of Leningrad, which Putin attended at the time, has given the world more billionaires than the Harvard Business School in its entire history.
November 25, 2025 at 8:43 PM
I'm trying to go through our photos from Japan before the next trip. Here are some more:
Part 1: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 2: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 3: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 4: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
Part 5: www.instagram.com/vladimir_din...
November 25, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Chinese octopus (Octopus sinensis) living in a discarded bottle. Izu Peninsula, Japan.
November 24, 2025 at 6:45 PM
November 24, 2025 at 6:43 PM
My book Wildlife Spectacles is almost sold out: there's just one new copy left on Amazon for US$11 and a few I still have at home. You can snatch the last one from Amazon or get a signed copy from me for the same price plus postage.
www.amazon.com/Wildlife-Spe...
Wildlife Spectacles: Mass Migrations, Mating Rituals, and Other Fascinating Animal Behaviors
Amazon.com: Wildlife Spectacles: Mass Migrations, Mating Rituals, and Other Fascinating Animal Behaviors: 9781604696714: Dinets, Vladimir: Books
www.amazon.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Japanese greater horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus nippon) in an old road tunnel, Izu Peninsula.
November 23, 2025 at 4:39 PM