Giraffe Girl
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longnecked.bsky.social
Giraffe Girl
@longnecked.bsky.social
100 followers 12 following 27 posts
I love giraffes๐Ÿฆ’ and fungi ๐Ÿ„ and enjoy sharing random sciencey things ๐Ÿ‘ฉ๐Ÿปโ€๐Ÿ”ฌ
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Say hi to Chestnut ๐Ÿ„ The start to my #noodoll family ๐Ÿงธ๐Ÿ’• Credits to @bigbisc.bsky.social for the crochet mushrooms and basket ๐Ÿฅนโค๏ธ

#fungifriends
๐ง๐ฎ๐๐ข๐›๐ซ๐š๐ง๐œ๐ก๐ฌ: carnivorous; exposed gills; clubbed-shaped rhinophores

๐ฌ๐ž๐š ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ (๐ด๐‘๐‘™๐‘ฆ๐‘ ๐‘–๐‘–๐‘‘๐‘Ž): herbivorous; feeds on seaweed; less colourful

๐ฌ๐ž๐š ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฌ (clade Gymnosomata): foot developed into wing-like flaps; mostly transparent

๐ฌ๐š๐œ๐จ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฌ๐š๐ง๐ฌ: feed on algae; sequesters chloroplast for photosynthesis
Sea slugs are cute, beautiful and enchanting โœจ๐ŸŒ But their name is just a colloquial umbrella term for many different โ€˜slug-likeโ€™ sea creatures. Letโ€™s break it down once and for all! (Expand thread for typed version.)

#seaslugs #nudibranchs #sacoglossans #seahares #seaangels #marineanimals
Bioluminescent #fungi + dead wood = sustainable light source?

Scientists co-cultivated ringless honey mushrooms (Desarmillaria tabescens) and decaying wood to create a glowing biohybrid. This works because the fungus produces luciferin, a light-emitting compound, after breaking down lignin! ๐Ÿ“„๐Ÿ”—โฌ‡๏ธ
That looks about right, especially considering its cosmopolitan distribution. Thanks!!
Saw these on the side of the road earlier this year. What species might they be?

#fungifriends #fungi #mushroom
Iโ€™m allergic to cuteness ๐Ÿฅน
The #bluenature series will now be on break but will likely come back next month! I have ideas for different themes, so stay tuned :)
Will it affect the effectiveness of the drugs?
Day 7 of #bluenature, the North Island kลkako (Callaeas wilsoni).

This bird gave the blue pinkgill (see Day 4) its Mฤori name, werewere-kลkako, because of its blue wattle (loose skin hanging from the neck). It is otherwise black/grey and sometimes called the โ€œblue-wattled crowโ€.

๐Ÿ“ท Matt Binns
Reposted by Giraffe Girl
Mushrooms of the Psilocybe genus is rich in #psilocybin, a well-known psychedelic compound.

Once ingested, psilocybin is metabolised to psilocin, which activates serotonin receptors in the brain (5-HT2A). But the effects vary greatly depending on the person and the context!

#fungifriends ๐Ÿ„โ€๐ŸŸซ
Day 6 of #bluenature, cyanobacteria ๐Ÿฆ 

A phylum with 6000+ species, their colour comes from pigments like phycocyanin (blue) and chlorophyll (green). Theyโ€™re the first organisms known to produce O2, contributing to the Great Oxygenation Event and the oxygen-rich atmosphere today!

๐Ÿ“ท Willem van Aken
Two extra facts because theyโ€™re just too cool! 1๏ธโƒฃ Their blue side is also thought to protect them from UV light. 2๏ธโƒฃ They feed on siphonophores (relatives of hydra and jellyfish) but store their preyโ€™s stings (nematocysts) for its own defence against predators ๐Ÿคฏ
Day 5 of #bluenature, the blue dragon ๐ŸŒŠ๐Ÿ‰

This mythlike creature (Glaucus atlanticus) has a blue underbelly and a silver-grey back. But they swim upside-down, so the blue side faces up. This is an example of countershading, making them harder to spot by predators above and below!

๐Ÿ“ท Sylke Rohrlach
Yeah! I think it is, or at least was, being studied to see if it can be used as a natural blue food dye.
That looks adorable and amazing at the same time!! Thank you for sharing!
We actually donโ€™t know! But a lot of species from the same genus (Entoloma) are poisonous
Calling #fungifriends for day 4 of #bluenature, the blue pinkgill!

The skyblue mushroom (Entoloma hochstetteri) is the first of the series so far to be blue due to pigmentation by azulene. Itโ€™s also the only mushroom to be featured on money - New Zealandโ€™s $50 note!

๐Ÿ“ท Mary Smiley (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Day 3 of #bluenature, forget-me-nots!

There are ~60 species of Myosotis, a name that comes from Greek for โ€œmouseโ€™s earโ€. Most are blue, but some are pink! ๐ŸŒธ Theyโ€™re also called scorpion grasses for the way they arrange in a spiral, like the curve of a scorpion tail ๐Ÿฆ‚

๐Ÿ“ท hedera.baltica (Flickr)
I just made up the challenge on random - feel free to use the hashtag and start your own!! :)
Day 2 of #bluenature, the adorable lumpfish (Cylcopterus lumpus)! ๐ŸŸ

The only species of its genus, lumpfish are useful cleaner fish used in salmon fisheries to get rid of parasitic copepods. Only juveniles appear blue due to biofluorescence โ€” adults and babies look green!

๐Ÿ“ท Reidun Marie Bjelland
Day 1 of #bluenature, the icon of #bluesky ๐Ÿฆ‹

Morpho is a genus of butterflies found mostly in South/Central America and Mexico. Their blue colour comes not from pigmentation, but iridescence caused by the structure of their microscopic scales!

๐Ÿ“ท credit: TexasEagle (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Should I start a #bluenature challenge where I post something blue from nature every day? ๐Ÿฆ‹๐Ÿž๏ธ