alexandria-notes

[alexandria-notes]

When Whales Walked.

A mini essay/ranting post.

The Cenozoic Era, which spans from 66 million years ago all the way to now, is the era of “recent life.” During this era, and its Epochs, plants and animals looked mostly like what they look like today.

That is to say the plants and animals aside from whales, and what we now know as Tree Sloths—though, sloths will be another post.

But, the focus of this post is the evolutionary history of whales. Because what the fuck, nature?

The first whales such as Pakicetas, were typical land animals! They literally look nothing like what a whale looks like today, they might’ve even had shaggy fur. But, what they do have as really the only similarity to whales, is their inner ear having been surrounded by a bony wall. That is probably the ONLY similarity between the two, I shit you not.

It just really makes me go “nature, what the actual FUCK??” Because you’re going to sit here and tell me that the Pakicetas, as pictured below, is a WHALE from the Eocene Epoch (56–34 million years ago)?? It just amazes me—that a whale which, depending on the species, can be as long as 79ft (~24 meters)… evolved from something that was estimated to be around 1 to 2 meters in length? What the hell!

If you made it this far—let me bless your eyeballs with the Pakicetas:

Below are the references I used to help me make this post:

[alexandria-notes]

Entomology Stuff!

Introduction

Hello!! This is going to be a little series of posts about insects and arachnids! I will be doing this in alphabetical order, but this will not be an extensive or all-encompassing list; just some bugs that I like!! Feel free to request insects or arachnids that you would like to learn more about!

Starting with the letter A

American Cockroach:

Order: Blattodea

Metamorphosis: Hemimetabolous

Mouth part: Chewing

Significance: Pest

Extras!

Blattodea is an order of insects that contains cockroaches and termites. Formerly, termites have been, at one time, considered a separate order, Isoptera, but genetic and molecular evidence suggests they evolved from within the cockroach lineage, cladistically making them cockroaches as well.

Ant lion:

Order: Neuroptera

Metamorphosis: Holometabolous

Mouth part: Chewing

Significance: Beneficial

Extras!

The antlions are a group of about 2,000 species of insect in the neuropteran family Myrmeleontidae. They are known for the predatory habits of their larvae, which mostly dig pits to trap passing ants or other prey.

Aphids:

Order: Hemiptera

Metamorphosis: Hemimetabolous

Mouth part: Piercing/sucking

Significance: Beneficial

Extras!

Many aphid species are "monophagous," meaning they only eat one specific type of plant. But others, like the green peach aphid (Myzus persicae), are not fussy and can feed on hundreds of different plant species. Aphids are generally not considered beneficial to plants, as they are sap-sucking insects that can damage plants by feeding on their sap and potentially transmitting diseases. However, aphids can indirectly help a garden by attracting beneficial insects that prey on them.

Armored Scale:

Order: Hemiptera

Metamorphosis: Hemimetabolous

Mouth part: Piercing/sucking

Significance: Pest

Extras!

These are part of the family Diaspididae! And I don’t particularly care for these bugs, but I thought that adding these ones to the list would inspire someone to look them up! Cause they are MAJOR pests!!

Assassin Bug:

Order: Hemiptera

Metamorphosis: Hemimetabolous

Mouth part: Piercing/sucking

Significance: Beneficial

Extras!

These bugs range from Southeastern Canada, North America, and into some parts of Mexico! Adults and larvae of this species can be found on low herbaceous growth, shrubs, and deciduous trees in wooded habitats as well as along roadsides. They’re typically most active during the daytime in Spring and Summer. They also eat Aphids!

Thanks for reading! Please let me know if you have any questions, or a specific bug that you’d like to see get some love!!

[alexandria-notes]

Welcome!

Hello!! Hope all is well!! My name is Alexandria, and you might know me from my main blog alexandria-witch !

This side blog is for me to share my non-witchy learnings in a semi-organized way!! I am an avid reader, and I always want to learn about something new!! So this blog might be updated more than my main—lol!

I like to write mini essays to aid me in ny understanding of the topics I read about! So if you like that kind of content—then I hope you stick around!!

And, as always; this is a safe space for everyone and anyone who needs it! I use the block button very liberally!!

Anyways; once I have enough things written, this post will be a master post of sorts for all my mini essays and notes! So do check back every now and then!

Thanks for reading this, and I hope you have a wonderful day!!