rebeccathenaturalist

[rebeccathenaturalist]

🚨both good and bad things are happening to todaysbird🚨

(my cute little lady for tax)

so as many of you may already know, i’m in a…not great living situation currently (other issues aside, i live in one single bedroom with my partner, a cat, a dog, and six rats…), and the cost of living is too high in the northeast US (going without medication and must haves), so…ive been looking for places elsewhere. good news: i found a place where i’m approved, and can bring my pets! (With a YARD, which my dog has never had in my time renting). the bad news? i’ve had to move twice in the past two years, we’ve been plagued by health issues, car issues, and general life issues, and we have no savings. while i have enough for the security deposit, i will literally be moving with my clothes and my pets, and that’s pretty much it. i don’t have family members who can help financially support me through this time.

TLDR: I think if I get it together now, I can really get it together, but it’s gonna be hard.

So, yet again (some of you may remember my previous moving sale), I need to get my shit together - REALLY quickly, because my wife is approved for work at our new home, but not in our current state.

what I’m doing to raise these funds:

KO-FI: Commission a bird post here! I ask that you check through the blog so there isn’t anything already done that seems too similar, and put in your message what bird species you’d like me to cover (I can also cover broader topics!). Minimum required payment on Kofi is $3. Please keep in mind there may be a delay, as I’m actively moving, but I WILL make your post!

My Mercari mostly has Vulture Culture & old plushies - I’m adding more stuff 8/29, so take a look if either of those interest you! There’s also some other random odds and ends.

My TOYHOU.SE - mostly selling Warrior Cat characters and some others.

If you can’t use KOFI but you’d like a bird post, let me know and we can try to figure it out.

I’m pretty desperate, so…DM me offers on stuff if you can’t afford it! Seen me post an artwork that isn’t up for sale, but you’re interested? Ask about it! Want a bulk order? Let’s do it! I only have a little time to make or break this, so I’m willing to sell things at a very reasonable cost <3

Thank you, everyone. Reminder that while I appreciate help, this is NOT a paid blog and you are NEVER obligated to buy anything from me or give me a payment. I appreciate you all!

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Hooray for wasps! It's good to see some pro-wasp PR for once.

Follow the link to the Guardian to learn about the incredibly important role parasitoids play in keeping ecosystems healthy; in this case, saving the trees used by Wilkins' bunting from a fungus spread by scale insects!

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Who's excited about my big fall book tour? I'm heading out I-70 on my fall trip to the Missouri Ozarks, and I'll be holding book signing events at bookstores, libraries, and other venues along the way (and one in Anacortes, WA, once I'm back home in the PNW.) I'd love the chance to meet more folks while I'm on the road, and chat with you about why being an everyday naturalist is so great! It'll be a great opportunity to pick up a signed copy of The Everyday Naturalist, and support local bookstores, too.

You can find more information at http://theeverydaynaturalist.com/2025-book-tour/ - I've also put the dates and locations under this convenient cut:

October 2, 6:00pm – Boise, ID – Rediscovered Books, 1576 W Grove St, Boise, ID 83702

October 5, 11:00am – Salt Lake City – Tracy Aviary’s Nature Center at Pia Okwai, Bird Blind, 3310 S 1000 W, South Salt Lake, UT 84119

October 7, 6:00pm – Denver, CO – Tattered Cover, 2526 E Colfax Ave, Denver, CO 80206

October 11, 2:00pm – St. Joseph, MO – The Story Collective, 114 S 7th St, St Joseph, MO 64501

October 12, 3:00pm – Lincoln, Nebraska – Francie & Finch, 130 S 13th St, Lincoln, NE 68508

October 19, 2:00pm – Rolla, MO – Rolla Public Library, 900 N Pine St, Rolla, MO 65401

October 20, 6:00pm – St. Louis, MO – Left Bank Books/Schlafly Public Library, 225 N Euclid Ave, St. Louis, MO 63108

October 23, 6:30pm – Columbia, MO – Skylark Bookshop, 22 S 9th St, Columbia, MO 65201

November 1, 3:00pm – Kansas City, MO – Monarch Books and Gifts, 7713 W 151st St, Overland Park, KS 66223

November 29, 12pm – Anacortes, WA – Watermark Book Company, 612 Commercial Ave, Anacortes, WA 98221

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Who's excited about my big fall book tour? I'm heading out I-70 on my fall trip to the Missouri Ozarks, and I'll be holding book signing events at bookstores, libraries, and other venues along the way (and one in Anacortes, WA, once I'm back home in the PNW.) I'd love the chance to meet more folks while I'm on the road, and chat with you about why being an everyday naturalist is so great! It'll be a great opportunity to pick up a signed copy of The Everyday Naturalist, and support local bookstores, too.

You can find more information at http://theeverydaynaturalist.com/2025-book-tour/ - I've also put the dates and locations under this convenient cut:

October 2, 6:00pm – Boise, ID – Rediscovered Books, 1576 W Grove St, Boise, ID 83702

October 5, 11:00am – Salt Lake City – Tracy Aviary’s Nature Center at Pia Okwai, Bird Blind, 3310 S 1000 W, South Salt Lake, UT 84119

October 7, 6:00pm – Denver, CO – Tattered Cover, 2526 E Colfax Ave, Denver, CO 80206

October 11, 2:00pm – St. Joseph, MO – The Story Collective, 114 S 7th St, St Joseph, MO 64501

October 12, 3:00pm – Lincoln, Nebraska – Francie & Finch, 130 S 13th St, Lincoln, NE 68508

October 19, 2:00pm – Rolla, MO – Rolla Public Library, 900 N Pine St, Rolla, MO 65401

October 20, 6:00pm – St. Louis, MO – Left Bank Books/Schlafly Public Library, 225 N Euclid Ave, St. Louis, MO 63108

October 23, 6:30pm – Columbia, MO – Skylark Bookshop, 22 S 9th St, Columbia, MO 65201

November 1, 3:00pm – Kansas City, MO – Monarch Books and Gifts, 7713 W 151st St, Overland Park, KS 66223

November 29, 12pm – Anacortes, WA – Watermark Book Company, 612 Commercial Ave, Anacortes, WA 98221

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Okay. Y'all. Can I address this for just a moment?

First of all, I've been advocating for libraries as a way to access the book ever since it came out, and telling people to ask their local library to get it into their catalog if it's not already there. I am a HUGE advocate for libraries; I wouldn't be who I am if I hadn't had regular access to them as a kid. So I am absolutely on board with libraries as a fantastic option!

I also am under no illusion about how craptastic our current situation is. However, at this moment it is the system we are all struggling under. It is one thing to want to see a better world, one that is more economically equitable. It is another to act as though authors and bookstores are the bad guys for wanting to get paid so we can survive under the current system, since there is nothing in place to otherwise make sure that we have places to live, have enough to eat, etc. (News flash: only a tiny fraction of authors makes enough money to be full-time writers, and the rest of us have to do other things to bulk up our income.) And why's it always authors and artists who are guilt-tripped about expecting fair compensation for our labor, and not, say, plumbers or mechanics or farmers? Do you value our labor less?

You don't bring about change by hamstringing your fellow workers. You do it by helping create something that will replace the current system so that we can step from the old to the new. If you're a fan of mutual aid, consider donating to the Author's League Fund, which gives independent professional writers in the US financial assistance in times of need, or to the National Writers' Union which gives US writers support in everything from copyright issues to first amendment rights. Advocate for universal healthcare here as well, because a lot of us are looking down the barrel at massive changes to our access to healthcare due to the passing of the recent Big Ugly Bill, up to and including no longer having access at all. (I've got a monthly recurring donation to Healthcare For All Oregon.) These are just examples of concrete things you can do to help right now.

And it's a lot more effective and realistic than complaining about how buying books is only for capitalists. Maybe someday we'll find ourselves in a situation where everyone's needs are met and then some. But for now, the people who put countless hours into writing the books you enjoy reading have bills to pay and bellies to fill, so please don't begrudge us our efforts in that direction.

Okay, which one of you took this picture of me at any of a number of indie bookstores between Portland and St. Louis over the past few months?

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Northern Mockingbird for @cacopheny !!! Thank you so much for the Waymakers contribution!

To donate and request a bird: https://act.theyoungcenter.org/a/birdsbeyondborders . Every dollar helps support unaccompanied immigrant kids in the US!

If you want a ping when yours is done, let me know the date of your donation and your species choice, or include your social media handle in your bird request details!

[rebeccathenaturalist]

what do you mean reverse an overdose? How is that possible?

Hi anon.

So, in my most recent post where I was talking about reversing overdoses, I was talking about Narcan (naloxone).

Narcan is a medicine that can reverse opioid overdoses. It works on any opioids, including fentanyl, heroin, oxy, vicodin, etc. It isn't effective in reversing other kinds of drug overdoses, but would still work to reduce an overdose if your coke has fent in it, for example. It functions by blocking the opioid receptors in your brain and helps restore breathing. Narcan is not a dangerous medication, and it is not harmful to your brain, which means you can be dosed multiple times without increasing harm to your body. The experience of being Narcaned can be pretty fucking shitty, because it basically puts your body in withdrawal super super fast, and you might experience some of the effects of withdrawal like vomiting, body aches and chills, fatigue, etc. But there are not other harmful side effects outside of that. Narcan is safe to give to people of all ages, including children.

Narcan comes in both an nasal spray and intramuscular injections, but it's usually easier to get access to nasal spray. This is what Narcan looks like:

[ID: Someone holding a narcan nasal spray, which has a nozzle that can be placed into someone's nose, and a plunger underneath the nozzle that can be pushed up to administer a dose. Text on the image says: Do not test nasal spray device before use. Each device contains 1 dose of medicine. Each device sprays one time only.]

How to Use Narcan

Identify signs of Overdose

Check for Responsiveness

Administer Narcan

Support (other friends/911/medics)

To administer Narcan, you first need to identify if someone is overdosing. Signs of an opioid overdose can be when someone is unconscious, unresponsive, not breathing or slowly breathing, no pulse or erratic pulse, has pinpoint pupils, and/or has blue lips.

If you see some of these things and think that someone is overdosing, the next step is to check for responsiveness. You can do this by loudly calling the person's name, saying that you are going to Narcan them, gently shaking them, and by performing a sternum rub, which is where you rub your knuckles into the place in someone's chest where their ribs meet. If they're breathing and they respond, even if it's just making noises in response to you or physically pushing your hands away, that can be a sign that you don't need to administer Narcan right away. Still, in that case, it's a really good idea to stay with that person in case that changes. If, and only if, the person is completely unresponsive, you should administer Narcan.

Once you've determined that someone is unresponsive and overdosing, the next step is actually administering Narcan. Narcan comes in packs of two nasal sprays. Take the first nasal spray out of the box, put the nozzle in the person's nose, and press the plunger. If the person is still not responsive after 2-3 minutes, take the other nasal spray out of the box and give them another dose. I try to use the lowest number of doses possible to try to reduce the withdrawal experience, and I stop giving Narcan once someone is breathing and responsive. If they still are not responsive or breathing, and you know how to give rescue breaths, you can start administering rescue breaths. If you have to step away for any reason, turn the person on their side in the recovery position first.

After someone's overdose is reversed, it's really important that whenever possible, someone stays with them for at least an hour afterwards. Narcan is active in the body for about 30-90 minutes, so depending on what someone's original amount of opioids was, they might start overdosing again and need you to give them Narcan again. This is also why it can be important to try not to use again right away, which is really fucking shitty when you're trying to use cause you don't want to be sick, but unfortunately using right away can also put you at risk of overdosing again. When people come back after getting Narcaned, it can be a pretty disorienting and uncomfortable experience. You might not know who Narcaned you or why they're in your space, might be feeling really fucking shitty because of withdrawal, and might want to be left alone. If you've just Narcaned someone, introduce yourself and explain that you just gave them Narcan, listen to what they tell you, empathize with their feelings, respect people's boundaries, and give them space if they ask for it. Understand that they're probably feeling pretty fucking shitty in their body, that it fucking sucks when your high gets ruined, and they (justifiably) might not feel happy about the fact that you Narcaned them.

Pretty much all Narcan trainings will tell you that it's "recommended" to always call 911, but we all know that this is not always actually possible in a lot of situations and that cops always fucking make the situation worse. My policy is that I always, always ask for consent before calling 911 and if someone says no, then we brainstorm other ways of keeping safe and we don't fucking call the cops. If there's a situation where I do need to call 911, I never tell the operator that someone overdosed, because that usually gets them to send out the cops alongside ambulance, which can cause delays to care, put a lot of people at risk, and also put people, including bystanders, in legal danger. If I have to call 911, I say that my friend has collapsed/fainted/isn't breathing and keep it more vague, and when paramedics actually arrive on the scene, that's when I tell them more information about the overdose, what drugs someone took, and how many times I've administered Narcan.

You can get free Narcan a lot of places. Next Distro has resources for getting free Narcan by mail for almost every state. If there's harm reduction orgs in your area, they will have free Narcan. There's also a lot of Department of Health programs for free Narcan. Most pharmacies now also have Narcan available over the counter, but that's usually really fucking expensive and often pretty hard to shoplift cause they keep locking it up.

Even if you don't use drugs and you think that your loved ones don't use drugs, it's super important to have Narcan as a part of your first aid kit and learn how to use it. You never know when you're going to need to use it, and it's super good to be prepared ahead of time, in case your friend/family/neighbor/classmate/coworker ends up overdosing while you're there. Or in case you end up overdosing and having Narcan on you means that bystanders can help support you through it.

Here's a guide that goes a little more in depth into how to use Narcan.

Please feel free to ask if you have any other questions about Narcan or other harm reduction topics!

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Eurasian Red Squirrel/ekorre. Värmland, Sweden (August 27, 2022).

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Horses either die if you look at them funny, or they do things like this. There is no in between.

i know this isn't the reguar theme of this blog but i need to share it somewhere because today someone called my local fire department because they found

a horse

[rebeccathenaturalist]

[rebeccathenaturalist]

[rebeccathenaturalist]

cicadas !! my favourite bug, deeply linked to many happy childhood memories :)

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Morning light

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Time Lapse of the Land Taken From Native Americans

via reddit

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Article: ‘Do not let this crime happen’: Chinook Tribe fights for return of ‘neglected’ remains

You may have noticed the following inscription on one of the front pages of The Everyday Naturalist:

This book was written on unceded Chinook land on the Long Beach Peninsula in southwest Washington. The Chinook Indian Nation has been fighting for more than half a century for federal recognition. While they were briefly recognized in 2001, eighteen months later their recognition was rescinded. To learn how you can help the Chinook fight to regain recognition and thereby gain access to much-needed resources, please visit ChinookJustice.org.

The article I linked at the top is exactly why that message is there. Those stolen remains are one of many reasons why the Chinook are seeking recognition again. Repatriation of ancestral remains and cultural artifacts is one way we've been able to try to undo at least a bit of the damage after centuries of colonial occupation and genocide of indigenous people, but only tribes and communities deemed legitimate by the federal government are able to request repatriation; unrecognized peoples are left out in the cold.

Imagine if someone went to a cemetery where your ancestors had been buried for many centuries, dug up the remains, and decided to put them in a museum or sell them for private collections. Or consider that a not-insignificant number of Native American corpses after battles with U.S. troops or settlers were then stolen for anthropological specimens and artifacts, or bones for medical study. (David Hurst Thomas' excellent book Skull Wars details that long, sordid practice.) Now, think about how on top of being forced off their land, murdered and starved, kidnapped as children, and seeing their ways of life being made illegal, indigenous people had to watch the remains of their families for generations stolen away without any recompense.

That's why we have repatriation. It's the least thing we can do in the face of this awful history. Yet entire communities are barred from seeking the return of their ancestors because they aren't federally recognized, often for political reasons.

You don't have to be a Washington resident to contact your U.S. elected officials about supporting the recognition of the Chinook Indian Nation, or to go to ChinookJustice.org to help them in their fight for recognition.

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Okay, which one of you took this picture of me at any of a number of indie bookstores between Portland and St. Louis over the past few months?

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Okay, which one of you took this picture of me at any of a number of indie bookstores between Portland and St. Louis over the past few months?