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Clamsplaining

I'm Dan Killam. I'm an environmental scientist studying clams, climate, pollution, and conservation.

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Recent Posts: Clamsplaining

An open letter to Stephen Colbert from a clam expert

Why I like scicomm on Mastodon!

A coral, a worm and some clams walk into a bar…

New job! Where I’m going and how I got here

Research Explainer: How I learned to stop worrying and trust the clams

The scruffy runt of the litter of kittens that my mom rescued has grown into a handsome and mischievous young man. This is Ghost! 👻 It was a party out there today We lost our dear Lily Killam today, aged 13. She went out surrounded by the family she was utterly devoted to. Other than her main job of protector, her hobbies included catching ball, snuggling and trying to constantly predict what I was doing next. We will miss her so dearly and my heart aches, but I am grateful for all the great years with this genius pup. Been walking with this weird little man daily for over a year The name scallion is believed to have originated with the ancient city of Ashkelon in modern day Israel! I potted these ones as leftovers from a meal kit, and they grew over the last year into sizable plants which I have sprinkled leaves onto many meals! Now they are flowering. The flower emerges as a weird bulb like shake on a stalk, from which an inflorescence of dozens of florets bursts out. 👽 Spring has sprung in Richmond, CA and the Bay looks grand Claytonia perfoliata got its common name "miner's lettuce" due to the fact it's an edible and tasty seasonal green. There is a movement to call this plant by its traditional names in the languages native to where it's found throughout CA, including rooreh (the Ohlone people of the Bay Area), palsingat (the Cahuilla people of the SoCal deserts), and many more names. It springs up in moist soils after the spring rains, and due to the prolific rain season it is having a banner year! Like many members of the purslane family, it's hardy and thrives even in disturbed areas. It is stuffed with vitamins including vitamin C, so it was an important way to avoid scurvy after winters eating preserved goods. The interesting round leaves are formed from two leaves curling around and fusing to make a ring, from which a small flower emerges in the center. The umbrella-like leaves help it shade out and prevent other plants from popping up underneath it and crowding it out, which has helped it persevere against invaders that also thrive in disturbed areas. I didn't eat anything from this patch, since it was growing in an industrial area of Richmond I was walking through next to a tire shop. But good to know that CA natives are able to thrive among our heavily altered urban environments :) Playing #Stray with my personal stray. Arthur says it takes a lot of liberties with the real story King of the jungle
Tweets by DantheClamMan

RSS Inaturalist Observations

  • Speckled Dun
  • Case-bearing Clothes Moth
  • Gonipterus platensis
  • Ground Crab Spiders
  • Bees and Apoid Wasps
  • Western Black Widow
  • Pale pink-sorrel
  • Wood Dock
  • poison hemlock
  • California buckeye

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