"Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey... Stuff."

I was not expecting the oxytocin that flooded my brain at this picture. As a super serious animal behaviorist, I now must make a Rose Tyler outfit for Ellemere.

Excuse me while I figure out what size denim jacket I need for the kitty. (Look out @arrows-for-pens )

FITTED TO WHOM

MEEEEEEEEEEEE BABYYYYYYYYYYY!!!

NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ummm yes. If you don't think Burma (white cheeked gibbon, female, @lincolnparkzoo) would look fab in this, you are kidding yourself.

(Joke friends, primates aren't pets. But I'm 100% incapable of ignoring things when someone sends me a gibbon related post)

Love,

Your Friendly Neighborhood Ethologist

I just remembered that apes smile when hostile. This isn’t a happy scene. This monkey has full meter and a full screen projectile in it’s move list. This is an invitation to death.

Humans have this distress response too! If you watch the smaller of their young you will spot the occasional baring of teeth in upsetting situations. You can see this with adult humans as well, but it’s harder to catch because they have a fairly deep somatic vocabulary assigned to smiles; it is probably easiest to recognise after minor injury like stubbing a toe or receiving an injection.

It’s a lot of fun comparing how related species have related behaviours, and also neat to contrast how they have specialised them!

this is interesting but 

why did you word it like that

Thanks for the question! My area of expertise is more generally avian than it is  mammalian (or primate), so I don’t really know the technical nomenclature for the specific stage of human offspring development I mean to communicate. 

With the vocabulary I have the closest I can get semantically is ‘mid-nestling to fledgling fresh-fallen from the nest’ but the concepts don’t quite map to how human offspring develop. Another way to phrase it is able to move around under their own power but still heavily dependent on parental intervention for survival.

Hope this helps clear things up! Have a nice day :)

You studied birds so long you forgot that the word toddler exists and I think that’s just delightful.

@thejunglenook

So funny thing with primates (especially apes) is that they "smile" in a number of ways. And it's way more nuanced than you think. (This is what happens when an intelligent social species relies heavily on non-vocal social cues).

1. The play face smile. Here we see the relaxed open mouth with a droopy lower lip exposing the bottom teeth. Often accompanied by low guttural chimp laughter. This face is both an invitation to play and a way for individuals to check in and make sure everyone is still having a good time while playing. You younger siblings out there know how "playing" with your elder brother/sister is all well and good until "it's Not Funny Anymore Cause That Really Hurt, Twin!!!" (No? Just me? Damn.)

2. Silent bared teeth display which can be an appeasement gesture / sign of submission as they try to avoid possible conflict. Tense mouth and at least partially exposed upper & lower teeth. This is kinda on a spectrum and go from something little like "hey that termite mound snack looks good, can I get in on that too?" all the way up to...

3. The Fear Grimace. It is what is sounds like. "I am afraid and I don't want to fight. I'm submitting. Please don't hurt me." Mouth may be somewhat open, lips are tense and retracted, and teeth very visible (possibly with some partial gum exposure). See the female below on the right who is fear grimacing at her screaming friend.

4. The scream. "I'm upset and I DO NOT LIKE THIS!!!!" Fight or flight is going down and screaming animal is in the thick of it. Lips are completely retracted, full teeth & gum exposure, and mouth is open in a loud scream vocalization. See the female on the Left in the above photo as she screams at something (/someone) off camera.

5. Neutral face. Talk about going from the highest high to the lowest low. This is a chill happy primate at a low arousal state. Casual relaxed face and eyes. Not challenging anyone, but not seeking out a particular grooming/play buddy either. Just watching the world go by for a bit.

This is just a general example of the gorgeously nuanced field of facial communication in primates. If I had to pick (without audio / video / context clues) I would say the bonobo in the OP is doing a silent bared teeth display begging for something towards shore (thus the extended hand) possibly edging more towards a fear grimace. They aren't exhibiting any overt aggression, but that by no means makes them safe to be around.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Love,

Your friendly neighborhood Ethologist / Primatologist

Sources:

(Pardon the awkward formatting. Doing this on mobile and it's driving me up the wall. I'll fix later)

important psa

Leave nature as you found it! Jesus Christ I hate city people so much

Work out your rage and preserve our a healthy aquatic environment. It's a win win.

So one of my tweets kinda blew up. :v

Absolutely beautiful hand-printed shirts by Bonehead Boutique on Etsy! I LOVE comparative anatomy 🖤 I asked them if they could make a listing for the primate skulls on a shirt, as that option wasn’t available, and they agreed right away! They took a couple of weeks to make and were well worth the wait. The primates have their scientific names above each skull, and the hominids’ are listed on the back of the shirt!

Holy hominids I need these! (Literally gasped at the patas monkey. Ugh. I miss my babies!)

[Text of Tweet: George Takei: If you are turned away at the polls because your name is not on the register, don’t walk away. Say this: I REQUEST A PROVISIONAL BALLOT AS REQUIRED BY LAW.

Don’t let them steal your vote]

Additional info:

“Provisional Ballot Laws are laws that require a provisional ballot upon verficiation of the idenity of the voter if a voter fails to present proper identification at the polls or when registering before voter registration deadlines.”

More here on national provisional ballot laws

Copied from facebook (source: John Young)

Poll worker here! Let’s talk about this “I DEMAND A PROVISIONAL BALLOT AS PROVIDED BY LAW” thing.

== TL:DR; Yes, provisional ballots are important! And yes, you should absolutely ask for one if you need to. But there’s a couple of things to try first. A provisional ballot is a last resort. ==

It’s very common for voters to come up to the “check-in” desk, and not be found in the poll book. Some non-nefarious reasons why that might be the case:

1) The poll worker doesn’t understand how to spell your name. 2) You’re not in the right precinct (this happens ALLLL the time) 3) New married name? 4) You’re a college student, and you are registered, but you’re registered at home.

Here’s my recommendation for what to do: * Make sure the poll worker is looking in the right spot (the book will be right in front of you; you can help find your name.) * Mention your home address to the poll worker. THey may very well immediately say something like “Oh! Yes, you should be voting in the cafeteria. Here in the GYM, we are your next precinct over.” * Ask politely to speak to someone to verify your status with the county. They will get on the phone with county folks, who will look you up in their BIG COMPUTER.

The steps above will, eight times out of ten, change you from the scary status of “Huh? you don’t exist!” to “Oh, right! Okay, here you go, voter!”

If that doesn’t work, ask firmly and politely for a provisional ballot. If you say “AS PROVIDED BY LAWWWWW”, you will only get an eye-roll from a tired and hungry poll-worker. But hey, you do you – it really IS the law.

If you don’t get satisfaction, all is not lost. Step outside the precinct and call the ACLU, and they will send someone over to have some FIRM WORDS with the Judge of Elections.

How do I know? I’ve had ACLU lawyers sent to talk to me during an election: “Hey, we heard that you were turning voters away!” they said.

I wasn’t, but I DID NOT MIND having someone smart and informed come to check on what was up. The ACLU counsel was smart, engaged, and knew the rules. Had I been trying some crap, this person would have SHUT. IT. DOWN.

So, the BOTTOM bottom line is: 1) Provisional ballots are a last resort. You can read up on them; they’re definitely riskier than a full, “real” ballot. You want to vote at your proper precinct as your first choice. 2) Don’t panic if you’re not in the book. Are you in the right place? 3) If you decide you do need a provisional, be firm, polite, and persistent. There’s no “secret phrase” that’s going to make us poll workers hiss with dismay: “CURSESSSSSSS! They know about the provisionalssssss!” 4) But do stick up for yourself! And if you don’t get what you want, call it in! There’s LOTS of folks to help!

djfjdjkdjk

Mf knew exactly where to go to get out, he’s done this before 😂

At the National Zoo they do a "moat test" for the cubbies to make sure they can swim and get themselves out of the moat before they're allowed free access to the outside exhibit.

#truth having a grand old time in her well and ignoring mankind (via @librarian-amy)

Okie dokie, you guys know how much I love muzzle training and how important it is to me.

Recently my mother was talking with someone, and the wire basket muzzle I own came up in the conversation. The person was apparently disgusted, repulsed, I would put such a thing on my dog. Making statements of “why would you use that,” and “why not use one of those thin ones” (thin one being a Gentle Leader).

To the general public, muzzles and dogs in muzzles have such a bad stigma. They are seen as things only aggressive dogs wear; and if your dog is aggressive, you must be a bad pet owner in some way.

This is so not true. And more often than not, the exact opposite.

Muzzle training is SO beneficial, every dog should be trained to wear one. “But my dog isn’t aggressive, she doesn’t need one,” that may be true! But think of it this way: how many folks were put in swim lessons as kids by their parents? A heck of a lot, me included. Some kids that lived by a lake, some that had their own pool at home, some that lived nowhere near a body of water. Why? For if a dangerous situation arose where they found themselves in water, they’d know what to do and how to calmly swim to safety.

Now, for dogs, like recall and crate training, muzzle training is their swim lesson. Dogs who don’t have a drop of aggression in them will benefit just as much as a dog who wants to bite everything in sight.

But muzzling is not limited to aggression, there are numerous reasons a dog may need to be muzzled:

I’m sure there are many more, so feel free to add on.

And let me put this out there, not all muzzles are created equal. It’s took four open-basket-type muzzles to find one that fits Canon properly. They come in various styles and materials. Leather, metal, cotton, nylon, plastic, and biothane to name a few. It may take one try or four, but there’s a good chance with all the options that there’s a muzzle style and material that will work with every dog.

Now, the muzzle the individual was upset over? Take a look:

This is the wire basket I finally found that works for Canon’s nose length, allows him to pant, drink, and take treats, and is comfortable. This is for vet visits. Canon is not aggressive towards our vet or the staff, he adores them and thoroughly enjoys going. BUT, her waiting room is small. Very small. The exam room door is smack against the waiting room chairs, and it’s nice to have Canon muzzled should we walk out and BAM! A dog. In this case, his muzzle is worn for, oh, five minutes tops.

And the “thin one”? Look below:

This is not a muzzle and it will not protect your dog or others. Gentle Leaders and head collars are training tools that the leash clips to, to guide the dog by their head. I (personally) do not know of any muzzles that function in such a manner. And if a head collar is closed so tight the dog cannot open it’s mouth, it’s being used incorrectly.

So, I hope that opened up someone’s mind to muzzles! They are wonderful tools and come in so many styles, materials, and colors. I hope more people open up to them and make them a regular part of their dog’s gear.

Happy training from my dogs and I, to you and yours!

This is a great post to share as a follow up on the grooming post a few days ago. Muzzles are really beneficial tools to have available to you if you’re a dog owner, no matter your dog’s temperament or proclivities. They may look scary, but they keep pets safe!