animals

USPS Allowed Mailable Live Animals

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Mailable Animals

While pursuing Hackernews, I stumbled across a particularly interesting section of “Publication 52 – Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail” of the United States Postal Service’s Domestic Mail Manual which discusses the legality of mailing live animals. The document can basically be distilled down to this:

Mailable Live Animals

General
Some animals are mailable under proper conditions. See the specific instructions as noted for the following kinds of animals:
Live bees
Honeybees and queen honeybees are acceptable for shipping within the continental U.S. and must be free of disease, as required under federal and state regulations.
Live, day–old poultry
The following live, day–old animals are acceptable for mailing when properly packaged:

  • Chickens
  • Ducks
  • Emus
  • Geese
  • Guinea birds
  • Partridges
  • Pheasants (only during April through August)
  • Quail
  • Turkeys

All other types of live, day–old poultry are nonmailable.

Live adult birds
Disease-free adult birds may be mailed domestically when shipped under all applicable governmental laws and regulations
Live scorpions (only under limited circumstances)
Scorpions are mailable only when sent for the purposes of medical research use or the manufacture of antivenom. Scorpions are nonmailable under any other circumstances.
Other small, harmless, cold–blooded animals
Small, harmless, cold–blooded animals, except for snakes, turtles, and turtle eggs, are mailable only when they meet certain requirements.

Nonmailable Live Animals

Live Birds
Day-old poultry vaccinated with Newcastle disease (live virus) is nonmailable. Day-old birds, except those specifically permitted, are nonmailable
Live, Warm–Blooded Animals
Warm-blooded animals, except for adult birds and specified day-old birds under specific conditions, are not mailable. This includes: cats, dogs, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, rabbits, rats and squirrels.
Reptiles/dt>

All snakes, turtles, and poisonous reptiles are nonmailable.
Poisonous Insects and Spiders
All poisonous insects and all spiders, except scorpions under limited circumstances, are nonmailable. Other nonpoisonous and non-disease-conveying insects are permitted.
I thought this tied in well with a post I did about five years ago called An Inventory Of Live Animals Being Sold On Amazon.com

Aliens of the Lembeh Strait

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It was just last week that I posted a video about the Lembeh Strait and already I have found another beautiful video highlighting the wildlife found in the area. This one is a cephalopod lovers dream. The film, entitled “Aliens of the Lembeh Strait”, by Sascha Janson, won Gold in the 2017 Our World Underwater International Imaging Competition.


Nearly 200 more incredible videos of the bizarre and wiggly marine life in the Lembeh Straight can be found on the Critters@Lembeh Resort’s Vimeo page where Sascha Janson is the photo pro.

The Murmuration Is The Flock Itself, The Susurrus Is The Sound It Produces

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Videos of starling murmurations are numerous yet always enchanting. However, but this clip from Jan van IJken’s documentary short film The Art of Flying is exceptional because of the sound. From the video’s youtube page:

We know a lot of factual information about the starling—its size and voice, where it lives, how it breeds and migrates—but what remains a mystery is how it flies in murmurations, or flocks, without colliding. This short film by Jan van IJken was shot in the Netherlands, and it captures the birds gathering at dusk, just about to start their “performance.” Listen well and you’ll be able to hear how this beautiful phenomenon got its name.

Fish Trapped Inside A Jellyfish

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Fish In A Jellyfish

Australian Ocean photographer, Tim Samuel, captured these astonishing photos of a fish swallowed whole by a jellyfish near Byron Bay, New South Wales. The fish is possibly a juvenile trevally, which are known to use jellyfish stingers as protection. On his Instagram account Tim says, “He was trapped in there but controlled where the Jellyfish was moving.” The photographer had initially considered trying to set the fish free, but ultimately determined “to let nature take its course.”

Fish In A Jellyfish

Battle Of The Octopus

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This territorial struggle between two octopuses (octopi, octopodes) is a thrill to watch. The tentacle free-for-all and color changing turmoil from the sea provides for an exciting couple of minutes. The ambushes an guerrilla style aggression exhibit the undeniable intelligence of our cephalopod friends.

Video Of The 2012 Gävle Goat Going Down In Flames

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Well it looks like my prediction was wrong. Last night, just before midnight, the Gävle Goat went down in flames. Much like last year’s video, I scraped a live webcam of the blaze and set it to some holiday music for your viewing enjoyment/horror.

NYMag has a great interview with Eje Berglund, the representative and chairman of the committee that oversees the Gävle Goat.

The Gävle Goat Survives (For Now)

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I Love The Gävle Goat

The 2012 Gävle Goat was almost knocked down before it even got up. According to Swedish newspaper The Local, private security guards are keeping an eye on this years Gävle Goat after arsonists nearly burnt it down on Saturday, before it was even inaugurated. The goat’s leg was ignited briefly before being extinguished by a heroic passer-by. “The front hoof smells of petrol,” event organiser Eje Berglund told the crowd that assembled on Sunday for the official inauguration. Last years blaze was a sight to behold.

Four University students have taken it upon themselves to try to stem the tide of arson by creating an “I Love the Goat” campaign. There is a live webcam of the Gävle Goat if you’d like to keep tabs on whether it will continue with its fiery history.

An Inventory Of Live Animals Being Sold On Amazon.com

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  • Ladybugs – 1,500 per order. Can Devour Up To 50 Aphids A Day. $11.49
  • Crickets – 1,000 per order. One inch long. $25.99
  • Gutloaded Mealworms – 500 per order. Packed full or calcium and other essential nutrients. $9.99
  • Small Dubia Cockroach 100 per order. Can’t fly, climb smooth surfaces, or make any annoying noises. $16.99
  • Littleneck Clams – 100 per order. Don’t have necks. $64.19
  • Trapdoor Snails – 50 per order. Hardy. Trapdoor snails do not attack plants. $103.70
  • Adult Delphastus – 25 per order. Will Stay In The Area After They Are Released. $21.99
  • Oysters 24 per order. Ready to shuck. $39.99
  • Soft Shell Crab – 12 per order. The actual shedding of the shell can take anywhere from one to three hours. $36.00
  • Freshwater Cherry Shrimp – 12 per order. Includes both males and females (mostly females). $26.33
  • New England Lobster – 2 per order. Four to six pounds. $122.24
  • African Dwarf Frogs – 2 per order. Hours of fun. $39.95


    • Find The Name Of Your Inner Sloth

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    Ever since Kristen Bell’s emotional sloth breakdown people around the world have been discovering their inner sloth. The real sloth in you comes out when you are being super chill, or maybe sleeping. And of course that sloth in you is gonna need a name. An identity all its one. Find out what yours is.




    Oh, and if you’re way behind the curve and are unsure about what a sloth actually is, this website should help you out. Loosely based on the awesome analog version created by BuzzFeeder Joel B.

    Slothy McSlothersonGif via Nature Blogger

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