Are lemurs into recreational use of drugs?

A millipede's defense system includes certain chemicals which they secrete through pores along the sides of their bodys: poisonous liquids or hydrogen cyanide gas.

"Lemurs have been observed intentionally irritating millipedes in order to rub the chemicals on themselves to repel insect pests,
and possibly to produce a psychoactive effect."

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millipede

Hey! What a coincidence! I'm selling a book on ebay, printed in 1793. One of the recipes that I copied for the auction was on the use of millepedes!!!

Anybody need a diuretic????

**pondering** I wonder if Millipedes are clear or unclean?? **cough**

I'm curious where that book was printed. I wonder what brand of millepedes they had in mind. The one in the picture above is Narceus americanus a large North American millipede. of the eastern seaboard of the U.S.A.


" Armadillidium is a genus of the small terrestrial crustacean known as the woodlouse. Armadillidium are also commonly known as "pill woodlice", "pill bugs" or "roly-polies", and are often confused with pill millipedes such as Glomeris marginata".
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armadillidium

So it might be that the bugs in the recipe are "terrestrial crustaceans" (!) not genuine millipedes.

The real thing has two pair of legs for most segments. Pill woodlice have one pair per segment.

Armadillidium


Armadillidium vulgare
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Subphylum: Crustacea

Class: Malacostraca

Order: Isopoda

Suborder: Oniscidea

Family: Armadillidiidae

Genus: Armadillidium
Brandt, 1833

Diversity
about 200 species

The scientific study of crustaceans (about 52,000 species) is known as carcinology and the student as a carcinologist, crustaceologist or crustalogist.

lobsters, crabs, shrimp, crayfish and barnacles all are crustaceans.

There is an order of cute little shrimp-like crustaceans called amphipoda.



Amphipoda

A hyperiid amphipod (Hyperia macrocephala)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Subphylum: Crustacea

Class: Malacostraca

Order: Amphipoda
Latreille, 1816

Sub-orders
Gammaridea
Corophiidea
Hyperiidea
Ingolfiellidea

The sleeping habits of birds - interested? We humans have it easy in our homes and beds. For birds sleeping can be risky so they sleep little, just catnapping or keeping one eye open with their head on their shoulder. Then there is the danger of freezing to death. Standing on chimney tops can put them to sleep from fumes, permanently! Cities are several degrees warmer than the countryside.

Most facinating are swifts and I now quote from the BBC:

"The roosting habits of swifts are mysterious. Except when, as adults, they crawl inside holes in buildings to breed, the species stays permanently aloft - both night and day. The birds sleep on the wing but how do they avoid collisions and preserve a safe cruising altitude? Despite being an abundant summer visitor throughout the Northern Hemisphere their nocturnal behaviour has been little studied. However, in Suffolk in 1994 several hundred were watched just after dawn. Instead of flying and gliding around in the usual rapid manner, each maintained a stationary position on gently flapping wings. Basically, the birds were hovering and did so for almost an hour until the air warmed up and normal feeding flight resumed. This observation explained why radar research aimed at unravelling their actions failed to detect what they did. By moving very little, the birds rendered themselves invisible - truly, the world's first stealth aircraft.

Then came the Swedes. In 2000, using infra-red photography, they filmed swifts roosting like bats. Hanging by their toes the birds spent the night suspended on willow branches. The mystery just got deeper!"

source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/birds/weeklyfeature/sleepingbeauties/

Ever feel like going bananas?

You should. And eat more bananas. They are GOOD for you.

1. Depression: According to a recent survey amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

2. Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

3. Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it the perfect way to beat high blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

4. Strokes: According to research in "The New England Journal of Medicine," eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

5. Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

6. Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!

7. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around. So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, "A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"

And much much more at: http://www.corsinet.com/trivia/bananas.html

banana song

The book was printed in London 1793...so I guess it would be British millipedes...

Thanks for the banana song. I'm not wearing any colonge, just a banana under each arm.