Creaturely

It is very difficult, nigh impossible, to avoid creatures, even when one wants to. Today I saw two mice, innumerable birds, and what I can only attempt to describe as a pigeon trapped in the speaker system at the local train station. There were, at least, bird sounds, and not of the pleasant chirping sort, being broadcasted for all on the platforms. A proper cyborg!

But a creature must not be a cyborg to get my attention. The Lord Howe stick insect, endemic to Australia, was thought for many years to have been wiped out by rats. As adults, they are 6 inches long, and cannot fly, and thus are a supremely easy catch. Here is one of these magnificently vulnerable creatures hatching:

Nor must creatures necessarily be real to hold my interest. Evolution, apparently, plays no part in how absorbing I find them, as is evidenced here:

I'm off to glue strings on my face now....