#European Flat Oyster

[bumblebeeappletree]

Across our projects we've worked with plenty of keystone species, so we've decided to start a series highlighting some of them! For today, let's look at the European Flat Oyster, the subject of our reintroduction project to the Cromarty Firth in Scotland.

🌾 To support our work you can become a member here: https://mossy.earth

MOSSY EARTH MEMBERSHIP

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The rewilding membership that restores nature across a wide range of ecosystems.

🌲 Support a diversity of ecosystems

🐺 Rewild habitats to bring back biodiversity

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Learn more and become a member here: https://mossy.earth

💪 OUR PARTNERS IN THIS VIDEO

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🌊 Moray Ocean Community

IG: @morayoceancommunity

X: @morayocean

CCN:https://www.communitiesforseas.scot/c...

⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️

0:00 Intro

0:34 What is a Keystone Species?

1:50 The European Flat Oyster

7:33 Next time...

🔎 ABOUT THIS PROJECT

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European Flat Oysters (Ostrea edulis) are considered functionally extinct in many parts of Europe. Native oyster beds were once widespread in the UK and known as ‘the poor man’s food’, but have declined by 95% in the United Kingdom since the mid-19th century. This habitat-forming species would have once been present throughout our coastlines alongside other habitats such as seagrass beds, but now they are either absent or in relatively small, fragmented populations. There are no known remaining wild native oyster populations within the Cromarty Firth, but they were present in the area in the recent past. This community-led marine enhancement project, in partnership with Moray Ocean Community, aims to reintroduce native oysters to the Cromarty firth and generate open access data on the coastal and marine habitats found in the wider area.

Find out more about this project here: https://www.mossy.earth/projects/nati...

[lafcadiosadventures]

Madame Putiphar Groupread. Book Two, Chapter XXXI

“We must howl with the wolves, he who bleats among them shall be their prey!”

(tr. here  by @sainteverge )

Gustave Doré's Les loups et les brebis.

Sit yourself with a nice cup/glass of something and let’s ponder urban/rural, intra/extra european tensions in the 19th c european novel together. nerdface emoji.

(I love you Borel but this chapter has tested my patience. Why do you make the blorboes move at a glaciar pace in times of crisis)

After Deborah’s announcement and Patrick’s declaration of ideal paternity and family life, the couple dines together. Patrick asks Deborah if she likes Paris specifically before letting her know that they must LEAVE the city FAST. That gives Borel the chance to explore through Deborah yet another central theme of the Romantic novel, or the 19th c novel as a whole, Rural vs Urban life tensions. Borel as always, adds his own personal twist to it. Taking into account how essentialist 19th c French-surely not exclusively- literature is, how Romantic movements are about going back to some kind of National essence, how you cannot leaf through one of these books without reading about so called spanish/italian personality traits, occasionally reaching ad absurdum levels like in Dumas when he has Dantès claim that southern europeans are more vulnerable to poison than northern europeans, Balzac and his ambitious meridionals (in his defense, he at least IS a meridional himself), his stabby-because-catholic corsicans, and don’t get me started on Gautier’s Voyage en Espagne. Positive or negative, there is in this literary word, no escaping regional stereotyping.  

What Borel does when addressing the question, does Deborah miss Ireland, she states that she doesn’t, not Ireland specifically. What she misses is the countryside, what she loathes is city life. And, she affirms, she would loathe it as much in Dublin as in Paris. Modern Urban life is to her a sickness that seems to afflict all of Europe equally. This definitely stands out from other portrayals of Paris as a modern Babylon we’ve seen from other authors... Balzac would never. Paris is hell, but to him it is also Paris. as Diderot would say, in a fit of excessive nationalistic intoxication Paris is the brain of France, and France is the Brain of the World. yes. that was something he said unironically) But Borel does not care about what makes Paris specific here... Paris is part of something bigger, and not actually something good. He once again seems to anticipate much later philosophical ideas like Marc Augé’s non-places. Read this and tell me it doesn’t make you think of our post modern present, with our increasingly minuscule flats, the impossibility of looking out and not seeing more flats in some of the biggest metropolis in the world, etc:

 “Living in cities is narrowing; these boxes, these cages where as prisoners we wither away, compress and cinch the soul like a corset: our spirit confines itself to two ceilings and four walls; our gaze, which cannot break through, hits the surface and falls back on us; we take the habit of indulging ourselves, of being satisfied with ourselves, we diminish, we shrivel away. The perpetual sight of men’s work renders us petty and bourgeois like them: we forget the grand spectacles of nature, we forget the universe, we forget humanity, we forget everything, aside from ourselves, and whatever tastes we seek to quench: all creation comes down to a few pieces of furniture, a few chairs, a few tables, a few beds, a few pieces of fabric or silk, which we grow enamoured with, which we’re attached to like the oyster to its stone, over which we vegetate and crawl like lichen”

(translation by sainteverge)

I’d like to link here an excerpt of Champavert: The Werewolf as well. This earlier text seeks to be specifically Parisian, and more encompassing  than Debby’s experience. (noted passages in a similar vein: Balzac's Galleries of the Palais-Royale descriptionin Lost Illusions (the city-as-spectacle, everything and everyone for sale) and his snapshots of social inequality in Père Goriot)

“Le monde, c’est un théâtre: des affiches à grosses lettres, à titres emphatiques, hameçonnent la foule qui se lève aussitôt, se lave, peigne ses favoris, met son jabot et son habit dominical, fait ses frisures, endosse sa robe d’indienne, et, parapluie à la main, la voilà qui part; leste, joyeuse, désireuse, elle arrive, elle paie, car la foule paie toujours, chacun se loge à sa guise, ou plutôt suivant le cens qu’il a payé, dans le vaste amphithéâtre, l’aristocratie se verrouille dans ses cabanons grillés, la canaille reste à la merci. La toile est levée, les oreilles sont ouvertes et les cous tendus, la foule écoute, car la foule écoute toujours; l’illusion pour elle est complète, c’est de la réalité; elle est identifiée, elle rit, elle pleure, elle prend en haine, en amour, hurle, siffle, applaudit; en vain, quelquefois, sent-elle qu’on l’abuse et s’arme-t-elle de sa lorgnette, elle est myope, rien ne peut détruire son illusion et sa foi qu’exploite si galamment les comédiens”

Both of these passages share a grim diagnosis. Capitalist Modernity seems to be here a degenerative illness. Deborah’s focuses more on the domestic, most of her life means staying locked in,  completely lonely, but she has observed how the city tends to isolate, to make people focus only on their selves and their whims, which can only be satisfied by buying furniture, clothes, a thirst for possessions that transforms Humans into Oysters....

This to me is the highlight of the chapter.

After this speech our friends agree they must flee, and quick. Patrick and Deborah are ready to be open to each other. They tell each other what the reader already knows, they are now both equally aware of their danger, and of the wrongs they have both endured at the hands of their aristocratic tormentors.

Noteworthy word choice: Patrick compares himself at the hands of Putiphar to a virtuous maiden (we have joked in the groupchat about Debby and Patrick being lesbians before... Butch Lesbian Patrick confirmed)

Another thing i found startlingly contemporary sounding, in our days of lawfare and soft coups, Patrick, talkig of how Putiphar can use his theft and murder accusatio to give her illegal persecution a virtuous veneer: “she’ll be able, not that she cares about it, to mask her revenge behind an honest mask (...)”(tr, by cam)

Theres an absurdly ooc Deborah moment when she weeps and declares herself a burden. His beauty could have been the key to a brilliant social assent. Patrick corrects her, slightly offended because he is not about that #arriviste #boytoy life (Debby already knows that!???!) But Debby is only saying all of this because she fears this Fredegund’s retaliation........

Since God is apparently devoid of his divine wrath, and the powerful villains go unpunished, they must leave Paris in search of a new Promissed Land (slightly Candide-ish, right?) where if men are not less evil, (Patrick moves away from Rousseau... at least for a second) at the very least they can hope for a less asymmetrical distribution of power. Patrick has his naif hopes set on one of those ignored places European society calls savage, which he assumes will be more fit to give them “their share of sun, land and fraternity” (this is also a common theme in french novels of the day... Patrick at least still hopes to find Fraternity in these unspecified so called third world lands, instead of lording over the savages like Thénarider or Goriot era Vautrin...-Splendeurs era Vautrin hopes for an American Forest to die alone in after having eaten his own tongue. Progress. Growth.)

The only way of living in the European City is howling with the wolves, and since they’re not willing to do so, because they are lambs, they must leave. And Fast. So first to Marseille, Geneva or Livorne, and then to whatever earthly “virgin” rousseau/bougainville paradise they choose to set their paths to.

So Patrick (finally!!! sorry) leaves to buy some tickets in the first available carriage, Deborah will pack their things to avoid boredom/stress. Patrick wants a kiss, she refuses bc the farewell will then feel too final (...) Patrick claims that iron cannot harm a limb that has been kissed by a woman’s lips, so she passionately kisses him over his heart... but as soon as he sets foot on the streets Deborah hears him cry out for help. He is taken away by the kings men (illegally, in the night, shielded by the darkness) Patrick warns her not to come (she has to think of their baby) and says farewell forever. She throws out a flaming curtain for visibility. she sees as she descends, how Patrick is taken away in a palace carriage. She faints. Is taken away by Palace guardsmen herself. Book Two is over. Lasciate ogni speranza?

{ @sainteverge @counterwiddershins }

[shuckerpaddy]

New Oysters Available in the USA. Oysters from The Netherlands - lovingly grown by @premier.seafarmers have finally landed in NYC. Dutch Flats - The Dutch Flats - Ostrea edulis - toothsome firm, slight crunchy in the texture with earthy notes. Briny WetStone Dry Tannic finish mineral mineral mineral. Krijn (pronounced “Cr-ine” - like wine with a Kr..) Magallana “(Crassostrea) gigas - “”Ocean, sweet cream, melon, sea greens, mushroom and cucumber freshness. The exciting difference compared to all other oysters is the salt. The taste of European Saline is much different than that of North American shores, will be very “European” bright and minerality. “But why Import Oysters?” Parallelling the wine world, oysters in the global perspective would be a comparison of “old world wine” with “New World wine” based on the same grape varietal. “It’s all about the flavour experience.” The flavour of oyster comes from three things. Species, Region, Farmer. And that we call Merroir. I invite those lucky folks in NYC to head over to @flexmussels #UES today to enjoy the first of the European oysters to grace USA. Pair them with some of the wonderful Local Oyster for that Shuckers Experience! More shipments to follow on a weekly basis. If you have any questions or want to know how to get some of these… please DM send me a message. #LetsGetShucking #Merroir #Oysters #OysterSommelier #TasteOfPlace #Netherlands #Dutch #OysterTasting #Shucker #Shucked #NewShuckCity #NYOyster #DutchFlat #KrijnOyster #FlexOysterBar #MusselsAndOysters #ShuckerClub #ShuckedByPaddy @theoystercompanion @shuckerpaddyoysterco @shuckerclub (at Flex Mussels) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoQDWP_OVd2/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[fatehbaz]

“Cows destroyed the vibrant but now-extinct coastal sea ecologies of Mediterranean-climate California.” Hmmm. Blaming the cow (the creature) and not the industry, or those who orchestrated the introduction of the creature? As if the exponential expansion of cattle industry in California in the 1800s was simply inevitable, an innocent or neutral historical development. Why were the cows there? Who put the cows there? Who profited?

More like: Settler-colonial cattle ranching and other agricultural industry destroyed coastal sea ecologies of California.

Here’s a thing:

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Southern California’s beaches bustle with year-round activity [...]. Beyond the surf, however, sand gives way to mud, and lots of it, on a narrow band of mostly empty continental shelf that stretches some 250 miles along the coast. Scavengers such as crabs and burrowing worms dominate this dull mudscape, which is often obscured by swirling sediment.

The culprit behind this wasteland?

Cows, says Susan Kidwell, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago who made the surprising connection.

A few years ago, Kidwell was sifting through seafloor samples from three sites near greater Los Angeles, looking for shards of fossilized shells under several inches of silt. She found pieces of older shells but, unlike the shells of burrowing clams present on the seafloor today, these fragments belonged to filter feeders such as scallops and brachiopods -- an ancient group of animals sometimes called lamp shells -- who filter nutrients out of the water column. Kidwell and fellow researcher Adam Tomašových, of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, had stumbled upon a lost ecosystem. The remains of other invertebrates in the muck, including tube worms, barnacles, and colonies of tiny invertebrates called bryozoans, pointed to an entire community that once thrived on a rocky seafloor. Like the brachiopods, these creatures were also mostly absent from the mud-coated shelf today. Kidwell and Tomašových were perplexed by the stark difference between the shelf’s past and present ecosystem. In a 2017 study, they dated nearly 200 of the fossilized brachiopod shells to reconstruct the demise of these filter-feeders.

They predicted this ancient ecosystem gradually declined over thousands of years as California’s sea levels fluctuated.

However, the shells told a different story.

The population of brachiopods had thrived on the shelf for some 4,000 years before suddenly crashing 150 years ago. “We were completely blown away when we got the results,” Kidwell says. “They survived into the present day only to disappear.”

As the timeline took shape, the mystery of the muddy shells only deepened. Kidwell investigated the usual suspects of marine degradation -- pollution, climate change, overharvesting -- but the chronology wasn’t right. By the time Los Angeles was urbanizing in the late 19th century, this ecosystem was already coated in mud. In fact, when the brachiopods vanished, what we now know as Hollywood was little more than farmland. Then the lightbulb went off for Kidwell. “The only thing it could have been was cows,” she says.

According to her research, the arrival of livestock with Spanish missionaries in the 1770s represented the biggest change to Southern California’s coastal ecosystem prior to urbanization. Left to roam free, cattle and horse populations exploded like microbes across a petri dish.

By the mid-19th century, the legions of livestock were compacting the soil as they overgrazed native vegetation. Coupled with a general lack of knowledge about soil conservation and Southern California’s semi-arid climate, where dry periods are punctuated by heavy rains that maximize runoff, the conditions led to what Kidwell calls a “perfect storm” for enormous amounts of sediment washing into the ocean. A separate study of the muddy bottom of Santa Monica Bay tells a similar story. [...]

The smothering sedimentation phenomenon is not unique to Southern California. Relatively shallow continental shelves fringe many of the world’s coasts, often extending miles offshore. Animals that attach themselves to the shelf seafloor, such as the European flat oyster, risk burial under silt.

Once a staple of Europe’s North Sea, the oysters were harvested to the brink of extinction during the 19th century. So, when Lasse Sander, a physical geographer at Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute, dated oyster shells from a collapsed reef in the German Bight, he was surprised to find the reef’s demise dated to around the year 700, long before overfishing of the North Sea’s shelf began. Like Kidwell, he turned to history to explain this anomaly. Much like California in the 19th century, early Medieval Europe was marked by environmental upheaval.

An expanding human population clear-cut vast tracts of forest, which increased erosion and sent huge amounts of dirt into the North Sea, smothering the oysters.

Sander says the demise of both the North Sea oysters and the brachiopods off Southern California’s coast are examples of how environmental degradation on land is linked with the health of the ocean.

“You have to connect the hinterland of a coastal system with the marine ecosystem,” he says. Similarly, Kidwell believes these two cases illustrate how far the human imprint on a landscape can spread. “This demonstrates the ability of land use to impact not only local lakes and lagoons but the open continental shelf,” she says.

Although oysters remain scarce in the North Sea, a small piece of Southern California’s earlier shelf ecosystem persists off Catalina Island, one of the Channel Islands less than 30 miles southwest of Los Angeles. Thanks to less intense grazing practices on the island, its surrounding shelf is still a lively palette of orange, pink, and yellow brachiopods and scallops.

Anchored to rocky outcrops, the animals filter bits of sediment from the water, offering a clear glimpse of the lost ecosystem that once thrived all along Southern California’s coast.

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Headline, images, captions, and text published by: Jack Tamisiea. “How Cows Destroyed an Entire Marine Ecosystem in California.” Atlas Obscura. 21 June 2021.

[allie1804-fan]

Malaise (Chapter 3 Just Friends No Benefits)

Chapter 1, 2

Warnings Brief mentions of sex

A couple of weeks after the appointment with Tara, Keanu found himself at a loose end and really needing to “scratch the itch” as it were. He called Lucy, one of his “friends”

“Oh hey Ke” she said somewhat hesitantly “How are you doing?”

“ah I’m good thanks, just had some free time at last and thought maybe we could re-connect?”

“uh,errm, well that sounds great ……………but I should tell you, things have changed for me in the past few months”

“Oh, how so?”

The phone went quiet at her end for a few seconds.

 “I’m engaged!”

Now there was a pause his end while he sought to process this news, tamp down his personal disappointment and muster some happiness for her!

“Oh my god, congrats, that’s amazing news, who’s the lucky guy?”

Lucy proceeded to tell him how she’d met her new love Jamie and when the wedding was scheduled etc and they concluded the call with her agreeing to a celebratory lunch date with Keanu the following week, somewhere suitably fancy – he was nothing if not chivalrous even as he was letting go of one of his options for sex in future.

He made the next call straight away, figuring that if there was going to be more disappointment, then he might as well get it all done in one go and if there was a chance that one of his “friends” was free, then it would lift him out of the funk Lucy’s news had left him in. Karen agreed to come over later, saying she could tell he was lonely from the tone of his voice but she also said she’d been meaning to talk to him, just talk, for ages so he already felt that the shutters were coming down there too and that hanging out was all they would be doing.

As they tucked into a take-out pizza and beers that evening, they stuck to small talk but when she wiped her mouth after her last piece, Keanu could feel that she was holding back from making a pronouncement.

“Keanu, if I had to guess why I’m here right now, I’d put my money on you being lonely ……..  and horny and hopeful of moving onto the sofa shortly and working your charm on me”

His eyes widened and he took a swig of his beer.

“My, you’re awfully forthright tonight hun!”

“Well it’s true isn’t it, how many times in the past year have we hung out and not had sex?!”

“errrm, none”

“Correct, and the things is, Keanu, much as I love you and much as you are  fun to be around, so  giving and sexy as hell, I need to move on from being, well, one of your fuck buddies basically. Yes, that’s right, I know that I’m not the only one and I know no promises were ever made, that wasn’t the deal, but I want, no, I need a relationship with a man that gives me more. And the longer I am jumping to your tune like some child following the Pied Piper, the less I’m able to be open to a proper grown-up relationship. One where I prioritise what I want and need, something longer term with commitment on both sides. One where that person can give me time and not just occasional fun and  gifts but strictly on his terms. I’m honestly not complaining about what we had. We were both honest about it and it worked then, but not now. I’m sorry.”

Keanu smiled, a sad smile that didn’t reach his eyes

“Good while it lasted though huh?”

“Yes!” she grinned “and I’m not breaking up with you, not as a friend, I hope I can always be your friend”

“Sure, of course, no chance of one final send off huh?” he asked, eyes twinkling mischievously

She pushed him in the chest “no way, that’s just a slippery slope right back where we came from, you cheeky boy!”

They hugged and spent another hour or so chatting and getting used to being ‘just friends’, Keanu trying to avoid staring at her breasts like he would normally.

After she’d gone, he called his third option.

“what a glutton for punishment!” he thought. “Might as well choose between becoming a monk or taking out a direct payment to the agency each month if this one doesn’t work out!

It turned out that Martha, his third girl was out of town on a 6 month work placement. When he called, he recognised a European dial tone and she picked up speaking with a sleepy voice. It was about 7am where she was in Italy.  The opportunity had come up out of the blue and she’d only been there a week and hadn’t gotten round to telling people who weren’t in her immediate circle that she was going.

They talked briefly and he said he would try and tie in a visit if he was in Europe whilst she was still there. He might have movie promo or a bike related trip to make. He hung up feeling utterly dejected. Two of his options were done for good and he wouldn’t mind betting that Martha would meet some gorgeous Italian stallion while she was there and that would be that, finished.

 “God you’re pathetic Reeves” he said out loud to no-one. “The world is your oyster, you’re single - check, rich – check, OK looking – check, what the hell is your problem?”

He took himself off to bed, found some porn to watch and jerked off angrily but despite the ejaculation, the satisfied sleep that should follow eluded him, and when he awoke as dawn was breaking through, he felt a grey malaise shrouding his senses, dulling his movements and fogging his brain.

He had a new film starting in a month’s time but he couldn’t concentrate on any of the character research he should have been doing, learning his lines or working out to make sure he looked the part.  He would look at his phone and think about calling the agency but he didn’t want to get hooked and for that to be his only sexual outlet just seemed kind of tragic. For a couple of weeks  he’d spend his days either sleeping or drinking or tooling  around on his bike for hours up in the mountains. None of that helped him to shake the sense of emptiness and foreboding that filled his spirit.

First his mother noticed he was being slightly morose when they met for lunch one day. He was usually charming with her but he was monosyllabic and not the least bit enthused about their meal, his new film or the latest bike launch with Arch. Patricia flagged her worries to Karina who called round on spec a few days after to find him lolling on the sofa, listening to John Coltrane. His hair was unwashed, he smelled of whiskey and cigarettes and he’d clearly told his housekeeper to stay away for at least 2 weeks.

Alex was next to join the list of people telling him they were worried about him and begging him to share his worries. Even Rob, his band mate who was often a bit oblivious to others’ problems, could tell just from the flatness in his voice when he spoke to him on the phone.

Keanu assured them all that he just needed to get back to work.  

A week before he was due back, with little done to prepare still, he made a decision and called the agency again for Tara. He left instructions about repeating something they had done before that fell into the ‘unusual’ category. It wasn’t that weird but certainly outside the realms of straight sex. When Tara saw the request, she wondered if something was wrong too. That last time he had this request, he had been out of sorts mentally. When he messaged her about dinner, she chose Ramen noodles thinking that would be light and vaguely healthy. She didn’t imagine burgers or pizzas would do him good if he was in a funk about something.  She chose a cosy, close fitting woollen dress in cream for their “date” and hoped she could sooth him if he was troubled.

Keanu greeted her at the door bare foot and freshly showered. Truth be told he hadn’t showered for days before that and, since he had shunned the housekeeper for 2 weeks, just half an hour before her arrival he had cleared up and shoved a load of rubbish and dirty clothes in the garage where she wouldn’t see. The ramen arrived soon after her and they ate in comfortable silence.

 “You OK, Keanu. You look a little tired if you don’t mind me saying. Are you on a shoot again? You don’t usually see me when you’re shooting”

 “naaah, next week,  shooting starts next week and I’m so not ready!”

 “That’s not like you”

“I know, I know, I dunno what’s wrong really, so I figured ……………….”

“Do you really think THAT will help?”

“Well , yeah, don’t you?”

“Not sure to be honest, I’m pretty sure sex would help but that kind of sex???”

What he had asked was for her to tie him up and take him. They had not done that in a long while. The last time her feeling was that it was driven by a deep inner need to submit all control and give up calling the shots. She hadn’t understood then what brought it on but afterwards, he’d gone off to New York, filmed John Wick and made an absolutely cracking film. Maybe this would work for him this time too.

Tara enjoyed the feeling of power at bringing him very slowly to a powerful release and she could feast her eyes on him the whole time and tease him, frustrated as he was not to be able to touch her breasts, lying totally at her mercy.

Afterwards she stayed much longer for the aftercare, making them both a cocoa and trying to get him to open up. He confessed about the friends with benefits situation and she posed the idea that maybe, faced with escorts being his only option and finding that lacking, just maybe his needs emotionally were changing.

“Maybe  it’s time to let your guard down again and let someone in”

“dangerous territory” he muttered

“for who?” she pushed, arching an eye-brow.

“no good has ever come of it, not for me and not for them”

“and how many tries have there been?” she pushed. “how many in the last 10 years say”

He formed his fingers into a 0

“thought so” she said smugly “you don’t even know how it would go if you don’t try”

@penwieldingdreamer @fortheloveoffanfic @kindainlovewithkeanu @ladyreapermc @witty-wallflower @gatsbynouvel @bitchyslut99 @keanureevesisbae @omg-imagine @iworshipkeanureeves @fics-not-tragedies @ficsnroses @kindainlovewithkeanu @paperplanesandwallflowers

[hapalopus]

Idk who needs to hear this today but not every non-native species is invasive and not every invasive species is non-native. I can only really speak for Denmark, idk how it is elsewhere, but we have species of all the different categories here

Non-invasive native species: A species that has been in the local eco-system for hundreds or thousands of years and doesn't threaten the other species and populations it shares the area with. Examples include European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis), pedunculate oak (Quercus robur), and European pine marten (Martes martes)

Non-invasive non-native species: A species that was introduced recently, but doesn't harm the native species. Examples include sika deer (Cervus nippon), ring-neck pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), and burgundy snail (Helix pomatia)

Invasive native species: A species that has been in the local eco-system for hundreds or thousands of years and has recently started threatening other species. Examples include European beech (Fagus sylvatica), sometimes stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), and sometimes heather beetle (Lochmaea suturalis)

Invasive non-native species: A species that was introduced recently and threatens the native species. Examples include many-leaved lupine (Lupinus polyphyllus), raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides), and swimbladder nematode (Dracunculoidea)

[engineeringecosystems]

An Invitation to Conservation

Where most people see a rock I see potential.

Oi mate, how ya goin? 

My name is Matt and I am an international postgraduate student studying marine biology at James Cook University, in Townsville, Australia. The photo below was taken during my first semester when my friend and I visited the Whitsunday Islands, off the coast of Queensland. We raced a rain cloud back into the marina with our sailboat - it was wicked. We lost the race but ultimately won this sweet photo (see smiles below). 

I received my Bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology and Environmental Policy from Rutgers University, the State University of New Jersey (my home--RU RAH RAH!). While at Rutgers I was initiated into Alpha Zeta, the Co-Ed Honours and Service Agricultural Fraternity of the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (a mouthful). During my time in Alpha Zeta I developed leadership and professional skills while proudly serving my school and community. I also very much enjoyed my time as an ambassador and tour guide for my school.

During my last semester at Rutgers I was accepted into James Cook University and moved to Townsville shortly after graduating. While at JCU I have had some pretty sweet hands-on experience (like raising juvenile grouper!) and I have sat in on lectures given by some of the leading scientists in my field.

To complete my degree I am carrying out my placement (internship for my Americans) under the supervision of Dr. Ian McLeod at TropWATER. TropWATER is an Australian research group dedicated to undertaking research in fields related to water science, resource management and the ecology of water ecosystems, with a focus on sustainability. In addition to this blog, I am working with Dr. Jennifer Hillman on a global mussel review which aims to create a necessary global assessment and database of mussel beds. This assessment is the first to focus on mussels and will help support future research regarding restoration and conservation. The primary stream of content on this blog will thus be related to mussels. Together we will explore their diversity, ecological roles, destruction and restoration (*whispers* I’ll surely be sneaking other shellfish in along the way, hehe).

My interest in conservation started with Ostrea angasi (photographed above by Richard Cornish). While working on a small project for a coastal ecology class I came across this article about the largest oyster reef restoration project in the Southern Hemisphere (and second largest in the world after the United States). The University of Adelaide and The Nature Conservancy partnered up to complete the project and added 20 hectares (200,000 sq. meters!) of Australian flat oyster spat and recycled oyster shells to historic reef sites in the Gulf of St. Vincent (photographed below by Anita Nedosyko).

I learned just how important oysters are to the health of our estuaries and coasts, and to our communities (economically and socially). Shellfish are an important protein source for millions who depend on ocean resources and are also a very lucrative aquaculture industry because of their pearls. Much like coral reefs, oysters form three-dimensional reefs that serve as a habitat for a variety of fish and invertebrates. Oysters are known as ecosystem engineers because, in addition to creating habitats, they also filter water, stabilise shorelines, and serve as nurseries for several fish species (an ecosystem engineer is any organism that creates, modifies, maintains or destroys habitats. The North American beaver is a classic example of an ecosystem engineer). 

My research also reminded how greedy and destructive humans can be. In Australia native oysters have been harvested to functional extinction; this means they are not abundant enough to preform many of their ecosystem services. Before European colonisers reached (what is now) Australia oyster reefs used to dominate the southeastern coastline of the continent. It is estimated that historic oyster reefs stretched some 1500km (that's two-thirds of the length of the Great Barrier Reef!). Oysters were harvested so heavily that their populations were reduced to less than 1% by the beginning of the 20th century.

I was so inspired by the Adelaide oyster restoration and its role in the environment and the community. I hope that these blog posts (carefully crafted with love and passion) inspire you to be a little less selfish and a little more shellfish. 

If you want to learn more about Adelaide’s oyster restoration (and the little fella that started it all for me) then check out the video below. 

[quickienewyork]

Guys, I almost forgot. Piper brought home Belon oysters last night and I shucked them and we ate them and we’ve never had them before! They’re the original French oyster and a totally different species than the typical east and west coast oysters we get here. They’re also called European Flats.

They’re big and flat and round and they’re salty and fishy and a bit grassy and metalic as well. 

And then she cooked me pasta in red wine with fresh prawns. 

It was a really lovely evening. 

[mpkcom]

Winter rabbit

2800 words short story inspired by nature and it's cruel side. Mild horror and fantasy.

Let me tell you a story. A story not told over seven hills and seven seas but right here. In my backyard. You could say it is over seven grasslands for there is no mountain or lake in sight. Flat. Everything is flat, except for an occasional Oak or Cherry.

The story begins in winter. A normal, even a mild winter, but with a thick layer of snow. Houses here are low with roofs touching the white blanket, creating mounds with sparkling chimneys. The roads? You mean trenches dug from one farm to another.

In one such burrowed path my friend drove in his car. An old Eastern European vehicle designed to be stubborn on these occasions. Steering wheel vibrated. He opened his mouth. Motor let out a ticking sound. Snowflakes on his windshield slowed down. Clash. Glass broke.

He stopped yawning. With a fluent swoop, he looked around his cabin. Foggy windows were whole. His heart pounded.  The only sound he heard. He looked at the radio. Smudged yellow light illuminated an FM scale. Only a moment ago it signaled a radio station playing songs with lots of trumpets and bass. He turned the knob. Only static on every frequency.

Outside the snowflakes fell in a straight line. Right light shone. Left flickered. He placed his hand on the door handle. As the lock clicked so did his mind. All the stories about wolves and night predators came to his mind. He gulped and cracked the door open. The wind pushed the moist chill air onto his face. Warm tears rolled down his cheeks. Snow crumbled as he sank ankle deep.

Cracks formed an intricate mosaic in the glass originating from a frozen ball of ice. Only forty centimeters tall, it bent in the front bumper and a small part of a square hood.

The right light flickered and all of them shut down in unison. The wind howled carrying a copper, bitter smell. Hair all over his body straightened, hands trembled and a warm, electrical, current ran down his spine separating his will from his legs. He only felt numbness from the waist down.

Howls cascaded in the distance. Wolf howls. He turned, stiffed and reluctant. Red orbs, not even bloodshot eyes but pure red orbs, stared back at him. Close. Yet not close enough. Only a fifty meters away. He could run. He could come to my house. It`s only a hundred meters ahead. Not that he didn`t want to.

He could hear the blood rushing through his veins. He still felt the warmth in his chest despite inhaling deep icy air. His fingers turned pale from quenching his fists, but legs… Why they didn`t want to move?

Matted glow ran down from the center of the two orbs, resembling a shooting star with a very short lifespan. My friend gulped. His legs moved. One, only one, throbbing, unsure step that made him jerk to the left.

The glow dashed at him. Snow squeaked. He ran, waving his hands around as he battled the primal element of wind. Warmth crept behind him. It took a form of a breath filled with the stench of rot and decay. He stepped on my porch. His hands squeezed the door handle. Locked. With his free, right, hand he assaulted the door. Wooden frame shook on loose hinges.

Lock clicked. He stumbled forward. If it weren`t for me and my wooden buttons on a thick woolen vest, his fingers wouldn`t find a place to grab. He would lie belly flat on the floor.

I stepped back. Lifted my fist. His eyes, wide open, glossed. I lowered my hand. Behind him, I saw darkness. Cold prevailing darkness. Nothing else. He gasped for air and lifted himself up. Slamming the door shut, he turned to find something to reinforce it. His eyes focused on a simple chair with chipped white paint. He pushed me aside. Grabbed it. Once snugged under the door handle he breathed out. He swayed side on side and lowered his shoulders.

He sniffed and turned around. My lips stretched. I knew what he smelled. The Oyster Mushroom creaked over the open Oak fire. I bid him sit next to the fireplace. Cattle whistled and I served us mint tea. He told me everything. Every little detail. We decided that something needed to be done with those wolves the first thing in the morning.

And the morning came. Rather late, however, normal in winter days. My friend smiled at the sight of bacon and eggs. His smile grew wider after I took my carbine off from its resting place above the fireplace. The lock clicked and I stepped into stumped snow. Reflection of daylight bounced from the white layer. Like needles puncturing my eyes, it burned. I lifted my right hand to shield me. With every step, it became more bearable.

Thirty steps away from my porch I noticed it. Puffiness scattered in a circle. Next to it, boot tracks of a grown man. I crouched. Snow froze over the night. At the edge of the circle pointed out a wide and buried stone. Further ahead were two sets of tracks. One leading toward the snow crater and one leading back. The print itself stayed sharply etched into the snow. A print that I recognized. Rabbit. Large one. Insanely huge. I rubbed my eyes. By the tracks, this monster should be big as a bear cub.

My friend shifted from one foot to another. His gaze burned the back of my neck. I stretched my legs and dusted my green coat. I placed a round in my carbine. He gulped behind me.

His car stood in front of us. A whistle came from behind the car. My friend stepped beside me. Our elbows touched. If I knew, he would obstruct my aiming hand so much I would forbid him to come. It whistled again. I unlocked my weapon and stepped forward. Stepping as quietly as possible. The sound resembled a sad muffle cry.

I came four meters in front of the car. I stopped. Circled it around the back end. My barrel at point ready. Nothing. In front of me was nothing. I glanced at the car itself. Its windows fogged. I couldn`t perceive what was inside. I touched the handle. Cold. Pulled it. It didn`t move. I jerked my arm back. Handle cracked. The door didn`t move. Locked.

I stopped to listen. The cry stopped. I moved toward the passenger door. Pointing at the murky window. Handle clicked, the door opened. I jammed it wide open, ready to shoot. Nothing. The car was empty. Only a bit of snow piled on the seat. I glanced at the door. The glass didn`t touch the upper part of the frame.

The cry sounded again. Coming from the very place, I looked. Air brushed my cheek. I grinned and shut the window properly.

“Blood,” Shouted my friend.

He stood ten meters in front of the car. Looking at the ground. I lowered my weapon. Looked left and right. Couldn`t shake that terrible feeling of being watched but I couldn`t see any other living being besides us.

My friend pointed at the red smear in the snow next to the rabbit track. Small in size it reminded me of a

 wound drop. I crushed and rolled the end of my mustache. The tracks lead on further away into the field. The red droplets looked bigger as we went.

First, we found them every ten meters, then six meters. Soon they followed to four, three, and two. Not that we needed the tracks anymore. Red ground stretched in front of us. Clothed blood. At the center laid scattered carcasses. Grey fur, long snouts, and canine teeth. Wolves. Something razor like slashed at them. Hot flash ran down my spine and my shoulders trembled.  I never saw something like this.

My friend turned his back to the sight. Inhaling deep breaths. Bowing and resting his hands on his knees. I head slow moans coming from him. He pressed his belly.

I crouched to better inspect the bodies. I never saw something like this but I remembered what my grandfather used to say. He told me his hunting stories. One still stayed with me. He hunted a fox in the middle of winter when he found it butchered. Next to it were paw prints of a creature he never before saw. The creature attacked all the livestock in the area but somehow no one could catch it, let alone see it. He said that occasionally the nature itself in its chaotic whip creates a monstrosity unlike any other. He told me stories of goats with golden horns, unicorns, and more sinister natured beasts. A price trophy of any hunter.

The rabbit tracks stopped. We decided to get back to my home and try to repair my friend’s car. When we came back, I spotted new prints. Fresh. Running around my house. I unlocked the safety mechanism on my weapon and readied myself. My friend stayed next to his car. I circled around the house. The trail ended behind my wood log storage. I looked left and right. Nothing. I looked up. The thick layer of snow resting upon my roof seemed as usual as ever. I climbed upon the storage roof. I opened my eyes wide. My jaws quenched and I took in fast shallow breaths. Footprints doted my whole roof. However, I still couldn`t see the rabbit anywhere.

I came down and went to my door. Locked just as I left it. The rest of the day went peacefully. We found out that his car battery died and it took a large chunk of the day to refill it. I offered him to stay the night. After a strong dinner, we were readying ourselves to go to sleep when the electricity went out.

My friend panicked. He told me to fetch some light. I grabbed a box of matches and walked toward a wood drawer where I kept a few candles. I stroke a match. The fierce yellow spark illuminated the window above the dresser. Two red eyes stared at me. I let off the match. It extinguished on the ground.

Immediately I stroke another one. No trace of the eyes. Must have been my imagination. I lighted up the candle and went to see my fuse box. Everything seemed all right. Must have been an outside issue. My friend begged me not to go out during the night. Could be because of his tone of voice or the apparition of the eyes but I listened to his pleading.

Muffle sound came from the roof. Fireplace extinguished. An avalanche of snow fell in it. My friend passed me the carbine. I felt the trembles of his hand when I touched the cold slippery barrel. He dropped the munition. I bend down to pick it up. I straightened myself. Two red orbs shone on the same window. My friend shrieked. I loaded a round. Loud bang. A sweet scent filled the room. Yellow flame escaped the barrel. Glass crashed. The eyes disappeared.

I turned to see my friend holding a kitchen knife in his right hand and the candle in his left. I knew that the monster couldn`t get in. Windows were barred, but it would be inconvenient if the candle died out on us. Being blind in a fight is never a good thing. I commanded him to fetch an old oil lamp and turn it on. Meanwhile, I closed all the window shutters and bolted the door.

Oil lamp only began to wake up its murky light when squeaks came from the attic. I stood frozen in place. Looking at the wooden trap door leading to it. The hair on the back of my neck straightened. My legs throbbed with electricity. My grip on the weapon slipped. I whipped my palms on my pants.

My friend didn`t wait. He lighted the remaining two candles I had. He placed them in three different corners so the whole room lighted ablaze.

The squeaks came toward the trapdoor. A little cloud of dust fell down the wooden stairs. I pointed my carbine at it. The squeaks turned to stomps and it moved away onto the other end. I took the oil lamp and climbed on top the stairs. With the end of the barrel, I pushed open the trap door. Ready to squeeze the trigger any moment. Dark void reigned in the attic. Coldness seeped from it. A freezing sensation that grabbed my heard, pressing it.

Seconds turned to eternity. No sound came to me. No creature, no eyes not even a shadow moving. I brought the oil lamp close to the edge of the door. Darkness withdrew. Dusty chests dominated the room. Behind one old bed frame, I swore I saw something move. The oil lamp tapped on the doorframe. I lifted it and placed it on the attic floor. Rolling it further inside the room with the point of my carbine.

It moved again. Brown Fur. It twitched. Straightened. Two long ears darted out. Loud cry raptured the room. In a flash, a gargantuan brawn ball lashed at the door.

I twitched. Moved backward. My foot slipped and I fell on my back. Carbine flew out of my hand. Above me, I saw two long razor sharp teeth. The lamp oil dripped down on me from wet sagged fur. The creature’s nose had a large wound. There were bite marks on its head. It hissed at me and jumped fort with its saber tooth’s

Instantly, I covered my head. Teeth sank in my flash. Piercing my right underarm and back of my palm. Gunfire echoed. The weight lifted from my chest. The beast rolled and pounced on my friend. He ducked. The creature slammed on the wall. Breaking the small nightstand. Yellow candle on top of it

Fell on its front right paw. Flames rose up to its leg. The creature screamed and ran towards the door. Flames spread to its shoulder. Splinters flew. Doorframe cracked and hinges broke. The monster ran outside. Rolling on the snow along the way. My friend shot another round at it. It disappeared from our sight.

Blood dripped down my hand. I held it. Squeezing it. Quenching my teeth. I stumbled toward the first aid locker. I rampaged it through. Inhaled one deep breath and poured alcohol over the wound. Then applied the bandage.

We managed to barricade the door and close the chimney. During the rest of the evening, the beast didn`t return. We took turns at keeping guard.

The morning shone and I created a plan. It was apparent that the creature feared fire. We will lure the creature in and trap it. I couldn’t move my right hand there for I agreed to act as live bait. The monster had already a bite at me. I hoped it developed a taste.

The whole morning we dug up a hole near my house. We took gasoline from his car and the car itself acted as a hunting hideout. At around four in the afternoon, the sun started to set. I sat at the bottom of the hole. Two hours passed and I almost fell asleep in the cold.

Tapping sounded in the distance. I dared a peek outside. Something pushed me from behind. Razor sharp pain pierced my right ear. My back bent by the sheer weight. Claws sank into my skin and ran down my back. Tears came to my eyes. I lifted myself up from the pit but it pulled me down. Shoot fired. Yelp. The weight fell from my shoulders. I looked up. My friend lends me a hand. My foot slipped on the edge of the hole. I almost pulled him to the pit. He stood strong and lifted me. Claws reached for my foot. He fired again. I clicked the lighter wheel. The blue flame burned at the top of the nozzle.

I smirked. Threw the lighter in the pit. Fire blazed like an inferno. Creature squeaked. The ball of fur jumped out of the pit. It`s back still burning. It ran toward the forest. My friend grabbed my carbine and chased after it. I fell to my knees. Rubbing my ear, shoulders and back with cool snow. It helped. I heard several shots and after ten minutes, my friend returned. He cursed. The beast got away. He carried me inside and tended to my wounds.

The night came. We waited for the revenge. The morning lighted up. No trace of footprints around the house. I got a fever. My friend helped me change the bandages, and we cleaned the wounds with moonshine. A week passed and still no sight of the monster. We went hunting it but even the tracks disappeared. Years passed and I almost forgot about the story. Until today my grandson. The picture you took looks very similar to the winter rabbit.

[tasteatlas]

🇭🇷 MALOSTONSKE KAMENICE Malostonske kamenice are fresh european flat oysters produced in the Mali Ston bay near the city of Dubrovnik. Special reserve Mali Ston bay, a protected area of nature, represents one of the last preserved habitats of this oyster species. . 📷 photo by @ . ➡ Submit your local food and tag #tasteatlas . #foodlovers #foodpic #travelblogger #travel #foodblogger #instatravel #instafood #foodie #dish #chef #chefslife #instachef #tasty #golocal #traditional #authentic #kamenice #oysters #malostonskekamenice #maliston #ston #croatian (at Mali Ston, Dubrovačko-Neretvanska, Croatia) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2HBu2Vl-Ev/?igshid=1q0zbkuyaj20a

[seelevelsrise]

Day 230 — No Filter

Shellfish reefs, made up of oysters, mussels and other shellfish, were a feature of Port Phillip Bay, providing a rich source of food for the bay’s traditional inhabitants.  

Not long after Europeans arrived an appetite for oysters saw the reefs disappear, robbing the bay of these complex living structures that create a healthy habitat for marine life and an architecture under the water that reduces coastal erosion and improves water clarity. 

Port Phillip Bay has lost over 95% of its native flat oyster and blue mussel reefs since European settlement. Over 150 shellfish reefs across Australia, including Port Phillip Bay, are now ‘functionally extinct’ habitats with only a handful of reefs still in existence. Some of the reefs were removed and ground up to provide a base for new roads. 

Oysters are nature’s water filters, filtering at a rate of up to four to five litres an hour and with some help, the reefs are on their way back. 

Conservationists and oyster growers have partnered to support the revival of the native flat oyster industry and to restore natural reefs. The collaboration has many benefits including a reduction in the cost of harvesting baby oysters and a sharing of the cost of research into habitat preservation and the prevention of disease.

[weirdness-on-the-roof]

critical role episode 48 campaign 2 notes and funny lines post break edit:this has detailed notes on all the stuff that happened later in the episode including physical descriptions near the end. enjoy ya nerds

don’t steal the books from a high powered mage; don’t kill the dude; beau turning into cad; look at beau planning for the future

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is marisha flirting with matt via matt playing yasha and beau flirting with yasha?

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‘tea the international language’ but no earl grey

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wensworth the goblin

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coming from Cad ‘im a fine tea maker’ is kinda a threat tbh

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elf that isn’t white/European??? yay! also really old elves are cool

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beau and cad tag teaming a political chat with a mage this can’t end poorly

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Nott: :beau ruins every situation shes in and is very abrasive

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send the freaking cat!!! why not?? caleb my dude

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god i miss allura and gilmore currently

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fucking fuck don’t lie to the mage beau plz stop this is painful ‘you’re not wrong’ sure blame the ancient sea god

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‘on the verge of returning’ yea no duh you let him out 2/3 of the way so fjord could get a spell

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‘we found a thing’ so smooth and eloquent beau ‘it was presented to us as the happy fun time ball’

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‘butter fingers with magical items’

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beau getting a geography lesson from a very old powerful elven mage

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‘magical geometric orb that has the ability to bend time and space and fate’ which is kept in a hot pink magic bag that happened to ‘fall into [their] lap’

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‘if youre down im down is what im saying... i have a few slots open in my loyalty bank if you’re willing to pay rent’ says the 20 some human who punches things to the centuries old wizard ‘

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liam stress eating

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cad’s hope in the group is heartwarming

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tower metaphors and a conversation!!!

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caleb reading shitty romance novel and nott eating a fish outside a mage’s tower in the morning sunlight in a major city

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caleb takes the rear

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first name drop and a while

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holy shit 200 years of magic using

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cad explaining materialistic nature of the rest of the party to elf dude is hilarious

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teleportation circles?????? in return for access to the sphere!! oh shit thats good

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or candy

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crap. no one has insight checked this dude and they gave him the happy fun ball and made a deal kinda.

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‘how do we prove our loyalty?’ ‘by not fucking me over’ sounds like a good plan

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is this guy just caleb’s patron now on the low idk this is how my head works and he said learn

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“you have a geometric shape that makes babies?” “yea they talked about that”

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fjord just kills the dude

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‘i got banishment on hold just in case’ *cackling laughter*

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i agree with elf dude, him not knowing anything about the dodecha is more concerning than him knowing about it

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ALL THE CITIES FROM CR1 MENTIONED FOR THE FIRST TIME!!! I STILL MISS ALLURA AND GILMORE

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good to know the pink bag protects from divination on this plane but just this one

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jester and the traveler figurine

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cad included the Traveler in the ‘chaotic forces’ i still think the traveler is some kinda arch fey evil things idk its real late here and this is incoherent

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‘well, thats been my morning tea‘ 

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caleb getting additional tour

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good aesthetic for the room tbh

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letting weird people in for morning tea is entertainment is a mood and something i strive to be able to do without getting murdered one day

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so yasha and caleb both have gotten the ‘stay with friends’ chat from a powerful being which is nice. but also the ‘use who you need to’ going to caleb is vaguely concerning

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personalized biscuits [bourbon, cinnamon, lobster, fish and three unknowns]

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‘caleb, what happened in there?’

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cad not believing caleb’s bullshit and opening doors for caleb warms my heart

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‘if this isn’t the death of us, and if not hes a good ally. somethings gonna be the death of us so [yolo]’

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‘you can’t bullshit everyone in this world’

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cad talking about beau telling the truth: ‘you’re not very good at it but you tried

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jester looking out for nott and her home town

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caleb and beau being cute while also giving each other shit is the most sibling like thing

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omg going back to allfield that was so long ago for fucks sake BRYCE my person thank god

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jester had a boy band phase its cannon and i think the girls had a sleepover in jester’s old room. also marion never leaves the hotel. THE RUBY NECKLACE MY HEART AND THE HONEY AWWWWW

‘the army of men and women and inbetween that will do as i want them to’ god i adore her being protective of jester

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also the fact matt makes such a good mom why is he like this

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travel time!!!! ‘roll for initiative’-tal

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how does matt keep these notes so organized and remember all the npc names

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the ranger/beast master in Laura is coming out with nugget

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caleb is a devout cat person and jester is the definition of a dog person

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nott refining oil on a magical moving cart, while jester reads a romance novel and trains a dog,

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Dyren- Beau’s roommate at colbot souls; ‘taught beau lots of really cool things’ got sent to a warfront. shaved head, dark clothes, buff b/c ‘been workin out’, ‘do you love her?’ they had ‘good times’, then literal booty call, and dropping locations, Dyren was in Bladegarden. ‘fierce eyebrows, pointed nose’

                    OH MY GOD THEY WERE ROOMMATES

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Vandren info drop to Fjord ‘he was making amends’

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Dyren responded and was hurt in Bladegarden but is safe. Beau looked immediately worried and happy about jester’s imput [’sounded way into you’]

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empire kids chat and caleb admitting insecurities about powerful people and being scared about the consequences of his actions and the group’s actions. caleb is scared about being forced to leave for safety and being ‘flayed alive’. my thoughts are he would leave if he became a threat to the others by being there or vise versa. trent would extort that b/c hes a dick

“caleb, unfortunately, you don’t get to choose who cares for you” you’re fucking correct Beau

“the problem with friends is that you have to care for them”

walks away “wow cool caleb! see- jester thinks you’re cool because shes your fucking friend!”

me too Tal “everything i like about those two characters in one conversation”

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5 years since Caleb left Trent and crew ie had a nervous breakdown

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gustav left town after being freed and trostenwald now has a WV accent that is too familiar

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100 extra soldiers in allfield. bryce is still up and kicking and wonderful. stuff ‘got this far east [quickly]’. the attacks came from underground apparently so fuck. the fields were burned, building destroyed a bit then they [Xhorhasians] left

“good thing is they’ve already been attacked so lightning doesn’t strike twice” oof thanks bryce

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beau just dead ass asking for illegal writing statements

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fjord having a thank u jesus bryce moment

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jester giving cad a pretty present is ‘so exciting’ and precious

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Cad not knowing cookbooks were a thing!!! and not being utterly literate enough to understand it

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wtf happened to liam’s voice in the ‘main export is oysters’ thing

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FELDERWEN!!!!!

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a dozen squads of 50 ppl each patrolling felderwen area so rippppp

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Nott knows where the halfing’s house is.... interesting... and is heavily drinking

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BLUE FLASH

elven woman in fine clothes of green and black ----lady vest durogna the arch mage of antiquity serboros assembly

a male figure in deep blue robes, older pale elf, fine clothes, the flash came from him----- martinette luden’th de____ arch mage of domestic protection

CALEB KNOWS THEM BOTH FROM THE ACADEMY AHHHHHH

he just lays flat and hides in the cart internally: ‘nopenopenopenope’

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several burned buildings, a warehouse, an inn, apothecary and several houses

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ohhhh shit the halfling was the owner of the apothecary and nott was looking for the shit she had been sending back this whole adventure....... im sad now that was confirmed

havent found a body of yeza

luke is yeza’s son at old edith’s house

            halflings only produce halflings according to something i read at some point but forget where sooooooooo

shattered vials and materials and house stuff

CHILDREN'S TOYS

locked basement which nott knows of?? Nott is anxious and impatient when the door doesn’t open. jester fails, yasha rages and at a 19 and doesn’t break the door. ‘it wasn’t [trapped]’ but dispel magic worked to open it.

a 15′x15′ room, tossed ‘not like you remember’ to nott, a 2x3 iron chest. a single chair in the center of the room. definitely a struggle with heavy impacts and blade scratched on wall

             nott was the torturer from the goblin tribe

chair was placed in the spot after the struggle

this was where he [yeza] kept chemicals according to nott

poisoned iron locked box (dull black glass)  inside a retractable silver tripod to hold something atop it, 3 empty vials 1 full one with a liquid/gas fog like dull colored thing, a pile of destroyed notes [two pieces of still legible paper which have props]

            dunamous field, causes ppl slow to be slower or faster, ‘captured crin operatives’ dunaments and dunamacy, origon gliffs, exist outside established schools of magic, theory in deeply rooted in arcana taken for granted, rooted in _____ town, 12-16 months to refine, word has found me that trent’s kiddos have knacks for this things, dreams are thrilling

well shittttt

            crin on battle fields, ‘breaking fields of fate, fuck the raven queen

SHIIIIIT

a piece of dunemous

dodecha goes in tripod according to beau

chair facing chest

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cricks did this apparently

a little under 100 crowns guard killed, 4 civilians burned

soldiers just ‘slowed down’ 

left via tunnels and collapsed them behind them

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nott dont be a bitch and don’t get mad at caleb and call them ‘his people’

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cad picks up caleb and ‘youre not at fault here, youre the solution here. don’t let her anger... its not about you’

my HEART

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the chest is too big for the haver sack but fits in lorenzo’s bag of holding

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people have entered and exited since the attack and left the chair and stuff

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lots ‘o chairs

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nott needs to see ledith and uke (?) and not flip the fuck out

‘humble hobble’

nott looked like halfling plump face, braids, tan skin

edith- human older, grey hair, beady eyes, ever present smile like face

          LUKE IS HER SON!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CANNON

         *edit- rewatching this and seeing ever one’s faces “wheres my son?!” particularly laura/liam/travis just hurt. liam just looked up after a second and travis did his face he does and laura just stiffened and eyes and hand to face. caleb/liam who knows just hugs himself the rest of the convo. marisha is note taking and fuck the video off now

about 5 yrs old, blue eyes, tan/light brown skin, halfling

gave him the doll of the king

IM GONNA CRY NOW BYE

‘HES PROABLY DEAD NOW TOO LIKE I THOUGHT YOU WER’

yenza locks him away when ‘the mean lady comes by’

mean lady has pointy ears and comes often, luke was kept in room, luke was pushed out of the house and told to go somewhere safe so he ran to edith’s house and ‘everything was on fire’

‘im not strong enough to come back yet but know that [im stll thinking of you and i send things] and i hope dad sends them to you.“ fuck my heart

“in my heart i think he is” “well don’t die”

-------

the elves are gong to the ruins of yenza’s house

-------

marisha looked so betrayed

tal ‘i was waiting for the riegel shoe to drop’

WOW

HEY CALEB- WOOOW

-------

we’ll pick up hiiiere

fuck you sam and matt and everything abou this my heart is just FUCKKK

ummm so enjoy the frantic poorly taken notes <3

[pojkflata]

anyway nevermind all that bs, let’s talk more abt cliffclan, specifically what appearance a cat might have in order to gain a specific cliffclan unique prefix

Brine: Light gray or blue-gray pelt. Markings are either faint or nonexistent Cod: Referring specifically to the Atlantic cod. Pale brown pelt, usually speckled Crab: Referring specifically to the European green crab. Dark brown tabby pelt Foam: White or light gray pelt with white markings. May be speckled if the latter Gull: Referring specifically to the common seagull. Gray- and white pelt and/or silver tabby pelt. May also be speckled Lobster: Referring specifically to the European lobster. Dark brown tabby pelt, usually with white underbelly Oyster: Referring specifically to the European flat oyster. Cream colored pelt Puffin: Referring specifically to the Atlantic puffin. Black- and white pelt, preferably with a white underbelly Salmon: Referring specifically to the Atlantic salmon. Remember that since these cats live by the sea, they only see salmon in their ocean phase, not the spawning phase. That means NO ginger cats get the prefix Salmon. Anyway, grey- and white pelt, usually white underbelly, may be speckled Seal: Referring to two species this time, either the gray seal or the harbor seal, so a lot of pelt colors are possible with this prefix, including white, silver, gray, brown, tan, speckled or tabby, go hog wild Tern: Referring specifically to the Arctic tern. Black van markings (i e black on the top of the head as well as the tail and otherwise entirely white) Tidal: Blue-gray or silver tabby pelt

[shuckerpaddy]

New Oysters Available in the USA. Oysters from The Netherlands - lovingly grown by @premier.seafarmers have finally landed in NYC. Dutch Flats - The Dutch Flats - Ostrea edulis - toothsome firm, slight crunchy in the texture with earthy notes. Briny WetStone Dry Tannic finish mineral mineral mineral. Krijn (pronounced “Cr-ine” - like wine with a Kr..) Magallana “(Crassostrea) gigas - “”Ocean, sweet cream, melon, sea greens, mushroom and cucumber freshness. The exciting difference compared to all other oysters is the salt. The taste of European Saline is much different than that of North American shores, will be very “European” bright and minerality. “But why Import Oysters?” Parallelling the wine world, oysters in the global perspective would be a comparison of “old world wine” with “New World wine” based on the same grape varietal. “It’s all about the flavour experience.” The flavour of oyster comes from three things. Species, Region, Farmer. And that we call Merroir. I invite those lucky folks in NYC to head over to @flexmussels #UES today to enjoy the first of the European oysters to grace USA. Pair them with some of the wonderful Local Oyster for that Shuckers Experience! More shipments to follow on a weekly basis. If you have any questions or want to know how to get some of these… please DM send me a message. #LetsGetShucking #Merroir #Oysters #OysterSommelier #TasteOfPlace #Netherlands #Dutch #OysterTasting #Shucker #Shucked #NewShuckCity #NYOyster #DutchFlat #KrijnOyster #FlexOysterBar #MusselsAndOysters #ShuckerClub #ShuckedByPaddy @theoystercompanion @shuckerpaddyoysterco @shuckerclub (at Flex Mussels) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoQC1X7OhHi/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[tasharealtyg]

The Complete Guide to Gurgaon Real Estate and How It Has Become on of the Most Desirable Locations in North India

Is it advisable to invest in residential property in Gurgaon?

Economic and social infrastructure:

Gurgaon is one of the most important business centers in India. Gurgaon has strong roots in Business Park City in offices and support making it a hotbed of job creation. The city has world-class restaurants, shopping centers, educational institutions and transport infrastructure that meets European standards.

With the Dwarka Expressway, Gurgaon (Gurugram) is currently in great demand by home buyers and investors. Intended as a functional foundation, it exceeds expectations for value appreciation and return on investment. Being a major business hub in North India, Gurgaon attracts talent and workforce from across the country.

Unmatched Housing Projects:

Anyone living in Gurgaon will tell you that their standard of living has improved tremendously. City dwellers live in beautiful 1 bedroom apartments in Gurgaon with ample green spaces, walkways, trails and gardens leading to a sophisticated lifestyle. Housing options include a variety of housing and wellness facilities, as well as relaxation areas. Housing projects are planned in such a way that residents have easy access to important parts of the city.

Connection:

Gurgaon is every commuter's dream come true. The city has a well-developed transportation system with excellent road infrastructure and subway connections to important places.

Future subway projects will connect suburbs to the city's transportation network. People looking for homes in Millennium City benefit from seamless connections to Delhi.

Consider these points when buying property in Gurgaon.

1) Before investing in any real estate project, do thorough research:

Since buying a home is one of the most important decisions you will make in life and involves a significant financial investment, it is always important to do thorough research. Investing in residential property in Gurgaon is no different. Research the history of the developer whose project you are considering.

Best Residential properties and Apartments in Gurgaon  to invest in;

M3M Capital Sector 113, Gurgaon

Puri Emerald Bay Sector 104, Gurgaon

Puri Diplomatic Greens Gurgaon

Sobha City Flats Gurgaon

Conscient Hines Elevate Gurgaon

Vatika Turning Points Gurgaon

Adani Oyster Grande Gurgaon

Can they deliver the project on time? Do they adhere to ethical business practices? Are there any pending or ongoing consumer lawsuits against them?

2) Consider your budget.

You can focus on your budget once you have determined that the Gurgaon residential property you are interested in has/will be developed by a reputable developer. There are many options available to buyers from apartments in Gurgaon, villas in Gurgaon to 2bhk, 3bhk apartments in Gurgaon. Budget is very important when buying a residential and commercial property in Gurgaon and it should reflect how much you can afford to spend.

When deciding on a budget, include an estimate of any other expenses you will have to pay later. These fees include things like survey agency fees and taxes. These costs are usually not taken into account from the outset and become a financial burden when paid.

3) Accommodation requirements:

Prioritize your accommodation needs in your 2 bhk, 3 bhk apartment in Gurgaon as soon as you start your accommodation search. Some people insist on having a balcony, while others insist that apartments should be built in Gurgaon, Vastu said. Just keep a list of 2bhk, 3bhk apartments in Gurgaon that will meet your long term needs.

4) Choose the ideal location:

Choosing the right location means the area must already have a ready-made project with the family living there that allows for housing locations. And the convenience of shops or malls for the availability of daily necessities such as basic necessities, medicines and other necessities that can be easily or without being carried away from your 2bhk apartment in Gurgaon.