#coastal rain forest

[jamesmassino]

Coastal Rain Forest - Oregon, North America

[snoozeandstudysounds]

West Coast Forest

[bedroomantic]

Cascade Head. Northern Oregon. Dec 2024

(Salmon River Estuary)

[briwhosaysni]

I do not regret going to grad school, and I do not regret moving for my program, but I am absolutely sick and tired of living in the fucking desert

It should not be 97° F in fucking May

I wish we still had our chest freezer so I could curl up inside it and take a nap

[no-passaran]

Genocide experts warn that India is about to genocide the Shompen people

Who are the Shompen?

The Shompen are an indigenous culture that lives in the Great Nicobar Island, which is nowadays owned by India. The Shompen and their ancestors are believed to have been living in this island for around 10,000 years. Like other tribes in the nearby islands, the Shompen are isolated from the rest of the world, as they chose to be left alone, with the exception of a few members who occasionally take part in exchanges with foreigners and go on quarantine before returning to their tribe. There are between 100 and 400 Shompen people, who are hunter-gatherers and nomadic agricultors and rely on their island's rainforest for survival.

Why is there risk of genocide?

India has announced a huge construction mega-project that will completely change the Great Nicobar Island to turn it into "the Hong Kong of India".

Nowadays, the island has 8,500 inhabitants, and over 95% of its surface is made up of national parks, protected forests and tribal reserve areas. Much of the island is covered by the Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve, described by UNESCO as covering “unique and threatened tropical evergreen forest ecosystems. It is home to very rich ecosystems, including 650 species of angiosperms, ferns, gymnosperms, and bryophytes, among others. In terms of fauna, there are over 1800 species, some of which are endemic to this area. It has one of the best-preserved tropical rain forests in the world.”

The Indian project aims to destroy this natural environment to create an international shipping terminal with the capacity to handle 14.2 million TEUs (unit of cargo capacity), an international airport that will handle a peak hour traffic of 4,000 passengers and that will be used as a joint civilian-military airport under the control of the Indian Navy, a gas and solar power plant, a military base, an industrial park, and townships aimed at bringing in tourism, including commercial, industrial and residential zones as well as other tourism-related activities.

This project means the destruction of the island's pristine rainforests, as it involves cutting down over 852,000 trees and endangers the local fauna such as leatherback turtles, saltwater crocodiles, Nicobar crab-eating macaque and migratory birds. The erosion resulting from deforestation will be huge in this highly-seismic area. Experts also warn about the effects that this project will have on local flora and fauna as a result of pollution from the terminal project, coastal surface runoff, ballasts from ships, physical collisions with ships, coastal construction, oil spills, etc.

The indigenous people are not only affected because their environment and food source will be destroyed. On top of this, the demographic change will be a catastrophe for them. After the creation of this project, the Great Nicobar Island -which now has 8,500 inhabitants- will receive a population of 650,000 settlers. Remember that the Shompen and Nicobarese people who live on this island are isolated, which means they do not have an immune system that can resist outsider illnesses. Academics believe they could die of disease if they come in contact with outsiders (think of the arrival of Europeans to the Americas after Christopher Columbus and the way that common European illnesses were lethal for indigenous Americans with no immunization against them).

And on top of all of this, the project might destroy the environment and the indigenous people just to turn out to be useless and sooner or later be abandoned. The naturalist Uday Mondal explains that “after all the destruction, the financial viability of the project remains questionable as all the construction material will have to be shipped to this remote island and it will have to compete with already well-established ports.” However, this project is important to India because they want to use the island as a military and commercial post to stop China's expansion in the region, since the Nicobar islands are located on one of the world's busiest sea routes.

Last year, 70 former government officials and ambassadors wrote to the Indian president saying the project would “virtually destroy the unique ecology of this island and the habitat of vulnerable tribal groups”. India's response has been to say that the indigenous tribes will be relocated "if needed", but that doesn't solve the problem. As a spokesperson for human rights group Survival International said: “The Shompen are nomadic and have clearly defined territories. Four of their semi-permanent settlements are set to be directly devastated by the project, along with their southern hunting and foraging territories. The Shompen will undoubtedly try to move away from the area destroyed, but there will be little space for them to go. To avoid a genocide, this deadly mega-project must be scrapped.”

On 7 February 2024, 39 scholars from 13 countries published an open letter to the Indian president warning that “If the project goes ahead, even in a limited form, we believe it will be a death sentence for the Shompen, tantamount to the international crime of genocide.”

How to help

The NGO Survival International has launched this campaign:

From this site, you just need to add your name and email and you will send an email to India's Tribal Affairs Minister and to the companies currently vying to build the first stage of the project.

Share it with your friends and acquittances and on social media.

Sources:

India’s plan for untouched Nicobar isles will be ‘death sentence’ for isolated tribe, 7 Feb 2024. The Guardian.

‘It will destroy them’: Indian mega-development could cause ‘genocide’ and ‘ecocide’, says charity, 8 Feb 2024. Geographical.

Genocide experts call on India's government to scrap the Great Nicobar mega-project, Feb 2024. Survival International.

The container terminal that could sink the Great Nicobar Island, 20 July 2022. Mongabay.

[Maps] Environmental path cleared for Great Nicobar mega project, 10 Oct 2022. Mongabay.

[aliscience]

भारत के मुख्य जीवोम

Major Biomes of India भारत के मुख्य जीवोम जीवोम (बायोम)  एक बड़े पैमाने के भौगोलिक क्षेत्र (large-scale geographic area) को दर्शाता करता है जो विशिष्ट जलवायु, वनस्पति और पशु जीवन की विशेषता रखता है। यह एक प्रमुख पारिस्थितिक समुदाय या पारिस्थितिकी तंत्र है जो तापमान, वर्षा, ऊंचाई और मिट्टी के प्रकार जैसे कारकों से आकार लेता है। बायोम वनस्पतियों और जीवों का एक विशाल संयोजन है जो एक विशेष जलवायु के…

[victusinveritas]

Mike Davis, a prophet of California, wrote "The Case for Letting Malibu Burn" (link to the full piece) which earned him the wrath of developers, proven right, again, as catastrophic flames destroy enclaves of privilege and power and, like below, Pasadena. The Chumash and the Tong-va knew this. Controlled burns as a yearly occurence stretches back into time immemorial.

"Malibu, meanwhile, is the wildfire capital of North America and, possibly, the world. Fire here has a relentless staccato rhythm, syncopated by landslides and floods. The rugged 22-mile-long coastline is scourged, on the average, by a large fire (one thousand acres plus) every two and a half years, and the entire surface area of the western Santa Monica Mountains has been burnt three times over the twentieth century. At least once a decade a blaze in the chaparral grows into a terrifying firestorm consuming hundreds of homes in an inexorable advance across the mountains to the sea. Since 1970 five such holocausts have destroyed more than one thousand luxury residences and inflicted more than $1 billion in property damage. Some unhappy homeowners have been burnt out twice in a generation, and there are individual patches of coastline or mountain, especially between Point Dume and Tuna Canyon, that have been incinerated as many as eight times since 1930.

...

From the time of the Tapias, the owners of Rancho Malibu had recognized that the region’s extraordinary fire hazard was shaped, in large part, by the uncanny alignment of its coastal canyons with the annual “fire winds” from the north: the notorious Santa Anas, which blow primarily between Labor Day and Thanksgiving, just before the first rains. Born from high-pressure areas over the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau, the Santa Anas become hot and dry as they descend avalanche-like into Southern California. The San Fernando Valley acts as a giant bellows, sometimes fanning the Santa Anas to hurricane velocity as they roar seaward through the narrow canyons and rugged defiles of the Santa Monica Mountains. Add a spark to the dense, dry vegetation on such an occasion and the hillsides will explode in uncontrollable wildfire: “The speed and heat of the fire is so intense that firefighters can only attempt to prevent lateral spread of the fire while waiting for the winds to abate or the fuel to diminish.

Less well understood in the old days was the essential dependence of the dominant vegetation of the Santa Monicas—chamise chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and live oak woodland—upon this cycle of wildfire. Decades of research (especially at the San Dimas Experimental Forest in the San Gabriel Mountains) have given late-twentieth-century science vivid insights into the complex and ultimately beneficial role of fire in recycling nutrients and ensuring seed germination in Southern California’s various pyrophytic flora. Research has also established the overwhelming importance of biomass accumulation rather than ignition frequency in regulating fire destructiveness. As Richard Minnich, the world authority on chaparral brushfire, emphasizes: “Fuel, not ignitions, causes fire. You can send an arsonist to Death Valley and he’ll never be arrested.”

(Yes, I'm reusing some of the same images that I posted earlier. The point is the words that go along with the pictures. Mike Davis was brilliant and will be missed.)

[marshmallow-phd]

Genre: Regency Gothic AU

Pairing: EXO x Reader

Summary: A stormy night brought you to the manor in the middle of the woods. Nine strange men occupied its halls. They won't let you leave. A dangerous secret haunts this estate. Learning it might either be your saving grace or it could lead to the last breath you ever take.

Part: 1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5

**

Lightning lit up the thin curtains covering the two small windows on either side of the carriage. Thunder rumbled and you felt it deep within your chest. Tugging your silk cloak closer, you closed your eyes and prayed that the driver would get you through the storm. There was no one to comfort you, to reassure you that a little rain and noisy sky wouldn't delay your journey.

Your father had insisted you take your sister or even a friend, but the two day’s journey didn’t  seem consequential enough to need a companion. Besides, what would they have done once you arrived? Your elderly aunt had only asked for you. From what you could decipher from her letter, she needed you to be a companion as she traveled to the southernmost coastal town. Apparently, it was now the ultimate fashion to travel to for the summer. Just the idea of rolling waves made your stomach churn. But what was worse was who else would be there–

The carriage jolted to the right. You spread out your arms, only barely catching yourself from falling to the floor. No sane person would have endured such dangerous weather. This storm had come from nowhere. Skies blue and cloudless as you had ever seen bid you farewell in the late morning. Most of the day's journey had been uneventful. Then the joyful light faded. Thunder shook the walls of the carriage. Rain pounded on the roof. When would you reach the inn? Bile rose up in your throat, burning the sensitive tissue as the carriage continued to rock violently. The horses neighed over the sounds of the storm. 

The carriage shifted hard to the left. And kept falling. You slammed into the door, nearly opening it with the force. You didn't know what was happening. The floor was now the wall and the wall the floor. A downward momentum made it impossible to stand. Screams ripped at your throat.

Then it stopped. 

The rain continued to pour and the thunder roared on but the carriage was still. Your legs wobbled as you slowly stood. With your palms, you pushed open the door. The thin wooden panel clapped against the outside of the carriage. Immediately you were pounded by the storm. Large drops pelted your face, obscuring your vision. It was dark. You could tell that much. And there were trees. In every direction. 

You climbed out of the carriage, calling for the driver. Your feet slipped in the mud, but you managed to keep your balance–for now. The mud was thick and sticky as you trudged to the front of the carriage.

 No. No, no, no. Both of the horses were gone. And so was the driver. Somehow, the carriage had fallen down a hill or ravine. With a storm this terrible, you needed to get to higher ground or risk possibly being carried away–or drowning. Clawing and digging your hands and feet into the soaked dirt, you climbed the hard incline back to the road. 

Once you could make out the road, you called for the driver again. No answer. He was nowhere to be found. You needed to find shelter. The storm gave no promise of letting up. You wouldn't survive the night in this forest, even if you went back into the carriage. The only choice was to find sanctuary. You stared in the direction you believed you came from. Nothing but trees and darkness. You turned to the other choice. All the same–wait. 

There was something... when lightning brightened up the sky. Your heart began banging in your ears. Spires, towers. Not trees. It was some distance away, but it was shelter nonetheless. 

With near tears in your eyes, you picked up your skirts–your fingers numb from the cold–and hurried towards the castle that could be your saving grace. 

*****

The manor was calm tonight. Odd, considering the amount of bodies roaming around these haunted halls. Only the beautiful storm outside and Chanyeol's sorrowful melody from the piano broke the silence. Jongin had draped himself over one of the arm chairs as he inspected the wine mixture within his goblet. The taste was… adequate. The cellar would need replenishing soon.

In the corner, a rather lax game of cards covered the small, round table. Minseok smirked at his winning hand. The faded wooden chips with bits of white painted around the edges were piling up in front of Yixing, who leaned back carelessly, sure of his next win. Little did either of them know that the youngest among them had a little... trick his sleeve. As the quickest, Sehun had perfected sleight of hand long ago. None had caught him yet.

A fire roared, coaling the usually gray and brown room in flickering orange. With how close he stood near the fireplace, Kyungsoo's silhouette was visible through his loose shirt. He leaned his palms on the mantel and let the warmth of the flames engulf him. Warmth was all they could feel after all these years. It could be an addiction so strong it was tempting to throw himself into the fire. 

Junmyeon joined him at the fireplace, leaning his shoulders against the brick. The bite of the edge hardly registered in his mind. Pain of that measure... it was only a ghost that had nearly crossed over. 

“Such strong thoughts for a night like this.”

Kyungsoo didn’t look from the fire, but raised a questioning eyebrow in response. 

Junmyeon shrugged a single shoulder. “I can’t read minds, but it's obvious you're turning something over more times than a praying rock.”

“It's the same thoughts,” Kyungsoo murmured in his strange, monotone voice. “Always the same thoughts.”

“One day you will have to let it go,” Junmyeon sighed. “This is our existence now. And forever will be.”

“Acceptance of the present doesn’t erase the past.”

“But it does make the present more enjoyable.” The red liquid sloshed against the rim of the goblet as Jongin draped an arm over Kyungsoo’s shoulders. He wore a mischievous smile. A clear indicator of his true intention. 

Junmyeon shook his head. “We’re not going out tonight. There’s nothing out and about in this storm.” Hunting in these conditions would wield no trophies. Tomorrow would be a better night. 

“Jun’s no fun tonight,” Jongdae teased as he and Baekhyun emerged from the hallway. 

“If you want to go out in this mess,” Junmyeon waved towards the front door. “Be my guest. Just don’t you dare get mud on the rug–”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Help! Please! Help!”

Nine pairs of eyes snapped to the echoing sound. None moved. 

Bang! Bang! 

BANG!

One of the double doors burst open and a figure fell to the floor, landing on its knees and palms. It looked up. A flash of lightning illuminated the face.

The face of a beautiful young girl. 

*****

Your knees vibrated when they hit the wooden floor. Water fell from your loose hair that clung to your cheeks. The chances of  the door opening when you pushed on the handle had been low–yet the barrier that kept you victim to the storm fell open and you crashed downward with it. 

Greeting you in this strange hall were several men, their jaws hanging open in a mirror of your own surprise. More men appeared from a side parlor, curious as to who dared intrude on their evening. One, two, three–you counted nine total. Nine men. This was not ideal–a bit terrifying, really–but you didn't have a choice. The storm raged outside.

"P-please," you stammered past chattering teeth "The st-storm overturn-overturned the carriage.” 

The men stayed silent as they exchanged unreadable glances. One raised a questionable brow. 

"Jongdae, go run a bath," ordered the man closest to you. One of the shorter residents nodded and disappeared into the darkness that led into the rest of the manor. 

That's what this place was. A grand old manor, not a castle. Isolated. When you'd first run through the rusted iron gate, you'd feared it abandoned. A long dormant instinct whispered that you might have been better off if it had been. 

The first man approached, each motion slow, deliberate, and hauntingly graceful. He crouched down in front of you and captured your frightened stare. The fear in you began to melt away. He was… beautiful. Obsidian fell over his forehead in gentle waves. His tunic was of a fashion your grandfather would have worn. There was something strange about this man–all of these men. Something... different. 

"Let's get you warmed up." He held his hand out and you were up on your feet before you even realized your fingers were resting on his. "Don't worry," he murmured. "You're safe here. My name is Junmyeon." 

You nodded, somehow believing him, but unsure if you should. Through your violent chattering, you managed to stammer out your name in response. 

Bang! 

You jumped at the sudden noise. One of the other men had somehow appeared behind you to shut the door you'd fallen through. 

"Thank you, Yixing," the man beside you said. The one named Yixing nodded and then shifted his eyes to you. “Come.” A hand pressed into the space between your shoulder blades and guided you down the hall, leaving a trail of mud in your wake.

The man led you down several halls until you reached an unoccupied bedroom. Red blankets draped the oversized bed. Matching curtains hung limply from the canopy. All of the wood was a dark sort, rich in color but not quite welcoming like other, brighter woods. 

Jongdae emerged from another door on the other side of the bedroom. Steam rolled out after him as if it were following him for its next set of orders. “Anything else?” he asked drily. 

“No, thank you.”

Jongdae strolled the from the room without a glance either of you and closed the door behind him. Your breath hitched in your throat. The two of you were… alone. It wasn’t appropriate. It was…

You looked to the man still with you, fear causing your heart to pound painful against your chest. You tugged your cloak closer to you, but it was soaked from the rain. Shivers violently raced down your arms and spine. The man didn’t seem to notice as he walked over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. He pulled out a long white cloth. 

“These should suffice for tonight.” He held up the cloth for you to see. A nightgown. An old one by the cut of it, though thankfully it hadn’t been devoured by moths or mice. “If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask.”

You nodded. “Thank you.” 

He visibly suppressed a laugh at your small voice and waved you into the adjoining bathroom. Taking the nightgown, you tried your best to avoid his gaze. You scurried inside and shut the door. 

*****

Junmyeon smirked at your mousy state. It was understandable why you were so frightened. The women of this period were warned of being alone with a man. And now you were alone with nine. 

Nine very dangerous men. 

The proper action for him to take was to leave your room now that you were safe inside the bathroom, but his feet didn’t move. Somehow, the storm had stranded you in their forest. What had happened to the driver, he wondered. Surely a gentlewoman such as yourself was not controlling the carriage. And yet, you were all alone. Circumstances were… ideal.

A small hiss echoed in the bathroom. It stretched out, along with the sound of sloshing water. Junmyeon frowned. 

Hm.

He stood there for a few minutes more, listening to you sigh as your skin grew used to the scalding water. The sound of soap scraping against skin reached his ears, followed by more sloshing water. Soon, you would be getting out of the tub. Time to leave. 

He emerged from the bedroom, careful to close the door as quietly as possible. Everyone had gathered out in the hallway since they were too curious about their visitor to go about their night. Junmyeon found Jongdae blending in with the cluster. He glared at him as he hissed, "The water was too hot." 

Jongdae merely shrugged. Why would he care about water possibly being too hot? It would never hurt him. 

On the opposite end of the group, Yixing cleared his throat. "What are we going to do with her?"

Junmyeon glanced at the door behind him. There was only one best option, for all their sakes. "Tomorrow morning, we will send her on her way." 

The eruption was instant. 

“Enough!”

In an instant, the hissing ceased. 

Baekhyun huffed and folded his arms against his chest, collapsing against the wall. Jongin scoffed. "Such a waste." 

“A waste that will keep this household from tearing itself apart,” Junmyeoun countered. It was an outcome none of them wanted. No one wanted to cause a fight, but resisting was difficult. The temptation was great. The quicker you left, the better off they would all be. 

"Do you really think it’ll end so well?" Minseok’s mocking comment hung in the air. Silent agreements rippled through the air. 

Junmyeon looked to Kyungsoo, whose answer was to look away. "No one touches her," he ordered. They all would try, he knew. But their strength would only get them so far. He stared down a few of them especially, so they knew he meant it.

Sehun pushed off the wall with a roll of his eyes. "Just get her out of here so I can get some peace." 

Junmyeon started to call after him but was interrupted by a soft thud from the room behind him. Confused, he opened the door to find you lying on the floor.

[cedar-glade]

A recent trip to Red River Gorge has supposedly led to some interesting findings, or rather a potential accident of some kind. I posted this lichen image on I naturalist to see what it was as I was very unfamiliar with anything that could compete or mat this aggressively to the point that even moss was having a hard time establishing past it. My friend Shaun managed to correct my attempt at Identification and he seems pretty sure about the ID all though im waiting on two others to comment on it as Ide prefer curators in something like this.

Due to recent storm damage and downed trees it has now become an optimum time to look at dry bark before rot starts phasing in and humidity invites more fungus and moss not associated high light exposure and upper canopy of trees in the gorge, it also luckily has caused unofficial trail hikers to learn to meander or create new trails via bushwack and elephant path(desirepaths) in order to relocate the original unofficial trails since trail maintenance only exsists for those that are declared official trails. During one such meander I accidentally walked past this lichen for the first time in my life.

Micareopsis irriguata

Sandstone Sea fog/foam lichen.

A species only mentioned in the Keys that I have but has no photos available due to it's scarcity, it has 1 report in Kentucky besides this current one in Red River Gorge and has plenty of potential to be found in many locations where sandstone ravines are found (WV, KY, TN, IL, IN, OH, PN, AL.) Yet reports are minimal and records are scarce in herbariums. Right now for example I nat has less than 20 reports on the species as a total.

Surrounded by some moss, Cystocoleus ebeneus (black hair lichen); There are actually other lichens in this shot too that are not easily identifiable and what may be Leptogium spp. of some kind and or Scytinium spp. or perhaps some mealybug like look alike maybe even a pin lichen. Found on a humid exposed sandstone cliffs near the base of cliff face, Bison Way downsend trail near the upsend roots to Adena Arch shortcut.

Sea foams and rain forest lichens are very similar and are common names for a group of species associated with a bullate(thick bumpy, often with convex tile-like areoles) thallus that is somewhat reminiscent of foamy surfaces. These aren't necessarily uncommon nor rare in rocky areas but some are definitely less present due to inland association or coastal association and microclimates. This was more of a happy accident to me, I was curious about it, hadnt noticed it in the area before, didn't know what it was at all, so I took a picture to look it up as it was way more dense than a powder lichen (like Lepraria finkii or Botryoleparia lesdainii and had apothecia instead of what I associate with almost ascoma like reproductive structures that are often seen on things like the mucose thalloid mats of Multiclavula mucida and thicker crustose hard algal like thalloid mats like those associated with Dibaeis spp, or perhaps Bacidinia delicata and Baeomyces rufus. Similarly it is notable that im not the only one who associates these species at all because we can juxtapose the name sake of Micareopsis spp., which could of used oides as well to mean "looks like", to Micarea spp.

Micarea spp. or "the lumpydumps" are often mucus like thallus that form thalloid mats on rotting wood and can appear to look like Multiclavula mucida at first glance or similarly Ive looked at Arthonia ruana pictures online which is also an algal film species. So when I speak I mainly am refering to the conifer wood species Micarea (prasina, micrococca, and maleana) respectively. Each associated with wood substrate only( again specifically conifers that are in various stages of decay in humid microclimates) unlike the sandstone dwelling Micareopsis irriguata.

[timkarr]

Unsettling Sound The Puget Sound is an unsettled sea that lies above the tectonically active western edge of the North American Plate. This large body of frigid water is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Olympic Mountains to its west and the Cascades to its east. Glaciers crowded into the Sound during the last ice age, advancing from the north. When they retreated some 13,000 years ago they left behind deep deposits of interglacial sediment. These sand and clay remnants, in turn, were carved by frequent rain, sea and wind erosion to form high, unstable coastal bluffs, which were soon blanketed by dense evergreen overgrowths of cedar, hemlock and fir, and undergrowths of alder, blackberry and fern. As erosion progresses this cover slides from high bluffs in slow cascades that often take decades to complete from hilltop to shore. The process is sped up when the northwest rains are heaviest. Landslides can carry trees and their understory to the beach in an instant. Once arrived on the shore, the upended forest enters the marine ecosystem, where it functions as nutrient, shelter and barrier. In the last centuries, human structures have been added to this tumult. Houses perched on bluffs afford spectacular views and command high prices, but they face the disturbing prospect of being splayed across the beach following a prolonged downpour. Slides in the Northwest earn frequent headlines, and were even the subject of a popular book and film set on the slopes of Queen Anne Hill. Much hilltop construction in the area occurs with little immediate awareness of the role erosion plays in maintaining both the geological and biological integrity of the Sound. A common response to the inevitable is to line the bank with black basaltic stones quarried from ancient lava beds. The proliferation of these bulkheads throughout the Puget Sound has resulted in a phenomenon called “shoreline hardening.” According to some government statistics, approximately 30 percent of the Sound’s shoreline is now armored with stone and concrete reinforcements. This happened along the beach where my family has lived for nearly a century. in the 1970s and 80s, property owners piled stone bulkheads to shore up against sliding —attempting to fix in time something that’s always in flux. The results of our obstinance has been devastating. Within years this beach began to lose much of its value. As a child, I can remember clawing a hundred Native Littlenecks from the sand and clay beneath beach rocks. We let these clams sit for a couple of hours in a bucket of seawater. My grandparents taught us to sprinkle in cornmeal so they could spit out stomach sand as they fed. Once full, they were transferred into a steaming pot where they open latticed shells to offer up their tenderness. Today I’m lucky if I find a single Littleneck after 30 minutes of raking. When I visit the Sound, I think of Sue and Payne, who were privileged to live on this shore and loved what it could yield to any of their grandchildren willing to put some time into it. They left us more than 20 years ago, and a new generation of family has built modern homes on the foundations of those Sue and Payne left behind. In time, ownership may be handed to successive generations, or we might drift away, passing the beachfront to someone with no memory of what it meant to a family that gathered there. And while the Sound may retain much of its scenic beauty, this too is fleeting. The tides will rise and fall revealing stretches of rocks and sand, again and again, and still something will always remain unsettled until it’s gone.

[starhvney]

sure @starsbrightly! as requested here’s some links to youtube videos i use when i write for mcd, but it could be used if you’re writing any sort of medieval fantasy as well.

anyways, i may have gone a little overboard so there’s quite a lot of links here. if you don’t want to click each individual one i have a playlist linked here that you can shuffle through :)

links are utc!

city sunny day (might be distracting)

elven city with music

village: sunny day, rainy day

village: at night with fire, at night with no fire

coastal village at night (this reminds me of phoenix drop!)

cottage: daytime, rainy night

kitchen asmr, no talking

potion brewery

apothecary asmr, no talking

castle: cozy bedroom, eerie indoors, outdoor blizzard

tavern: lively with music, inn room, inkeeper cleaning, empty

market

festival

hot springs

wheat field: at day, at night

camping: in the rain, at night, in the day

traveling by horseback

traveling by foot: sunny, thunderstorm

foraging asmr, no talking

forest with no music

enchanted forest with music: in the day, at night

creepy/haunted forest

nether

underworld

[just-another-star-47]

Scents 🌹

How does each and every person in Hogwarts smell?

Slytherin edition 🐍

Plonbraw edition (OCs) • Gryffindor edition • Hufflepuff edition • Ravenclaw edition

Sebastian 🦊

Its own odour tickles the nose like warm, damp earth on a walk after the first drops of rain have touched the ground. It envelops without being intrusive and awakens an indefinite anticipation of more whenever dark clouds gather in the sky.

He was and is often responsible for the fieldwork at Feldcroft, sometimes voluntarily, sometimes to escape the house and Solomon. To soften the traces of hard labour, he uses a nourishing balm for his hands, the delicate smell of chamomile and marigold accompanies him even into the castle walls at Hogwarts, as his rough hands are often seen by him as very unpleasant. He also takes care of the rest of his appearance, regularly buying hair gel in Hogsmeade to tame his slightly curly hair, the delicate smell of yang-yang is the result, mixed with the rose of his hair soap.

However, the slightly sweet note of his care products does not make the soft woody odour of his skin disappear, but rather embeds it in a sweetish warmth.

Anne 🐈

A field full of flowers in May, surrounded by the light tartness of the strawy grass - the nose can't miss it and makes anyone passing by think of cheeky children's pranks on balmy summer days.

Anne doesn't use perfume per se, but perfumed soap, in memory of her mother, with whom she associates the smell. The delicate scent of violets blends wonderfully with her own floral scent and is more restrained than overpowering. The soap is one of the few luxuries that Solomon allows and eventually buys himself, ignoring the objections of Sebastian, who was previously responsible for buying it and had often helped out in the neighbours' fields in Feldcroft to earn the necessary money.

The moment Anne's spring-like odour was replaced by the stench of medicines and hospitals was the moment when hopelessness sank its claws into the siblings' minds - the delicate smell of violets now strangely alien and a mere, sad reminder of days long forgotten.

Ominis 🐇

Fresh and cool, like the smell on a path that leads through a dense forest, where you have lost your way and yet feel only security. Ominis has a fine nose and therefore refrains from using any perfumed products - they only make him feel woozy or give him a headache. Nevertheless, the smell of cleanliness always clings to him, which seems almost minty. To escape the clammy smell of the Slytherin rooms, he stores his clothes between bags filled with lavender, which adds a hint of flavour to his watery inherent odour. In addition, the purple flower helps him against his restless states, which always afflict him.

Imelda 🐍

She spends most of her time in the air, Quidditch training not only a part of her that is ingrained in her blood, but that also affects her scent.

Leathery like a well-groomed Quaffle, slightly tart and spicy, the smell of the salty coastal wind of her home village never quite fades.

Imelda wears a perfume that her brothers gave her for her birthday - a slightly smoky note with a splash of invigorating lemon and exotic vanilla.

[pockymun]

Maps of Galahd by Pockymun

I've been writing fic for FFXV for a few years now. One of the obstacles I've run into again and again was not knowing where the characters were at all. This made it hard to plan logistics like travel time, weather, and climates. So I decided to look at what maps we have from FFXV and create my own for the lesser-traveled regions (which is everywhere except Lucis, and even that map isn't that great).

This task in itself was frustrating because it's impossible to tell where the equator and the tropics are supposed to be. The climates of Lucis and Niflheim only confuse it further. If Lucis is based on America, it's pretty far up from the tropics. Accordo doesn't appear a warm enough climate to be in the tropics, either. (Accordo has a very coastal Mediterranean climate; just a note for the future).

There has been debate regarding where Galahd is in Eos. Most agree that it is the islands located behind Insomnia. It makes the most sense because of reaction to Galahd's invasion in Insomnia's news: Niflheim conquered land in Insomnia's backyard, and were knocking at the door. When Niflheim slowly conquered much of the mainland Lucis, nothing was mentioned regarding a reaction from Insomnia.

Being where it is, Galahd should be a much colder climate than what I have it as. It should be more like Norway or Finland. However, the Kingsglaive anniversary artwork depicted a scene with a lot of South/Southeast Asian influences. The proper places of climates never seemed to matter to the developers of Final Fantasy.

In a rudimentary attempt to map the ocean currents of Eos, I drew a warm ocean current that runs westward on the north side of Galahd. This would cause the islands to have a slightly warmer climate than what it should have considering its placement. Logically, it wouldn't be warm enough to be considered subtropical, but I really wanted there to be a jungle climate in FFXV and I think that's what the developers originally intended as well.

On the southern coasts of Galahd, there is a cool ocean current that runs westward. These waters are much calmer and are ideal spots for large fishing enterprises. The warm ocean current in the north brings storms and a lot of rain; the north side of the islands are much wetter.

The climates I described in the climate map are classifications that can be found on Wikipedia. I tried sticking close to climates found in Southeast Asia, while also giving some more temperate areas as well. While much of the material culture is SE Asian, there are some things, such as the braids Nyx and Lib wear, that seem to stem from ancient Indo-European/Iranic influences. There was a custom among one of these people in which only warriors braided their hair.

For place names, I used fantasynamegenerators.com and selected random South/Southeast Asian town names. There are two straits, the oceans, and the seas that I haven't named yet. The map became very cramped with one names I already put on it.

Some headcanons I came up with while working on this:

Galahd's climate provides some challenges to the transportation infrastructure. There is no major roadway nor any major settlement on the north edge of Lhasgar due to the dense forest and the risk of annual floods. Cities and towns are more firmly established further in the island.

When Lucis still controlled the islands, they attempted to improve the infrastructure by establishing major roads and railways. The climate did not allow much leeway for railway, however. Around the same time, Lucis relaxed its control over Galahd and allowed for autonomy.

The most common forms of transportation are by vehicle, bus, or boat along the waterways.

There are cities and towns. These were there before Lucis took over, although they had looked much more traditional back then. Most of the world believes Galahd to be a couple of islands full of small backwoods villages, but they were as sophisticated as any other culture at the time they were conquered, and modernized with everyone else. While modernizing, Galahd had also managed to stick with their traditional culture.

While the map looks crowded, there is still a lot of open land and wilderness. The rivers and lakes shown are only the major rivers and lakes; there are more, just as there would be for any other regional map. Water and wilderness are defining features of Galahd.

The mountain ranges had once been connected, just like how the Appalachian and the Little Atlas Mountain Ranges.

Feel free to use these maps when writing your own fics or headcanons! I would greatly appreciate being credited. These maps are just my interpretation, and don't stand in for canon material. They are flawed, but I worked with what I had. I made these using Inkarnate.

[dragons-and-magic]

More question time, lol!

Other than James, is there any other hybrid dragons?

How do dragons react to lemon? (LOL)

What’s Emily’s origin?

Other than villain dragons and humans, are there anymore rivals or villains they face against like wolves?

Is Henry gentle to the forest animals and acts like a Father Nature type?

Is there any dragons that loves the beach or the coastal region?

OH MY GOSH. I'M ABOUT TO DROP SO MUCH LORE. THIS WAS MY EXACT REACTION WHILE MAKING THIS.👇 I AM UNHINGED. :D

Anyone reading this, you're gonna want to pull up a seat! This is gonna be long! Lol!

Other than James, is there any other hybrid dragons?: I would say yes. But they are very far and few between. At first. Let me explain a few things! So, in the golden days of dragons, there were many species. And they were all sorted into different classes. Titan, Standard, Dwarf, and Fey. (And there's Leviathan Class, but it's too big to show here.) In addition, they are subclasses like Seadragons, Serpents, Wyverns, Drakes, (Normal) Dragons, Fey Dragons, and Longs (Eastern Dragons). They sometimes also are sorted if they had any kind of magical abilities. And each of these would almost always mate only within their own species.

But then something happened. Humans got even smarter and started using tougher and more deadly weapons. Slowly dragon numbers began to dwindle and dragons began to migrate out of their usual habitats and into other species. These dragons started to find mates from other species in the areas they wandered to. Sometimes it was simply a matter of their species just dying out. Or the smaller territories crossing over. Either way, Hybrids were the results. They weren't super common at first. But by the time this AU's version of Journey Beyond Sodor comes around, they're WAY more common. In fact, Hurricane is a cross between a Titan Class (Gordon's Class) and a Standard Class (Thomas's Class)! EDIT: I forgot to mention! For this same reason, clans made up of multiple species also started to occur. Before, Dragon Clans were usually made up of only one species. But after families got separated and almost whole species killed off by humans, dragons began to bond with others outside their kind. Found family baby! :D

2. How do dragons react to lemon?: Weeeeeeeell...

That's a definite NOPE from Thomas.🤣 Yeah, I don't like they would like them much. Lol!

3. What’s Emily’s origin?: Okay, so here's the thing. She is literally NESSIE. Aka The Loch Ness Monster!

Well, she's what started the legend anyway. Albeit accidental. Lol. Here's the story. Emily is chilling in her Loch one day, minding her own business. She had just gotten up, so she isn't really paying attention to her surroundings. A camera flashes. Emily freezes and looks toward the shore. Two very nervous photographers are standing there. She panics and dives back down! But, she's a bit too late. Because, blurry as it is, that photo is enough to start a whole monster hunting craze. Suddenly the Loch is swimming with boats and flashing cameras, and Emily's whole clan has to relocate! And that's how she ended up on Sodor.😂

4. Other than villain dragons and humans, are there anymore rivals or villains they face against like wolves?: Do ghosts count? Sailor John is a pirate ghost in this story! But he disguises himself as a normal hooman. He has to find his old treasure chest, so he can become mortal again and rain terror across the seas again! Also, there's a few dangerous monsters and such. Trolls, Rock Monsters, Sand Worms, etc. (Beresford the crane is a bridge troll in this!) Sodor is actually part of an archipelago called The Golden Isles. So there's plenty of habitats for monsters to dwell. As for wolves, that's not such a bad idea! Perhaps something like Wargs could exist. They're the giant evil wolves from Lord Of The Rings. Something like that maybe.

5. Is Henry gentle to the forest animals and acts like a Father Nature type?: Absolutely! He loves the animals! And knows a lot about them! Because he's closer to animals than the others, he doesn't like to partake in hunting. And he has a more vegetarian diet.

Of course, most dragons are predators, and need food to survive. And of course, if there was too many prey animals, the ecosystem would be unbalanced. So there has been a compromise made. Any animal located within fifty feet of Henry's den, (Located under the Wishing Tree!) is safe from hunting. Also, one more cool fact about him is he has plant magic! He can grow plants, and has something called Root Connection. He can basically telepathically sync up with the trees communication signals and find out what's going on anywhere in the forest! His horns and eyes get all glowy and everything!

6. Is there any dragons that loves the beach or the coastal region?: Definitely! There's three whole clans that live by the beach! Salty's clan is on the Southern Coast of the island. And you know Salty loves the ocean! His clan is made up of himself, Porter, Cranky, and eventually Big Mickey and Carly. Cranky is a big Leviathan Class Seadragon as you can see. Porter and Salty can ride him.

And then there's Belle's Clan! (This AU's version of the Sodor search and rescue team!) They live on the northern coast and watch out for incoming dragons and ships! They're like the watch men of the island! They live on a sea mount called The Roost! Her clan is made up of Flynn, Harold, Captain, Butch, and Rocky. Don't have designs for them yet. Sorry.😅 (Flynn x Belle is thing in this too!)

And then lastly, we have Duck's clan. And while they live more inland than the others, they are still located on the northern coast! Duck's clan has Donald, Douglas, Oliver, Skiff, Daisy, and Ryan!

I don't have concepts for everyone yet. But here's Ryan, Daisy, and Duck's prototype designs! (Oh, and Ryan x Daisy is a thing in this!❤️)

And that's everything! For now.😉

Thanks for sending in so many questions! I had a ton of fun making this!

[promptsforpoemproseandplay]

Woods

As the sixth part of my instalment for ‘places we don’t know the names of', following Paths, Bodies of Water, Holes, Grounds, and Vegetation, I will be covering woods – which you may know as jungles, forests, and all the others.

So, here's a totally not comprehensive guide to

✨Woods✨!

Woods

boondocks: an uninhabited area with thick natural vegetation, as a backwoods or marsh (usually preceded by the)

boscage: a mass of trees or shrubs

bosk: between a wood and a thicket

bosket: between a grove and a thicket

chaparral: a dense growth of small trees

coppice: copse

copse: a small wood

covert: a thicket giving shelter to wild animals or game

forest:  a large tract of land covered with trees and underbrush

grove: a small forested area with no undergrowth

hinterland: the land lying behind the coastal region

jungle: a wildland overgrown with dense vegetation, often nearly impenetrable, especially tropical vegetation or a tropical rain forest

orchard: an area of land devoted to the cultivation of fruit or nut trees

spinney: small thicket

thicket:  a thick or dense growth of shrubs, bushes, or small trees

vineyard: a plantation of grapevines

weald: wooded and uncultivated country

woods: a large and thick collection of growing trees

woodland: land covered with trees

There aren't quite that many words that mean forest, which leads me to believe I have covered all of them. But, English always finds its own way.

~Nyx