#swinhoe

[ceiling-karasu]

Poll: For the next AU

Since the Wolf Unit hunts enemy scouts with deadly accuracy, I think I might want to work on the disguises and how the scouts protect their identities. Obviously, fur dye with Juldarami with the stripes, and trimming the extra fur tufts that grow in during the winter as in the first AU. But the question is, why would he have stripes?

From what I have researched, red squirrels are determined by a lighter lower half and a darker top half, with a phenotype of darker patches on the head and top, but I don't see a phenotype for multiple stripe looking patches.

I HAVE, however, found lots of sources for several species of Striped Squirrel's found in Asia.

Swinhoe's Striped Squirrel (left) and the Three Striped Ground Squirrel (middle), for instance, look very similar to Juldarami.

He can also be a bit more brash, and I feel like he has a different sounding voice, than the other squirrels.

I saw in a YouTube video once that darami means both squirrel and chipmunk in Korean. But if they said 'red squirrel,' then they would also need to say 'brown hedgehog,' or something like that, and by that point the mouthfeel is off.

Juldarami is supposedly archaic slang for chipmunk, which is in turn slang for striped, so it is one big circle there that leads back into striped squirrel. Plus, he is too large, and the 'stripes' are in the wrong area and colors for a chipmunk.

Feel free to add anything!

[calenthee]

Last batch of moths I did!

If any of them are named wrong, please let me know so I can update it!

[forrestsandfeathers]

Swinhoe's white-eye - zosterops simplex

Orange County, CA, Dec 2, 2023

[200isoshearwater]

backyard pics, put up a birdbath and they love it :)

[oripeau]

This week in Nantes: n°430 | Imogen Heap, as Joan of Arc, by Luke Swinhoe ↦ GBR More → oripeau.art Submit → oripeau.art/submit Playlist → open.spotify.com/playlist/4R7PXexzD8ifWlzb7YiH76 This project is supported by trempo.com

[sandpaperoctopi]

Swinhoe's white-eyes

[herpsandbirds]

May I put in a request for Taiwanese birds? I have a great fondness for the Taiwan barbet. (And the Malayan night heron, which isn't endemic but is weirdly common in Taiwan.)

Absolutely!!!

Taiwan Barbet (Psilopogon nuchalis), family Megalaimidae, order Piciformes, endemic to Taiwan

photograph by CL Lee

Malayan Night Herons (Gorsachius melanolophus), family Ardeidae, order Pelicaniformes, Taiwan

photograph by Francesco Veronesi & William Chong

Swinhoe’s Pheasant (Lophura swinhoii), male showing off a little too enthusiastically to a female, family Phasianidae, order Galliformes, Taoyuan, Taiwan

photograph by Susheng Yeh

Taiwan Firecrest aka Flamecrest (Regulus goodfellowi), male, family Regulidae, order Passeriformes, endemic to the mountains of Taiwan

photograph by @joinus12345

Black-capped Kingfisher (Halcyon pileata), diving for fish, family Alcedinidae, order Coraciiformes, Taiwan

photograph by joinus12345

Taiwan Rosefinch (Carpodacus formosanus), family Fringillidae, order Passeriformes, endemic to Taiwan

photograph by ZW Young‎

[mutant-distraction]

The water deer (Hydropotes inermis) is a small deer species native to Korea and China. Its prominent tusks, similar to those of musk deer, have led to both subspecies being colloquially named vampire deer in English-speaking areas to which they have been imported. It was first described to the Western world by Robert Swinhoe in 1870

-Wikipedia

[stamp-it-to-me]

a 2014 Taiwanese stamp depicting a Swinhoe's pheasant

[ID: a postage stamp with an illustration of a blue and red pheasant. end ID]

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Trick or treat🎃👻

I'll give you a Swinhoe's pheasant (Lophura swinhoii)

[scotianostra]

On December 12th 1939, 9 miles off the Mull of Kintyre, the D class Destroyer, HMS Duchess was sunk after a collision with another ship.

This is the story as told by a survivor. It was an icy, black, December night and the destroyer, "Duchess" was heading home to the north of Scotland. Only another hour and she could dock at Greenock, at the end of a spectacular, record - breaking passage from East to West. The declaration on of war on Germany in that ; September of 1939, had been the signal for the flotilla of nine ships --all 'D' Class destroyers -- to leave their Chinese port, with the instruction to set sail for the 'friendly' waters of the U.K. with "the greatest possible speed". It had been a rare experience, an impressive and morale - boosting sight for the crew of the "Duchess", as they had steamed away in single file and at thirty knots, heading for refueling at Singapore On they had gone at break-neck speeds, beyond Colombo, Aden and into the Suez Canal. Here, the other shipping had been halted to ensure the flotilla's unimpeded progress to Malta. At Malta, three of the destroyers -- "Duchess", "Dainty", and 'Delight" -- were detailed to escort the Battleship "Barham" from Gibraltar to Scotland.

The "Barham" was a mighty ship. A veteran of previous skirmishes with the German fleet at Jutland in 1916. A massive vessel of some 31,000 tons, she dwarfed her escorting destroyers. The battleship and her escorts followed the usual pattern of submarine - avoidance by zigzagging, making it difficult for an enemy submarine to obtain a 'fix' on the ship. It had been a lightning trip -- perhaps the fastest East - West passage ever recorded and the crew of the "Duchess" were rightly proud of their achievement, as, in the early gloom of a December morning, she zigged and zagged her way towards the Hull of Galloway. The majority of the crew were below, asleep and the Petty Officer on watch had closed down all but one of the gunnery implacements, held a roll - call of his ten gun crew and ordered them to go below, to secure their hammocks, To clear the way for their messmates at breakfast. Only a young Ordinary Seaman, a 'boy sailor' called Ernest Swinhoe, was left up top at the 'A' gun. He was the 'communication number', the sailor on watch at the 'fore - gun. As the junior rating, he had been given the icy, early morning duty and he envied his gunnery mates their chance to go below into the warmth of the mess.

Ern had been lucky to join this destroyer, to be a part of the friendly crew of the "Duchess", along with his good friend Peter Port. Peter was his best mate, the lad who had shown him the sights of Hong Kong, before they had left the East,

They had both felt privileged to be a part of this record- breaking destroyer flotilla. As an electrician, Peter was fortunate, he thought, to be below in the warmth of the low power room. Safe from the biting chill of a Scottish strait.

It was 04OO hours now, and the watch had begun. Only an hour of this and they would be home and dry. Ern stood in the shelter of the gun shield, to avoid the wind.

There was a blackout and the absence of moonlight made it a coal-black night. He adjusted his headphones and looked aft. It 3. was then that he saw the massive shape of a ship's prow bearing down on him out of the darkness.

It towered over the diminutive destroyer and with a sickening sound, hit the "Duchess" at about half way and with such tremendous speed, that she simply turned the destroyer over. As she. 'turned turtle' Ern dived into the cold black sea, as other, half - naked sailors scrambled desperately round the rolling hull.

The "Barham's" searchlight lit up the scene, It had been her towering form that had pushed the "Duchess" over. Her crew felt sure that they had hit an enemy submarine, as the "Duchess'" upturned asdic domre looked just like a conning tower. But, when her searchlight beam moved aft, it revealed the awful truth -- the sight of a ship's screws, still turning --and her horrified crew began to sweep for survivors. The water was freezing and oil - ridden. There had been no time to grab lifebelts and Ern pushed off his rubber boots and overcoat, alternately treading water and floating on his back. Out of the blackness, a drowning shipmate struggled towards him. He was naked and desperate and Ern realized from his 'Ganges' training, that the condemned boy would use him as a lifebelt - and so, condemn them both.

Ern swam away to a reasonable distance, until the poor fellow disappeared. The light from the "Barham" lit up the side of the upturned "Duchess" and Ern could clearly see the faces of frightened men, shouting through tiny portholes, from which they were unable to escape. On the fast - disappearing hull of the "Duchess", men were clinging on, until the "Barham" pulled alongside, plucking them to safety, only moments before the boilers of the "Duchess" blew and she disappeared. beneath the waves, taking her entombed crew with her. The "Barham" and her other destroyer escorts, lowered boats and Ern began to shout to them. He realized that he had been in the water for some time now. His chances of survival were diminishing for every minute he was left in that icy waste. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a rowing boat and a coxswain shouting, "Oars!" The men stopped rowing now and the coxswain shouted again for silence.~ Ern summoned up ~'what little strength he had left and called for help. He was aware of a ship's lifeboat coming alongside and pairs of arms reaching out to pull him into the craft. He felt numb as the cold air hit him and he pleaded with his rescuers to put him back into the water, where it had felt warmer. When he reached the safety of the "Barham' he was a shaking mass, unable to warm himself through.

He was severely hypothermic and had 'been lucky to survive. His rescuers had pulled him out of the water at some minutes after 0500 hours, which meant that he had been in the water for an hour -- beyond a reasonable amount of survival time for conditions such as those on that December night. As he recovered, Ern learned that he was one of only twenty - three survivors from the ill - fated "Duchess" and, her crew of a hundred and sixty men. His fate had rested on the timing of his watch duty. He had possibly been the only sailor aboard to see the fateful collision, when the zig and zag of the two vessels had coincided. His heart went out to his mate, Peter Fort, who had been below at the point of impact. He couldn't possibly have survived and Ern hoped that he had known little of what was happening,' as he and a hundred and twenty - three others perished in what was officially described at the time, as, "One of those unfortunate accidents of war." More than fifty years have passed since that accident and my father --

Ordinary Seaman Ernest Swinhoe still remembers the events of December 12th. 1939, as if it happened yesterday. He can recall the cold, misery and confusion. The anguish of seeing entombed sailors shouting from tiny portholes, the pain of losing a good friend and the guilt of seeing a shipmate drown before his eyes. Since that day, however, ships have had escape hatches built into their sides, to prevent the fate that befell many of the "Duchess'" crew. While her demise had not been as 'newsworthy' as that of the "Hood", the "Bismarck", or -- later -- the poor old "Barham" herself, lessons had been learnt from this awful night in 1939.

[fatehbaz]

The Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei), the world's largest freshwater turtle and one of the most endangered species on Earth, is now essentially doomed to extinction after the last known remaining female washed up dead in Vietnam. The female turtle, which was around 5 feet (1.5 meters) long and weighed 205 pounds (93 kilograms), was discovered dead on April 21 on the shores of Dong Mo Lake, in Hanoi's Son Tay district. [...] This particular female Yangtze giant softshell turtle was just discovered in October 2020. At the time, no other female Yangtze giant softshell turtles were known to exist [...]. There are now just two known R. swinhoei males left in existence: one in Suzhou Zoo and another that still resides in Dong Mo Lake. Researchers had hoped that the female and male in Dong Mo Lake would eventually mate and produce a clutch of eggs. [...] Yangtze giant softshell turtles, also known as Hoan Kiem turtles and Swinhoe's softshell turtles, were once abundant [...].

---

Headline, images, captions, and text by: Harry Baker. “Largest freshwater turtle species doomed to extinction after last female washes up dead.” LiveScience. 5 May 2023. [The turtle is native to both the lower Yangtze River, near Shanghai, and also the Red River Delta ecoregion, near Hanoi.]

[botnotbow]

Pheasants. Pheasants are amazing. Have you even seen the argus?! My favorite is the swinhoe pheasant.

today’s bird is the pheasant !! they r native to taiwan, they r 78cm long for males, and 50cm long for females ^_^ they r also this anon’s fav pheasant !! >_<

ps: i take requests for birds of the day !! or if you’d rather, you could request another type of animal and it could become animal of the day ദ്ദി(｡•̀ ,<) ✩

[ceiling-karasu]

Other Countries in the AUs: Part Two, Plus OCs

Chambelli Koh (Flower Hill, Urdu)

(Hyena AU, mostly)

Background:

A nation in Africa, with a large population of Urdu speakers, explores the world, and forms an alliance with Chaand Hadia, as they are also Urdu speakers with some of the same values. To the left of Chaand Hadia, a colony of African Spotted Hyenas is formed to allow for easier trading.

But the country the hyenas came from is now defunct (joined up with another country peacefully), as suggested by the flag above, granting independence to the colony, which expanded into its own country as more hyenas join.

The Weasels took over the coastlines of Chambelli Koh with the help of the Wolf Unit, establishing a few bases there, but found a lack of workers they could intimidate into working the fish farms. The Wolf Unit then took over several villages, forcing the larger hyenas and other residents into working as troops for the unit, assuming that they are as blood thirsty as them, with the promise that they will not go after 'weak prey' like Flower Hill. The central government is playing the long game in allowing this to happen. After all, it is only a few villages on the coast, and discretely sabotaging the weasels and wolves will result in victory in the long run. Besides, the hyena soldiers will revolt, eventually, and no one will be able to stop them.

I have the idea that Nurse Eomin from her AU will have been conscripted from the coastline when she was visiting family. The Weasel Unit has no idea she is actually a resident of Flower Hill, just as they have no idea that the hyenas have an incredibly strong bond with the hedgehogs to the point of a few romances.

Location and Geography: Shares a border with Chaand Hadia. Mostly fertile farmland surrounded by mountains, but has a rich coastline of fish.

Government: Stratocracy, although local villages may have their own rules. Central government usually, but coastlines are controlled by the weasels

Economy: Mostly just an agricultural and mining society. They trade minerals and weapons to Flower Hill in exchange for silk, and to Chaand Hadia in exchange for paints and dyes.

Demographics: Much of the country is striped and spotted hyenas. Other species include Swinhoe's striped squirrel, three striped ground squirrels, red squirrels, deer, ermines, pigs, sheep, goats, and monkeys.

Culture: Peaceful, but pragmatic and can switch to warlike. Dark humor with loud laughter is a staple of the populace, but the art scene is booming.

Foreign Relations: Mostly Isolated for now, as most creatures are scared of them, and they are a relatively new nation. They are also far louder and m ore brash than everyone else.

Relation to Flower Hill: Flower Hill was concerned by these massive newcomers, so they invited the hyenas to engage in diplomatic discussions. It was discovered that both countries are called 'Flower Hill,' in their own languages, completely by accident, breaking the tension. The hyenas were impressed and thrilled that the hedgehogs were not at all terrified of them and happily formed peace treaties

Traditional Clothing Style (When not in Military attire): Hanbok, shirts, blouses, large robes, and pants, elaborate beaded necklaces.

Hyena OCs

It's not going to be a serious or long AU, once I get to it. I might combine it with the Nope AU and create a series of stories involving Chambelli Koh and Flower Hill. Otherwise they will be mentioned as existing in the AU, maybe in passing, but they won't be big players in The Rod That Blocks the Lightning, if at all.

Really, the name for this one will probably be One Mind All the Time. The hyenas are super intimidating and powerful, but if they are not in a fight, then they are big friendly goofballs who share one brain cell. But still smart, in the way they can plan for a battle, as well as subtly indicate to Flower Hill that they are being coerced.

Honestly, I could set the location of the prison for the Kidnapped Scientist AU somewhere around in this country, perhaps. Or at least near one of their borders.

Jindo Dog Island

This isn't made up, I just straight up took an actual island around Korea. It was supposed to be a one off gag for an inconsequential chapter, but afterwards I had ideas!

Location and Geography: Down near the Southern part of the Weasel Territory, but not part of it. Island nation with lots of fertile farmland and mixed with birch trees.

Government: Imperialistic, yet willing to trade with other countries.

Economy: Large soju exports, necessitating large wheat and rice fields, as well as a large variety of fruits and vegetables for taste. They also have a large export of xylitol made form imported birch trees, although their uses for it remain mysterious, as it is not used in the soju. Sugar, fruits, silk, and vegetables are large imports.

Demographics: Jindo dogs, pigs, deer, mice

Culture: farmers, loving the peaceful life, paintings, but everyone is conscripted for a short period of time when they become adults, and are very reserved to outsiders. They have never been successfully invaded, but young males of important families are expected to enrich themselves with travel to foreign countries so they can better run the family and the nation, so the country is not completely shut off and behind the times.

Foreign Relations: Open to trade, but due to being an island nation, they have a massive imperial fleet of a highly trained navy. This is also how they are able to trade soju safely despite being so close the weasel territory, in addition to the Myeongnyang Strait, which provides heavy protection to the islands. Stories abound of assassins from the country poisoning enemies with mysterious powders, but the diplomats assure that those are simply rumors. It is only a coincidence that enemies who tried to invade their country, or seriously talked about invading tend to wind up mysteriously dead or in comas.

Relation to Flower Hill: Flower Hill gives them wood and silk, and they trade with exquisite soju. Flower Hill has been sure to treat visitors from there very well for generations, in order to secure alliances.

Traditional Clothing Style: Loose clothes, pants, dresses. Higher classes wear robes, everyone has armor they can use.

OC Character: Jinro the Jindo Dog

Gender: Male

Country and Alliance: Jindo Dog Island

Attire: Western clothes

Skills: Cooking, soju production

Job: drifter, cook

Backstory: He and his twin, Hite, were born to the nation's largest soju production factory in the kingdom. On a trip, he was conscripted by the Weasel Unit as a cook. He escapes with a group of friends he makes in the barracks. Now, as per tradition for the family, he wanders to earth searching for new food and soju recipes.

Just a funny guy I'm going to have wander in and out of stories.

Wolf Country

I don't really have a whole lot of ideas on this right now that I have not spoken of in my previous post. To be honest, I don't think the actual country will feature too much, if at all, since the action is around Flower Hill and other nations nearby.

But, I'm guessing the wolves represent America, and the alligators/crocodiles are Mexico that has been occupied by the Wolf Unit. I'm still working on personalities and such for this group, but I'm guessing they are very strong, and see the smaller animals as weak and beneath them.

I want to call this one Steven or Miguel.

I still say the alligators/crocs are good for underwater reconnaissance in the absence of the underground study data, Dr. Dudeoji, or his assistant, Bamsaegi. Disarming mines Flower Hill has planted in the water is also probably a good use for them. They are, however, cold blooded, and this comes with its own problems when doing their jobs.

It is possible that the alligators/crocs may want to take over Flower Hill for themselves, but they would want to get out from under the thumb of the Wolf Unit first.

[200isoshearwater]

swinhoe's white-eye at ken malloy harbor regional park

[oripeau]

This week in Nantes: n°430 | Imogen Heap, as Joan of Arc, by Luke Swinhoe ↦ GBR More → oripeau.art Submit → oripeau.art/submit Playlist → open.spotify.com/playlist/4R7PXexzD8ifWlzb7YiH76 This project is supported by trempo.com