Happy Squirrel Appreciation Day!

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SQUIRREL! Endlessly entertaining and adored by many, these natural acrobats live in both trees and the ground. From their complex underground burrows to their flights through the air with the greatest of ease, these mammals are certainly worth appreciating.

Squirrels are part of the taxonomic family Sciuridae, a name derived from the Greek “skiouros” which means “shadow tail”, the most prominent feature of these small, delightful rodents. The squirrel family also includes chipmunks, marmots, and prairie dogs.

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Artists in Edwards’s Botanical Register

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Edwards’s Botanical Register was a serial publication consisting of 19 volumes, plus an appendix, that ran from 1829-1847 and was edited by John Lindley (1799–1865). This series was preceded by The Botanical Register, which was started and edited by Sydenham Teast Edwards (1768-1819) and ran from 1815-1828 for a total of 14 volumes.

Volumes 15 through 32 of Edwards’s Botanical Register have hundreds of beautiful illustrations that were printed from copper engravings; volume 33’s illustrations were produced from lithographs and hand-colored.

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Book Feature: Arabische Korallen

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Arabische Korallen (1875) by Ernst Haeckel is one of his lesser known publications. Written in German, this book blends scientific explorations of Red Sea coral and travel observations and anecdotes about life in Egypt.

Ernst Haeckel (16 February 1834 to 9 August 1919) was a scientist, naturalist, and scientific illustrator whose works remain incredibly popular. His unique artistic style soon becomes easily recognizable. This lesser known work of his can be found in a digital version in Biodiversity Heritage Library thanks to Ernst Mayr Library of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University.

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