-
Recent Posts
Archives
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
Tags
Andrew Jackson ants autumn Biology Black Hawk butterflies butterfly butterfly conservation butterfly surveys damselflies death diptera Dragonflies flies flowers Formica exsectoides George Catlin Helen Fitch Parker Henry Parker Indian removal insects Iowa Iowa History J. B. Grinnell Keokuk macro photography Mahaska Meskwaki moths nature oarisma poweshiek Outdoors photography Plants politics Poweshiek red admiral robber flies Sauk snails snow spiders spring Vanessa atalanta winterBlogroll
Nature web sites
Other sites I like
Monthly Archives: October 2010
History of the Butterfly, Part 36: Helen
Helen Parker was 38 at the end of the Civil War when she and Henry moved to Iowa. She was apparently suffering from some chronic disease or condition at that time. Josiah Grinnell remembered her in his autobiography: “Prof. Parker … Continue reading
The History of the Butterfly, Part 35: A New Hesperian
The description of Hesperia powesheik (which became Oarisma poweshiek) starts as follows: “An undescribed species was found by the writer, abundantly, on a grassy prairie slope, at Grinnell, Iowa, June 21, 1870. Thirty-one male and two females were taken, all … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 34: Henry’s List
Already I have to correct myself. I did find the list of butterflies that Henry Parker had published in April, 1870. He adds 13 species to the list of 29 species that Samuel H. Scudder had published previously for Iowa. … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 33: Henry writes about Insects
Henry Parker was a prolific writer. He wrote several books and I have seen a number of articles published under his name in scientific journals. However, I have only seen one article about an insect (or an invertebrate of any kind, for … Continue reading
Vote for Your Incumbent!
This year there has been great dissatisfaction with politicians. There even seem to be a lot of outside groups campaigning with a general theme of “throw the bums out” or “don’t vote for an incumbent.” Who are these groups, and … Continue reading
Posted in politics, Uncategorized
Tagged stupidity in politics, throw the bums out, vote for incumbents
Leave a comment
History of the Butterfly, Part 32: Helen’s Other Books
In the long list of books that Helen Parker wrote, three seem to be about natural history and deal with invertebrates. Rambles after Land Shells is the only one available on line. Frank’s Search for Sea Shells has been available in the … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 31: Snails in the Civil War
The story cannot escape from its time, which was the middle of the Civil War. The characters in Rambles after Land Shells go to see soldiers off to war: “Four o’clock came, and with it a great cloud of dust … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 30: Ramble on
From Rambles after Land Shells, by Helen F. Parker Page 11: This snail is now known as Vallonia pulchella. Page 39: The Neohelix alleni was once considered a subspecies of Polygyra albolabris, a.k.a. Helix albolabris. This snail is now known … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 29: Helen Rambles
Rambles After Land Shells is a very unusual book. First notice the publisher—The American Tract Society. That publisher primarily publishes religious books, and has for most of its history. The time frame is notable as well. The book was … Continue reading
History of the Butterfly, Part 28: Introducing Helen Fitch Parker
I have an obsession with this little butterfly, Oarisma poweshiek, which was discovered in Grinnell, Iowa, just twenty or so miles from where I grew up. I have tried unsuccessfully to photograph it, and tried (before I realized just how … Continue reading
