Maybe I should have called this show, Infundibula, blah, blah, blah, instead of Desert Mule Deer. I love to poke fun at scientific terms, but the truth is that I love the language of biology or in this case zoology. By the way, the word infundibula means funnel shaped, so the hollow pits as seen on the premolars and molars of our deer and gives them their generic name, are funnel shaped. Maybe if you use your imagination. Anyway, we are so lucky to have these large artiodactyl ungulates in the Cervidae – that was fun – out in the wild borderlands of southeastern Arizona.
A couple notes: the book I mentioned is Deer of the Southwest by Jim Heffelfinger. And the photos are mine. Two photos are of a large group out in the grassland. If you look closely you can spot some antlers. And I love the one of the two mulies in the orchard. I took that photo early in the morning with my cell phone.
Black bears are Ursus americanus and they are found in much of North America. In Arizona they are found in the eastern half of...
The etymology of the word mistletoe is all over the place and has been traced to Old English, Middle English, Anglo Saxon and old...
The botanical name for jackass clover is Wislizenia refracta and for clammy weed it’s Polanisia dodecandra. I translate those very cool names in this...
