The Writing Wolf

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="192" caption="Benedict Cumberbatch, a 21st Century Sherlock"] [/caption] We all know Mr Darcy of Pride and Prejudice has a mysterious attraction for women. It has been pondered on for years and by many! But is the same thing true of Sherlock Holmes ? Certainly for me it is! For some reason this hero of detective fiction fascinates me! And I don’t think it is only for the quality of his mind, although that is certainly part of the magic. Sherlock Holmes certainly seems to represent some archetype as a Victorian gentlemen detective. This brilliant, London based, “consulting” detective has an odd charisma all his own. He seems to mesmerise both men and women and people have great difficulty recognising that he is, in truth, a creature of fiction. Many visitors seek out his home and I gather letters are still sent to his London address asking for help in solving difficult crimes. But for all his popularity, he...

In order to glide out of the water, a flying fish (Latin name "exocoetus") swishes its tail to up to 50-70 times per second,which "vibrates" to produce enough speed to burst through the surface. It then spreads its pectorial fins and tilts them slightly upwards to lift itself to glide through the air. This permits it to sail above the ocean's surface where it can at travel at 70km per mile. The fish is able to increase its time in the air by travelling against or at an angle to the direction of updrafts created by a combination of aircurrents in which the "wings" flutter due to the wind with a maximum glide time recorded to be 30 seconds. At the end of a glide, a flying fish folds up its pectoral fins which have been acting as "wings" to re-enter the sea or drops the lower end its tail into the water where it "vibrates" the lower part of its tail to allow its body to reaccelerate and change direction, providing the thrust to lift i...

Some people believe that to see a white peacock will bring eternal happiness.  Woven into the myths and belief systems of cultures worldwide, the peacock presents itself through the sciences of alchemy and Roman astrology, the religions of Islam and Christianity, as well as in Egyptian, Chinese, and Indian cultures. Through the peacock's 100 feathery eyes, the Chinese Goddess of Compassion, Kuan Yin, is able to watch over and guard all living things on Earth. "Peacocks are symbols of beauty, reminding us to take pleasure in life. The peacock is pure of heart." – Constantine The White Peacock is a creature of the light.  Blue Peacocks get most of their color from light reflection rather than a dye.  The feathers have barbs, which in turn have rods.  It is these rods that controls how light reflects and produces the green, golden yellow, brown and bright blue.  White peacocks have a slightly different arrangement of the rods thus don't develop the usual colors. The Whit...

The caracal ( Caracal caracal ) is a fiercely territorial medium-sized cat ranging over the Middle East and Africa. The word caracal comes from the Turkish word "karakulak", meaning "black ear". Although it has traditionally had the alternative names Persian Lynx and African Lynx , the caracal is a form of African Lynx or "The African Golden Cat" . Its ears, which it uses to locate prey are controlled by 20 different muscles. The caracal is classified as a small cat, yet is amongst the heaviest of all small cats, as well as the quickest, being nearly as fast as the serval.  North African populations are disappearing, but caracals are still abundant in other African regions. Their range limits are the Saharan desert and the equatorial forest belt of Western and Central Africa. In South Africa and Namibia, C. caracal is so numerous that it is exterminated as a nuisance animal. Asiatic populations are less dense than those of Africa and Asiatic population...

Feather Star (Antedon bifida) This feather star has ten thin pinnate arms with branches which make it look feather-like. Around the base there are about 25 short cirri and these curl underneath to anchor the animal to the ground. The arms are pink or red with white speckles. The arms are around 5 cm in length. This is a very unusual species and is one of the last remnants of an ancient and largely extinct group of marine Echinoderms - the crinoids. The feathery arms produce a large surface and by being held upwards they collect plankton and detritus from the water. Cilia on the surface beat to drive the material down to the mouth to be consumed. They have separate sexes with the gonads being located on the arms. Feather-stars are found in a variety of habitats, mainly sheltered, and attached to rocks and algae. Sometimes they are found in very large numbers (possibly up to 1000 per metre squared). They are not, however, commonly met and the distribution is limited somewhat to the south...