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fandomhigh2017-09-12 11:59 pm
livingartifact) wrote in fandomhigh2017-09-12 11:59 pm
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Introduction to Earth Zoology, Wednesday, period 1
A note on the door of the usual classroom directed the students today to gather in the Danger Shop, where they would find Jenkins waiting for them in a room very much like the one where they usually met, only with perhaps even more miscellaneous ephemera.
"Ah," Jenkins said when it was time for class to start. "You've found the place. Excellent. Let's get down to business, then, we've got two animals to cover today, so any stragglers will simply have to do their best to catch up. Today we shall be discussing — and meeting, at least in a way — Mellivora capensis and Indicator indicator. Or as they are better known to English speaking audiences, 'the crazy nasty-ass honey badger' and 'the honeyguide'. I'm afraid that last one is one of those rare beasts whose latinate name is its most interesting."
He smiled faintly, and raising a remote that looked rather a lot like the slide projector remote for last week, hit a button and changed the entire room into an expanse of scrubby, wooded terrain. "Both creatures are most commonly found in a range from East Africa to Southeast Asia. They are believed by some to be symbiotic species — that is, they interact with one another in a mutually beneficial fashion. The honey badger's favorite meal is honey, a sweet, sticky substance created by insects known as 'bees'. I can provide you all with samples if you like after class, if you haven't encountered the substance before. Honeyguides are not actually interested in honey, per se, but feed instead of the wax left behind after the honey is harvested. They are known to interact with other species, getting their attention in order to lead them to fresh sources of honey, so that the two species can feast together."
A bird about 8 inches long flew over and landed on a tree not far from the group. It scanned them with interest, then let out a loud, aggressive chattering noise. "Yes, yes," Jenkins told it. "In a moment."
He turned back to the students. "You may be wondering why we're meeting in this marvelous contraption of the school's instead of our usual classroom, or better yet, the animals' actual habitat. The answer is simple: the honey badger is a bastard, and I'm fairly certain the school would frown upon any of you getting your fingers eaten off. Or any other delicate bits you'd rather not have attacked by a territorial creature said to outrun camels and tear living cows to pieces. Though I have heard that if caught young and tamed appropriately, they can be rather charming pets." The bird let out another burst of raucus chatter and took off. Jenkins looked over at it as the brush beneath its tree began to rustle. "Ah. Here we are now."
An animal resembling nothing less than a cross between a weasel and a very small bear came bursting out of the brush, snarled at the students, let loose a truly astonishingly foul smelling scent, and rushed off after the bird.
"Well then, after it," Jenkins said, only a faint wrinkling of his nose giving any indication that he was affected by a scent often described as "suffocating" by those who encountered it. "The bees won't be able to sting you, and I'm assured the scent should dissipate as soon as we leave the room at the end of class!"
"Ah," Jenkins said when it was time for class to start. "You've found the place. Excellent. Let's get down to business, then, we've got two animals to cover today, so any stragglers will simply have to do their best to catch up. Today we shall be discussing — and meeting, at least in a way — Mellivora capensis and Indicator indicator. Or as they are better known to English speaking audiences, 'the crazy nasty-ass honey badger' and 'the honeyguide'. I'm afraid that last one is one of those rare beasts whose latinate name is its most interesting."
He smiled faintly, and raising a remote that looked rather a lot like the slide projector remote for last week, hit a button and changed the entire room into an expanse of scrubby, wooded terrain. "Both creatures are most commonly found in a range from East Africa to Southeast Asia. They are believed by some to be symbiotic species — that is, they interact with one another in a mutually beneficial fashion. The honey badger's favorite meal is honey, a sweet, sticky substance created by insects known as 'bees'. I can provide you all with samples if you like after class, if you haven't encountered the substance before. Honeyguides are not actually interested in honey, per se, but feed instead of the wax left behind after the honey is harvested. They are known to interact with other species, getting their attention in order to lead them to fresh sources of honey, so that the two species can feast together."
A bird about 8 inches long flew over and landed on a tree not far from the group. It scanned them with interest, then let out a loud, aggressive chattering noise. "Yes, yes," Jenkins told it. "In a moment."
He turned back to the students. "You may be wondering why we're meeting in this marvelous contraption of the school's instead of our usual classroom, or better yet, the animals' actual habitat. The answer is simple: the honey badger is a bastard, and I'm fairly certain the school would frown upon any of you getting your fingers eaten off. Or any other delicate bits you'd rather not have attacked by a territorial creature said to outrun camels and tear living cows to pieces. Though I have heard that if caught young and tamed appropriately, they can be rather charming pets." The bird let out another burst of raucus chatter and took off. Jenkins looked over at it as the brush beneath its tree began to rustle. "Ah. Here we are now."
An animal resembling nothing less than a cross between a weasel and a very small bear came bursting out of the brush, snarled at the students, let loose a truly astonishingly foul smelling scent, and rushed off after the bird.
"Well then, after it," Jenkins said, only a faint wrinkling of his nose giving any indication that he was affected by a scent often described as "suffocating" by those who encountered it. "The bees won't be able to sting you, and I'm assured the scent should dissipate as soon as we leave the room at the end of class!"
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