Positives Of High Functioning Anxiety/Depression: I Can Complete Day-to-day Tasks

smithsoniannmnh When calcium leached out from this scallop some 40 million years ago, it formed a halo that solidified the sediment around it. Unearthed in Washington state, the specimen now resides in our research collections. Happy #FossilFridayfrom our Department of Paleobiology and @SIxDIGI, who are well on their way to digitizing #1MillionFossils!

Cute animals ♥

Entelodonts: terrifying.

Shown here compared to a modern pig skull on the left. (Entelodonts were actually more closely related to whales and hippos than pigs.)

ロックマン２ / Mega Man2

Cute animals ♥

A for-funsies furry portrait of this cool dude with the fabulous art -> @poisondynamite / @redhotsneakers <- Go check ‘em out!!!!! >w<)/

Zany zebra facts: 1) Each zebra has a unique stripe pattern—no two are alike. 2) A zebra’s eyesight at night is thought to be about as good as that of an owl. 3) Zebras have a pad of fat under their mane that keeps it standing straight up.

Thanks to Todd Lahman for the stunning shot of Zari the zebra.

Glacial Striations and Stromatolites and Geology, oh my!

This photo is a two-fer: two awesome geology features in one! On the surface of this rock you will notice faint lines that stretch from the lower left hand corner of the image to the upper right hand corner. These lines are called glacial striations and they form as a glacier scratches the rock surface as it moves. 

The rock surface that was scratched by the moving glacier represents an entirely different time, waaay before the glaciers, when stromatolites dotted the shoreline of an ancient water body that covered Montana. The circles that you see in the rock are the tops of stromatolites, formed by ancient cyanobacteria. 

A great place to see stromatolites and striations is on the Grinnell Glacier Trail. For your best chance of seeing these features free of snow, try hiking the trail in late July or August. NPS Photo

[Image Description: Lines and circles etched into a rock surface.]