What gift ideas do you have for your naturalist companions? (or what are you hoping Santa will bring you?)
Hilarious!
This reminds me of the Christmas we got my nephew fake banana slugs, and he stuck them to surfaces all over the house and his mother was so alarmed!
I love the terrarium pendants that I see on Etsy - there are lots of examples but here is one:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/530991159/mushroom-necklace-terrarium-jewelry-moss?ref=hp_rv-3&frs=1&cns=1
However, I don’t know how well the resin preserves the natural specimens over time. Has anyone had one and can give input?
My parents got me a state parks pass and a national parks pass last Christmas, and that’s covered dozens of entrance fees for my adventures this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if they got me the same thing again this Christmas, but I would be quite happy.
I have a ginkgo leaf in resin. It was yellow but turned brown eventually.
I have some of these, and one is also on my microwave! When I had guests (back when that was a thing) it would often startle people.
I think this would be a great, timely gift, helping support the conservation of an imperiled endemic plant that just lost 40% of it’s population overnight:
https://center-for-biological-diversity.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/short-sleeved-unisex-t-shirt-tiehms-buckwheat
A loupe is a perfect gift if they don’t have one yet. $15-25, small, handy. There are some decent pocket microscopes for cheap, too, or a Foldscope kit.
Law’s Guide To Nature Journaling. Got this for my birthday and it is fantastic. Rich and inspiring, even if you never start basket journaling!
There are tons of good guides and books that could fill in some niche in the bookshelf.
Unfortunately, I do not have a 3D printer. Those earrings posted by @michaelpirrello are great ideas. I was thinking of mugs with various taxa. Or Snow Globes, where instead of fake snow, it is falling fake butterflies/ants/animals. I am not a Snow Globe maker, so I do not how it would actually work.
I prefer function over form so I wouldn’t like such earphones or other gadgets that sacrifice function for form. Just a decoration that doesn’t affect the function is okay though and I have entomologically themed socks, shirts, etc.
Photocamera (for better iNat observations), digital microscope (microorganism observations are scarce on iNat), stuffed toy or model toy of some rare or extinct animal, carnivorous pot plant - to add a few more ideas.
Last year my parents bought me an LED headlamp that I can wear while mothing in the dark. Very useful gift and a great item for moth-folks, or other night time insect hunters!
I came across this portable, fold-able ( made out of paper!) microscope. 140X magnification and 2 micron resolution. The idea behind it is to have microscopes (and the wonder of exploration) accessible to all.
Now those are gifts for a naturalist! For that matter: a good pair of field binoculars.
I definitely want books on birds
Fresh baked breads. And pie.
I’m gonna check some of those out! Whats your favorite one?
Rechargeable headlamps are always nice so you don’t need to keep buying/charging batteries you can just plug them into a phone charger.