# Nature talking: Strangest things? **URL:** \ **Category:** Nature Talk\ **Created:** [June 30, 2022, 3:21pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204 "2022-06-30T15:21:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![vreinkymov](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/vreinkymov/32/58876_2.png) [@vreinkymov](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/vreinkymov)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2022, 3:21pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/1 "2022-06-30T15:21:11Z")
Related: [Trash talking: Strangest Things?](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/trash-talking-strangest-things/32719) - What’s the strangest non-trash you’ve seen in your observations that made you go “hmmmm?” For me, it’s this one [Avacado (_Persea americana_)](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116182221) growing in the midst of a (protected?) national forest. The suburban environment nearby didn’t make it any less odd. ---
**Author:** ![yayemaster](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/yayemaster/32/12153_2.png) [@yayemaster](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/yayemaster)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2022, 5:25pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/2 "2022-06-30T17:25:06Z")
For me, it was finding _Drosera_ in the middle of a very popular park, over 10 miles away from the nearest location. ---
**Author:** ![marina\_gorbunova](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/marina_gorbunova/32/31454_2.png) [@marina\_gorbunova](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/marina_gorbunova)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2022, 7:41pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/3 "2022-06-30T19:41:24Z")
Hearing this [https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/118024434](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/118024434) Skinless goosehead, likely a dog treat, but had me thinking a little bit, have photo of it somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![egordon88](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/egordon88/32/29204_2.png) [@egordon88](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/egordon88)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2022, 8:10pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/4 "2022-06-30T20:10:08Z")
I think slime molds are ridiculous and strange creatures. This one [https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/124041181](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/124041181) popped up in my front yard after a week of rain. The ground below it is a couple inches of duff (mostly Desert willow leaves) over 4-6 inches of gravel “mulch”, but I guess that’s sufficient substrate. ---
**Author:** ![mamestraconfigurata](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/mamestraconfigurata/32/10149_2.png) [@mamestraconfigurata](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/mamestraconfigurata)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 12:23am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/5 "2022-07-01T00:23:36Z")
I don’t know if it would count as strange, but I’ve seen wild Russian Olive trees ( _Elaeagnus angustifolia_) kilometres away from where they were originally planted. Birds and seeds? I’ve seen a _Malcosoma disstria_ larva hanging off a leaf, likely dead from a virus ([https://inaturalist.ca/observations/6649243](https://inaturalist.ca/observations/6649243)). Not really strange, but not common. ---
**Author:** ![choess](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/choess/32/2433_2.png) [@choess](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/choess)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 12:37am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/6 "2022-07-01T00:37:23Z")
During a fern conference field trip, I once saw a _Panax quinquefolius_ trailside in a suburban Virginia park! Had me and another American naturalist gaping… ---
**Author:** ![vreinkymov](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/vreinkymov/32/58876_2.png) [@vreinkymov](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/vreinkymov)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 1:05am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/7 "2022-07-01T01:05:11Z")
Could you clarify, is skinless goosehead the severed head of a [Goose (_Anatidae_)](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/6912-Anatidae), with feathers plucked, or a common name for something? For example: [Sheepshead (_Archosargus probatocephalus_)](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/49750-Archosargus-probatocephalus) ---
**Author:** ![marina\_gorbunova](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/marina_gorbunova/32/31454_2.png) [@marina\_gorbunova](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/marina_gorbunova)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 1:33am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/8 "2022-07-01T01:33:07Z")
First, it was a full head of domestic goose (well, or maybe a hybrid with domestic swan goose, but I don’t remember). ---
**Author:** ![egordon88](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/egordon88/32/29204_2.png) [@egordon88](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/egordon88)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 1:40am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/9 "2022-07-01T01:40:45Z")
Robins love the olives in New Mexico and the seeds stay viable for an absurd number of years as they disperse ---
**Author:** ![That\_Bug\_Guy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/that_bug_guy/32/24914_2.png) [@That\_Bug\_Guy](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/That_Bug_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 2:01am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/10 "2022-07-01T02:01:43Z")
I’ve told this story before, so I’ll keep it short. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/inaturalist/original/3X/6/4/649c23cd9f08607e3eaadac6ca68e99b6a4bcc87.jpeg) When I was young, this massive raccoon came out of our backyard shed and approached me and my sister. Our Mother told us to run inside. She would then drive the raccoon off with a rake or broom (don’t exactly remember). The raccoon continued to live in our shed for years. In 2020, we decided that we wanted to use our shed again so with caution (and with a bit of excitement) my father went towards the shed with a pool net. The raccoon was there, but it had died long ago and only its bones remained. I and my sister continued to fish out bones throughout the week. We also found a dead rat and the raccoon’s nest(?). Now the bones just lay around in the backyard. Observation here: [https://inaturalist.ca/observations/121509785](https://inaturalist.ca/observations/121509785) ---
**Author:** ![ken\_ohio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/ken_ohio/32/11607_2.png) [@ken\_ohio](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/ken_ohio)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 2:30pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/11 "2022-07-01T14:30:39Z")
I am currently reading “Entangled Life” by Merlin Sheldrake. Fungi, in general, are amazing. One researcher puts mycelium and slime molds in a maze. They find the most efficient way through. ---
**Author:** ![ken\_ohio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/ken_ohio/32/11607_2.png) [@ken\_ohio](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/ken_ohio)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 2:33pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/12 "2022-07-01T14:33:06Z")
Robins have really done well since people moved into North America from Europe. They love our lawns, introduced earthworms and introduced ornamental fruiting trees. They nest all over our structures. And, they are pretty much ignored. So, they don’t feel threated. ---
**Author:** ![Star3](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/star3/32/73028_2.png) [@Star3](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/Star3)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 5:21pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/13 "2022-07-01T17:21:37Z")
I knew someone with different trees in their yard near a swimming pool. I was helping empty the pool baskets and discovered some sort of mesh netting/matrix mat had formed between something (seeds? pollen?) dropped from the trees. Here’s one of the pics I took: ![20200907_135726](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/inaturalist/original/3X/d/b/db725ad2caf96d60b6dd0c1c172751557a311329.jpeg) I wasn’t sure if it came from the planted trees or the ones that were there before the house, so I didn’t post an observation, because I didn’t know if I should mark it cultivated or not. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Bug\_Guy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/that_bug_guy/32/24914_2.png) [@That\_Bug\_Guy](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/That_Bug_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2022, 5:10am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/14 "2022-07-22T05:10:10Z")
Ever go for a walk and find curb-corn and think “yes, I will take this home for the rabbits”? I did. When I got home, I found out that rabbits can’t even digest corn, so I just put it in the compost. Now there’s some random corn in my house. Cool! ![IMG_4987](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/inaturalist/original/3X/e/3/e3d612ee90dcf3261b2e3c0fb698e7ef9bca422a.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![vreinkymov](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/vreinkymov/32/58876_2.png) [@vreinkymov](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/vreinkymov)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2022, 5:13am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/15 "2022-07-22T05:13:03Z")
Good ol’ corn-on-the-curb, did you mark it as wild or captive in the observation? ---
**Author:** ![That\_Bug\_Guy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/that_bug_guy/32/24914_2.png) [@That\_Bug\_Guy](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/That_Bug_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2022, 5:17am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/16 "2022-07-22T05:17:16Z")
Definitely wild. Though it doesn’t belong to a feral population, it’s clear that it escaped someone’s grocery bag for night out on the town. C - Coming O - Over R - Right N - Now They’ve got a mind of their own, y’know. Watch your back for curb corn. ---
**Author:** ![teellbee](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/teellbee/32/15498_2.png) [@teellbee](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/teellbee)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2022, 5:38pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/17 "2022-07-22T17:38:36Z")
> [@That\_Bug\_Guy](#): > > When I got home, I found out that rabbits can’t even digest corn, so I just put it in the compost I wonder how that will go? I had a worm bin. The worms only ate the pulp in the center, leaving the cob as a hollow tube. There were plenty of other decomposing insects in the bin who also left that cob alone. ---
**Author:** ![Thunderhead](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/thunderhead/32/62294_2.png) [@Thunderhead](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/Thunderhead)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2022, 11:49am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/18 "2022-07-23T11:49:09Z")
[https://www.pbs.org/show/nova/](https://www.pbs.org/show/nova/) This program opened my eyes to slime molds. They are amazing. I have seen very large slime mold throughout a receding flooded area in a wetland/ forest area. Weird and Wonderful! ---
**Author:** ![ken\_ohio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/ken_ohio/32/11607_2.png) [@ken\_ohio](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/ken_ohio)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2022, 4:36pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/19 "2022-07-23T16:36:03Z")
Link to the show: [https://www.pbs.org/video/brainless-slime-molds-navigate-mazes-and-make-decisions-ehxw/](https://www.pbs.org/video/brainless-slime-molds-navigate-mazes-and-make-decisions-ehxw/) ---
**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/inaturalist/original/2X/7/7831452cf7f0d653ff1ffd34176334b7ef1b6a17.png) [@system](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/system)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2022, 4:36pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/nature-talking-strangest-things/33204/20 "2022-09-21T16:36:16Z")
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