THE SLINGSHOT SPIDER

Good Morning Everyone,

Krumbs and I have a weird and wildly wonderful spider discovery for you today.  A student at Pennsylvania State University was studying insects in Peru when he noticed a type of teeny-tiny ray spider with a giant talent!  The amazing arachnid  makes a web that it uses like a slingshot!  When the spider senses a bug is near, it releases a silken thread and the web slingshots forward- BANG! -Lunch is served!

Don't believe us?  Click under the picture of the slingshot spider below to watch a video of the spider in action:

CLICK HERE

Use the backward pointing arrow at the top of your screen to come

 back here when the video is over!

Looking for more unbelievable animal facts?  Here's one we love, straight from "Food for Thought" section of Imagination Café:

An ethologist is someone who

studies animal behavior.



Every time you log into the Café, "Food for Thought" displays a new and fascinating fact! Oh! If you're only looking for amazing animal information, check out the Cafe's "Creature Feature" by clicking here.

Have a great day!

Cookie and Krumbs

A VICIOUS SEA MONSTER? NO, A GIANT SQUID!!!

Hello Everyone! 

We have news of a super new science discovery.  Fishermen in Japan captured a GIANT SQUID!!  Now, I’m sure you’re wondering what we mean by “giant” squid…the squid has been measured by Japanese scientists who say it is twelve feet long and weighs 330 pounds!

Because of its size, the giant squid has been described in movies, books and stories as a horrible sea monster, but not many of these creatures have been found and studied by scientists.  Giant squid may be difficult to study because they are difficult to find!  This type of squid lives in the deepest parts of the ocean, far below where people can usually find them.  Scientists found and videotaped one giant squid in 2006 and another in 2012, so there are few videos available for scientists to study. This is why the latest discovery is so important. 

If you’d like to see a video of the scientists measuring the squid, click here.  WOW!!!!!  To find more amazing animals, visit the "Creature Feature" section of the Imagination Café by clicking here.


Cookie and Krumbs!

OUR SMELLY HOLIDAY TRADITION

Good morning everyone!  It is the holiday season…our favorite time of year and Krumbs and I are filled with holiday spirit!  Guess what we’re doing this weekend?

PUTTING UP OUR CHRISTMAS TREE!!!!  Putting up our tree is the very best part of the holiday.  We have family and friends come over and we take out all of our old and new ornaments and talk about all our old memories…hurray!  It is one of our holiday traditions.

Another holiday tradition that makes us happy started just two years ago.  Krumbs and I found an article on the Café about scented ornaments.  The article is called “Heirloom Ornaments” and it is by writer, Brooke Halperin.  Ms. Halperin explains how to make cinnamon-apple scented ornaments that are easy to make and wonderful to smell!!!  Krumbs and I will be making the ornaments tonight so they are ready for our tree trimming party later this week.  Check it out by clicking here.

Which winter holidays do you celebrate?  Do you have a special holiday tradition?  Share it with us on "Open Mic" at the Café by clicking here.

Have a wonderful week and check back soon for pictures of our beautifully decorated trees!

COoKIE and KRuMBS

GOBBLE! GOBBLE! FUN FACTS FROM TURKEY DAY!

Hope you had a fantastic Turkey Day! Krumbs and I did…and we found some fun and fabulous facts about Thanksgiving on the WHSV.com Channel 3 website to share with everyone:

Fun Facts about the First Thanksgiving

- The first Thanksgiving in 1621celebration lasted three days.

- Foods that were NOT served at the First Thanksgiving:Mashed potatoes, pumpkin pies, popcorn, milk, corn on the cob, and cranberries..

-Foods that WERE served at the First Thanksgiving: Lobster, rabbit, chicken, fish, squashes, beans, chestnuts, hickory nuts, onions, leeks, dried fruits, maple syrup and honey, radishes, cabbage, carrots, eggs, and goat cheese.

 -NO FORKS! The pilgrims ate with spoons, knives, and their fingers.

Fun Facts about Thanksgiving Today

 -In the US, about 280 million turkeys are sold for the Thanksgiving celebrations.

 -Each year, the average American eats between 16 - 18 pounds of turkey.

 -Californians eat the most turkey in the United States.  

 -Although, Thanksgiving is widely considered an American holiday, it is also celebrated on the second Monday in October in Canada.

Fun Turkey Facts

  -The average weight of a turkey purchased at Thanksgiving is 15 pounds.

  -The heaviest turkey ever raised was 86 pounds, about the size of a large dog.

  -Turkeys have 3,500 feathers as adults.

  -Male turkeys gobble. Hens cluck.

  -It takes 75-80 pounds of feed to raise a 30 pound tom turkey.

 

 

GOBBLE!  GOBBLE!

Cookie and Krumbs

DISGUSTINGLY GOOD READING

Hello Everyone!

Are you ready to hear about the coolest, most disgustingly fun article we've read in a long time?  We took a visit to the Imagination Café and read "THE SCOOP ON POOP".  Oh no, you haven't made a mistake--it is the absolute truth. The Café has a whole article on...POOP!

Whether you call it scat, puppy piling, doo-doo, poo-poo or excrement...poop is the total topic of Cindy Blobaum's awesome article.  We learned about scatology (yes, the actual study of animal poop!) and how the study of poop helps people in many ways.  You know you're curious and you know you want to know more...check it out at the Café!

THANK A VETERAN!

Good Morning Everyone!

Today is Veterans Day.  I know Veterans Day is a day we celebrate any person who has served in our armed services but I didn’t know it wasn’t always called Veterans Day.  (Who knew that?!?)

It all started in 1919, when President Woodrow Wilson named November 11^th, Armistice Day, to celebrate veterans who died in World War I, but it didn’t stop there.  In 1938, President Calvin Coolidge made “Armistice Day” a legal holiday, celebrated across the United States, but it didn’t stop there!  In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower wanted to make Veterans Day a day to celebrate everyone who served in the armed forces.  So that year, President Eisenhower signed a bill and Congress passed the bill changing Armistice Day to Veterans Day, a holiday celebrating any person who served in the armed forces of the United States.

What are you doing to celebrate veterans today?  I wrote letters with my class to send to a veteran’s hospital thanking the veterans there for their service.  We also donated our Halloween candy to be sent over to soldiers around the world who are protecting people and helping our country.  Easiest of all, anytime we see a person wearing an army uniform…we thank them.  We just walk up and say, “Thank you for serving our country.” 

You can find out more about veterans, the American Flag and play some neat games by visiting the US Department of Veterans Affairs-kids page by clicking here. 

Enjoy the day…and remember to thank a veteran!!!!

 

COOKIE AND KRUMBS

A FROG, A GECKO, A SKINK—OH MY!

Krumbs and I are buzzing about three new animal discoveries!  That’s right—scientists have discovered three new vertebrates living in a remote area of Australia...and all three animals were found at the same time!  The scientists discovered a new kind of frog, a new kind of gecko and a new kind of skink that no one knew existed!

We can’t believe scientists are still finding new animals after thousands of years.  It is amazing that three animals we’ve never heard of could just hide in the middle of Australia!  Isn’t that just the coolest thing ever?

Would you like to find out more about scientist, Conrad Hoskin’s, fantastic discoveries?  Click here to read the original article and to see pictures of the world’s newest animal discoveries!  Are you interested in even more stories about odd and unusual animals?  Click here to visit the "Creature Feature" section of the Café  where you'll find a bunch of articles about animal topics from Alaska's Elephants to zoo I.Q.and everything in between!

Have a Great Week, Everyone!

Cookie and Krumbs