Category Archives: Science

Posts about scientific research. This includes research by Mike Benard, as well as discussions of conferences and published papers.

May 2019: Bluebirds battle House Sparrows.

Posted on 06/30/2019 by mfbenard

This video shows a frantic bird battle that I observed in the Cleveland Metroparks in mid-May. I initially thought it was a trio of Eastern Bluebirds, with the male trying to court the female, while the was trying female trying … Continue reading →

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Telephoto lens attachment for cell phone cameras: useful tool for citizen-science applications like iNaturalist

Posted on 09/16/2018 by mfbenard

I have used a clip-on telephoto lens with my iPhone to get better photographs of distant animals for use in citizen-science projects like iNaturalist and HerpMapper. Continue reading →

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Jean Lafitte National Park: Frogs, Lizards, Gator, Birds and Bugs

Posted on 06/24/2018 by mfbenard

While visiting New Orleans for the 2016 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, I had an opportunity to take a short morning trip to the Barataria Preserve of the Jean Lafitte National Park. The park is a short 30 minute … Continue reading →

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Recognizing individual salamanders by their belly spots

Posted on 12/15/2016 by mfbenard

One of the questions we are investigating in my herpetology lab is whether we can recognize individual salamanders based on the pattern of spots on their bellies. We have been studying a population of smallmouth salamanders (Ambystoma texanum) and unisexual … Continue reading →

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Cuban Treefrog comes to Cleveland

Posted on 12/04/2016 by mfbenard

A Caribbean frog showed up in Cleveland, Ohio, last week. It was a young Cuban TreeFrog that hitched a ride from Florida in some plant material being shipped to a Cleveland floral shop. Continue reading →

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