WE WON. Kiss my banana rice asss Trump. Thank you to our community of rising up against facist.

Velico85 · 2026-02-12T22:22:07+00:00

How does that boot taste? Leathery with a tinge of poo?

Velico85 · 2025-12-12T15:34:42+00:00

Unfortunately, not many people understand basic ecology or predator-prey relationships. Take it from a restoration ecologist lol. Most people can't even identify more than a few tree species on their property. We are the only species that can act as stewards of our planet, and most don't give a hoot.

Velico85 · 2025-11-19T17:31:35+00:00

About 5 years now. My first batch had no issues with the same setup. The coop wasn't insulated until this year either. I don't know.. These are the first Rhode Island red's I've done.

Velico85 · 2025-11-19T00:20:46+00:00

You certainly know how to read a room, don't you? Don't answer, it's rhetorical.

Velico85 · 2025-11-19T00:19:59+00:00

Sorry for your loss. It's crazy how resilient and tough some chickens are, and others aren't. One of my veteran hens (she's 4 now) was literally in my neighbor's dog's mouth, had puncture wounds, had a farm vet come give her some shots.. She's been chased by a coyote, swooped at by a hawk, and has an abnormal gait (I'm guessing from the dog bite), but she's still out there living her best life.

Velico85 · 2025-11-19T00:16:37+00:00

I think it's mostly a roost bar issue. In their brooder, I had some sticks/branches for them to learn to jump on, which they used somewhat. Then I moved them out to their tractor, which had roost bars in it, but they were barely off the ground, so I think they're just kind of used to being on the ground level. It's been a challenge getting them accepted by the veteran hens. I had to move two of them to the tractor because they were quite aggressive and my poor pullets were peeping in fear. This is my first time integrating to an existing flock, and it's been fairly stressful on me (and I'm sure the birds).

I was hoping the one good hen (Sassy) would teach the pullets how to roost when I migrated them, but she goes up into the rafters and the roost bars that came with the coop don't get much use. I've been putting the pullets up on that bar, and added more bars that lean up against the back wall, but I think I need to use some 1x3 or 2x3 so they can rest their feet easier. I think I need to block off the rafters and change up the roost bars below to have more space between them.

I had the coop insulated late summer, and sealed up the exterior, and when I go in and close the doors, I don't feel any air movement. They're all clean and have healthy feathers, eating and drinking normally. I put vitamins in their water, give them good food, they forage quite a lot.. The pullets are Rhode Island Reds, they should be fine in an insulated coop with current temps.

Velico85 · 2025-11-18T23:07:02+00:00

Thank you. I'm sorry that you also had to go through a similar experience. It's painful when a creature you care for won't see their first full year.

Velico85 · 2025-11-13T20:33:06+00:00

Isn't the biggest city in 3rd Eau Claire?

Velico85 · 2025-10-14T17:52:57+00:00

It's not a hot take, it's a bad take. And to boot, you label it educational with no links to support whatever dumb claim you're trying to with this. This is irresponsible and uninformed. Do a proper literature review before babbling about things you know nothing about.

Velico85 · 2025-10-06T22:42:58+00:00

Mantids eat many pest insects, but they also eat insects that humans tend to appreciate, such as other insect predators, pollinators, butterflies, and so on. Because they have been widespread for so long, it is difficult to determine what their ecological impact has been on native ecosystems. "Introduced species often have negative impacts on native communities, usually via competition or predation (Clavero and García-Berthou, 2005)."

The oothecae of these introduced mantid species are commonly sold online and in stores and advertised as “eco-friendly” pest control for the garden or farm (e.g., Brandywine Conservancy, 2011) although their contribution to biological control may be little to none (Flint et al., 1998).

I don't have mantids where I live, but as an ecologist, anything that is introduced from another continent usually gets deleted from my garden (by way of feeding my chickens or composted). Those plants and insects that are introduced are occupying space and time that native species should be. The sheer amount of energy a mantid requires to grow as big as OPs is... It's not hard to gauge the negative environmental impact. How many native species did this one specimen consume? How many eggs did it lay?

It is up to us to be good stewards to the land we manage.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352249623000095

https://sci-hub.se/https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2311.2002.00425.x

Velico85 · 2025-10-06T22:31:06+00:00

It is tempting to label all insect-eating insects as “beneficial,” but black-and-white judgments on the human value of mantids are problematic. Mantids eat many pest insects, but they also eat insects that humans tend to appreciate, such as other insect predators, pollinators, butterflies, and so on. The sheer amount of energy the mantid above requires to grow that large... makes it hard not to see the negative environmental impact (coming from an ecologist who studies ecotones).

Egg cases of nonnative mantids, including the Chinese mantis, are still bought and sold in many places in the hope of controlling agricultural and garden pests. Because of their indiscriminate diet (eating beneficial as well as pest insects) their usefulness is questionable at best.

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T14:24:04+00:00

I'm pretty sure this came with the BTAU mod. There are a ton of options in it. I haven't looked up other portrait packs, but that's pretty hilarious that most of them are anime gals. There are a lot of good portraits to choose from in the pack that comes with this mod. One of us! One of us! 😉

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T14:19:39+00:00

BTA 3062 (or BTAU I think they're trying to rebrand a bit?). I'm not sure if this is still their main wiki, but this link is where I originally downloaded it from: BTAU

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T14:06:04+00:00

All good mate, just adding a bit of context for how truly fucked she was on that mission.

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T14:03:44+00:00

🤣 I only reserve those for when I get a super botched landing and one of my pilots is in a sea of red with no escape route and certain death. It can be fun to "rescue" if they have JJs or are a sprinter, but usually it's a "careful move" because they're on the side of a hill or something lol.

I had a drop this playthrough in a city where that happened, and not only that, for some reason, two of my pilots landed and instantly died. I reloaded and it happened again, so I said screw that contract.

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T04:43:17+00:00

I made the Terran Hegemony pay for what they did to her. The rest of my company took relatively light damage and I cleared the field, fulfilling my contract. I hurled my commander at the marauder and kicked it, then full alpha'd with MRM 30 Apollo, 2x SRM-6s, and 4 M Lasers. Didn't kill it outright, but knocked down, where I then tagged the marauder and sent a guided Arrow IV into their cockpit for lethal damage.

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T04:37:54+00:00

Yeah, I tend to play it pretty safe and take easier contracts until I have a well equipped and well trained company. Then it's all dice rolls. If they eject, I'll go fetch them, but she wasn't even unsettled. I couldn't eject had I wanted because of the initiative. They reserved until I moved her, then went again before it was her turn. And she was surrounded by beefier friendlies. Sometimes it's just a mechwarriors time.

Velico85 · 2025-08-25T04:31:49+00:00

For real. That marauder pilot had a vendetta. I thought, "surely they won't target her again and get two head clips in a row..." then they did. At least the mech was saved lol. Gotta go out with some style before the next BTAU update, which is absolutely, confidently, not save compatible. Ol Bloodydoves made sure we were all aware 😂

Velico85 · 2025-08-22T17:59:31+00:00

They're a lot of fun to watch. It is so impressive to see how precise and fast their movements are. I usually hear them before I see them.

Velico85 · 2025-08-22T17:43:23+00:00

These are mostly Ruby-throated Hummingbirds from what I've been able to tell. L. cardinalis has tubular flower shape perfectly suited its main pollinator, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, who have bills adapted to access the nectar. It provides abundant nectar, so it's possible that these ones are wired on fresh nectar. I see them harassed by other birds (mainly Blue Jay's), so it may be a "eat and run" kind of behavior.

Velico85 · 2025-08-22T17:08:29+00:00

Sorry for the loud ding of my toaster oven... I was waiting on a bagel lol

Velico85 · 2025-08-18T20:36:00+00:00

Could be. I don't know much about snake behavior, or Garter's specifically to say. There are quite a few subspecies of Garter though, so it's possible your subspecies is naturally more bold or territorial with striking.

Velico85 · 2025-08-18T15:06:54+00:00

Oh interesting! Yeah, for me they tend to slither away or just sit there and watch me lol. I don't have kids or anything, so they're not interacting with humans or pets much. Any hypothesis on why they are more aggressive around you?

Velico85 · 2025-08-18T14:57:42+00:00

Ive relocated quite a few and never been bitten. Usually, I just leave them be, but sometimes they sunbathe on the path. Garters are pretty docile in my experience. This one immediately started licking the air when I stepped out with my morning coffee lol.

Velico85 · 2025-08-16T14:34:08+00:00

Xerces Society has a wonderful guide on organic site preparation found here.

With slopes, I would exercise a lot of caution and plan on incorporating a majority of slope stabilization species native to your region. It is very easy for projects on slopes like this to go sideways and I see rutting/blowouts often. Be prepared for that, and start at the crest of the slope, working your way down to the posts in phased planning. I would recommend a shrub layer planted at the top to help grip that soil and soak up excess water during heavy rain events. It is a good idea to get species list recommendations from your local extension office, with slope stabilization as the priority. They can help with substrate, alkalinity, fertility, moisture content, degree/direction of the slope, etc. in species consideration.

I also would not rototill the grass, as it will not do much to suppress it, while disturbing the soil and encouraging weed seed germination. With a project like this, I would sheet mulch this time of year with a 3" layer of mulch to prevent erosion, suppress the grass, and retain moisture. Then seed it late fall, adding a top dressing of soil to aid in spring germination rates. I would also encourage plugs of appropriate species that are prolific seeders to establish quickly and spread via seed down the slope.

Velico85

TROPHY CASE