New Equipment

Thanks to my lovely mother, I can now add a Samsung HMX-F80 HD camcorder to the list of my "slugging" equipment. I plan to use it primarily to film mating slugs, to give you an idea of the duration of courtship and copulation, as well as to ensure that I don't miss a moment in chronicling each couple. Sometimes I don't get a photo in focus or I don't take the photo in time. Also, this camcorder is supposed to work well in low light, but without a clear sky and moonlight it's not much better than my Canon DSLR, so I'll have to wait for better conditions before I can record a proper video. Nevertheless, I'm very excited and look forward to sharing my experiences with you in moving pictures for the first time!

As seen on amazon.com.

In addition, Mom also gave me a copy of the National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Insects and Spiders & Related Species of North America. It's by no means exhaustive of all the species in North America, but it should serve as a quick reference when I need to ID a creature and a computer isn't at hand.

As seen on bn.com.

Thanks, Mom!