Author: Holly Strand

Holly is a Communications Specialist for the State of Utah’s Division of Emergency Management. A geographer by training, Holly received her master’s degree from the University of Colorado. She worked 10 years for World Wildlife Fund, helping collect expert knowledge to map and describe conservation priorities in biodiverse regions around the world. Before that, she led specialty tours to northern and eastern Eurasia. Over twenty years of professional work in great places with unique habitats and endemic species has given Holly an appreciation of what’s special within the Utah landscape.
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Follow the Bouncing Deer

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Hi, I’m Holly Strand from Stokes Nature Center in beautiful Logan Canyon.Follow the Bouncing Deer

Mule deer are frequent visitors to our yard in Providence. I love their large liquid eyes and their huge questioning ears.

What I don’t like is that they eat our garden and stunt our trees. So when I find them munching, I fling open the back door and run toward them, yelling and flapping my arms –often in my nightshirt. In response, they bounce, bounce, bounce away. That is, they employ a springy gait that biologists call stotting. What possible benefit is it to bounce like? Why don’t they just run?

When a mule deer or pronghorn or bighorn stotts, it keeps the right and left forelegs close together and likewise the hindlegs. During the jump, all four legs leave the ground simultaneously and land simultaneously. In between landings all four legs are stiff and straight.

In between jumps the animal is suspended in the air for 64% of the entire length of one stride. You would think that the energy required to keep the animal in the air could be better used to propel forward. In other words, wouldn’t a fast horizontal run be a better way to keep a coyotes teeth out of your rump? Or– in the case of our backyard– to distance yourself from a wild looking woman waiving her arms and yelling.

One researcher clocked the speeds of galloping vs. stotting mule deer. Surprisingly, the fastest speeds of a stotting mule deer were just as fast as top galloping speeds—around 9.5 meters per second. That’s over 21 miles per hour.

There are lots of opinions on why stotting evolved. But most experts agree it is a response to predators.

Some say that stotting is a signal to predators that deer is healthy and will be able to outrun the predator. Thus, the deer is sending a “Don’t waste your time” message.

Many believe that stotting delivers an advantage on rugged open terrain. Stotters can clear rocks, logs and brush more effectively than gallopers.

Stotting might also be an anti-ambush behavior. The height gained during stotting allows the mule deer to check the surrounding vegetation along their escape path. Crouching coyotes, wolves and mountain lions are detected and avoided.

Whatever the reason—and there may not be just one–those bouncing deer are fun to watch.

For sources and archives of past Wild About Utah programs, go to www.wildaboututah.org.

For Wild About Utah and Stokes Nature Center, I’m Holly Strand.

Credits:
Photo: Courtesy US FWS Digital Media, Jack Woody Photographer
Text: Stokes Nature Center: Holly Strand

Sources & Additional Reading

Caro, T.M. 1986. The functions of stotting: a review of the hypotheses. Animal Behaviour Vol. 34, No. 3. Pp. 649-662. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science?…

Lingle, Susan. 1992. Escape gaits of white-tailed deer, mule deer and their hybrids: Gaits observed and patterns of limb coordination. Behaviour Vol. 122 No. 3-4. https://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/156853992×00499

Utah Division of Wildlife. 1999. Mule Deer. Wildlife Notebook Series No. 13
wildlife.utah.gov/publications/pdf/2010_mule_deer.pdf [Accessed September 29, 2010]

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Species Names

Common Mullein
Courtesy &
Copyright 2010 Holly Strand

Hi, I’m Holly Strand from Stokes Nature Center in beautiful Logan Canyon.

Common Mullein , Our Lady’s Flannel. Velvet Plant. Clown’s Lungwort. Jupiter’s Staff. Shepherd’s Clubs. Beggar’s Blanket. Hare’s Beard, Bear’s ear, and Nature’s Toilet Paper. These are just a few of the names that apply to a single species that is a widely distributed across Europe and Central Asia and naturalized in North America.

Common names are descriptive and often charming, but they are local names and won’t be understood beyond their particular region or in another language. And sometimes common names are downright misleading. For example a koala bear isn’t a bear. And a red panda isn’t a panda.

To avoid confusion, scientists use a unique two word designation—usually taken from Latin or Greek – to identify a species unambiguously. The first word is the name of the genus to which the organism belongs. The genus comprises a group of closely related animals or plants. The second term is chosen by the person that describes and publishes the species account.

Vampyroteuthis infernalis
“vampire squid from Hell”
Illustration by Carl Chun 1911
Public Domain/expired copyright

It is a huge breach of etiquette to name a species after yourself. But the taxonomist can name the organism after the person who actually found it in the field. An example is Mentzelia shultziorum, a blazingstar named after Utah botanist Leila Schultz who first found the plant in Professor Valley in Grand County. Taxonomists can also name the species after a friendly colleague and then hope that the friendly colleague will name one after them.

Often the name will describe some physical characteristics of the species. Earlier this year, a paleontologist unearthed a new dinosaur here in Utah and named it Jeyawati rugoculus. That’s a combination of Zuni and Latin for “grinding mouth, wrinkle eye.”

Other names are based on location: Penstemon utahensis is a penstemon found in our state. Amblyoproctus boondocksius is a scarab, and was apparently found in the middle of nowhere.

Often the name will represent a subjective reaction toward the organism. Vampyroteuthis infernalis translates into “vampire squid from Hell”, Indeed it is rather scary looking cross between a squid and an octopus.

Some scientists get sentimental at naming time. They’ll name species after their loved ones. Or their favorite artists. Thus we have 2 trilobites in the Avalanchurus genus named lennoni and starri. McCartney and Harrison are honored in a neighboring genus.

I’m proud to say that a Utah biologist named a parasitic louse, Strigiphilus garylarsoni. The Far Side cartoonist should not take offense. In a letter to Larson, Dr. Dale Clayton praised him for “the enormous contribution that my colleagues and I feel you have made to biology through your cartoons.”

For sources and archives of past programs see www. Wild About Utah.org

For Wild About Utah and Stokes Nature Center, I’m Holly Strand.

Credits:
Photo: Mullein-Courtesy & Copyright 2010 Holly Strand
Squid Illustration Carl Chun 1911 (Public Domain Courtesy Wikimedia.org)
Text: Stokes Nature Center: Holly Strand

Sources & Additional Reading

Gotch, A.F. 1996. Latin Names Explained: A Guide to the Scientific Classification of Reptiles, Birds & Mammals. NY: Facts on File, Inc.

Isaak, Mark. Curiosities of Biological Nomenclature website. https://www.curioustaxonomy.net/rules.html [Accessed September 15, 2010]

O’Donoghue, Amy Joi. 2010. ‘Grinding mouth, wrinkle eye’ is name of newly discovered species dinosaur. Deseret News, May 27, 2010.

Prigge, Barry A. 1986. New Species of mentzelia (Loasaceae) from Grand County, UT. Great Basin Naturalist Vol. 46, No. 2 pp. 361-365

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Pando-The World’s Largest Organism

Within the Pando Clone
Fishlake National Forest, Utah
Courtesy & Copyright 2010 Ron Ryel
Utah State University

Hi, I’m Holly Strand from Stokes Nature Center in beautiful Logan Canyon.

What we consider to be the world’s largest organism has changed over time. At one point, the largest animal crown went to a 150 ton female blue whale. And General Sherman, a 275 foot tall Giant Sequoia was the largest plant.

In 1992, scientists discovered a fungus in northern Michigan and proclaimed it to be the world’s largest organism. Not nearly as visually stunning as a Giant Sequoia, this type of fungus is a filagree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized spore. Over time it had grown to cover 37 acres, most of this below ground. Subsequent mushroom hunts uncovered even larger specimens elsewhere.

Stretching over 1,600 miles and visible from space, I often hear the Great Barrier Reef called the world’s largest organism. But the reef is not a single organism. It is created from the limestone secretions of a great number of different reef-producing coral species.

Fungi, reefs and giant trees are all very worthy biological wonders, but the thing that gets my largest organism vote is right here in Utah. Like the Great Barrier Reef, it’s so vast you really need to see it from a plane or even satellite. Like General Sherman, it has its own name—Pando—-meaning “I spread” in Latin. Pando can be seen is spreading itself in Fishlake National Forest in south central Utah. So what is Pando? And why is it so remarkable?

Pando is a clonal aspen colony. Each “tree” that we see in an aspen forest is not an individual tree at all but a genetically identical stem connected underground to its parent clone. More trees arise from lateral roots, creating a group of genetically identical trees. But, biologically speaking, the colony is just one individual plant.

Recent genetic testing by Dr. Karen Mock of Utah State University confirms Pando’s enormous size- it covers over 106 acres and contains around 47,000 aboveground stems or suckers. When you consider the volume represented by the trees and root system, Pando easily wins the title of world’s largest organism. So far anyway.

Thanks to Dr. Karen Mock of Utah State University’s College of Natural Resources for her help in developing this piece.
For pictures and sources of the remarkable Pando, see www.wildaboututah.org

For Wild About Utah and Stokes Nature Center, I’m Holly Strand.

Credits:
Photo: Courtesy & Copyright 2010 Ron Ryel, Utah State University
Text: Stokes Nature Center: Holly Strand

Sources & Additional Reading

WESTERN ASPEN ALLIANCE is a joint venture between Utah State University’s College of Natural Resources and the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, whose purpose is to facilitate and coordinate research issues related to quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) communities of the west. https://www.western-aspen-alliance.org/

American Cetatcean Society. Fact Sheet on the Blue Whale. https://www.acsonline.org [Accessed September 2, 2010]

DeWoody J, Rowe C, Hipkins VD, Mock KE (2008) Pando lives: molecular genetic evidence of a giant aspen clone in central Utah. Western North American Naturalist 68(4), pp. 493–497. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/3164
https://sci-hub.se/https://doi.org/10.3398/1527-0904-68.4.493

Grant, M., J.B. Mitton, AND Y.B. Linhart. 1992. Even larger organisms. Nature 360:216. https://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v360/n6401/abs/360216a0.html AND https://doi.org/10.1038/360216a0
https://sci-hub.se/https://doi.org/10.1038/360216a0

Grant, M. 1993. The trembling giant. Discover 14:83–88. Abstract:https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-trembling-giant-40013
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/2394/

Habeck, R. J. 1992. Sequoiadendron giganteum. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: https://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [Accessed September 2, 2010].
https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/seqgig/all.html [Accessed Oct 12, 2025]

Mock, K.E., C . A. Rowe, M. B. Hooten, J. DeWoody and V. D. Hipkins. Clonal dynamics in western North American aspen (Populus tremuloides) Molecular Ecology (2008) 17, 4827–4844 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/wild_facpub/163/
https://sci-hub.se/https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2008.03963.x

Volk, T. J. 2002. The Humongous Fungus–Ten Years Later. Inoculum 53(2): 4-8. https://msafungi.org/wp-content/uploads/Inoculum/53(2).pdf

The Associated Press, Study finds huge aspen grove continues to decline, The Salt Lake Tribune, Oct 22, 2018,
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2018/10/22/study-finds-huge-aspen/

Davis, Nicola, Sound artist eavesdrops on what is thought to be world’s heaviest organism, The Guardian, May 10, 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/may/10/sound-artist-eavesdrops-on-what-is-thought-to-be-worlds-heaviest-organism-pando-utah

The Sweet Song Of The Largest Tree On Earth, Science Friday, National Public Radio, May 12, 2023, https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/listen-to-the-pando-largest-tree/

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Birds of a Feather Bird Collective Nouns

A “congregation”, a “stand”, or
(when flying) a “wedge” of ibises.
White-faced Ibis with
Marbled Godwits in background
Courtesy US FWS
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge

Hi, I’m Holly Strand from Stokes Nature Center in beautiful Logan Canyon.

The word flock is a collective noun that refers to a natural grouping of any kind of bird.

Certain bird species commonly flock together to feed, to travel or to help defend themselves. Flocks are usually thought of as composed of just one species but mixed species flocks also occur. A mixture of species can take advantage of a variety of abilities to find food or detect predators.

When you are talking about a group of single species–birds of a feather so to speak– there exist specific and sometimes eloquent terms that can be used instead of the word flock. We’ve all heard the term “gaggle of geese.” But did you know that earlier this spring, we saw a “season” of tanagers come through the valley? I have never seen a flock of owls, but if there were one, we could call it a “parliament” of owls. More common than a parliament of owls is a “congress” of crows. You can also call this same group a murder of crows.

A “pod”, “scoop”, or “squadron” of American Pelicans with Black-necked Stilts & White-faced Ibis Courtesy US FWS Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge

The word siege can apply to either bitterns or herons. A congregation may refer to plovers, egrets or ibises. A bouquet connotes warblers, hummingbirds or pheasants. However, for hummingbirds I prefer the collective terms shimmer or charm.”

Punsters might appreciate a seasoning of cinnamon teal, a chain of bobolinks a ladle of dippers or– my husband’s favorite—an outfield of flycatchers.

Sometimes, a bunch of birds in the water is different from a bunch of birds in the air. You’ll find a paddling of ducks in the water but a team of ducks flying overhead. Likewise a gaggle of geese is swimming, while a skein of geese is airbourne.

American Avocet Flock
Courtesy US FWS
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge

One collective phrase is so evocative that it became the title of an entire book on collective nouns for birds and other animals. In An Exaltation of Larks, (now in it’s 3rd printing) author James Lipton explains that many collective nouns were hunting terms that originated in the 15th century or earlier. Nevertheless, the collective terms are correct and appropriate for use today.

This Saturday, August 21st, experience a shimmer of hummingbirds with Stokes Nature Center. Our hummingbird program will take place just east of the Second Dam in Logan Canyon. Drop in anytime between 8-11am. Signs or people will direct you on where to park. For more information call the Nature Center at 435.755.3239.

Cinnamon Teal Pair
In larger numbers a “seasoning of teal”
Courtesy US FWS
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge

For Wild About Utah and Stokes Nature Center, I’m Holly Strand.

Credits:
Photo: Courtesy Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
Text: Stokes Nature Center: Holly Strand

Sources & Additional Reading

William Blades, Juliana Berners, Boke of St. Albans, Nabu Press (March 29, 2010) https://www.amazon.com/Boke-Saint-Albans-William-Blades/dp/1148085742

James Lipton, An Exaltation of Larks, Penguin Books, 1991, ISBN 0-670-30044-6. https://www.amazon.com/Exaltation-Larks-Ultimate-James-Lipton/dp/0140170960

Mixed-Species Flocking, Birds of Stanford Essays, Stanford University, https://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Mixed-Species_Flocking.html

Animal Congregations, or What Do You Call a Group of…..?, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center USGS, https://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/about/faqs/animals/names.htm#birds

Names – Bird Groups and Young Birds, Utah County Birders, UtahBirds.org, https://www.utahbirds.org/featarts/2009/BirdGroupNames.htm