ENZOology

ENZOology is raising funds for cancer research!

2007-12-12T14:38:00.000-06:00

Enzoology joins the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s (LAF) fight against cancer by raising funds through the sale of the Season One DVD. Buying the DVD allows you to do something bold in the face of cancer by supporting the mission of the LAF to inspire and empower people affected by cancer.

Enzo's family has been struck hard by cancer including Enzo's mother who was recently survived a difficult battle with this deadly disease.

Funds raised will enable the LAF to continue helping people across the nation with the physical, emotional and practical challenges of cancer. Since its inception in 1997, the LAF has awarded more than $29 million to cancer survivorship programs and research.

About the Lance Armstrong Foundation
The Lance Armstrong Foundation inspires and empowers people affected by cancer. We provide the practical tools and resources survivors need to live life on their own terms. Our goal is to create a fundamental change in the expectations and experience of living with cancer and to lead and sustain a survivorship movement to help eliminate suffering due to cancer. We believe that in the battle with cancer, unity is strength, knowledge is power and attitude is everything. The LAF was founded in 1997 by cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong and is located in Austin, Texas.

Click here to order a DVD

Enzoology announces new sponsor!

2007-12-12T14:33:00.000-06:00

Enzo wants to put out the best videos possible. Next year we will begin shooting all episodes in HD and that's a big job. So when Craig at GEAR offered to sponsor the show by providing video production equipment what could we say but, "YES!".

GEAR is a cool rental company in Austin that specializes in outfitting professionals with video and film equipment. They have everything you need to shoot a movie or any other show. We are so grateful to Craig and his team for this valuable support.

With GEAR's help, we'll be making Enzoology even more special. Check out Gear by clicking here.

Moujaes Company Creates Enzoology Cartoon!

2007-12-12T14:29:00.000-06:00

We are proud to announce our new affiliation with The Chris Moujaes Company - The Chris Moujaes Company is a complete studio enterprise, providing the best in brand communications, creative services and original entertainment content and products. They create brands, entertainment and experiences for people around the world.

With the Moujaes team co-producing Enzoology you can expect to see more educational materials including comics and cartoon versions of Enzoology! Stay tuned for more!

The University of Texas supports Enzoology!

2007-12-12T14:25:00.000-06:00

John Abbott, curator of entomology at the Brackenridge Lab at the University of Texas has graciously taken Enzo under his wing and opened his lab to Enzoology. With John's help, we'll be able to do some really special shows featuring awesome insects and research.

You can learn more about John (he's also a great photographer) and the Brackenridge Lab by clicking here.

Thanks, John!

My experience on the Ellen Show

2007-11-16T11:11:00.001-06:00

Well, the show was on TV today. I really had fun. Some guy named Alfred picked us up at the airport but the card he was holding spelled my name wrong! I teased him about it all the way to the hotel. He was really nice and cool!

They had all these tarantulas, geckos, frogs and a python there for me to talk about. I wish I could have talked more about the animals but everything was moving so fast, I couldn't keep up. She was really funny! So I would laugh, the people then laughed and that made me laugh even more. It was crazy!

The whole thing was amazing and fun. We really had an adventure. There's a parking garage at Universal Studios called Jurassic Parking! That was so funny.

I told my mom and dad I want to live in L.A. because that's where they make all the movies.

I'm flying to LA this morning!

2007-11-13T05:43:00.001-06:00

I'm going to be on the Ellen Degeneres show later this week! Watch for the show either Thursday or Friday!

Tarantulas!

2007-10-30T19:24:00.000-05:00

I just got back from the University of Texas Brackenridge Field Lab. We shot the next episode of Enzoology - "The Chilean Rose Haired Tarantula". My dad actually let it crawl on his hand! (He hates spiders LOL). Even my mom held it and petted it. It was awesome. Her name was Rose and she was HUGE! She tried to crawl right up my face. You should see her fangs - red and giant. I met a bunch of scientists too. Man, that was fun. Here's some stuff about the tarantula.

The Tarantula is one of the largest arachnids.

Tarantulas are carnivores - they eat insects. Some get so big they even eat frogs, mice and birds!

They can be found in most of the worlds tropical, subtropical and arid regions and live in the ground. In America they live in the Southwest.

Tarantulas don't spin webs - instead they grab their prey and inject venom that paralyzes the prey so they can suck their guts out.

They have an interesting defense mechanism - they can throw hairs from their body - when these hairs get in a predators skin, it's really irritating.

Tarantulas lay eggs and a single nest can contain up to 1000 babies!

There are 800 species of Tarantulas

They are harmless to humans. They can bite but they usually don't unless you really bug them!

The Green Anole!

2007-10-23T14:44:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite lizards is the Green Anole. We have tons of them right in our backyard!

They grow to about eight inches long and females are smaller - usually under five inches long.

Like geckos, they have adhesive foot pads so they can climb straight up a wall!

A lot of people think they are chameleons because they can change colors but they are not related.

There are 300 known species of Anoles - we ha Carolina Anoles. I even found one in my house!

You can spot a male by looking for a brightly colored flap of skin under their neck called a dewlap. Females can have them too but they are smaller.

They live all over the Southeastern United States.

Anoles eat insects and spiders so they are really good to have around if you hate spiders. I like spiders.

An anole can live up to seven years!

Male anoles perform rituals of dominance and territoriality. They show their dominance by bobbing their heads, usually through push up-like movements.

They also flare their dewlap. When threatened by another male, the opponents begin with head bobbing and flaring. Then they extend their throat (different than dewlap) to enlarge their body profile, they turn lateral to their opponent, showing the side profile of their body.

They also erect crests along the back, and form an eyespot. These performances are intended to intimidate the other anole. The loser of the confrontation performs submissive head bobbing and retreats to a different territory.

Green anoles breed anywhere from late March to early October. Females can lay single eggs every two weeks. These eggs, which look like smaller, leathery versions of the chicken egg (1/4-3/8"), need moist soil and foliage. They hatch after anywhere from 5-7 weeks.

Anoles have little black eyes that can move independently of each other.

An anole's tail will easily break off if grabbed, which helps them escape predators. While a new tail will grow in its place, it will be shorter and less attractive. An anole can lose its tail only once.

They diurnal, which means they're active during the day.

Anoles have been around for about six million years.

Enzoology is a hit!

2007-10-06T15:07:00.000-05:00

Enzoology is a huge hit! If you sent an email, please be patient! I'm going to respond to everyone but I'm getting a little behind! My web site has had over 2000 visitors in one week! Another exciting development is an invitation from the University of Texas to tour their entomology collection. I can't wait! They have huge bugs!

Check out episode two: Dolphins and Sharks

Stay tuned!

Enzoology - Episode two is coming!

2007-10-03T09:45:00.000-05:00

My dad is editing Episode Two - Sharks and Dolphins. We took some great video at Sea World and I am really into sea life. It's going to be so cool - watch for it toward the end of the week!

Went to Sea World Today

2007-09-27T18:52:00.001-05:00

What a blast. Lots of kids I knew and I even met some fans of Enzoology. Stay tuned for an episode about sharks and jellyfish. It's going to be so cool. I saw Shamu - or maybe Shamus. There were about six of them. That's the second time I've seen them. The show was corny but the killer whales were cool. I also saw some sea lions, an otter and a walrus!

Did you know killer whales can swim up to 30 miles per hour? For a mammal (not a fish!) that gets 22 feet long and weighs 9000 pounds, that's crazy fast! They are black and white so they are harder to see - it makes it easier to hunt. And they have to hunt a lot - they eat about 240 pounds of food a day! That's about five second graders!

The Praying Mantis

2007-09-24T18:49:00.000-05:00

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Mantodea

The praying mantis is one of my favorite insects. People always spell it wrong writing "Preying" instead of "Praying". Mantis means prophet or fortune teller. If there is more than one, they are called "Mantids".

The praying mantis has a three- segmented body, with a head, thorax and abdomen. Adults have wings and can fly. The front legs are modified into weird grabbing things. When they approach prey, they snatch them up with these legs.

Mantids have huge compound eyes mounted on a triangular head and have a large field of vision. They use sight for detecting movement of prey and swivel their heads to bring their prey into view. They are able to swivel their heads 180 degrees as well as pivot it. Their antennae are used for smelling stuff.

Praying mantids can be found in all parts of the world with mild winters and sufficient vegetation. Praying mantids will spend most of their time in a garden, forest or other vegetated area.

Being a carnivorous insect, the mantis feeds primarily on other insects. Larger mantids can consume small reptiles and even small birds! To capture their prey, mantids use their camouflage to blend in with the surroundings and wait for the prey to be within striking distance. They then use their front legs to quickly snatch the victim and devour it.

When threatened, praying mantids stand tall and spread their forelegs to allow them to penetrate the target, with their wings fanning out wide and mouths open. They also may make a hissing sound.

When they mate, the female usually eats the male! Disgusting but cool!

The natural lifespan of a praying mantis in the wild is about 10 - 12 months. In colder areas, female mantids will die during the winter.

Hello World!

2007-09-24T17:42:00.000-05:00

Check back here for totally cool information about insects, animals and dinosaurs. This is going to be great!