Pictures of MotW

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Ah, yes. Here we have the Mandrill, a species of baboon. With their vivid blue and red facial and rump accents, mandrills are the most colorful mammals ever found in nature, but they are so shy, and they move so quickly across vast ranges of dense rainforest, that researchers have always had a very hard time following them, says Dr. Dixson.

Consequently, many aspects of the mandrill's social organization, mating systems, and other behaviors are still not fully understood. This, says Dr. Dixson, makes the species "the last great mystery among the family of Old World monkeys and apes." The studies of Dr. Dixson and others are, however, beginning to unravel some of the mysteries.

One of the most fascinating questions is why male mandrills sport such bright colors. As seen in MASK OF THE MANDRILL, Fangs, a dominant male who mates with many females, is much more colorful and larger than other, less successful males. He also has much higher levels of the male hormone testosterone.

"It is very difficult to see them in the forest, but when you do, the first thing you see is a flash of color through the undergrowth, a flash of nose or rump." The best way for humans to travel through the dense rainforest, Dr. Dixson says, is to use the paths "bashed down by the forest elephants, but, of course, then you might meet an elephant!"

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Here's a picture from a show my band played with motW. From left to right: FuSoYa, Nagle (I guested on jingle bells during "Birth Pains of Astral Projection"), FalseTodd, VangelicSurgeon.

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