While filing old reprints, I came across a paper of unknown provenance by John M. Burns (Emeritus entomologist at the National Museum of Natural History) titled “Poems from the Natural History Seminar” containing poems that Burns composed to introduce speakers in the Wednesday noon seminars at the Museum of Comparative Zoology in the early 1970s. One of them is relevant to anolologists and was used to introduce Robert Trivers, who presented a seminar on sexual selection in Jamaican Anolis lizards (8 December 1971):
Trivia for Trivers
The male of an anole named garmani / Is subject to sexual selection. / He seeks an existence of harmony / And the chances to make a connection.
To do this he must defend holdings / (Which are plots for becoming attractive) / By resorting to dewlap unfoldings, / Being robust, and generally active.
He must be a competitive wizard, / Yet succeed in enticing a friend / Who will mate him. But being a lizard, / He does it by halves in the end.
If you enjoy biology-inspired poetry, Burns is also author of the book BioGraffiti (1981, W. W. Norton & Co.).
- Happy Thanksgiving - November 22, 2012
- The PhyloCode and the Names of Anole Clades - October 4, 2012
- Anole Poetry - July 11, 2012
James Lazell
Thanks Kevin! I knew Burns slightly and Trivers well. Whatever became of Robert?
Best, Skip
Susan Perkins
Oh man! I introduced Trivers for a seminar he gave at UMCP in 1994 and I totally blew my chance to write a new poem for it. Skip – he’s at Rutgers in the Anthropology Dept. now.
James Lazell
Thanks Susan! If you have a chance, give him my regards — From Guangdong, China. Anthropology??! Amazing…. Skip
Peter Mudde
Anolis hai-ku
Early morning light
perparing for a new day
anolis laps dew