Night Lights Book Two Chapter Three
2/24/02
The plans for the animal population intrigued Jim. He was beginning to feel a bit like “Doctor Doolittle.” This fabled character could talk with the animals regularly. Only the name implied that the man did not do much. In Jim’s case, a more appropriate name would be “Doctor Do Much” or “Doctor Do Everything.” He still had much research to do, but felt he was making progress.
Since the “others” had visited Emma three times, his concern for her was almost gone. They did not require him to monitor her behavior as closely and could devote more time to the veterinary field. The last time the portal opened, the “others” had brought back medical and veterinary journals to help in Jim’s work. He found the journals to be very helpful in categorizing and supplementing his own experience.
The “others” were reluctant to borrow from the earthlings. They preferred their acquisitions to come from voluntary disclosure. They were not, however, rigid in their ways. When Jim asked for help, they supplied the books. Jim understood that experience and memory were to be his primary sources. The books were supplemental material only.
His work on cats and dogs was complete. They were, of course, the easiest subjects since both were common household pets. The other creatures were more difficult. The ranges of animals of interest were those of household variety plus farm and wild animals. The wild animals would be the most difficult to recruit and analyze. The “others” were not interested in wild animals previously held in captivity. Jim had to identify the best locations for recruitment as well. The first recruitment of giraffes was to occur with the next portal. Jim was running out of time.
The “others” relied on previous knowledge to form their plans. Currently, the selection of animals was following the biblical story of Noah and his ark. They planned pairs of animals, one of each sex, for recruitment. Breeding habits were of interest to the “others.” The animals would be kept apart until they deemed mating appropriate. They wanted a controlled population of animals.
The communication between animals would require periodic interaction during non-mating seasons. The intelligence and behavior of the animals were the primary reasons for recruiting them. The living environment for a species was to be as close to actual conditions as possible. The banishment of darkness would present the biggest problem in this area.
They had created a new world to house the animal recruits. There were rolling hills, rain forests, jungles, and lakes. They carefully controlled temperature, climate and foliage in each area and equipped each area with appropriate observation areas as well. They designed the observation areas to give an unobstructed view of the animals without alerting the animals to a foreign presence.
The shock of transport would be small. The “others” hoped to explain their mission to many recruits. Those that did not comprehend would likely notice the lack of other species and the lack of numbers within their own groups. They could not help this. The “others” expected intelligent beings to be able to adapt to their new environments. Those that could not adapt would become extinct. Gestation periods and litter size, of course, vary greatly by species. The velvet monkey, for instance, has the following breeding characteristics:
The female produces one offspring after a 165-day gestation period. She nurses her baby for up to six months, and it is not ready to breed until it is two years old. (http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/4695/vervet.html)
The North American Black Bear is classified as follows:
Breeding season is in late June to early July. The fertilized egg matures to the blastocyst stage and goes dormant. Blastocyst will not implant in the uterus until late November. In early December, embryo development proceeds normally (delayed implantation: a process shared with badgers, mink, weasels, otters, and wolverines). Birth occurs in late January. Gestation is approximately 7 months. The delay in gestation is approximately 5 months and true gestation is approximately 8 weeks. A black bear usually has between 1 to 5 cubs.
This kind of information allowed Jim to plan recruitment. The idea was to recruit the animals and assimilate them to the environment before allowing mating to begin. His activities kept him busy and his first year with the colony flew by.
The plans for the animal population intrigued Jim. He was beginning to feel a bit like “Doctor Doolittle.” This fabled character could talk with the animals regularly. Only the name implied that the man did not do much. In Jim’s case, a more appropriate name would be “Doctor Do Much” or “Doctor Do Everything.” He still had much research to do, but felt he was making progress.
Since the “others” had visited Emma three times, his concern for her was almost gone. They did not require him to monitor her behavior as closely and could devote more time to the veterinary field. The last time the portal opened, the “others” had brought back medical and veterinary journals to help in Jim’s work. He found the journals to be very helpful in categorizing and supplementing his own experience.
The “others” were reluctant to borrow from the earthlings. They preferred their acquisitions to come from voluntary disclosure. They were not, however, rigid in their ways. When Jim asked for help, they supplied the books. Jim understood that experience and memory were to be his primary sources. The books were supplemental material only.
His work on cats and dogs was complete. They were, of course, the easiest subjects since both were common household pets. The other creatures were more difficult. The ranges of animals of interest were those of household variety plus farm and wild animals. The wild animals would be the most difficult to recruit and analyze. The “others” were not interested in wild animals previously held in captivity. Jim had to identify the best locations for recruitment as well. The first recruitment of giraffes was to occur with the next portal. Jim was running out of time.
The “others” relied on previous knowledge to form their plans. Currently, the selection of animals was following the biblical story of Noah and his ark. They planned pairs of animals, one of each sex, for recruitment. Breeding habits were of interest to the “others.” The animals would be kept apart until they deemed mating appropriate. They wanted a controlled population of animals.
The communication between animals would require periodic interaction during non-mating seasons. The intelligence and behavior of the animals were the primary reasons for recruiting them. The living environment for a species was to be as close to actual conditions as possible. The banishment of darkness would present the biggest problem in this area.
They had created a new world to house the animal recruits. There were rolling hills, rain forests, jungles, and lakes. They carefully controlled temperature, climate and foliage in each area and equipped each area with appropriate observation areas as well. They designed the observation areas to give an unobstructed view of the animals without alerting the animals to a foreign presence.
The shock of transport would be small. The “others” hoped to explain their mission to many recruits. Those that did not comprehend would likely notice the lack of other species and the lack of numbers within their own groups. They could not help this. The “others” expected intelligent beings to be able to adapt to their new environments. Those that could not adapt would become extinct. Gestation periods and litter size, of course, vary greatly by species. The velvet monkey, for instance, has the following breeding characteristics:
The female produces one offspring after a 165-day gestation period. She nurses her baby for up to six months, and it is not ready to breed until it is two years old. (http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/4695/vervet.html)
The North American Black Bear is classified as follows:
Breeding season is in late June to early July. The fertilized egg matures to the blastocyst stage and goes dormant. Blastocyst will not implant in the uterus until late November. In early December, embryo development proceeds normally (delayed implantation: a process shared with badgers, mink, weasels, otters, and wolverines). Birth occurs in late January. Gestation is approximately 7 months. The delay in gestation is approximately 5 months and true gestation is approximately 8 weeks. A black bear usually has between 1 to 5 cubs.
This kind of information allowed Jim to plan recruitment. The idea was to recruit the animals and assimilate them to the environment before allowing mating to begin. His activities kept him busy and his first year with the colony flew by.
posted by Vickie at 4:52 PM
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