Class 8~ Dr. Evans the Living Legend

This past week we all had the week off, but as you can tell from my very brief posting last week, the break week has been one of my busiest yet because it was the week before summer camp started. I have met a few times now with the famous Dr. Howard Evans, anatomist extraordinaire and beloved professor of countless Cornell veterinarians (and Dr. Bruce MacFadden). Teaching is embedded in this man’s soul as he continually inspires people of all ages with his incredible stories, joyous presence, and show-and-tell wonders from across the animal kingdom. The Director of Programs at the Nature Center and I met at Dr. Howie’s home and we loaded up a truck full of treasures that he is generously donating the Paleontological Research Institution. After that, we followed him to his office in the Vet School at Cornell. To say the least, it was one of the most interesting days of my life to get to spend a few hours with Dr. Evans. His brilliant mind thinks SO creatively and his practical solutions radiate pure genius. Pair that trait with his humble, unassuming, and kind personality and folks you have a seriously rare, one-of-a-kind individual. Did I mention he’s hilarious? And yes, everyone, I have the pictures I promised you all.

If you do not like seeing dead animals, including humans, please do yourself a favor and read no further. If you get queasy at the sight of blood, internal organs, or the skeletal system, I will respectfully advise you to read somebody else’s blog.

Below are a few pictures and videos of his collection. Each one of his specimens has a story that is bizarre, ludicrous, and true. 

He looks mad, but I assure you he was just in the middle of his sentence. He is is very joyful guy. 

His shed and museum we were loading up.

In one of his labs.

We walked in and there was a lady flushing out a large dog's lungs and heart with a lab hose. She held up the dripping lungs about a foot away from my face, spread them apart, and goes "See that? There's the heart."

"Yeahp we can hang about seven horses from this room." -Dr. Howie as his eyes look up to the hooks in the ceiling. (He means for dissection obviously.)

.....When we drove in there were two live horses outside in a fence. Maybe he was making them better? Maybe?

Me: "How did you get that rattlesnake?"

Dr. E: "Well I found it out west and mailed it back to my friend at Cornell in a grenade."

Me: "In a grenade??"

Dr. E: "A grenade box, or one that used to hold some kind of bomb, they are very sturdy you know."

Me: "Right...Hah, did you tell your friend to expect a dead rattlesnake in a grenade box soon?"

Dr. E: "No I mailed him alive. Snakes can go a very long time without eating and such. The only thing I was worried about was if the snake would rattle and then someone would open the package and think it's an actual bomb or something ticking. So I took its tail and dipped the rattle in some glycerin so it couldn't make any noise."

Me: "Wow."

Dr. E: "But yes, he was surprised when he got the package. Especially since it turned out that I went to Europe for three years and wasn't going to come back to Cornell for a while."

Me: "Oh my gosh! Hahaha! So your friend raised this rattlesnake for you? For THREE years?"

Dr. E: "Yep, he was quite a bit bigger when I got back. Lived for about 18 years! Then he died and I made this skeleton out of him."

Cyclopic sheep and pig fetuses

He filled this chicken's lung and heart parts with liquid plastic, let it cool, then dissolved the whole thing in hydrochloric acid.

Cock a doodle doo

You might just want to skip this one. In case you cant read the title of this picture series, it says "Cross Sections of a Canine Head."

What, you don't have an armadillo purse?

So many amazing stories!

Why yes, those are two penguin skeletons sitting on his desk that he smuggled in from Antarctica in a garbage bag because he didn't have enough Spanish to tell the guy at the airport with customs that he had a permit to take them. Oh, and that cool lamp stemming from the ceiling? This used to be his surgical room, where he pioneered the art of dissecting and performing surgeries on canines and other animals. Ever taken your dog to the vet? The books he wrote pretty much taught your vet what know. Here he was showing us pictures in the book that were taken right underneath that very lamp. 

I made a quick video of the adventure and posted it to YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-8sW51zkwQ&feature=youtube_gdata

Check it out and make it a great day today!

And by the way, he DOES remember who Dr. Bruce MacFadden is!

"Oh yeah! Of course, that's the horse guy right? Man, he sure does know a lot about fossilized horses."