A new word and an old joke

I used to subscribe to one of those "Learn A Word A Day" deals, but then I figured out that I could learn just as many words by reading things, and here's an example of a sentence with a new word for me:

California conservationist Beth Pratt was hiking in Yosemite National Park on June 25 when she came across miles upon miles of suncups.

This was in the Smithsonian's website, which goes on to explain: 

Suncups are depressions in the snow that occur repeatedly, one next to the other. They’re quite common and form in snowfields around the world. Usually, they’re shallow and look like salad bowls, but they can also be several feet deep. Sometimes they look like egg cartons or honeycombs.

Perhaps it's because we don't get much snow anymore thanks to the global warming which is definitely not taking place, but I had not heard of suncups before. Sunups, yes, sure. 

Ms Pratt, the regional executive director of the National Wildlife Federation’s California Regional Center, went on to tell the Smithsonian, "I’ve been hiking in the Sierra for 33 years. I’ve encountered them a lot but never to this extent."

Andrew Schwartz, lead scientist and manager at UC Berkeley’s Central Sierra Snow Laboratory at Donner Pass, says we get suncups early in the winter as wind blows across freshly-fallen snow, "scouring the surface and creating these various features on snow..." He added that suncups occur later in the year, too, as snow melts unevenly.

  

Ms Pratt and Mr Schwartz are learned people of science, and probably wouldn't give two chuckles at my longtime practice of giving the name "Donner" when lining up for a table at a restaurant. It will always thrill me to hear the hostess say, "Donner, party of 6!"