Trick or treat, bag of sweets, ghosts are walking down the street.
Happy Halloween!
It’s World Kangaroo Day!
Happy World 🦘Kangaroo Day!
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Kangaroo Island, South Australia
🦘Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Joey (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus)
If you liked this post, share it on your preferred social network or forward it to a friend.
Squirrel
Swift and agile
Sleek and prehensile –
Skittering across bark
And as dexterously over brick –
Squirrel.
The arch survivor –
A thief in woodland
A bandit of suburbia,
Beautiful peanut pirate.
You skim the rigging of
Rotary washing lines
And old telephone wires:
Your sail-tail
A Spinnaker of balance –
A back garden acrobat.
Grey down of fur covers
The machine of sinew
Tendons tight
Like bowstrings
Wired to shoot across
Fence top,
Gate post, sign post,
Post box – post haste.
The highwayman of the high street,
Terror of the terraces
Ply your profession –
Livelihood in the manmade Landscape.
A narrow escape
With a clutch of grapes
Hijacked from garden vine
Jam-packed with sweet juice.
You make a getaway
Into ornamental spruce
Where you have your hideaway.
by Finn Farnsworth who came second in the People Need Nature competition set on the Young Poets’ Network.
To read more poems, click here.
Celebrating Squirrel Awareness Month
Did you know that October is Squirrel Awareness Month?
It all started in 1995 when Greg Bassett, deeply moved by his encounter with a fox squirrel at the Grand Canyon, founded the Squirrel Lover’s Club and Squirrel Awareness Week. This initiative later expanded into Squirrel Awareness Month, a testament to the profound impact a single squirrel can have on a person.
The creation of Squirrel Awareness Month helped highlight the critical role squirrels play in our environment. ‘Squirrel Awareness’ refers to the understanding and appreciation of the ecological importance of squirrels and the need to protect their habitats.
However, due to deforestation and urbanization, squirrel populations are declining in many areas. Squirrels, with their unique behavior of burying nuts, are key players in forest regeneration. Many of these buried nuts sprout into trees, contributing significantly to reforestation. This behavior underscores the vital role squirrels play in maintaining healthy ecosystems, a fact that we should all appreciate.
Interesting Facts About Squirrels
- Red squirrels change their body fur twice every year, but their tail hair only changes once.
- They can jump over 2 meters (6.5 feet), ten times their body length (without the tail). The long tail, measuring another 20 centimeters (8in), helps squirrels to balance and steer when jumping.
- Squirrels live in a nest known as a drey. Dreys are located high up in trees, made from twigs, and lined with moss, leaves, and other soft materials.
- They engage in deceptive caching. The squirrel digs a hole and fiercely plugs it up without using the nut to fend off any food thieves.
- Squirrels like to gnaw on reindeer horns. The horns provide a good supplement of calcium, phosphorus, glucosamine, and chondroitin, with trace amounts of magnesium, potassium, zinc, and iron.
- Squirrels’ front teeth don’t stop growing. Like those of other rodents, squirrels’ front teeth continue to develop throughout their lives. Gnawing on animal horns (see above) helps squirrels grind down their teeth.
- They zigzag to avoid predators. Squirrels flee in a zigzag fashion when they are threatened.
How to Celebrate Squirrel Awareness Month
- Feed the little critters nuts, fruits, and vegetables. Squirrels love walnuts and hazelnuts (all kinds of nuts, really), so you can start with that. You can go to a park or set up a simple feeding station in your backyard. Fill feeders with a mix of nuts, seeds, and fresh fruits. You could also transform your garden into a squirrel-friendly sanctuary by setting up squirrel houses, planting nut-bearing trees, and creating safe spaces for them to hide.
- Plant some trees to support squirrel habitats. They provide food and shelter for the squirrels and other small animals and birds. You can also create a safe space for squirrels to hide by leaving some areas of your garden undisturbed and providing water sources.
- Share the Joy: capture the squirrels in action and share their shenanigans on social media, using #SquirrelAwarenessMonth to connect with others who appreciate these fascinating creatures.
Bonus: NASA engineer designed a squirrel-proof birdfeeder. Or so he thought.
Related Posts
- Simple Steps to Improved Biodiversity in the Garden
- Protecting Our Planet’s Precious Wildlife: Celebrating World Animal Day
- Meet Gretel, the Little Red Squirrel
- Of Squirrels and Woodpeckers
- Fight or Flight?
If you liked this post, share it on your preferred social network or forward it to a friend.
Vas Doloris
I come from the remote borders
of the land of oblivion. My songs
will not sound beneath your balconies,
I am the singer of the broken sanctuaries.
Artist, dreamer, sensitive and tender,
my music is a voice of affirmation . . .
I am like a winter twilight
in love’s garden.
I love the fire of the sun. My delights are
the flaming rose, the bleeding pink,
and I love the white swans on the lakes
and the blue clouds in the wind.
I love the sad—for life is Pain—
I love your black half-opened eyes
fixed in an unknown direction
where dead loves are forgotten.
I know full well that love is sleep . . .
and my soul sleepless. You are not
to blame for my sorrow. You are a dream . . .
I call you when I wake and you do not come!
You can come only as does death,
silent and fatal. You are anxiety,
no matter, come; my heart is strong . . .
Shed your petals in my hands, faded rose.
I knew in my dreams that love is good
and today, impenitent, a rebel against love,
I weep upon the lilies of your breast
and kiss you on the forehead.
Julián del Casal (1863 – 1893) was a Cuban poet and one of the most important forerunners of the Modernist movement in Latin America
Translated from the Spanish by William George Williams.
To read more poems, click here.
The River
With graceful waves, ye waters, frolic free;
Uplift your liquid songs, ye eddies bright,
And you, loquacious bubblings, day and night,
Hold converse with the wind and leaves in glee!
O’er the deep cut, ye jets, gush sportively.
And rend yourselves to foamy tatters white,
And dash on boulders curved and rocks upright,
Golconda’s pearls and diamonds rich to see!
I am your sire, the River. Lo, my hair
Is moonbeams pale: of yon cerulean sky
Mine eyes are mirrors, as I sweep along.
Of molten spray is my forehead fair;
Transparent mosses for my beard have I;
The laughter of the Naiads’ is my song.
Manuel José Othón (1858 – 1906) was a Mexican poet, playwright, and politician.
Translated from the Spanish by Alice Stone Blackwell
To read more poems, click here.
Protecting Our Planet’s Precious Wildlife: Celebrating World Animal Day
Today, October 4th, marks World Animal Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of protecting our precious wildlife. It was Steve Irwin who once said, “If we can teach people about wildlife, they will be touched. Share my wildlife with me. Because humans want to save things that they love.”
Now, this is my mission, too. Share beautiful photographs of the amazing creatures we share our planet with, share my wildlife, and touch people’s hearts. Because humans want to save things they love.
October 4th is World Animal Day, but every day should be animal day. We share this Earth with other living beings, and the topic of animal rights isn’t just about animals; it’s also about us. Let’s all take part in building a world where both animals and humans can thrive. Animals also have a right to live free lives unharmed and unexploited.
As Emmanuel Kant famously said, “He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” This is a powerful message that reminds us that the way we treat animals reflects who we are as a society.
So, on this World Animal Day, let us celebrate the beauty of our planet’s wildlife and remember that it is our responsibility to protect it. Let us work towards building a world where both animals and humans can coexist in harmony.
Related Posts
If you liked this post, share it on your preferred social network or forward it to a friend.
The Lion’s Share
The sun was shining high in the African sky when Lion, Jackal, and Wild Dog went out hunting together. It did not take them long before they had brought down a wildebeest, a springbok, and a hare.
Lion spoke to Wild Dog. “My cousin, how shall we divide our food today?” Wild Dog answered, “My King, I think that you should have the wildebeest, our friend Jackal should have the hare, and for myself, I don’t mind if I have the springbok.”
Lion’s eyes had grown wide and fierce. He raised his mighty paw and knocked Wild Dog to the ground. With one eyebrow raised, Lion turned to Jackal, “Now, my good friend, you may like to divide our meal a little better.” Jackal spoke with a serious heart, “My King, the wildebeest will be your lunch, the springbok will be your dinner, and the hare you shall have for breakfast tomorrow morning.”
Lion was taken aback, “Jackal, when did you become so wise?” Jackal responded simply, “When I saw Wild Dog lying on the ground.”
Related Posts
If you liked this post, share it on your preferred social network or forward it to a friend.
Favorite Photos: September 2024
Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). That tiny pink tongue 😍.
The original photo was a bit meh so I played around in Photoshop and voilà! The little musician ❤️.
The Australian pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) has the longest bill of any living bird, the record one measuring 50 cm (1.6 ft)! However, females tend to have smaller bills than males.
📍Emu Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia
All photos were taken with Canon EOS R5 and Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM.
Related Posts
- Favorite Photos August 2024
- Favorite Photos: July 2024
- Favorite Photos: June 2024
- Favorite Photos: May 2024
- Favorite Photos: April 2024
- Favorite Photos: March 2024
If you liked this post, share it on your preferred social network or forward it to a friend.
