Cool Animals

In this post, I'll talk about a few animals I think are cool, and look at the issues affecting them. 

Okapis

Okapis are (arguably) my favorite animal ever. Why? They epitomize coolness. Have you ever seen one? Well, here's a picture:

Confused? It looks like a horse with a zebra butt, but in fact these animals are the closest living relatives to the giraffe.(More okapi facts and a video of a baby okapi!) They are found in the Ituri Forest, a rain forest in central Africa. The Ituri Forest is located in a part of Africa that is very conflict prone, and so funding for local conservation efforts is hard to come by. The animals here, including the okapis, elephants, primates, and antelopes, are victims of unsustainable agriculture, logging, the ivory trade, and slaughter for bushmeat. (Learn more here.)

Blob Fish

A little less "cool", a little more "weird", is the blob fish. They live in the deep ocean and have blob-like bodies that are less dense than water, allowing them to float along without expending much energy. (More on the blob fish.) And they look pretty ridiculous: 

They are often victims of by-catch by deep-sea trawler boats, a fate many animals face. Sea turtles, seals, and dolphins are all victims of by-catch, and it is becoming a huge issue. 

American Burying Beetle
This beautiful insect is in the Coleoptera family (beetles), and there are more beetle species in the world than anything else. But unfortunately, this beetle is critically endangered- they went to inhabiting 35 states to now only 5. 

The burying beetle parents both share responsibilities caring for their young (a rare behavior among insects). Their main diet is carrion- the carcasses of dead animals- so they are essentially tiny little vultures, helping to clean up the forest floor and recycle organic materials. More information

Markhor
This mythical-looking goat can be found in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Not only does it wear some stunning horns, this goat can climb trees too, and has been seen up in trees 20 feet tall. That's all the proof that I need to convince me this animal is, in fact a wizard. 

The markhor's horns make it a prized hunting trophy, and its horns are also very valuable in traditional Asian medicine. Fetching over $2200 a pound for their horns, as you could imagine, it is very hard to conserve these mystical animals. More here


These are just a few of the many, many animal species we are about to lose forever. At least 10,000 species go extinct every single year. That's over 1,000 times higher than the natural rate of extinction. We are in the middle of a biodiversity crisis, and don't think for one second that the human species is safe from all this destruction we cause in the world. Please, think. We can all make a difference by conserving resources. Save electricity by not leaving your TV running. Look at the label for recyclable content next time you purchase something. Don't contribute to landfills by being wasteful with your commodities. Seriously, just think. 

I hope you enjoyed this post, and of course, thank you for reading!! 

A Note About Dogs And Cats

This post is just a quick note to address one topic: A lot of people who know me as an animal lover assume that means I love pets. Now, don't get me wrong, I love dogs and cats and other pets, but I'm not concerned about them. 

I mean, how can you not love cats and dogs? Just look at these two cutesy wootsey little sleepy babies! 

In other words, dogs and cats are not going extinct anytime soon. There are too many people in the world who are obsessed with them, and we've become so intertwined with our pets' lives that any sort of threat to their species is lightyears away. Just look at all the money we spend on pets:

From www.dogdaycare.com

And compare that to this:

"The U.S. federal and state governments spent just more than $1.7 billion to conserve endangered and threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in fiscal year (FY) 2012 (from October 1, 2011, to September 30, 2012), according to an accounting recently published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)." (Source: Scientific American) 

$50 billion on pets, and not even $2 billion on endangered species....Is it just me, or does that not make any sense to you either? There are a lot less species in the "pet" category, and the animals in the "endangered species" category are endangered. As in, on the brink of extinction. Like, they could disappear forever. 

Yes, there are issues such as hoarding, abuse, and neglect, but the populations of dogs and cats are doing just fine. I mean, heck, we have so many that strays are a huge problem. Could you imagine if we did such a great job breeding an endangered wild animal that there were too many running around in cities and stuff? 

TL;DR Dogs and cats are awesome but I don't need to convince people to love them, and they are not in need of saving, but lots and lots of animals in the world are in trouble that need more attention. 

As always, thanks for reading! 

Biodiversity

Bio-whatnow? Bio-Di-Ver-Sity! That's what this post is all about. Let's take a moment and dissect this word:

"Bio" means life! For example "Biology" is the study of life because "bio-" means life and  "-ology" means the study of. 

The one on the left looks like she's seen some things... and is that a wig?

"Diversity" is a synonym for variety. So "Biodiversity" is essentially a variety of life, which is often defined by the number of different species in a given area. Biodiversity is good. Biodiversity is great!! More variety of plants and animals and fungi means a healthier ecosystem, and one that is more resilient to change. Let's look at two of the best examples of biodiverse (I'm not sure if that's a word) environments: 

Coral Reefs

As featured in "Finding Nemo", marine coral reefs host a wide variety of life. Approximately 1/3 of all marine fish species live (at least part of their lives) on a coral reef. For example, coral reefs in the Florida Keys have:

5 species of sea turtles

100+ species of sponges

500 species of fish

1700 species of mollusks

That, my friends, is biodiversity.

Coral is actually an animal, even though they look like plants. They are cnidarians, in the same group as jellies and anemones, because they have stinging cells. Each coral animal, called a "polyp", lives with a bagillion other identical polyps, and they secrete calcium carbonate exoskeletons that make up a reef. Reefs only occur in shallow water because they work in a symbiotic relationship with algae that need sunlight. Coral reefs are helpful to people too: they help protect shore lines from storms (you know, like the Great Barrier Reef), and also provide people with food and jobs. (Want to learn more about coral reefs?)

Fact: Parrot fish cannot fly. Darn. 

But sadly, coral reefs are in trouble. Global climate change brought on by our release of greenhouse gases has caused ocean warming, sea level rise, and ocean acidification, all of which are slowly creeping in to seal the reefs' doom. (More here) Scientists have suggested the key to coral reef regeneration is the protection of parrot fish and sea urchins, which eat aquatic plants that can overrun the reefs. (More info) Coral reef conservation is extremely important because, not only do they host a wide variety of life, they are not plentiful. Reefs only cover 1% of the ocean floor, so if we don't act quick, they could be gone. Better be-reef it. (Wow I'm sorry, that was just horrible!) 

Couldn't resist, I am a huge 30 Rock fan.

Rainforests

Everyone has learned about rainforests. They are really really cool. They host soooo much life it makes your head spin, so grab some ibuprofen and soak this in (haha that rhymed)- In 4 square miles of rainforest you can find:

150 species of butterflies

400 species of birds

750 species of trees

1500 species of flowering plants

Go ahead, read that again. And remember that four square miles is not a big area. At all. 

Rainforests are found on every continent, besides Antarctica, and can be tropical or temperate. They cover less than 2% of the Earth's surface but are home to 50% of our planet's plants and animals! As much as I love animals, it's important to point out that plants in the rainforests are incredibly important: they provide us with timber, coffee, cocoa and medicine. Yes, medicine. In particular medicine for cancer. How about these statistics: Over 2,000 rainforest plants have been found to have cancer-fighting powers, and over 70% of all cancer-butt-kicking plants studied by the US National Cancer Institute can only be found in rainforests! AND WE'VE ONLY STUDIED LESS THAN 1% OF ALL RAINFOREST PLANTS!!! If that doesn't scream "THIS IS IMPORTANT PEOPLE!!", I don't know what does. Heck, who knows what we'll find in rainforest plants. There could be a plant that makes people fly. 

Orangutans are one of the many victims of rainforest destruction.

Rainforests are going fast. They are threatened by agricultural development (like palm oil production), logging, and mining. There used to be 6 million square miles of rainforest, and now we're down to less than 3. Between 2000 and 2012, 2.3 million square km of rainforest was cut down, and at the current rate we lose up to 10% of rainforest species per decade. (Learn more about rainforests.)

A WWF ad, "Don't flush away the tiger's forest." referring to unsustainable production of paper products.

 So how can you help? What can you do? Be more conscious of what you do and buy. Every commodity that you purchase has an effect on the ecosystem- it was probably made in a big factory that releases greenhouse gases that are killing corals. Try buying more sustainable products, and using less energy. Turn your lights off when you walk out of a room, or take a walk to the grocery store instead of driving there, or take a few minutes less in the shower. Please be mindful of what you buy (here's a list of products with palm oil), and do your best to recycle and buy recycled products. 

"To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering" Aldo Leopold said. Preserving biodiversity means keep all our cogs and wheels so our planet is healthy, and right now it is not. Just like a disease, we can fight this, and we can win if we work hard enough. 

As always: Thank you for reading everyone! 

Habitat Loss

One of the most common and widespread threat to wildlife is habitat loss. In a nutshell: humans grow and expand and develop, forcing animals out of their natural homes. This is horrible for the ecosystem and of course, for the wildlife. I won't rant too much about this subject, but I would like to share with you a link of info-graphics depicting the catastrophic effects of habitat loss.

Keep in mind those graphics were for only 8 animal species. More than one and a half million animal species call this planet home, so just let that soak in. It's amazing how much damage we can do to other inhabitants of our planet, and frankly, it makes me ashamed to be human.  

Again, thanks for reading, and keep checking back! 

Faroe Islands

WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES 

Cetaceans (whales and dolphins) are incredible animals. They are extremely intelligent and we are only just starting to uncover the mysteries of their behavior.I know a lot of controversy has been sparked by the movie Blackfish recently, regarding whales in captivity. But we should be giving more attention to the ones in the wild... 

Faroe Islands. Sounds like a nice place to go, beautiful views, rich culture- let me stop you right there. Three words: Kids killing whales. Yeah. I'm not even joking. In the scenic Faroe Islands of Denmark, slaughtering pilot whales is a family event. 

Not just one or two, we're talking hundreds of whales driven into the shore and hacked to death.

 Families separated, mothers watching their babies being killed, even pregnant whales slaughtered with their unborn. I hope it disgusts you. I hope you think this needs to end.

 There is no point to this slaughter, except "tradition". Yeah well, at one point, it was also considered tradition to stone people to death too. (I certainly wouldn't mind upholding that tradition, particularly to the people in these pictures...) 

Operation Faroes Killing Bay has begun in an effort to stop this genocide. Get more information here. Want to help? Tweet your discontent at #faroeislands. Please, it only takes a few seconds, and your support is well appreciated. (Example: "Slaughtering whales is horrible! Stop! #faroeislands") 

Wildlife and the Media

Hello everybody! Thank you for visiting my blog. This post is all about the media's portrayal of wildlife. Like I mentioned in my first post, I'm just learning to get the hang of this blog-writing thing, and you'll see I've started to learn how to use links, so I apologize if I get link-happy. But all the links I've included are very interesting, so enjoy! 

The Media has a huge influence on public opinion about wildlife. This power is sometimes used for the good of wildlife, and other times harms it. For example, the movie "Avatar" used a fictional background to promote conservation of the Amazon rainforests (James Cameron has really taken the issue under his wing) Another great use of media are documentaries, my personal favorites being Disney Nature films. With such a huge fan base already, Disney is a great platform for wildlife conservation efforts. Their latest movie is entitled "Bears" and its scientific accuracy, and heart-warming, family appeal is what nature documentaries should strive for:

One of my biggest pet peeves is the superstition surrounding sharks. If you haven't read any of my earlier posts, let me repeat: sharks do not target people as food, but media has only portrayed them as man-eaters. (Does the movie "Jaws" ring a bell?) The Discovery Channel has been long idolized for their Shark Week series of shows, some of which display fantastic information, but lately they have succumb to the man-eating stereotype. I think that's horrible, because it's not true, and so many people watch Shark Week that it just enforces the lie. While last year's commercial was hilarious and accurate, because sharks eat seals, this year's commercial made me angry: 

Science television has also gotten into a disgusting habit of making "mockumentaries", that is, fake documentaries about fake creatures. For example, Mermaids on Animal Planet. In case anyone doesn't know, mermaids are not real. There has never been any evidence of mermaids ever, but this mockumentary is so well done that the evidence has convinced an embarrassing percent of the public (Another blogger's opinion). Here's a clip and I hope you all think it's as ridiculous as I do. 

Another mockumentary is the show on Megalodons. Yes, they existed at one point in time, but they have been extinct for 2 million years! (Want to know more about them?) This is a clip, and keep in mind, this is not a real documentary, but the show is very convincing:

My message to the media: please, please do not abuse the power you have. You have the ability to make people listen, and you should use that power for good! Talk about something worthwhile, like coral reefs dying or poaching. People rely on you for accurate information, and using their attention to lead them to believe lies (i.e. mermaids exist) is a despicable waste of time. 

My message to you folks: please don't listen to everything you see on TV or in the movies or on the radio. Use your brain. Do your research. Don't go out laying traps for Bigfoot just because Animal Planet has a bunch of lunatics out trying to find him. There are so many awesome animals in the world that we don't need to talk about fictional ones to enjoy wildlife. Want an example? Look at the mantis shrimp. Here's a video on him too: 

Thank you folks for reading, I'm so happy that my blog is getting attention! I look forward to writing more posts soon, so keep checking back!