Are we doing enough to protect the magnificent hornbills? Although the snake does not fly, it has caught the hornbill, whose home is in the sky. Akan Proverb Wrinkled Hornbill Apparently not enough, especially in some African countries like Ghana and Cameroon where uncontrolled hunting and habitat degradation is decimating the hornbill population. If you…
Early this month an article in National Geographic prompted me to re-publish one of my first posts about the amphibian extinction crisis. The article titled Ground Zero of ‘Amphibian’ Apocalypse Finally Found summarizes a research article published in Science in early May. The research article Recent Asian Origin of chytrid fungi causing global amphibian declines,…
It’s been so long since my last post, over four years. I don’t exactly when the dry-spell began. What I do know is that at the time I was beginning a new chapter in my life with lots of things to think about and completely unable to concentrate and/or decide what am I going to…
“No bird soars too high if he soars with his own wings.” -William Blake There are many fascinating things about these amazingly weird looking birds; a couple of them are pretty obvious their colorful and in some species huge casques and large bills. The other one, which is not so obvious, but very interesting, is…
The extraordinary habit of the male, in plastering up the female with her egg, and feeding her during the whole time of incubation, and until the young one is fledged, is common to several of the large hornbills, and is one of those strange facts in natural history which are “stranger than fiction.” -Alfred Russel…
“Seabirds are ideal symbols for ocean conservation… Because they live in a variety of habitats-including oceans, islands, estuaries and beaches-they can show visitors how all coastal life is connected and spark new interest in coastal conservation. Long-term conservation success hinges on public understanding and community support.” – Stephen Kress They look like cartoon characters taken…
“It’s the place where land, water and sky embrace like old friends”. -Newfoundland Saying Why indeed? At the beginning of 2012 I began looking for a destination for my next photo safari, after being in Africa the previous year I must confess it was quite challenging to find a place that I really wanted to…
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog. Here’s an excerpt: 600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 4,400 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 7 years to get…
“When more robust animals were enabled, by means of humans and their boats, to reach the havens or backwaters that island birds were inhabiting, they wreaked havoc… with the greatest single threat coming from the most ruthless predator ever to emerge on this planet: Homo sapiens. Quite apart from hunting and harrying, the human capacity…
“The premature elimination of elephants over much of their range represents one of the most wasteful mammalian tragedies of the century” -Iain Douglas-Hamilton, 1987 I’m closing these series of posts exactly one year after my unforgettable trip to the Masai Mara, and for the end I left the best, my absolute favorite animal, the sweet…