Baby animals - squeeeeee!

Natural Beauty - American Southwest

(Image from here - he takes wonderful photos!)

Natural Beauty - Snow Leopard

(Image from here - along with an article about how the snow leopard was photographed.)

Ancients

Slate has an article about this here.

Natural Beauty - Caspian Tern

Caspian terns build a type of nest known as a scrape. It's typically a shallow depression lined with stones, shells and vegetation.  (text and image from MNN)

I love that image of the nest - it would be something I would make in a shallow bowl and put on my coffee table!

(Image from here)

The Caspian Tern is the largest of all terns and can be found in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Africa.  Cornell's bird site has some more pictures along with the sound of this tern - you can find that here. Cornell's site is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in birds.

This book was one of my favorite finds when I was at summer camp in Nova Scotia as a teenager - it was and still is one of the cleverest things!  And, of course, the tern makes an appearance.

Click on any of the images to enlarge them.

Casa Rinconada, Chaco Canyon

(Image from here)

To learn more about Chaco Canyon and this video,

click here for The Solstice Project.

Natural Beauty - Birds of Paradise

I didn't know that there are 39 species of these birds.

They're pretty spectacular - watch how they dance and display!

Natural Beauty - Owl

(Image from here via FB)

“The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious. If you have a deep scar, that is a door, if you have an old, old story, that is a door. If you love the sky and the water so much you almost cannot bear it, that is a door. If you yearn for a deeper life, a full life, a sane life, that is a door.”

~Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Ph.D

Natural Beauty - Lady Amherst Pheasant

(Image from Google search)

Isn't he handsome??  Those colors are astonishing!

You can read more about this beautiful bird here.

Polar vortex....

When I got up this morning and checked the temperature, it was 5 degrees and the wind chill factor made it feel like minus 16.

It's now warmed up to 10 degrees with a windchill reading of minus 9.

Perfect for Mama Bear and Baby Bear!

Polar Vortex?  Click here to read about it.

The Tao of Cats?

(Images from here)

The Naming Of Cats 

by T. S. Eliot

The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter,

It isn't just one of your holiday games;

You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter

When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES.

First of all, there's the name that the family use daily,

Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo or James,

Such as Victor or Jonathan, George or Bill Bailey--

All of them sensible everyday names.

There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter,

Some for the gentlemen, some for the dames:

Such as Plato, Admetus, Electra, Demeter--

But all of them sensible everyday names.

But I tell you, a cat needs a name that's particular,

A name that's peculiar, and more dignified,

Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular,

Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride?

Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum,

Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo, or Coricopat,

Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum-

Names that never belong to more than one cat.

But above and beyond there's still one name left over,

And that is the name that you never will guess;

The name that no human research can discover--

But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess.

When you notice a cat in profound meditation,

The reason, I tell you, is always the same:

His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation

Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name:

His ineffable effable

Effanineffable

Deep and inscrutable singular Name.

Natural Beauty - Feathered Horned Beetle

(Image from here via FB)


You can read about these little guys here,

along with seeing more pictures of them.

Leviathan - Swimming with Whales

TreeHugger had this on their site today

and it's too beautiful NOT to share!

Natural Beauty - Kea Parrot of New Zealand

The kea is an unusual parrot. It is the only truly alpine parrot in the world, and gained early notoriety among settler farmers for attacks on their sheep. Innately curious, kea are attracted to people wherever they enter its mountain domain, and are a feature at South Island ski-fields and mountain huts. Their attraction to people and their paraphernalia is a two-edged sword, providing both new threats and new opportunities.

Identification                                                   

The kea is a large, strong-flying, olive-green parrot with scarlet underwings and a slender grey-black bill. Sexually dimorphic, female body mass is about 20% less than males and the bill is shorter. Juveniles have yellow ceres and eyelids, which fade to grey as the bird matures.

The commonest call is a long, loud, high-pitched descending cry which may be broken “kee-ee-aa-aa”, or unbroken “keeeeeaaaa”. Many quiet contact calls are given. Juvenile calls are less stable in tone, being more of a loud uncontrolled whooping or squealing.

Kea are unlikely to be confused with other species. Kaka are smaller, olive-brown and very rarely seen above the timberline. They excavate the wood of live trees, whereas keas do not. Kaka have more varied calls, including fluting whistles and harsh grating ‘skraaarks’. The extremely rare and localised kakapo is larger, flightless and nocturnal. It is yellow-green rather than olive-green and lacks a scarlet underwing.

Distribution and habitat

Kea range over about four million hectares along the axial ranges of the South Island, from Farewell Spit to Waitutu, plus the Kaikoura Ranges. They can be found from coastal dunes to high alpine peaks, but are most common in montane forests and adjacent subalpine and alpine zones. They are absent from the Marlborough Sounds, Catlins, Blue Mountains and both the North Island and Stewart Island.

Kea mainly nest within native forest. Their foraging habitat includes all types of native forest, sub-alpine scrub, tussock and herb-field. They socialise on prominent rocky outcrops and windy saddles above or below the timberline, and are frequently reported in pine forests adjacent to native forest.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Image via Biology 101 FB page.

I'll be waiting....

Betrayal from Blue Sphere Media on Vimeo.

Into the Atmosphere...

Natural Beauty - Polar Bear mom and cubs

Basic Facts About Polar Bears

Polar bears are the largest land carnivores in the world, rivaled only by the Kodiak brown bears of southwestern Alaska. Polar bears sit at the top of the food chain in the biologically rich Arctic. The most carnivorous of the bear species, polar bears feed primarily on the fat of ice-dependent seals. The remains of these seals provide food for many other Arctic wildlife species, giving polar bears a vital role in their ecosystem.

© Paul Nicklen / National Geographic Stock

Polar bears are marine mammals, and spend much of their time on Arctic sea ice. Many adaptations make polar bears uniquely suited to life in icy habitats. Their fur is thicker than any other bears’ and covers even their feet for warmth and traction on ice. A thick layer of blubber beneath their fur provides buoyancy and insulation. The long neck and narrow skull of the polar bear probably aid in streamlining the animal in the water while warming the air that they breathe, and their front feet are large, flat and oar-like, making them excellent swimmers.

Did You Know?

Polar bears have black skin to absorb heat and white fur to blend in with their environment.

Diet

Polar bears feed almost exclusively on ringed seals and bearded seals. They are also known to eat walrus, beluga whale and bowhead whale carcasses, birds’ eggs, and (rarely) vegetation. Polar bears travel great distances in search of prey.

Population

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) estimates that there are between 20,000-25,000 polar bears in the world.

Range & Habitat

Polar bears are only found in the Arctic. The most important habitats for polar bears are the edges of pack ice where currents and wind interact, forming a continually melting and refreezing matrix of ice patches and leads (open spaces in the ocean between sea ice). These are the areas of where polar bears can find the greatest number of seals.

As the sea ice advances and retreats each season, individual polar bears may travel thousands of miles per year to find food. Polar bears are distributed throughout the Arctic region in 19 subpopulations, including Alaska, Canada, Russia, Greenland and Norway.

Did You Know?

The polar bear is the largest and most carnivorous member of the bear family.

Behavior

Polar bears are highly dependent on older stable pack ice in the Arctic region, where they spend much of their time on the ice hunting, mating and denning. They are generally solitary as adults, except during breeding and cub rearing. Polar bears are strong swimmers, and individuals have been seen in open Arctic waters as far as 200 miles from land, although swimming long distances is not preferred since it requires so much energy for adults and can be fatal to younger bears.

Unlike brown bears, males and non-breeding females do not hibernate in the winter.

Did You Know?

At birth, polar bear cubs are 12 to 14 inches long and weigh around one pound.

Reproduction

Pregnant polar bears need to eat a lot in the summer and fall build up enough fat reserves to survive the denning period. They seek out maternity dens in October or November. Most maternity dens are located on land where snow accumulates including along coastal bluffs, river banks or pressure ridges on sea ice.  Sows give birth to usually 1 or 2 one-pound cubs and then nurse them until they reach about 20-30 pounds before emerging from the den in March or April. The young are born from November through January while the mothers are hibernating. Cubs will remain with their mothers for a little over 2 years. Female polar bears can produce five litters in their lifetime, which is one of the lowest reproductive rates of any mammal.


Mating Season: Late March - May
Gestation: About 8 months with delayed implantation
Litter size: 1 - 4 cubs; though 1 or 2 cubs is most common

Text from here.

The 12 Days of Christmas

Merry Christmas! We present you with what, we hope, will be the least irritating rendition of this song ever. Enjoy. (And you're welcome.)

On the twelfth day of Christmas, OnEarth gave to me …

Twelve puffins puffing.

Eleven furballs floating.

Ten seals a-sunning.

Nine penguins prancing.

Eight thumbs o-pposing.

Seven swans a-swimming.

Six tons a-laying.

Fiiiiive musk-ox-en.

Four hauling cubs.

Three white bears.

Two timber wolves.

And a raptor in a bare tree.

Happy Holidays

The 12 Days of Christmas, Eco-Porn Style | OnEarth Magazine

Natural Beauty - Canada Lynx

(Image from FB)

Canada lynx description    

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Mammalia
Order	Carnivora
Family	Felidae
Genus	Lynx (1)

The Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) is a muscular, leggy cat with forelimbs that are slightly shorter than the hind-limbs, lending it a slightly stooped appearance ^{(3) (4)}. In common with other lynx species, the triangular ears are tipped with conspicuous tufts of black hair, while the lengthy cheek hair gives the impression of a ruff around the neck, especially over winter ^{(3) (5)}. A particularly characteristic feature is the large paws, which spread widely and are covered in long, dense fur, enabling the lynx to run on the surface of deep snow ^{(3) (5) (6)}. Although somewhat variable, the long, thick coat is typically buff grey and unmarked ⁽²⁾. The upperparts may have a grey, frosted appearance in winter, and the undersides are light in colour with mottled dark spots. The tail is stubby and the tip is completely black ^{(3) (5)}. There is little geographic variation in size, but males are slightly larger than the females ⁽³⁾.

Also known as

Canadian lynx.

French

Lynx Du Canada.

Spanish

Lince Del Canadá, Lince Lel Canadá.

Size

Head-body length: 76 - 106 cm ⁽²⁾

Average shoulder height: 48 - 56 cm ⁽³⁾

Tail length: 5 - 12 cm ⁽²⁾

Average weight: 5 - 17 kg ⁽³⁾

You can continue reading this article here.

What does the Fox say?

Fox

I needed fox     Badly I needed
a vixen for the long time none had come near me
I needed recognition from a
triangulated face      burnt-yellow eyes
fronting the long body the fierce and sacrificial tail
I needed history of fox    briars of legend it was said she
   had run through
I was in want of fox

And the truth of briars she had to have run through
I craved to feel on her pelt     if my hands could even slide
past or her body slide between them     sharp truth distressing
   surfaces of fur
lacerated skin calling legend to account
a vixen’s courage in vixen terms

For a human animal to call for help
on another animal
is the most riven the most revolted cry on earth
come a long way down
Go back far enough it means tearing and torn    endless
   and sudden
back far enough it blurts
into the birth-yell of the yet-to-be-human child
pushed out of a female   the yet-to-be woman

1998

“Fox”, from Fox: Poems 1998-2000 by Adrienne Rich. 

Image by Susan Seddon Boulet