Emus and Oceans
I think my favorite part of this story of a woman who hatched an emu egg sold as a novelty is actually the bit at the end where her friend says:
Family friend Jenny Cosham said nothing Ms Stone did surprised her.
“She turns up with all sorts of things,” she said.
“We’ve had chicks, we’ve had lambs, we’ve had all sorts - there was even a duck in the shower once.”
I suspect that is just the sort of person who is reading this blog 
And yes, I am guilty, too. I have pet goats, for crying out loud, who were supposed to be my little organic weed eaters (HAH) who made it abundantly clear two years ago that they had no intention of eating weeds as long as there was a sucker (me) around who would buy hay and grain!
June 8th is World Oceans Day. The Nature Conservancy has asked that we celebrate it by thinking about these 10 ways we can help save our oceans.
Water is life.
I have been watching this marvelous drama play out on my back deck outside my window all day. Some weeks ago, a Bullock’s Oriole visited us, and requested that I put up an Oriole Feeder. Sucker that I am (see above) I did so. He’s been quite enjoying it, and I quite enjoy seeing this beautiful bright yellow bird visiting the feeder outside my window.
The day before yesterday the oriole feeder had a new visitor - a Scott’s Oriole.
He was a new life bird for me and I was thrilled to see him. But I did wonder how the Bullock’s felt about sharing.
That question has been answered today. It seems the Scotts Oriole has claimed this feeder, and does not intend to share. Over and over the Bullocks (and his wife) have come to the back deck to feed, and every time, the Scott’s Oriole has flown up to chase them off. The Bullocks Orioles have managed a few sips, but sooner or later, here comes that Scott’s fellow to run them off again.
I think the Bullocks have a nest in one of our trees, they roost here in the evening at least, so it will be interesting to see how this all plays out. Probably the sucker (me) will end up buying a second Oriole feeder and hanging it around on the other side of the house.
Summer Fey Foovay
Filed under birds, heartwarming, marine life | Comment (0)When is extinct not extinct?
I ran onto a really cool list today on another blog; Top Ten Extinct Creatures That Are Not Extinct. 
image courtesy of http://www.goosen.org/index.html via Wikipedia Commons
It is amazing how often we can be wrong about extinction. I was surprised the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, recently rediscovered in the United States didn’t make the list. One of the interesting things about that, was when the articles first came out and photos were published - a number of people who were casual birdwatchers emailed me to say “Well, that bird has been coming to my backyard all summer” or variations thereof! Of course, they wouldn’t have been believed if they had reported it. In fact, the National Geographic ended up mounting an expedition to bring back video and photos before the scientific world really acknowledged that the birds were “back”.
The Coelacanth is a sentimental favorite of mine. When they first began appearing - in fish markets in South Africa - again, the scientists were disbelieving. Here is just a fragment of the story surrounding the rediscovery of this prehistoric fish. I read a book some years ago about the discovery of living Coelacanths - which I think was Living Fossil: The Story of the Coelacanth - now available online from Google books Here is the link If it is the same book - it is quite an intriguing and exciting story about some very interesting creatures - oh, and the fish, too.
*chuckle*
Summer Fey Foovay
Filed under fish, marine life, prehistoric animals | Comment (1)Live birth started earlier than we thought!
Researchers in Australia have discovered an amazing fossil that shows indisputable proof of a live birth. Dubbed “Mother Fish”, the fossil placoderm has a tiny embryo, still attached by a placenta, tucked under her fin. She is also a new genus and species, Materpiscis attenboroughi, named for the naturalist David Attenborough who first discovered the location of the find. You can read the full story here.
I am having some connectivity problems out here in my beloved desert Eden, so I apologize if I am not able to write as much as I’d like. We’ve ordered equipment from a different company and different provider which should arrive in a few days. Hopefully, it will resolve the problems.
Summer Fey Foovay
Filed under animals in the news, fish, marine life, prehistoric animals | Comment (0)Life in unlikely places
I get a daily update from Reasons to be Hopeful. If you don’t, you should! The blogger is a reporter who got fed up with the endless bad news, and has vowed to post a GOOD NEWS story each day for a year. I hope she decides to keep on going - because the world needs all the good news we can get.
Anyway - the link is to this fascinating article about a huge hidden biomass living deep below the oceans. That’s right, actually underground, under the ocean! It seems as if the rocks 1.6 km beneath the ocean may be teeming with life. Single celled creatures called prokaryotes were found in mud cores. Depending on the depth, 1 in 20 to 1 in 10 were actually dividing - reproducing. Even more interestingly, they could be over 110 years old! The scientists think this research will shed light on the possibility of life in even more unlikely places, like for instance, other planets. (Planet, Shmanet, Janet!)
Speaking of old, did you know the order to create an official Memorial Day was signed in 1868? Nerd that I am, I was thrilled to get to spend about half a day yesterday in the library in town doing research on some different things for my Ask Me Anything blog and along the way I looked up Memorial Day, too.
Have a great holiday weekend!
Summer Fey Foovay
Filed under animals in the news, marine life | Comment (0)Amusing dog pictures, a new Marine reserve, and Freshwater ecoregions information
I get such a big kick out of Chinese Crested Dogs. They’ve always struck me as punk puppies - and this photo proves it for sure! You can see more hilarious dyed dog photos here.
There is a lot of concern for our marine environment lately. Global warming and overfishing threatens many species and coral reefs. So it is heartening to see the tiny island nation of Kiribati stepping up to create the world’s largest protected marine area. An area the size of California in the Pacific Ocean is now off limits for commercial fishing. Scientific research in the area has found species of fish previously unknown to science, as well as a flourishing coral reef system.
As long as we are on the subject of watery environments, Freshwater Ecoregions of the World is a chock full of information website you might enjoy. Click on your own area and discover what fresh water ecoregion you belong to and the issues of concern for your locality. You may learn about some species of fish that occur only in your region - I did. Or maybe about some water birds who migrate through or live nearby that you might like to go bird watching for. You are sure to learn something!
Hug your animal companions today!
Summer Fey Foovay
Filed under dogs, heartwarming, marine life | Comment (0)
