Tag Archives: animals

May8

rock pockets.

Posted on May 8, 2025 by beth

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I so love this!

there are a variety of reasons they do this

they use them as tools to break the shells of food they’ll eat

they like to play with and juggle them

they become attached to them

we should all have a pocket for our favorite rocks

I do tend to collect rocks wherever I go

and have my clear favorites

but don’t always have a pocket

how lucky the otters are.

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‘you have to create little pockets of joy in your life to take care of yourself.’

-jonathan van ness

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photo credit: humane canada

Apr23

yard ponies.

Posted on April 23, 2025 by beth

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walking around the neighborhood

I discovered something that was new to me:

yard ponies

not something you see every day

or ever

in my case

they were quite big

seemed peaceful

a couple of them looked very tired.

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“trotting together
we know our way,
through bright sun of morning
our cares, cast away;
our ponies fly over fields and streams,
working together,
weaving our dreams.

From ” Ponies,” Celebrate the Seasons”
― Suzy Davies,

Apr19

the herds.

Posted on April 19, 2025 by beth

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These animals, crafted from cardboard and plywood, make up “The Herds,” a public art project that recently set off from the Democratic Republic of Congo on a journey through major cities in Africa and Europe. The goal is to raise awareness about how the climate crisis is endangering the very animals represented by the life-size puppets. “We believe thousands and thousands of people are watching us,” project member Siphokazi Mpofu told AFP. “We believe out of these thousands, maybe 10 will take out something on what we are doing and then take it back to their communities, to their cities.” Watch a video of the herd in motion.

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‘The wildlife and the natural beauty of this earth are the heritage of all generations to come.

We must act as their guardians.’

– Sir David Attenborough

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source credit: AFP

Feb13

busy beavers.

Posted on February 13, 2025 by beth

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Beavers completed a million dollar dam project in 2 days

Beavers know a thing or two about efficiency — and this story is evidence of that. Last week, a beaver colony in the Brdy region of the Czech Republic cut out the middlemen and built several dams right where they were needed, all in the span of about two days. For context, the local government had a plan in the works since 2018 to restore waterways in the area, but the animals essentially beat them to it.

“They built the dams without any project documentation and for free,” Bohumil Fišer, head of the Brdy Protected Landscape Area Administration, said in a translated statement, per Radio Prague International. He added that the beavers saved the government around 30 million Czech crowns — the equivalent of $1.2 million.

The beavers’ craftwork will go a long way, benefiting the rare stone crayfish, frogs, and other wetland species. “Beavers always know best,” added Jaroslav Obermajer, head of the Central Bohemian Office of the Czech Nature and Landscape Protection Agency. “The places where they build dams are always chosen just right — better than when we design it on paper.”

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“clearly, animals know more than we think, and think a great deal more than we know.”

*irene m. pepperberg

*author of: ‘alex me: how a scientist and a parrot discovered a hidden world of animal intelligence and formed a deep bond in the process’

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source credits; nice news, brdy protected landscape area administration

Sep10

donkey nannies.

Posted on September 10, 2024 by beth

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Donkey nannies in Italy

I had no idea this was a thing, and my world was made better by learning that this happens.

Each year in Italy, grazing animals are moved from high pastures down to the plains. Newborn lambs are unable to make this journey on their own. Instead, they ride in the pouches of a specially made saddle on the back of a donkey or a mule nanny. They are taken down at rest stops and returned to their mothers for a bite to eat and a bit of nuzzling.

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“animals are such agreeable friends—they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.”

-george eliot

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Source credit: avant gardens Photo: medeamoon

Sep7

cows just wanna’ have fun.

Posted on September 7, 2024 by beth

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Cows have best friends. Lists of the world’s most intelligent animals don’t often feature cows, but they have more emotional depth than they get credit for. A 2011 study by scientists at the University of Northampton in England revealed that not only do cows have best friends, but they also get stressed out when separated from their BFFs. The research was conducted by comparing heart rates and cortisol levels during 30-minute sessions in which a cow was penned with a “preferred partner” it was known to have a close bond with, then a “familiar but non-preferred individual.” When the besties shared a pen together, their heart rates were lower and other signs of stress were also reduced.

Cows aren’t the only animals that form friendships. Chimpanzees and bonobos do, too, as do several others, including dolphins, horses, certain birds, and marmots. Dolphins can identify their friends by taste, whereas most other creatures are known for simply grooming, remaining in close proximity to, and touching their besties — capuchin monkeys, for example, gently stick their fingers in one another’s eye sockets as a bonding ritual.

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source credits: gary larson image, university of northampton, vegnews.com, interesting facts

Jun30

conspiracy theory.

Posted on June 30, 2024 by beth

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no, this is not a giant hairy spider

it’s just a conspiracy of ring-tailed lemurs

having a snack at their mobbing planning session.

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A group of lemurs is called a conspiracy. Lemurs are social animals and live in mini communities of around 10-25 members. As a result of this, they often work together, or ‘conspire’ to outwit predators using a technique called ‘mobbing’.

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image credit: nature is amazing