Valentine's Day Special: Animals Prove Love has No Boundaries

1. The Cat and Her Chicks

2. The Dalmatian and her Lamb

3. The Greyhound and Her Fawn

4. The Greyhound and Her Fox Kit

5. The Hen and Her Ducklings

6. The Cat and Her Ducklings

7. The Goat and Her Wolf

 

8. The Lioness and Her Antelope

9. The Dog and Her Guinea Pig

 

10. The Mama Pig and Her Kitten

 

11. The Baboon and Her Galago

 

12. The Cat and Her Cub

13. The Pointer and Her Puma Cub

14. The Great Dane and His Baby Chim

15. The Cat and Her Rottweiler Pups

16. Let’s get one last snuggle-filled “awww”!!

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"A better attitude leads to better actions and a better world..."

Lake Turns Animals into Statues

There is an ancient story of King Midas who turns everything he touches into gold. It seems like this ancient story is not as magical and unrealistic as it seems. Apparently, in the northern part of Tanzania, there is a mysterious lake, the Lake Natron, that has similar capabilities as the legendary King Midas. Their only difference is the Lake Natron doesn’t have anything to do with gold making but turning animals into statues. 

Lake Natron appears to have high alkalinity that range between pH 9 to 10.5. It has sodium carbonate compound, Natron, which originates from volcanic ash of the Great Rift Valley that calcifies animals once they ­­­get in the water. Bad news for our lovely animals who have no idea they are dipping into the water of death. Now that we have this information, some remedies must be done about the relationship between the animals and Lake Natron. 

ACCORDING to Dante, the Styx is not just a river but a vast, deathly swamp filling the entire fifth circle of hell. Perhaps the staff of New Scientist will see it when our time comes but, until then, Lake Natron in northern Tanzania does a pretty good job of illustrating Dante's vision.

Unless you are an alkaline tilapia (Alcolapia alcalica) – an extremophile fish adapted to the harsh conditions – it is not the best place to live. Temperatures in the lake can reach 60 °C, and its alkalinity is between pH 9 and pH 10.5.

The lake takes its name from natron, a naturally occurring compound made mainly of sodium carbonate, with a bit of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) thrown in. Here, this has come from volcanic ash, accumulated from the Great Rift valley. Animals that become immersed in the water die and are calcified.

Photographer Nick Brandt, who has a long association with east Africa – he directed the video for Michael Jackson's Earth Song there in 1995 – took a detour from his usual work when he discovered perfectly preserved birds and bats on the shoreline. "I could not help but photograph them," he says. "No one knows for certain exactly how they die, but it appears that the extreme reflective nature of the lake's surface confuses them, and like birds crashing into plate glass windows, they crash into the lake."

When salt islands form in the lake, lesser flamingos take the opportunity to nest – but it is a risky business, as this calcified bird (top) illustrates. The animals are all arranged in poses by the photographer. Above, on the right we have a sea eagle and on the left a dove, in what is surely the most horrific depiction of the "bird of peace" since Picasso's Guernica.

Brandt's new collection of photos featuring animals in east Africa, Across the Ravaged Land, is published by Abrams Books.

This article appeared in print under the headline "The lake that petrifies"

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"A better attitude leads to better actions and a better world..."

 

Our Interconnected Lives in our Beautiful World

Hello, beautiful world! Finally, this blog has made its existence. After hours, days, weeks and months of contemplation, it is officially active. This blog emphasizes anything about nature, environment, wildlife, ecosystem and our interaction with one another. You would see many posts on interesting and cool news/articles about these topics. One day, you can read up on my adoration for pandas. Next week, you might see an article about animals on the verge of extinction. And next month, you can expect some narratives about global warming. The list goes on because there's so much to be told about the beautiful world we live in.

The point of this blog is to put the spotlight on our amazing mother earth, the living and non-living things that surround us and our place with them.

We all live in one planet. Currently, there is no greater place to live in other than our lovely mother Earth. So, it's sensible that we become aware of the things that are important to this planet, from animals, insects, plants, trees, air, water, land, sky and humans.

As much as we share the same planet, diversity has always been a central factor among us that get us to work with and against each other. But at the end of the day, one reality stays the same. Our lives are all interconnected even in the smallest little ways.

So, whatever we do, it is worth to keep in mind that our actions affect everyone else's lives in this world. With this awareness, we can start to participate in taking care of our special planet and engage in lifestyle and activities that make a good and lasting difference for our current generation and future generations to come. We, humans, can do this. Because we are gifted with moral judgment and higher understanding more than any other species that reside in and make use of our world. All that is left are the choices we make. And I believe that we can make our choices count and leave a great legacy.


A better understanding leads to better actions that make a better world