Random thoughts

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Hold onto your butts: Don’t let dogs get stoned on your leftover weed

Here's what to do if your furry friend is flying high.

10 GIFs Of Deep-Sea Creatures Encountering A Sub

Never-before-seen images from a recent expedition to the ocean floor.

 

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GLOBAL IDEAS
Bringing Britain's endangered wildlife back from the brink
The natterjack toad, petalworts and the sand lizard are some of Britain's most endangered species. To fight for their survival the UK's biggest conservation organisations are joining forces.

Discussing the weather is a national pastime for the Brits, and the talk among a group of volunteers gathered at Sefton Dunes to save the natterjack toad is no exception.

It's a glorious winter day, and sunshine sparkles off the dunes, a short way from Liverpool on England's north-west coast — not a part of the world known for fine weather.

Read more: Will Brexit be bad for biodiversity in Britain?

The team is digging out ponds to create suitable habitat for the rare toads. This time last year, the job would have meant shoveling through snow. Today, temperatures nudge north of 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit), on what has since been declared the UK's hottest winter day on record.

There are even reports of wildfires on moorlands in nearby Lancashire, and while humans might be basking in the unseasonal sunshine, it's not great for the toads.

"It couldn't be much worse really, it has been such a dry winter," says Andrew Hampson of Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC), who is coordinating the 20-odd volunteers.

Volunteers dig out a pond to make Sefton Dunes on England’s northwest coast comfortable for natterjack toads

"There's rain due next week, and it would be great for us if it didn't stop for two weeks," Hampson says. The toads thrive best, he says, after a long, wet winter and a dry summer.

Collaborating for conservation

The volunteering day is part of the Gems in the Dunes project to boost numbers of the natterjack toad, as well as the nationally threatened sand lizard.

Gems in the Dunes is, in turn, part of a nationally coordinated project, Back From The Brink, which brings together seven of the UK's biggest conservation organizations to try and save 20 of England's most endangered wildlife species – and hopefully improve the fortunes of another 200.

It is the first time the likes of ARC, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), Buglife and Plantlife have collaborated so closely.

"There has been this growing effort of finding out where can the different organizations support each other," James Harding-Morris, one of Back From The Brink's national coordinators, told DW.

The initiative, he says, "is about how we could achieve more working together in terms of conservation than alone. Nothing has been attempted before on this scale."

Sefton Dunes, one of the largest undeveloped dune systems in the country, is a good example. Fiona Sunners, the Gems in the Dunes project manager, explains that as well as significant reptile and amphibian populations, it's home to rare insects such as the northern dune tiger beetle and plants like bryum mosses and petalwort.

Amphibians, mammals, plants and birds: Collaborative conservation takes into account the multitude of species in a single ecosystem

Working with specialists across different areas of conservation means they can expand their knowledge, cover more ground and better protect entire interdependent ecosystems, rather than focusing on any one species.

"Before, we would sort of do our own thing," Sunners told DW. "But now if we have an issue around petalwort we can just pick up the phone to Plantlife. And if I need to know something relating to the tiger beetle, I can speak to Buglife."

Unorthodox approaches

Certain species the project is trying to save, like the natterjack toad and sand lizard, are still common elsewhere in Europe, but increasingly rare in the UK.

Some in the top 20, such as the willow tit, have seen their populations collapse by more than 90 percent in the last 40 years. Then there are species that are being reintroduced to once-native habitats – like the pine marten in Northumberland.

Read more: Dutch outrage as animals starve in fenced-in wilderness

Read more: Germans divided over return of the wolves

The pine marten, which had become extinct in the UK, is back

And others are exceedingly rare. "The Cornish path moss is found on two sites in Cornwall and nowhere else on earth," Harding Morris says. "The combined size of those patches is 0.61 meters squared, which is about two sheets of A4."

Back From The Brink launched in 2018 and is already yielding results. Last year, the chequered skipper butterfly was reintroduced to the county of Northamptonshire for the first time since 1948, and a project in Dorset revived one scarce plant population – with a surprising approach.

"In Dorset, we are working on this rare plant, marsh clubmoss," Trevor Dines, a botanist with Plantlife told DW. "Around 85 percent of the plant has disappeared from the area through development, including digging for coal."

Read more: How to stop an insect apocalypse

Conservation often involves stepping away from habitats and leaving nature be. But, Dines explains, some species actually benefit from disturbance – including clubmoss.

"So, we decided to drive a five-ton tractor back and forth over a colony of these plants, some 3,000," he says. There are now an estimated 12,000 specimens of the plant.

"It's not always a case of 'don't walk on the grass,'" Dines jokes.

The long view

Keeping the funds flowing for such diminutive species is a challenge. Back From The Brink has secured £7 million (€.8.1 million, $9.2 million) from the British government's National Lottery Heritage Fund to run for three years.

What happens after 2021 is an open question. Being able to show concrete results would boost the project's chances of future funding. But in conservation, they are far from a given.

Back From the Brink counts the fortunes of the chequered skipper butterfly among its success stories

The factors behind the long-term decline in insect, plant, bird and mammal numbers – habitat destruction, intensive farming and, of course, a changing climate – aren't going anywhere.

That glorious early sunshine isn't just putting pressure on the natterjack. As the climate changes, species are being forced out of their usual territory.

"Most species are on the move because of climate change, as some parts of their geographic ranges become climatically less suitable than they used to be," Chris Thomas, an evolutionary biologist with the University of York, told DW.

Read more: Species on the move

That also implies a more nuanced approach to conservation.

"We need to have a change in perspectives," Thomas says. "We should be perfectly happy when new species arrive… but not weep uncontrollably when a previous occupant of a particular nature reserve, for example, disappears – provided that the species as a whole is not endangered."

Still, at the end of a long day's work, the volunteers at Sefton Dunes are hoping that come the breeding season, the natterjack toads will find the new, smoothly contoured ponds attractive enough to keep the local population going.

But in case anyone's expecting instant results, Hampson strikes a cautionary note.

"In terms of natterjack toads, about eight to 10 years is really the time needed to assess how a population is changing," Hampson says. "For a healthy population you need a mix of sizes really, if they are all roughly the same size that could just indicate one good year of breeding. It does take time."

• 
  
  HUMAN ACTIVITY THREATENS THOUSANDS OF SPECIES WITH EXTINCTION: RED LIST
  Hope for mountain gorillas
  Let's start with the good news. According to the latest Red List update, the number of mountain gorillas has significantly increased. The IUCN has said the number of animals has risen from about 680 a decade ago to more than 1,000 now. Intensive conservation action such as removal of snares has contributed to the rebound of the mountain gorilla, which inhabits the Congo region's jungles.
  
  
• Bringing Britain's endangered wildlife back from the brink | DW | 20.03.2019

 

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Dog pee on the sidewalk does more than just piss off your neighbors

Puppy potty breaks could mess with the city's microbiome.

kristianbell/RooM RF/Getty Images

How To Avoid Snake Bites This Summer
After a warm, wet winter this year across much of the U.S., there's more greenery, more rodents and more snakes this year. All this raises the risk of snake bites for humans and their canine companions.

Every year, an estimated 7,000 to 8,000 people get bitten in the U.S. and many dogs are harmed too. Hikers are particularly vulnerable — so how do you protect yourself, and your pup?

Read on for tips for staying safe on the trails and what to do if you do get bitten.

 

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Besides, these little creatures are omnivores and they cannot wait to get their hands on any kind of food campers might be hiding in their tents. We’re not sure what happened next but we hope there was no serious damage made to the tent or those inside it.

Who knows, maybe he had a bad experience with this animal in the past and he doesn’t want to make the same mistake again. Skunks have a unique way of keeping predators away from them, as they spray a strong smelling liquid when threatened.

Sponsored Stories

Bald eagles are some of the most dangerous predators in the United States and they are pretty vicious when it comes to hunting food. This poor seagull was the next one on the menu, even though his friend desperately tried to save his life. It doesn’t look like the eagle was affected at all, which makes us believe that this incident didn’t have such a happy ending.

Sponsored Stories

 

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uuhmmm
for dog and cat lovers

 

[rbkwp]

wont be that mean,i am a dark angel huh ha

They were bread in he late 1800s as guard dogs that were supposed to protects tax collectors who carried large amounts of money. They are very protective but they can also be kind and peaceful when you need them to be.


actually cats a statue isent it ha

 

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Today's Listen
How the brain shapes pain and links “ouch!” with emotion.

Chris Nickels for NPR

Pain is more than an unpleasant sensation. When pain signals reach the brain, they interact with areas involved in thinking, memory and emotion. Any unpleasant sensations can then become something much more complicated, scientists say. (Listening time, 6:28)

▶ LISTEN

 

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surprized Brazils Bolsanro new PM is allowing a humanitarian act
such a cad hes supposed to be
geuss even a leader doesent have a say over private ventures

A Jararacussu snake (Bothrops jararacussu) is milked for its venom in Brazil. (Werner Rudhart/VISUM/eyevine)
Cash injection to salve snakebite crisis
The Wellcome Trust will front £80-million (US$103-million) to improve the treatment of snakebites in poor countries. Around 100,000 people die from snakebites each year, partly because they are treated with archaic antivenoms that often work only for one species. Wellcome — together with medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (also known as Doctors Without Borders) and local partners — plans to establish a pan-African network of clinical trialsto test multi-snake antivenoms that are easier to store and distribute.

Nature | 3 min read

 

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R.I.P NIKKI
CHAMPION among men, unlike others

Niki Lauda, single-minded hero of Formula One, dies aged 70

Lauda celebrates a win over rival James Hunt at the 1975 French Grand Prix. Photograph: Lat Photographic/Rex/Shutterstock
Niki Lauda, the three-time Formula One world champion, has died aged 70. The Austrian won his first title in 1975 but suffered a horrific accident at the German Grand Prix the following year, which left him injured and badly burned. Nevertheless, Lauda returned to claim a second championship with Ferrari in 1977, and one more with McLaren in 1984. He went on to senior roles in F1 management, including most recently at Mercedes, where he helped to recruit Lewis Hamilton.

• Hunt rivalry. Lauda’s rivalry with the British driver James Hunt was portrayed as a clash of personalities. But Richard Williams says the two men shared a rebellious streak – and a single-minded ambition.
  

Crib sheet

 

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if only
we loved respecred our oceans and all luving things


BIOLOGY
Tiger sharks feast on songbirds, study shows
Tiger sharks are among the most dangerous shark species for us humans. A new study shows that songbirds are far more likely to fall victim to the predators.

When it comes to unprovoked attacks on humans, tiger sharks are in the same class as great whites and bull sharks.

Still, the statistical likelihood of a swimmer, surfer or diver actually getting bitten by one is rather low.

Just over a hundred tiger shark attacks have been recorded since the late 16th century. Less than a third ended fatally. That equates to one deadly attack roughly every 20 years.

Now, a study has shown that songbirds have it far worse.

Read more: Sharks use Israel's coast as a Jacuzzi

Marcus Drymon and his team took the samples directly from the stomachs of young sharks

DNA from shark stomachs

To reach this conclusion, a team of reseachers around Marcus Drymond at Mississippi State University caught 105 juvenile sharks by boat in the Gulf of Mexico.

The animals were less than a meter long (three feet), meaning they had not reached adulthood. The scientists pumped the sharks' stomachs and found that 41 of them had bird remains inside, including bones and feathers. After taking the samples, the researchers released the predators back into the water unharmed.

The biologist and his team then extracted genetic information from the stomach contents and, to their surprise, found DNA traces of a large variety of bird species. They included typical land-livingsparrows, swallows, pigeons and even woodpeckers, some of which also are migratory birds.

But what surprised the biologists most was that they found no traces of water birds.

"None of them were seagulls, pelicans, cormorants or any kind of marine bird," Dryman said.

Read more: Divers spot GREAT white shark near Hawaii

Where do the sharks go bird hunting?

The sharks don't leave the water to go hunting on land, of course. So how do they obtein their prey? It has do with the migratory routes of the birds.

The sharks were in the Gulf of Mexico during the birds' migration season. "In every instance, the timing of the tiger shark eating the bird coincided with the peak sighting for that species of bird off our coast," Drymon explains.


Tiger sharks feast on songbirds, study shows | DW | 21.05.2019

 

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15 years ago, virtually unheard of
growing wild in NZ no one botherd
now ferching 12 dollars each,off seasonno thanks to yuppies,remember them,proclaiming its the new health delight poo poo



WHY YOU'LL NEED TO HOLD THE AVOCADO AND TOMATO ON SUMMER SALADS

An worker at Avo Hass, one of the eight avocado packing plants in Uruapan, in the state of Michoacán, Mexico.

SOURCEXINHUA/DAVID DE LA PAZ VIA GETTY

FAST FORWARD












WHY YOU SHOULD CARE
America’s other trade war — with Mexico — could mean no avocados or tomatoes this summer.

By Nikou Asgari and Jude Weber




THE DAILY DOSEMAY 21 2019

Wall Street is fixated on Washington’s trade dispute with Beijing. But closer to home another skirmish could have a more immediate impact on the lives — and diets — of ordinary Americans.

Last week, the U.S. slapped fresh import tariffs on Mexico’s $2 billion tomato industry after the two countries failed to reach a deal on trade. Meanwhile, producers of avocados, lemons, bananas and berries in the country say they are experiencing long delays at the border, because so many U.S. government staff are now focused on migrant control rather than trade. Prices are rising, prompting some producers to consider bypassing the drama by routing shipments by sea.

“Every day more than $1 billion of goods cross the border and 70 percent is by land,” says Luz María de la Mora, Mexico’s undersecretary of foreign trade. “It’s obviously hurting our competitiveness … and the most worrying thing is that we don’t know how much longer it will last.”

WE’VE NEVER HAD ANYTHING LIKE THIS.

BRITTON CLARKE, PRESIDENT, BORDER TRADE ALLIANCE

Mexico has long been the fruit and vegetable garden of the U.S., producing almost half the amount consumed in America each year, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. Fresh produce, which is difficult to stockpile because of its perishability, accounts for almost all of those imports. By value, 98 percent of fresh limes, 99 percent of fresh strawberries and 66 percent of fresh bell peppers entering the U.S. come from Mexico.

Tomatoes are the most obvious flashpoint. Facing pressure from the powerful Florida tomato industry and Republican politicians in the vital swing state, President Donald Trump’s government last week imposed duties of 17.5 percent on imports of Mexican tomatoes and restarted a two decades-old investigation into anti-dumping.

Academics from Arizona State University have warned that tomato prices could jump 40 percent, hitting U.S. consumers just as they start planning Fourth of July celebrations. Mexican tomatoes, often used in sandwiches and salads, are the top U.S. vegetable import from its neighbor. By contrast, tomatoes grown in Florida are largely sold to manufacturers for processing in salsa and ketchup, or to be used on burgers.

 

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;ike thanks NY


Joe Beef and the Excesses of Restaurant Culture
Inbox

The New Yorker

Letter from Montreal
Joe Beef and the Excesses of Restaurant Culture
What happens when the chefs behind North America’s most hedonistic restaurant quit drinking.

By Hannah Goldfield

ILLUSTRATIONS BY EMILIANO PONZI
SCARCE RESOURCES
Centuries-old irrigation system shows how to manage scarce water
New Mexico’s community-operated acequias, some over 300 years old, demonstrate how farmers can fairly share this unpredictable resource.
SEE HOW THEY WORK

 

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how sad
and/but
think Chinas 3 gorges dam many years ago
wee have had similar in our countrys development, prtogress huh
virtually acceptable unfortunately

11,000-year-old Turkish town about to be submerged forever


PRI's The World

May 22, 2019 · 3:30 PM EDT

By Durrie Bouscaren

A general view of the ancient town of Hasankeyf by the Tigris river, which will nearly disappear due to the newly built Ilisu Dam, in southeastern Turkey, Aug. 26, 2018.

Credit:
Sertac Kayar/ReutersThe town of Hasankeyf, Turkey, will soon be only a memory.

From her front door, Fatima Salkan has a sweeping view of the fruit trees, historic ruins and tidy stone compounds that run along this stretch of the Tigris River in southeastern Turkey. She tries her best not to look off in the distance, to the right. The town on the horizon, still under construction, is where she will move when the valley is flooded by a downstream hydropower dam.

“Do you see all these old places?” she asks in Kurdish. “We are the owner, but today we are homeless.”

Related: 100 years after genocide, Armenians in Turkey revive their identity

High above, an old Roman fortress crowns a limestone cliff, which is dotted with the caves where her parents and grandparents once lived. The valley below, emerald-green after a recent rain, is studded with yellow wild mustard flowers and bright red poppies. At 45, Hasankeyf is the only home Salkan has ever known. A future severed from it feels like no future at all.



The World and Inkstick Media.

Fatima Salkan, 45, sits in the home her father built before her birth. The tapestry above her, she says, is not for religious reasons — she likes the animals.

Credit:
Durrie Bouscaren/The World

The last generation of Hasankeyf
Archeologists believe that Hasankeyf’s history began 11,000 years ago, based on Neolithic remains found in the surrounding caves. (Thousands of caves remained inhabited until 1972.) Over the centuries, as the Tigris River became an important Silk Road thoroughfare, Hasankeyf passed through the hands of the Assyrian, Ayyubid and Ottoman Empires. In the second century, it served as a lookout for the eastern edge of the Roman Empire. In the 13th century, it was conquered by the Mongols.

After the discovery of Neolithic remains, scientists believe the caves of Hasankeyf were settled as early as 10,000 BC. When the area is flooded, many archeological sites will be inaccessible.

Credit:
Durrie Bouscaren/The World

Donate
Now, about 25 miles downstream, the Ilisu Dam is complete. The 6,000-foot-long, 1.2 billion euro behemoth is poised to generate 3,800-gigawatt hours of electricity annually, according to the Turkish government. When the project becomes operational — in June, officials claim — it will flood more than 115 square miles of an agricultural valley, submerging Hasankeyf and dozens of villages nearby. The very river that nourished the town for centuries will swallow it whole.

“With the Ilisu Dam, Turkey will gain great power,” Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told a rally in a city near Hasankeyf in 2015. “This will be an important dam to satisfy our thirst.”

Related: The era of mega-dams in Brazil may be coming to an end
11,000-year-old Turkish town about to be submerged forever

 

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CRIMINAL and why not share, mmmm

'A classic tale of human greed': California caregivers earn as little as $2 an hour

'A classic tale of human greed': California caregivers earn as little as $2 an hour
Throughout California, many of the workers in elderly care facilities face inhumane conditions, wage theft, and abuse form their employers. Despite efforts from the state, many of these crimes go unpunished and workers are left with few options.


'A classic tale of human greed': California caregivers earn as little as $2 an hour

deserve to be exposed

These caregivers work in conditions ‘akin to modern-day slavery.’ In California, wage theft is ‘rampant.’


These caregivers work in conditions ‘akin to modern-day slavery.’ In California, wage theft is ‘rampant.’

 

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so much GREED AND CORRUPTION
TO BIG TO CARE
we all know it,we khow nothing can be doe re the worst bastards on earth

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44 States File Suit Against Drug Companies for Inflating Prices

Ending patent monopolies and prosecuting big pharma will drive prescription drug prices down, says Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works

 

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ever have it in the back of your min d
movies yes/real life no huh

Egypt
1
Death of the Nile

An in-depth look at how the lifeblood of Egypt is running dry.

 

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blatant evil of humankind


The Trump administration may bypass Congress to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia, a move likely to infuriate lawmakers in both parties.
Thursday, May 23, 2019 6:29 PM EST
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other senior aides are pushing for the administration to invoke an emergency provision that would allow President Trump to prevent Congress from halting the sales.

The transactions, which include precision-guided munitions and combat aircraft, would also further inflame tensions between the United States and Iran.

Read More »

 

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shithouse congress seated behaving themselves
making decisions to keep the world flowing

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Accept third party cookies

 

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Daniel Ellsberg on Julian Assange’s Espionage Charges
The US Department of Justice issued an 18-count indictment against Julian Assange for violating the 1917 Espionage Act. We speak to Daniel Ellsberg about the dangerous implications this move has for journalism in the United States

GOODN LUCK JULIAN
dont let those warmogerng devils, readily get at you

 

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how cute so true
often forget them, SORRY


Shortcuts
Wildlife
It’s not just about the bees – earthworms need love, too


They may not be cute, but the work they do for our soil keeps humans in business. But their numbers are in steep decline

Jules Howard

Comments
328

If the needs of earthworms are met, the land becomes, as if by magic, more fertile. Photograph: scorpion56/Getty Images/iStockphoto
If earthworms had feathers, wings or fur, or eyes that looked mournful – or eyes at all – perhaps they would fare better in the public’s affections. This is a clutch of species facing as much pressure from the ecological abuse of their habitats as any other – yet unlike, say, bees (which havetheir own UN day of celebration today), the decline of worms rarely makes the news. This is a shame. We need to talk more about worms. The health of our earth may depend on it.

Earthworms are not doing very well at the moment. This year, a scientific study found that 42% of fields surveyed by farmers were seriously deficient in earthworms; in some fields they were missing altogether. Particularly hard-hit were deep-burrowing worms, which are valuable in helping soil collect and store rainwater, but were absent from 16% of fields in the study.

The cause of these earthworm declines? The usual. An overstretched environment, creaking at its seams from the demands of modern Homo sapiens. But you may not have heard about the worrying impact on earthworms because … well, this is basically an organism with a mouth and an anus and that’s about it.

I would argue that, even with this anatomical simplicity, worms have more charm and charisma than many politicians or Instagroan influencers – and more to offer us. If the needs of earthworms are met, the land becomes, as if by magic, more fertile. Though modern farming practices are contributing to worms’ decline, farmers are, encouragingly, coming to understand that worms are allies, not enemies.

This is one of many reasons why we need to keep flying the flag for worms. Though we share very little with these organisms, we do share a rocky planet that is covered in a sprinkling of soil that they churn up for us, mixing up the nutrients upon which many millions of species depend.

With almost every animal on Earth, we humans like to seek out the common ground, but with the earthworms it is different. They don’t share ground with us. Earthworms provide it.

Wildlife / Humans causing shrinking of nature as larger animals die off
Average size of wild animals predicted to fall by a quarter in 100 years through extinctions