Manukura, the world’s only white kiwi, has successfully come out of surgery to remove stones from her gizzard. Although she looks like an albino, she’s actually a rare colour morph of the usual brown for her North Island Brown Kiwi species.
These birds often swallow stones to help digest food and it’s thought the six month old chick just swallowed too many stones.
Photo : Getty
Following on from yesterday, something to whet your appetite for Wednesday’s Frozen Planet! Spine-tingling footage from the Arctic and Antarctic…proving they’re not just barren, wintry landscapes!
On Wednesday the BBC’s new flagship series, Frozen Planet starts, taking us to the ends of the Earth; the Arctic and Antarctic, and the dramatic desolation of these harsh environments.
When I met Sir David Attenborough earlier this year, we talked about the making of the series and he professed admiration for the cameramen who risked their lives diving under the thick ice in subzero temperatures to capture some of these incredible shots.
The series also features an incredible chase as wolves hunt down bison in temperatures of -50 degrees and winds of up to 100mph. Whilst the wildlife might be used to it…here the crew describe how they had to adapt to their new environment to get this stunning footage.
Very sad news today as the BBC have decided to no longer support the BBC Wildlife Fund. This incredible unique charity has helped fund 87 charities and countless wildlife since it was founded in 2007. The Wild Night In last year alone helped raise £1.2 million pounds which went towards saving a diverse range of wildlife not just in the UK but all over world…bats, great bustards, chimpanzees, Siamese crocodiles, Moray Firth dolphins, African elephants, gorillas, jaguars, dormice, orang-utans, Galapagos penguins, red squirrels, seahorses, sharks, tigers, water voles, slow worms, and many more.
The BBC has been forced to make cuts…but this charity doesn’t rely on the TV Licence fee, instead relying on corporate sponsorship to pay for the small team of passionate staff supported by enthusiastic volunteers (like me, who would give over my time all over again to help the charity!)
But you can still do something to save this charity from extinction…sign the petition to Chris Patten, the politician who might be able to overturn this decision.
Good news, the lost penguin found wandering around New Zealand eating sand has been given a clean bill of health and could soon be on his way back home. During his stay he’s gained about 4kg and this week was well enough to go for his first swim. Despite being the first emperor penguin to grace New Zealand’s shores for at least 44 years, the keepers are doing their best to make him feet at home, including providing a bed of ice for him to sleep on.
Photo : AP
An update on the lost penguin found in New Zealand…after concerns he had become lethargic from mistakenly eating sand believing it to be snow, Wellington Zoo are now caring for the bird. The penguin has already undergone two operations to pump the sand from its stomach and faces another. His new nickname stems from the children’s film, Happy Feet. Also, he may have found a way home after a kindly businessman leading an expedition to Antarctica next year has offered him a lift!
Photo : AP
Scientists have found that pigeons recognise ‘friendly faces’ who are much more likely to feed them and gravitate towards them…instead of wasting time on the people who are likely to just chase them away!
Up to 28 million pigeons live in Europe, with the majority in urban areas surrounded by humans who provide the majority of their food. In an experiment, the birds quickly learnt to differentiate between a ‘friendly’ feeder and an ‘agressive’ one who would chase the birds away, even when they swapped coats! This implies the pigeons are using distinctive human characteristics to tell the people apart.
There are often problems where wildlife and humans’ paths cross…so Slovakian conservationists are going to great lengths to learn how we can live together. The bear population there has thrived but this also means they’re wandering out of their normal forest life and instead raiding people’s bins for food! But these brown bears who have lost the natural fear of humans are providing useful information. Scientists capture bears mid-raid, tranquilise them then fit them with a GPS collar to track their every move. The bears aren’t harmed and the batteries last for four years, giving the scientists invaluable information on what attracts them to the cities in the first place.
You know it’s Spring when the Springwatch photo group opens! Since March already over 30,000 fantastic wildlife photos have been posted. Have a nosy, pick your favourites or add your own Spring wildlife photos!
This one stuck out for me; a curious fox cub. Our foxes have been rather quiet this year, though earlier I did spot the male making a dash for it across the grass!
Photo © Natasha Von Bujnoch
These Caribbean monkeys have been studied as they steal alcoholic drinks from people on the beach…and show just how similar they are to humans!
They found the monkeys divided into groups; social drinkers, regular drinkers, binge drinkers and teetotalers which seems to suggest that alcoholism isn’t just a human trait. Research suggests alcoholism may be genetic but as it is currently only narrowed down to around 300 genes, it may still be a long time before we discover specific genes.
