4 The Love Of Animals

APRIL 16, 2009

Disneynature’s first film, Earth , which comes out on Earth Day (April 22,2009), follows three animal families across the globe. Inevitably, it’s a situation where you were there, and for me, it’s the swimming male polar bear. When you see a dying male polar bear and you’ve been with that animal for a long time, it is hard.

Polar Bears 100

Polar Bears Bears Walruses Norway 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2020

It’s the bird family that most people don’t know is a bird family. The speaker turned out to be Tim Laman, and the topic was the incredible research he and Ed Scholes had spent years doing on birds of paradise in New Guinea. For many years it was thought the two bird families were related taxonomically.

Guinea 263

Guinea Birds Papua New Guinea Family 263

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2014

Not, as Linneaus thought, an ostrich, nor even, as later scientists concluded, a distant cousin of pigeons deserving of family rank, it was an honest-to-goodness pigeon, deeply embedded within the family Columbidae. The bird’s skeleton bears similarities to New Guinea’s much smaller (!) ” Beehler et al.’s

Solomon Islands 276

Solomon Islands Guinea Mauritius Humane 276

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2013

In celebration of the upcoming I and the Bird look at the heron family I invite you to consider the White-faced Heron ! Very little is known about this species, and only a few skins survive to bear testament to its lost existence. That New Zealand had an endemic species of heron which went extinct should hardly be surprising either.

New Zealand 148

New Zealand Indonesia Cattle Guinea 148

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2012

The IOC world birdlist recognizes 90 species that bear the name “weaver” or “malimbe” Not all of these are true weavers as we will discuss below. All occur in the Guinea-Congolese rainforests of Africa, with Red-headed being the most widespread. Red-headed Malimbe is the most widespread species in the genus.

Tanzania 223

Tanzania Buffalo Kenya Namibia 223

10,000 Birds

APRIL 10, 2012

Originally they were all placed in the family Capitonidae , but over time taxonomists have determined that actual relationships between these barbets are far more complex. Gray-throated Barbet is one of the plainer members of the African Barbet family. Note the strange nasal tufts at the base of the bill.

Ethiopia 232

Ethiopia Tanzania Africa Uganda 232