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The Conservation Carousel was opened in 2010 at the Toronto Zoo. It features over 30 colourful, one of a kind, hand-carved and painted wooden animals, each representing an exotic animal species, such as the jaguar, a toucan, a capuchin monkey. The animal forms were created out of American bass wood in the Netherlands.
The complete set of the stamps can be seen in my Album "NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY WILDLIFE CONSERVATION STAMPS 1985-2012":
" This photograph by Michael Nichols portrays Juju, who was caged alone for many years in Brazzaville Zoo and desperate for contact, reaching out to Dr. Jane Goodall".
Jane Goodall is perhaps one of the most well known conservationist, biologist, and animal behaviour researcher who not only pioneered in field research on animal behavior but also changed how we view animals especially great apes in the last 45 years. She started working in Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania in early 1960s. Her mother accompanied her in field when she went for the first time. It took her several months to habituate the chimp groups in Gombe and eventually she was able to conduct observations on Flo's family. Some of the important data on mother-infant relationship, family hierarchy in males and femles have come from the matraich Flo and her children. Flo was the dominant female in the group and F amily line continued to be dominant even now by Flo's grandchildren. I admire her mother to take her to the forest of Gombe to watch the Chimpanzees. She is one of the three women that Dr. Louise Leakey send out to collect data on Chimpanzees, Gorillas and Oranutans. In Gombe, researchers are still studying the chimp families that Jane had started observing 45 years ago.
For more information on her and Jane Goodall Institute please visit www.janegoodall.org
#mypubliclandsroadtrip explores the Black Rock Desert of Nevada this weekend!
The Black Rock-High Rock region of Northwestern Nevada includes the longest intact segments of the historic emigrant trails to California and Oregon in the western U.S. – including wagon ruts, historic inscriptions and a wilderness landscape largely unchanged since the days of the pioneers.
The Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area Act of 2000 protected about 120 miles of the emigrant trails, from Rye Patch Reservoir north through the vast Black Rock Desert and then the narrow gorge of High Rock Canyon. The Act also established the 800,000 acre national conservation area and the wilderness within the NCA.
Also within the NCA, the Black Rock Desert Playa covers the large dry lakebed of ancient Lake Lahontan. The playa has grown in popularity during the past decade as a place for recreation events that need a lot of room. The world land speed record was set here in 1997. Amateur rocketry clubs use the playa to set world altitude records. And the playa is the location of the annual Burning Man Festival, the largest Leave No Trace event in the country.
Photos and Burning Man timelapse by Bob Wick, BLM
And, no one is there, can a chipmunk still hear it? That's how it goes, right? Spring water Conservation Area is all set to collect maple sap, and start the demonstrations. Just one little problemo. It's way too honkin' hairy cold for the sap to run.
Kitayama Brothers, Inc. Facilities Manager Stuart Kitayama talks about this family business that was founded by his father Ray Kitayama and uncles in 1970, and how the 40 acres of green houses plus outdoor fields in Watsonville, CA have benefited from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), on Thursday, August 27, 2015.
Agriculture has been a part of the Kitayama family for three generations, since before WWII, when his grandfather Takeshi Kitayama began growing flowers and vegetables on Bainbridge Island in the Pungent Sound of Washington. In 1945, after internment at the Manzanar camp in California, his grandfather’s sons Tom and (Stuart’s father) Ray Kitayama, started a nursery; and the business grew. They became leaders in the wholesale flower industry. As the business grew, more family members joined and formed Kitayama Brothers, Inc. in the mid-90’s. Today, the business produces a variety of lisianthus, lily, Gerbera, snapdragon and others, additionally; land is leased to other growers for strawberries and a variety of other crops. Located ¼ mile from the Pacific Ocean (Monterey Bay) Kitayama Brothers, Inc., employs 100 - 300 people depending on the time of year. To water all the flowers, the business uses a combination of irrigation water sources that include ground water wells; sterile reclaimed and recharge water from Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PVWMA), a rainwater collection system, hydroponics, and micro irrigation systems. Over the past 15 years, the amount of water from PVWMA has been reduced by 2/3s, making onsite ground water wells ever more important, and a factor in groundwater deletion. Today, there is a high demand on well; this has been a factor in (seawater) salt intrusion in all of their wells, one having to be shutdown, because of the salty water harms plants. There must to be enough fresh water in aquifers to fill the underground basin to resist the inland migration of coastal seawater through the land in between.
About this time, during 2007-2008, he turned to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and talks began about a green house roof drainage system that harvests rainwater. Through a system of pipes, water collects in a plastic lined pond for immediate indoor micro irrigation. KBI were active members of the agricultural community and sought water supply development and filtration solutions to improve efficiency and lower operating costs years before the current drought conditions.
Financial incentive cost shares from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and technical support from an USDA NRCS engineer to help design and plan the pond lining and other system improvements and additions.
The system has been in operation for one and a half years and has captured 12 acre/feet of water in its first year. It not only captures the water from the greenhouse roofs, it also allows water to be blended with water from well systems and/or reclaimed water from the PVWMA. The pond also allows the business to save money by running electrical pumps during low demand periods of the power grid, when electricity costs are lower. As refinements are made, greater levels of efficiency and cost savings are expected.
An additional system captures water from their hydroponic nursery systems that uses filters and UV light to clean and sterilize the water for in-ground plants. Water used in those fields; percolate down through the soil, helping to recharge the subsurface water basin; help resist salt intrusion, and return as a water resource for their irrigation wells.
Through discussions with the local Community Water Dialogue (CWD,) and equipment loan from the Resource Conservation Districts (RCD), he learned about the use and potential benefits of wireless soil tensiometer and completed a trial use. As they learn to use the recorded data, they see a possible 10-15% reduction in water use by eliminating overwatering on the sandy soil in this area.
Kitayama Brothers, Inc. strives for quality and efficiency and report that the clean water sources they are harvesting and using provides better quality and yields. USDA photo by Lance Cheung.
Thanks to Danielle Brooks for these pictures from the Fiji Marine Conservation & Diving project. To find out more visit www.frontiergap.com
Waitpinga, southern Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia
some background to the image
Black Hill Conservation Park, Adelaide, South Australia
Winter? really ? un-characteristic weather.. BUT ... I'll take it : )
Went for a walk in the conservation park .. came across this on the way back home approaching dark .
Polar Bear Bronx Zoo
I don't know what caused the bear to make this face. I didn't even realize I'd captured this expression until I looked at my pictures at home!
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, USFWS Director Dan Ashe, and Mike Hayden at the Conservation Principals Meeting.
Credit: Tami Heilemann / USFWS
I can't say I have plenty of photographs of this species because they like to be elusive and many times, they just have a quick look at who's around and then just go a bit deeper. But, sometimes they like to have a show, like when there are good waves: who can say anything to that, it's like aqua fun! And so, good for me that I took many photos and, in particular, this one that I find really lovely.