Category: nature

To Ham

Felt a bit bored. Took a walk to Ham and Ham Spray.

Again, walked up through the estates of Little Bedwyn, with the ‘beware u will be shot’ signs, on to somewhere called ‘Prospero’ estates, again with little ‘u will be shot’ signs, but better hidden.

Saw lots of little birds and beasties along the way, including a weasel and about 5 hares.

Savernake forest

The woods are near Savernake forest which is owned by the Earl of Cardigan and is some 4.500 acres. I visited Savernake forest on Sunday, it’s possible to drive through from to Marlborough almost.

A short-cut except that the road is not made up. Continue reading “To Ham”

Duck removal

Background

The background to this story is that this duck just wanders into my mom’s back garden every year to lay her eggs.

She’s not near the canal, it’s not near any water, but a female duck has decided to make my mums’ garden the home of it’s off-spring.

Last year, my mom had to carry the chicks down from the garden because they couldn’t find their way down to the canal.

Local celeb

This duck is now a local celebrity, and there are many people checking up on it’s progress.

I can’t say I’m sorry. It’s just part of nature.

Ducks can have up to three broods a year.

This one didn’t make it,

Read on…. Continue reading “Duck removal”

New Years Flooding 2016 in 34 pictures

First post of the New Year.

Christmas was very quite.

I fell asleep before midnight on New Years Eve.

Flooding

Pressure_cooker_boxartStory of the moment seems to be the flooding which widespread parts of the world are experiencing.

It’s put down to the weather phenomenon known as ‘el nino’, which translates to ‘little boy’ in English.

I’ve been around for ‘el nino’s’ before. This one seems particularly bad, maybe the worst.

But, having said that, we are turning the planet into a giant pressure cooker, so what do you expect?

Economics

When I was camping in France, it rained for 3 days solid.

I expected there to be floods everywhere. The river on the campsite barely rose 3 inches. Why is this?

Urban run-off chart
Taken from http://water.usgs.gov/edu/watercyclerunoff.html

It’s called ‘run-off’ and the fact that most of the planet is being turned into a giant urban district, in order to make more money, support more people, make the rich richer, and the poor poorer.

The hydrological cycle

I contest climate change and increasingly changeable weather conditions are caused by the unobstructed progress of rainwater, from river to ocean to cloud without ever seeing grass or soil or trees.

Trees slow the flow and break the rain for the vegetation below, which slows it’s flow even further with its foliage. Water dispersed in this way runs off very slowly, contributing to the natural water table.

Water not slowed in this way flows right back into the sea, as fast as it can.

Here are some pictures to back it up.

Taken from IBT

Meteorologists predict a wild, wet winter for much of the world, thanks to this year’s El Niño, which ties with the 1997-1998 season as the strongest recorded. The weather phenomenon happens every few years when the Pacific Ocean warms up around the equator, changing weather worldwide.

This year’s powerful El Niño has already caused severe floods in many South American countries. More than 100,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes in areas bordering Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina after floods due to heavy summer rains.

El Niño flooding 2016
A church is partially submerged in floodwater in Alberdi, Paraguay, on 5 January 2016 (Jorge Adorno/Reuters)
El Niño flooding 2016
A cat sits inside a flooded building in Asuncion, Paraguay, on 28 December 2015 (Jorge Adorno/Reuters)
Continue reading “New Years Flooding 2016 in 34 pictures”

VOD: Russian worst parent award + Girl and kayak vs bear

High rise kid

In the Soviet Union they still have these high rises, and you can see, the kid is not much scared of them.

He balances on the ledge… moves steadily out until he’s stood on the ledge of the window with only his socks on… a hundred feet plus above the ground.

The kid’s got bottle. His parents have no brains for letting him out there in the first place.

Kid balance on window ledge of Russian high rise
High rise kid

Does a bear….

Do what it’s told?

This girl is privileged, in that nature understands and responds to her, only doing completely the opposite of what she commands…

She becomes more agitated as the bear continues with it’s disobedience – by pawing at her kayak. Although the kayak doesn’t seem to sustain any serious damage, the girl is hysterical and mystified as to

  • …Why the bear won’t listen to her
  • …Why the bear won’t do as it’s told
  • …Why oh why are you attacking my kayak 😨
  • …Why you no speak ingrish?…
Mischievious black bear investigates canoe.
My little bear, not.

Maybe it’s a Chinese bear?

Shocking new study shows 75% drop in fish population in past 40 years

Some eye watering figures here about the state of the planet’s most valuable ecosystem.

IBTIMES

 

WWF 2015 report
World Wild Life Fund reports 75% drop in marine species

Climate change and human interference has taken its devastating toll on ocean life as 49% of marine populations have been wiped out in the past 42 years, according to a new report. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Zoological Society of London study revealed that as global warming worsens and “over-exploiting fisheries” continues, the situation will only be exacerbated.

Additionally, the rate at which populations are diminishing is 10% worse than conservationists had predicted and is regarded as a “catastrophe”. Dr Louise Heaps, chief adviser on marine policy at WWF-UK, said: “As well as being a source of extraordinary natural beauty and wonder, healthy seas are the bedrock of a functioning global economy. By over-exploiting fisheries, degrading coastal habitats and not addressing global warming, we are sowing the seeds of ecological and economic catastrophe.”
Continue reading “Shocking new study shows 75% drop in fish population in past 40 years”