-----------------------------------Macaw For A Pet---------------------------------------

What Is A Macaw?

Macaw's are small to large, colorful new world parrots native to Mexico, Central America and South America. Most species are connected to rain-forests, while others prefer woodlands or Savannah like habitats.
A Macaw is a very beautiful bird with amazingly colored features. It is found in very big to various small shaped species and like parrots and Toucans have their 1st and 4th toes pointing backwards.
Some of the species are known for their impressive sizes. Hyacinth Macaw is the largest parrot in length and wingspan.
They feed on fruits, nuts, insects and snails. Some species eat damp clay soil called clay licks which neutralize chemicals produced by their fruity diet and also provide them with Sodium. These birds have large powerful beaks that easily crack nuts and seeds. Their dry scaly tongues have a bone for tapping into fruits. Macaws are intelligent, social birds that often gather in flocks of 10 to 30 individuals. Macaws vocalize to communicate within the flock, mark territory, and identify one another. Some species can even mimic human speech.
Majority of Macaw's are now endangered in the wild. Six species are already extinct. The greatest problem threatening the Macaw population is rapid deforestation and illegal trapping of birds for trade. International trade of all Macaw species is regulated by Convention On International Trade In Endangered Species [CITES]

Which Macaw Should I Buy? How Do They Behave?
There are 2 types of Macaw's on the basis of size. Either Large Macaws or Mini Macaws. Sizes of large Macaws range from 20-42 inches and include various common species like Hyacinth Macaw [largest], Blue and Gold Macaw, Military Macaw, Scarlet Macaw, Spix's Macau etc. Mini Macaw's are more easily managed at 10-20 inches but are more uncommon. Mini Macaw's include Severe Macaw, Hahn's Macaw [Noble Macaw], Yellow Collared Macaw etc.
Macaw's have a good life span of about 30-50 years. A healthy large Macaw is expected to easily live out half a century while Mini macaw live near 30 years. If I were to buy this wonderful bird, then i would have gone for a brightly colored one irrespective of its size. Most common choices of these birds are Hyacinth, Scarlet and Blue n Gold Macaw. Glaucous and Military Macaws are also good options. If u wanna go for something unique for collection then you can go for a hybrid. 
Macaws are playful and active birds and have an exuberant personality to go with their size. They are smart and inquisitive as well as being playful and lively. They are very affectionate and in turn require a good deal of time and attention from their owners to be happy [Toys Too]. Macaws are also very noisy and their screeches are usually very loud. They also do mimic sounds but not as clearly as other parrots. They are very challenging pets but adapt easily to captivity, they are tamed quickly and create a bond with their owners.
What Do They Require?
Macaws need a large, strong cage so be prepared to make a significant investment. Mini macaws can be kept in cage sized for Amazons (24x36x48). However, larger macaws need a cage at least 36x48x60 and the cage should be strong enough to withstand their significant beak strength of macaws. A stainless steel cage is a good investment.
A wide variety of wooden toys or plain untreated chunks of wood to chew on should be provided. Toys meant to be taken apart to get at a treat are also a good choice, as are hanging toys and toys to climb on as as they are safe
The diet required for a macaw starts with pelleted food which is supplemented with a wide range of healthy fresh foods (grains, vegetables, fruits). Pellets can make upto 25-50% of the diet, But seeds should not be provided more than 10% in the diet as they are too high in fat. Nuts are also a good treat in moderation. 

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I only Don't brag about being an animal lover ................. I am 1 tooo .......
I am the one on left .........................
Place : Tamanburung Bird Park , KL , Malaysia

Emperor Penguin

Introduction

Emperor's are the largest and tallest o

f all penguins. An avg. bird is about 45 inches tall. They live in the frigid Antarctic region and the surrounding water. These flightless birds live in a region where the wind chills can reach up to -60°C! They are carnivores and feed on fish, squid, and krill. At sea these penguins can dive to 1,850 feet, deeper than any other bird and stay underwater for

more than 20 minutes. They are distinguished from other penguins by having bright yellow patches around the neck (in adults). Their wings are stiffened and flattened into flippers and their bodies are streamlined helping them to swim efficiently. They huddle together in colonies to escape wind and conserve warmth. Individuals take turns moving

to the group's protected and relatively toasty interior. Once a penguin has warmed a bit it

will move to the perimeter of the group so that others can enjoy the protection from the icy elements.

Diet

The Emperor Penguin's diet consists mainly of fish, crustaceans [the family of crabs, lobsters, krill, crayfish, shrimp, barnacles etc.] and cephalopods [ The family of squids, octopuses etc. ] Fish are usually the most important food source, and the antartic silverfish makes up the bulk of the bird's diet. Other prey include the glacial squid, the hooked squid and the Antarctic Krill. The Emperor Penguin searches for prey in the open water of the southern ocean, in either ice-free areas of open water or tidal cracks in pack ice.One of its feeding strategies is to dive to around 50 m , where it can easily spot sub-ice fish like the bald notothen swimming against the bottom surface of the se

a-ice; it swims up to the bottom of the ice and catches the fish. It then dives aga

in and repeats the sequence about half a dozen times before surfacing to breathe.

Predators

The Emperor Penguin's predators include birds and aquatic mammals; the southern giant petrel is the main avian predator, responsible for up to 34% of chick deaths in many colonies. The south polar skua mainly scavenges for dead chicks, as the live chicks are too large to be attacked by the time of its arrival in the colony. The primary aquatic predators are both mammals: the Leopard Seal, which takes some adult birds, as well as juveniles soon after they enter the water and the Orca, which takes adult birds.

If one of a breeding pair dies or is killed during the breeding season, the surviving parent must abandon its egg or young and go back to the sea to feed. ................................:(

Adaptation to cold

The Emperor Penguin breeds in the coldest environment of any bird species; air temperatures may reach −40 °C, and wind speeds may reach 144 km/h . Water temperature is a frigid −1.8 °C , which is much lower than the Emperor Penguin's average body temperature of 39 °C . The species has adapted in several ways to counteract heat loss. Feathers provide 80–90% of its insulation, and it has a layer of sub-dermal fat which may be up to 3 cm thick before breeding. This resultant blubber layer impedes the mobility of the Emperor on land compared to its less well fat-insulated cousin, the Magellanic Penguin. Its stiff feathers are short, spear-shaped, and densely packed over the entire skin surface. With around 100 feathers covering one square inch, it has the highest feather density of any bird species. An extra layer of insulation is formed by separate shafts of downy filaments between feathers and skin. Muscles allow the feathers to be held erect on land, reducing heat loss by trapping a layer of air next to the skin. Conversely, the plumage is flattened in water, thus waterproofing the skin and the downy underlayer. Preening is vital in facilitating insulation and in keeping the plumage oily and water-repellent.

Conservation

Emperor Penguin is listed as a species of "least concern" by the IUCN. Along with nine other species of penguin, it is currently under consideration for inclusion under the US Endangered Species Act. The primary reasons for this are declining food availability due to the effects of climate change and industrial fisheries on the crustacean (krill, shrimp etc.) and fish populations. Other reasons for their potential placement on this list include disease, habitat destruction, and disturbance at breeding colonies by humans. Of particular concern is the impact of tourism.THIS IS THE LIMIT ............. every animal i search about gives me evidences dat they r happily feeded on........................... even penguins ....................WTF!!!!!

Breeding

Emperor penguins spend the long winter on the open ice—and even breed during this harsh season. Females lay a single egg and then promptly leave it behind.Male emperors keep the newly laid eggs warm, but they do not sit on them, as many other birds do. Males stand and protect their eggs from the cold by balancing them on their feet and covering t

hem with feathered skin known as a brood pouch. During this two-month period of babysitting the males eat nothing and are at the mercy of the Antarctic.

When female penguins return to the breeding site, they bring a belly full of food which they regurgitate for the newly hatched chicks. Meanwhile, their duty done, male emperors take to the sea in search of food for themselves.Mothers care for their young chicks and protect them with the warmth of their own brood pouches. Outside of this warm cocoon, a chick could die in just a few minutes. In December, Antarctic summer, the pack ice begins to break up and open water appears near the breeding site, just as young emperor penguins are ready to swim and fish on their own.

Fast Facts

Type:

Bird

Biological Nam

e : Aptenodytes forsteri

Diet:

Carnivore

Average life span in the wild:

15 to 20 years

Size:

45 in (115 cm)

Weight:

Up to 88 lbs (40 kg)

Group name:

Colony

Oil Spill in Mexico .......Life In Danger !!!

The ripple effects of last week's offshore drilling rig explosion widened as crude oil continued to spill in the Gulf of Mexico at a rate of about a thousand barrels a day and oil company officials said it would take at least two to four weeks to get it under control.

The Deepwater Horizon, owned by Transocean and leased to BP, caught fire April 20 after an explosion and sank. Eleven oil rig workers are missing and presumed dead. The rig, with a platform bigger than a football field and insured for $560 million, was one of the most modern and was drilling in 5,000 feet of water.

But other environmentalists warned of damage. "Oil spills are extremely harmful to marine life when they occur and often for years or even decades later," said Jacqueline Savitz, a marine scientist and climate campaign director at Oceana, an environmental group. She said spills could coat sea birds and limit their flying ability and damage fisheries by injuring marine organism's systems

related to respiration, vision and reproduction.

Savitz said that the Gulf of Mexico is host to four species of endangered sea turtles and bluefin tuna, snapper and grouper. "Each of these can be affected," she said. "Turtles have to come to the surface to breathe and can be coated with oil or may swallow it." And, she added, the Gulf is one of only two nurseries for bluefin tuna, more than 90 percent of which return to their place of birth to spawn.

The oil slick could become the nation's worst environmental disaster in decades, threatening hundreds of species of fish, birds and other wildlife along the Gulf Coast, one of the world's richest seafood grounds, teeming with shrimp, oysters and other marine life. Thicker oil was in waters south and east of the Mississippi delta about five miles offshore.

Project Tiger

OBJECTIVE
The main objective of Project Tiger is to ensure a viable population of tiger in India for scientific , economic , aesthetic , cultural and ecological values and to preserve for all time, areas of biological importance as anatural heritage for the benefit, education and enjoyment of the people. Main objectives under the scheme include wildlife management, protection measures and site specific eco-development to reduce the dependency of local communities on tiger reserve resources .

PAST

Project Tiger was launched in 1973-74 is on of the most successful conservation ventures of all time. The project aims at the conservation of tigers in specially constructed 'tiger reserves'. These represent the bio-geographical area falling in our country. An estimate of the tiger population at the turn of the century was around 40,000. Whereas when the 1st survey was done in 1972, the population came out to be only 1827. To prevent this shrinkage, a national ban on tiger hunting was imposed in 1970 whereas the Wildlife Protection Act came into being in 1972.

the principles on which the tiger reserves were made :-

1. Elimination of all forms of human exploitation and biotic disturbance from the core area and rationalization of activities in the buffer zone.
2. Restricting the habitat management only to repair the damages done to the eco-system by human and other interferences, so as to facilitate recovery of the eco-system to its natural state.
3. Monitoring the faunal and floral changes over time and carrying out research about wildlife.

Initially 9 tiger reserves were established which covered which covered an area 13,017 sq.km. Various reserves are Manas [Assam], Palamau [Bihar], Similipal [Orissa], Corbett [UP], Kanha [MP], Melghat [maharashtra], Bandipur [karnataka], Ranthambore [Rajasthan], Sunderbans [west bengal]. The project is a 'centrally sponsored' scheme were the expenditure is shared equally between the Central and State government. WWF gave an assistance of 1 million $ in the form of equipment, literature and expertise.

PRESENT

Wireless communication system and outstation patrol camps have been developed within the tiger reserves, due to which poaching has declined considerably. Fire protection is effectively done by suitable preventive and control measure Voluntory Village relocation has been done in many reserves, especially from the core, area. In Kanha, Bandipur and Ranthambhore, all the villages have been shifted from the core, and after relocation, the villagers have been provided with alternate agricultural lands and other community benefits.

This has resulted in the improvement of the carrying capacity of the habitat. Live stock grazing has been controlled to a great extent in the tiger reserves. Various compensatory developmental works have improved the water regime and the ground and field level vegetations, thereby increasing the animal density. Research data pertaining to vegetational changes are also available from many reserves. In general, the 'restorative management' and 'intense protection' under 'Project Tiger' have saved many of our eco-typical areas from destruction. The area around the buffer is now contemplated as a zone of multiple use, to bring compatibility between the reserves and the neighbouring communities.

FUTURE
a) Use of Information and Communication technology in Wildlife Protection and Crime Risk Management in Tiger reserves.
b) GIS based digitized database and MIS development/networking in Tiger Reserves:
c) Tiger Habitat & Population Evaluation System for the Indian Sub Continent
A 'Tiger Atlas of India' and a 'Tiger Habitat & Population Evaluation System for the country is being developed using the state- of - the - art technology.
This involves:
Satellite data is being used and classified into vegetation and land use maps on a 1:50,000 scale, with digitized data relating to contour , villages, roads , drainage , administrative boundaries and soil . The spatial layers would be attached with attribute data , viz. human population , livestock population , meteorological data, agricultural information and field data pertaining to wildlife, habitat for evolving regional protocols to monitor tiger and its habitat.

Update News From National Geographic......

Oldest Land-Walker tracks found
The first vertebrates to walk the Earth emerged from the sea 18 million years before than thought, say scientists who have discovered footprints from an 8-foot long prehistoric creature. Dozens of 395 million year old fossil footprints have been rezcently discovered in a former lagoon in South-eastern Poland. The prints were made by Tetrapods [animals with backbones and 4 limbs] and could rewrite the history of when, where, and why fish evolved limbs and first walked onto land, the study says.
The tracks were made by species which had digits or toes on each foot. The footprints vary in size, some being as wide as 10 inches. Track size indicate flat bodied, lizard like creatures 8.2 feet long and with stout legs. These were discovered in an abandoned mountain quarry.