The oldest animal reserve in Africa

The Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, in South Africa, is a natural oasis abundant in rhinos, elephants, leopards, Lions and more than 300 species of birds. However, the species in the wild areas of the Park are in danger due to plans to build an open-pit coal mine.

This South African Reserve is the oldest animal sanctuary in the world, created in 1895. Once this place was exclusive famous hunting ground chieftain Shaka Zulu. The reserve functions as a power Park, since it helps populate other protected areas. As such, its ecosystem is particularly important.

The shrine is home of the "big five" of Africa â€" elephants, rhinos, buffaloes, Lions and leopards. Currently there are about 600 elephants in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi, spanning 96,000 hectares of Savannah, forest and mountain pastures, says the Guardian. Due to conservation efforts, the Park now has the largest population of white rhinos in the world.

However, the plans to start extracting coal in the region could threaten the habitat of the species in the Park. Separating the buffer and the location of the mine there is only the Umfolozi River, which marks the boundary of the Park.

.fancybox-wrap { position: absolute; top:0; left: 0; z-index: 8020; } .fancybox-skin { position: relative; /*margin-top:20px !important;*/ background: #222222; color: #74b32e; text-shadow: none; -webkit-border-radius: 2px; -moz-border-radius: 2px; border-radius: 2px; } .fancybox-opened { z-index: 8030; } .fancybox-opened .fancybox-skin { -webkit-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); -moz-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); } .fancybox-outer, .fancybox-inner { position: relative; } .fancybox-inner { overflow: hidden; } .fancybox-type-iframe .fancybox-inner { -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; } .fancybox-close{ background: url('wp-content/themes/codistage/styles/fancybox/exit.png') no-repeat; width:25px; height:25px; float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-right:5px; } /*.ngg-gallery-image img{width:565px; height:393px;}*/

Read More

Amy Tan: the woman who stood face-to-face with a whale shark

"On my last dive [in Isla Mujeres, Mexico] I was face-to-face with a whale shark. Breathe calmly and the shark swam calmly, while staring at me. When I calmed down, he also calmed down. For a long time we swam so â€" when finally stopped, he also stopped swimming, and when I put the head out of the water he turned and swam to the other side ".

So Amy Tan explained her adventure face-to-face with a whale shark. Amy, who wrote about his adventure on the site The Dodo, admitted that this was one of the rare moments when you realize an animal is, indeed, a be patient. "The shark was able to sense my calm and was never in danger", advanced.

Although I do not recommend anyone a similar adventure, the truth is that Amy's text has the Mojo to appeal to consumers to ensure that their actions are considered â€" especially when it comes to food consumption linked to fishing. Amy was in Isla Mujeres at the invitation of WildAid, an NGO that has a very direct approach to biodiversity.

"When the buying stops, the killing will stop too," explains the NGO. For shopping we mean, for example, the famous shark's fin soup, very consumed in China. According to WildAid, when Chinese consumers realized where it came from that piece of cartilage without flavor, many no longer ask the soup â€" and consumption fell 70%.

With the fall in consumption, the killing of sharks also declined. The consumer always has the last word when it comes to sustainability and biodiversity, believes the WildAid. Here are some pictures of Amy Tan and interiorize adventure that their actions are really important when it comes to the preservation of animal life. Even if you don't have this notion.

.fancybox-wrap { position: absolute; top:0; left: 0; z-index: 8020; } .fancybox-skin { position: relative; /*margin-top:20px !important;*/ background: #222222; color: #74b32e; text-shadow: none; -webkit-border-radius: 2px; -moz-border-radius: 2px; border-radius: 2px; } .fancybox-opened { z-index: 8030; } .fancybox-opened .fancybox-skin { -webkit-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); -moz-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); } .fancybox-outer, .fancybox-inner { position: relative; } .fancybox-inner { overflow: hidden; } .fancybox-type-iframe .fancybox-inner { -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; } .fancybox-close{ background: url('wp-content/themes/codistage/styles/fancybox/exit.png') no-repeat; width:25px; height:25px; float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-right:5px; } /*.ngg-gallery-image img{width:565px; height:393px;}*/

Read More

Photographer waiting three hours to photograph chorus of birds

Steve Ward, wildlife photographer, he got up at six in the morning and waited three hours to be able to document the moment four bird chicks were fed by the dam.

Aligned in position of chorus and with beaks wide open as if they were singing, the animals were waiting for breakfast on a door of an old barn in Merseyside, England. The photographer discovered bird chicks while driving through the city of Crosby. "I found the Cubs while going home from work through Little Crosby Village", indicates the photographer, quoted by the Daily Mail.

"At the time I didn't have my camera and, knowing that soon they would abandon the place, I went back the next day and after I got up at six o'clock in the morning I had to wait three hours for the mother to come to feed," says Steve Ward.

.fancybox-wrap { position: absolute; top:0; left: 0; z-index: 8020; } .fancybox-skin { position: relative; /*margin-top:20px !important;*/ background: #222222; color: #74b32e; text-shadow: none; -webkit-border-radius: 2px; -moz-border-radius: 2px; border-radius: 2px; } .fancybox-opened { z-index: 8030; } .fancybox-opened .fancybox-skin { -webkit-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); -moz-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); } .fancybox-outer, .fancybox-inner { position: relative; } .fancybox-inner { overflow: hidden; } .fancybox-type-iframe .fancybox-inner { -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; } .fancybox-close{ background: url('wp-content/themes/codistage/styles/fancybox/exit.png') no-repeat; width:25px; height:25px; float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-right:5px; } /*.ngg-gallery-image img{width:565px; height:393px;}*/

Read More

Discovered the largest aquatic insect in the world

A giant water bug has been discovered in China, with a wingspan of about 21 cm. The insect belonging to order Megaloptera, but little more is known about the specimen. However, scientists believe that may be the biggest species of insect ever discovered water.

According to the Chinese newspaper Xinhua News, representatives of the Insect Museum of West China found the large insect during a recent expedition to a mountain in Sichuan province. Locals have been delivering the copy to the experts of the Museum.

Experts have investigated, then the specimen and concluded that it is a large specimen similar to species of aquatic insects native to China and Vietnam, referred to the Huffington Post.

Read More

Port: Continent organizes second Dog Marathon

Tomorrow, between the 10:0 and the 11:0 pm, the Mainland, in partnership with Câmara Municipal do Porto, will hold the big family feast, full of activities and entertainment for all families. The realization of the 2nd Edition of the marathon of the Dog, in the programme of the Party of the family, will begin at 10:0.

"The owners and dogs will be able to participate in canine race, where over 4.5 km can test their speed and agility to win a place on the podium. Those who participate in the walk will enjoy nature in the company of the best four-legged friend, along 2 miles ", explains the Continent in a statement.

The inscriptions in the marathon can be made at www.continente.pt or at any store Continent â€" in both locations will also be all the information on the rules of participation.

On the same day will be still available several activities such as obedience demonstrations, workshops, demonstrations of grooming, beauty contest, disc dog, driving cattle and herding, agility trials and dog free style.

Read More

Évora: a dumpster that turned into solar farm (with video)

Bin the solar power Center is a very large distance, but this was the process of transformation occurred in Évora, on land that was, however, re-qualified and which is now a kind of technological showcase.

Solar modules has cutting-edge technology, but the American installation and management are in Portugal.

"The cell is a company that works for NASA, who does research at the highest level and that is now coming to the market consumption. The Prism is of companies linked to Boeing, "explained to the green economy Manuel Mira Godinho, CEO of Glintt.

The panels are not static and mobile, and can be managed by software â€" the parks are monitored remotely. "We are a company with the DNA software and engineering projects, so it made sense to invest here," continued Mira Godinho.

The investment in this third-generation central is € 5 million, should be paid in seven years and enough to produce electricity to 800 homes. The area of the photovoltaic solar energy is not new to the Glintt, but this project allows the company to export knowledge to Latin America or Africa, places where the Sun abounds but who need effective solutions to transform into energy.

The technology uses direct radiation and is ideal for sites with intense sun, as the Alentejo. Learn more about the project in the episode 279 of the green economy.

Read More

Parks and monuments of Sintra will travel by railway stations of the country

The Pena Palace, on guard, or the gardens and Palace of Queluz, in Entrecampos. That's how the Sintra Parks intends to make known the natural and architectural heritage of Sintra to Lisbon Metropolitan area, but also to the rest of the country.

In this way, the Fund Manager, in partnership with the REFER, has an ongoing itinerant photographic exhibition of the parks and monuments of the cultural landscape of Sintra, classified as world heritage. Currently, the exhibition is on from Cais do Sodré station and, in future, will travel to other stations in the country.

The exhibition features 30 images of Sintra â€" 15 of them in large format. The spaces represented cover the areas under the management of Sintra Parks: Park and Pena National Palace, Sintra National Palace, Park and Monserrate Palace, Queluz National Palace and gardens, Portuguese school of equestrian art, Chalêt and garden of the Countess d ' Daniel, Moorish Castles, Capuchos convent, Quinta da Abegoaria Pity and Quintinha de Monserrate.

The photographs are by Emídio Copeto Gomes, Giorgio Bordino, Gustavo Fonseca, Jonas Tavares, Luís Peacock, Maria João de Sousa and Pedro Yglesias de Sousa.



Dates and locations of the exhibition:

Cais do Sodré: 17 July to 4 August

Cascais: 4 August to 25 August

Santa Apolónia: 25 August to 15 September

Sintra: 15 September to 16 October

Entrecampos: 16 October-3 November

Estoril: 3 to 24 November

Castelo Branco: 24 November to 15 December

Guard: 5 to January 26, 2015

Photos: Emídio Copeto Gomes, Giorgio Bordino, Gustavo Fonseca, Jonas Tavares, Luís Peacock, Maria João de Sousa and Pedro Yglesias de Sousa

.fancybox-wrap { position: absolute; top:0; left: 0; z-index: 8020; } .fancybox-skin { position: relative; /*margin-top:20px !important;*/ background: #222222; color: #74b32e; text-shadow: none; -webkit-border-radius: 2px; -moz-border-radius: 2px; border-radius: 2px; } .fancybox-opened { z-index: 8030; } .fancybox-opened .fancybox-skin { -webkit-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); -moz-box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); box-shadow: 0 10px 25px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); } .fancybox-outer, .fancybox-inner { position: relative; } .fancybox-inner { overflow: hidden; } .fancybox-type-iframe .fancybox-inner { -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; } .fancybox-close{ background: url('wp-content/themes/codistage/styles/fancybox/exit.png') no-repeat; width:25px; height:25px; float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-right:5px; } /*.ngg-gallery-image img{width:565px; height:393px;}*/

Read More