Gardening to Attract Wildlife
By Lord Thompson Manor | September 22, 2008
By Heather Richards
Whether you have a large property, an average backyard or no more room than a patio or balcony, you can transform your space into a peaceful and attractive garden for you and a sanctuary for a variety of local wildlife. Your wildlife habitat can be as simple as choosing a few large potted plants to attract butterflies or hummingbirds, or hanging bird-feeders supplying an assortment of foods for your favorite birds. Or it can be as elaborate as your space will allow.
You can create a pond for fish, turtles, frogs, toads and other wetland creatures; surround it with Typha (cat-tails/bulrushes), Irises, Saggitaria (arrowhead), and who could forget water-lilies? This scenery could attract some very interesting and unique wetland wildlife, such as beautiful dragonflies whose larvae are aquatic. Depending on your locale, ducks could even be drawn to your garden pond.
You may also want bee attracting plants, because bees are often a garden’s best friend. Plants and flowers which are high in nectar and pollen are great for attracting bees, also make sure to plant them so they are accessible and obvious. It is an especially good idea for a back yard where children play, because bees will be more attracted to those plants rather than small flowers on the ground that children may step on.
If you’re particularly interested in butterflies, it’s a good idea not to concentrate only on plants that will attract adult butterflies. Instead, choose plants that may also give them a place to hibernate and lay eggs, and plants that caterpillars like to eat. Some of them are not very attractive and generally are not included in most gardens, such as nettles and thistles, dogbane, or milkweed.
Birds may enjoy flowering shrubs, you could choose a species of Viburnum, and with over 150 different kinds it should be easy to choose one that will be a perfect addition to your garden. Viburnums are relatives of honeysuckle, but not often victimized by pets, another reason for their great popularity. The foliage of Viburnums vary greatly from one kind to another, there are evergreen, semi-evergreen, as well as many deciduous varieties which are especially attractive in autumn.
It’s also important to have a water source in your garden, an old tub or basin would be fine, otherwise you could install a birdbath or fountain. You could also place a broken clay pot in your garden to house a toad, or a woodpile to welcome all sorts of insects or a frog if it’s wet enough. If your woodpile is big enough, you may even find a rabbit living in your garden!
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2008 Trends in Wildlife Protection
By Lord Thompson Manor | September 21, 2008
By Lance Winslow
There are many strong trends that are continuing in the arena of wildlife protection in 2008 and these trends appear to be thrusting forward into 2009. A few species thought to be endangered are coming off the protected list such as the North American Grey Wolf and a specific species of Gorilla in Africa. In Africa 250,000 more Gorilla were discovered in a remote region where humans rarely go.
In North America the Grey Wolf population has grown due to humanity putting them on the endangered list and making it illegal to hunt them. Now, hunting is resuming, but the Grey Wolves are extremely smart and hard to hunt, so hunters are hunting them by air. They are also using traps, which is upsetting animal protection groups, as they call this inhumane.
In Oregon large sea mammals that are protected are being shot near the Dams on the Colorado River because they are eating too many salmon near the specially made ladders, which act as a choke point. So mankind is once again interfering in the eco-system and chain. Meanwhile, in Alaska, Global Warming Alarmists have successfully gotten the Polar Bears on the endangered list, which many in Alaska think is ridiculous, thus the fight goes on there.
Incidentally, the Polar Bears are breeding with North American Black Bears now, which is making for another interesting argument. If the Polar Bears decrease in numbers is it because they are breeding with Black Bears or because of melted ice causing migration issues and challenges too great for that species.
Today, one of the biggest challenges we face is that due to mankind’s travels many foreign species are ending up where they shouldn’t be. Sometimes they hitch a ride in Cargo Ship ballast tanks, other times they end up in rivers, streams and in the wild due to exotic pet owners who make the fatal error of releasing them into the wild where there are no natural predators and an abundant food supply.
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Wildlife Studies
By Lord Thompson Manor | September 21, 2008
By Sarfaraz Ali
Animals and the plants that live and grow in the wild are categorized as the wildlife. Many a times the domestication of plants and animals has taken place and has incurred both positive and negative impacts on the surroundings. It is available in the whole ecology namely the wastelands and wilderness and is profoundly effected by the actions of the human beings.
The history of wildlife can be traced back to the ancient times when distinction amongst the humans and the wildlife. Numerous religions hold them sacred. Current times have seen the provision of numerous protests by activists regarding the mistreatment for the purpose of recreation or individual advantages.
They have been used throughout history as the primary food that has been used by several through out history. Today hunting, fishing, and gathering other wildlife as a means of food are common practice across the globe. In several countries they are used as popular aphrodisiacs. This increase in their popularity has added immensely to the increase in their extinction. In many cultures they are considered as holy creatures that have been given great religious significance.
Other than that they are included in early school courses and are a popular trade of the department of sightseeing. This source has been a popular income generator for the past many years. It has motivated the poor countries much into working towards the preservation of their wildlife legacy.
Many wildlife species are at a threat of becoming extinct due to over slaughter. This phenomenon is more observable in the species which are fewer in number and whose reproduction rate is slow, in contrast to the species that are fast growing and are large in figure. If the hunting rates continue to show a rise greater than the rate at which the respective species can reproduce, the reduction in the numbers will persist.
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Techniques for Wildlife Photography
By Lord Thompson Manor | September 21, 2008
By Weis Ow
In this article, I will talk about techniques for wildlife photography. There are two categories for subjects of wildlife. One is the wild animals and the other category is animals under human control. Both categories, with skills and techniques, can produce astonishing images. Nothing beats capturing wonderful pictures of wildlife in its most natural environment. However, sometimes it may be impossible to go to exotic places or even spend weeks trying to track the wildlife. Some wildlife animal can be dangerous too.
How do you get stunning pictures of the wildlife? What is the shot size you should consider in the first place? Close-ups may be nice in some instance, but definitely not in wildlife photography. If you want close-ups, you can jolly well take them in the zoo. Taking a wide-shot gives the viewers a sense of the environment, and if the surrounding happens to enhance the photo, it will become an essential part of the picture composition. Even so, the subject will still be significant and a wonderful image is produced.
The techniques for wildlife photography can be tricky. In order to approach an animal closer for a better shot, you may want to consider using a vehicle. The techniques for wildlife photography can be further improved and at the same time, you can produce nicer, quality photographs.
One very important element is the right way of shooting the wildlife, which is keeping your shots steady. Having a tripod will be very helpful in getting steady shots. If by any chance, you forgot to bring your tripod, try to get a beanbag to support your camera when taking the shots. If not, grab anything that’s near you which can act as a support when taking your shots. An image stabilization lens is a good option too. It is a great helper to wildlife photographers if you can afford them. Image stabilization lenses enable you to capture sharp pictures even in low light. It is an important equipment to mastering the techniques in wildlife photography. They stabilize your shots by minimizing the shakiness as much as it can when the camera is in your hand. This enables you to be more flexible in taking your shots.
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About a Career in Wildlife Management
By Lord Thompson Manor | September 21, 2008
By Washington Stoker
When you are an animal lover, there are all sorts of careers that you could go into. If you’re good at science and biology, you could become a zoologist. If you like helping animals that are sick, you could become a veterinarian. Then there is a career in wildlife management. If you like animals and you want to keep the environment and the planet healthy, and then you may want to learn about a career in wildlife management.
This kind of career is really fulfilling for people who care just as much about the environment as they do about animals. When you find out about a career in wildlife management, you will see that there are things that most of these wildlife managers have in common. For starters, wildlife mangers usually work closely with park rangers and other officials. A lot of the work is done out on the field and in the outdoors. The basic job of a wildlife manager is to make sure that the populations of the animals in the local ecosystem is healthy. When you learn about a career in wildlife management, you will see how important this can be.
The ecosystem of a small area or the planet in general, can be thrown completely out of whack from the simplest of problems. If the population of a certain animal, such as the possum, grows bigger very quickly, then this has a large impact of the wildlife in that area. The more possums there are, the more the plants will deteriorate because these possums are easting them. It can also change the populations of other animals.
If a predator, such as a mountain lion, has a population boom, then the animals that those predators eat will become endangered. They may even become extinct if we aren’t careful. Learning about a career in wildlife management will let you know just how important this career is for the health of the environment. Wildlife managers monitor the populations of the animals in certain designated areas. Certain managers might be assigned to a specific park or even a whole state. They pay close attention to the animals and other wildlife in these areas so if there is a change, they can do something about it quickly.
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