Robber fly - Nature photographer Thomas Shahan specializes in amazing portraits of tiny insects. It isn't easy. Shahan says that this Robber Fly (Holcocephala fusca), for instance, is "skittish" and doesn't like its picture taken.

Nature by Numbers (Video)

"The Greater Akashic System" – July 15, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) (Subjects: Lightworkers, Intent, To meet God, Past lives, Universe/Galaxy, Earth, Pleiadians, Souls Reincarnate, Invention: Measure Quantum state in 3D, Recalibrates, Multi-Dimensional/Divine, Akashic System to change to new system, Before religion changed the system, DNA, Old system react to Karma, New system react to intent now for next life, Animals (around humans) reincarnate again, This Animal want to come back to the same human, Akashic Inheritance, Reincarnate as Family, Other Planets, Global Unity … etc.)

Question: Dear Kryon: I live in Spain. I am sorry if I will ask you a question you might have already answered, but the translations of your books are very slow and I might not have gathered all information you have already given. I am quite concerned about abandoned animals. It seems that many people buy animals for their children and as soon as they grow, they set them out somewhere. Recently I had the occasion to see a small kitten in the middle of the street. I did not immediately react, since I could have stopped and taken it, without getting out of the car. So, I went on and at the first occasion I could turn, I went back to see if I could take the kitten, but it was to late, somebody had already killed it. This happened some month ago, but I still feel very sorry for that kitten. I just would like to know, what kind of entity are these animals and how does this fit in our world. Are these entities which choose this kind of life, like we do choose our kind of Human life? I see so many abandoned animals and every time I see one, my heart aches... I would like to know more about them.

Answer: Dear one, indeed the answer has been given, but let us give it again so you all understand. Animals are here on earth for three (3) reasons.

(1) The balance of biological life. . . the circle of energy that is needed for you to exist in what you call "nature."

(2) To be harvested. Yes, it's true. Many exist for your sustenance, and this is appropriate. It is a harmony between Human and animal, and always has. Remember the buffalo that willingly came into the indigenous tribes to be sacrificed when called? These are stories that you should examine again. The inappropriateness of today's culture is how these precious creatures are treated. Did you know that if there was an honoring ceremony at their death, they would nourish you better? Did you know that there is ceremony that could benefit all of humanity in this way. Perhaps it's time you saw it.

(3) To be loved and to love. For many cultures, animals serve as surrogate children, loved and taken care of. It gives Humans a chance to show compassion when they need it, and to have unconditional love when they need it. This is extremely important to many, and provides balance and centering for many.

Do animals know all this? At a basic level, they do. Not in the way you "know," but in a cellular awareness they understand that they are here in service to planet earth. If you honor them in all three instances, then balance will be the result. Your feelings about their treatment is important. Temper your reactions with the spiritual logic of their appropriateness and their service to humanity. Honor them in all three cases.

Dian Fossey's birthday celebrated with a Google doodle

Dian Fossey's birthday celebrated with a Google doodle
American zoologist played by Sigourney Weaver in the film Gorillas in the Mist would have been 82 on Thursday (16 January 2014)

Monday, September 30, 2019

Burning issue: Indonesia fires put palm oil under scrutiny

Yahoo – AFP, Catherine Lai, September 29, 2019

Monster blazes sent a pall of acrid smoke over Southeast Asia for weeks (AFP
Photo/ADEK BERRY)

A brutal Indonesian forest fire season that left Southeast Asia choking in smog has renewed scrutiny of major palm oil and paper companies, with activists accusing them of breaking promises to halt logging.

The monster blazes sent a pall of acrid smoke over the region for weeks, closing schools and airports and causing a spike in respiratory ailments.

Mostly lit to clear land for agriculture, they were the worst seen in the country since 2015.

Leading companies have in recent years pledged not to log any more pristine rainforest, not to use burning to clear land and to cut ties with smaller suppliers who don't abide by their rules -- but critics say such vows now ring hollow.

"They do not live up to the commitments, and are not addressing the fact that we are now in a climate crisis," Annisa Rahmawati, a senior forest campaigner at Greenpeace, told AFP.

"They are still doing business as usual."

Industry players however insist they have gone to great lengths to stop burning and trees being cut down in their operations.

Singapore-listed Wilmar International, the world's biggest palm oil trader, committed in 2013 to a no-deforestation policy and says it has stopped sourcing from 17 suppliers that did not comply with their rules.

Production of Palm oil -- used in numerous everyday goods from shampoo to biscuits -- has been blamed by environmentalists for driving massive deforestation.

Palm oil production has been blamed by environmentalists for driving massive 
deforestation (AFP Photo/WAHYUDI)

Consumer goods companies are paying more attention to where they source palm oil and other materials.

Some of the world's largest brands -- including Nestle and Unilever -- pledged in 2010 to reach net zero deforestation within a decade through "responsible sourcing" of cattle, palm oil, soya and other commodities.

But after that pledge was signed, the pace of tree-felling linked to commodities increased dramatically and at least 50 million hectares (123 million acres) of forest worldwide has been destroyed Greenpeace said -- an area about the size of Spain.

Firestarters

Fires are used as a cheap way to clear agricultural land in Indonesia every year during the dry season.

Experts say it is hard to know who is responsible for the blazes in the hardest hit areas -- Indonesia's Sumatra island and the Indonesian part of Borneo -- which are home to myriad companies of varying sizes and numerous small-scale farmers.

Big firms insist they have "no-burn" policies in place and often blame smallholders for starting fires they say then spread to their plantations.

Indonesia has made some arrests over the blazes but in many cases it remains unclear who started the fires -- and who ordered them.

While larger companies have vowed not to source from smaller ones that break strict environmental rules, critics say they are not monitoring their supply chains carefully.

"The biggest challenge is the industry-wide lack of traceability of the origins of palm fruit," said Nur Maliki Arifiandi, from WWF Indonesia.

Indonesia has made some arrests over the blazes but in many cases it remains 
unclear who started the fires - and who ordered them (AFP Photo/WAHYUDI)

"This has allowed continuing deforestation, often caused by real smallholders as well as land speculators and rich, powerful people to open more natural forest areas and plant illegal oil palm plantations."

Some industry watchers say commitments by big firms have helped and official figures show the rate of forest loss in Indonesia declined in recent years.

Burning issue 

But critics say problems persist -- this week Greenpeace said in a new report that palm oil and pulpwood companies with links to land burned between 2015 and 2018 rarely faced serious government sanctions.

And last year the NGO accused palm-oil giant Wilmar, as well as other consumer brands including Colgate-Palmolive, Hershey, Nestle, and Unilever, of continuing to buy from groups that were destroying the rainforest.

At the end of 2018 Wilmar, Unilever and Mondelez committed to a mapping and monitoring platform for the palm oil sector, which Greenpeace supported at the time as a potential breakthrough in cleaning up supply chains.

But the NGO pulled out of the project last month, saying the companies were not serious about the project.

Wilmar insists it sticks to its commitments and says it continues to work towards a supply chain free from deforestation from 2020.

Activists however doubt such goals are within reach.

"We are asking companies to be more serious in implementing their targets on the ground," WWF Indonesia's Arifiandi said.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Taylor Swift pulls out of Melbourne Cup gig

France24 – AFP, 22 September 2019

Melbourne Cup, with animal rights activists taking credit after a
campaign to highlight cruelty to racehorses.

The Grammy Award-winner was announced as the headline act for the "race that stops a nation" earlier this month and was due to sing two songs from her latest hit album "Lover".

But it sparked a backlash on social media and a push by the Campaign for the Protection of Racehorses, which claimed she had "put money before compassion" and was "endorsing animal abuse".

More than 6,500 people signed an online petition urging her to cancel.

In a statement late Saturday, promotor Mushroom Events cited scheduling issues as the reason for Swift's no-show.

"Changes to her Asian promo schedule have made it logistically impossible for her to be here," it said.

The Campaign for the Protection of Racehorses applauded the decision.

"The pressure on Taylor Swift to cancel her performance was significant," it said on Facebook.

"Her fans did not want to see her supporting animal abuse. Whilst the reason being used by the racing industry is a scheduling mix-up, it appears to us that she has responded to those calls."

Six horses have died at the Melbourne Cup since 2013, including one last year when Irish five-year-old The CliffsofMoher was euthanised after suffering a fractured right shoulder during a race that has been run on the first Tuesday of November since 1876.

"Obviously, this (Swift pulling out) is disappointing for everyone," said Victoria Racing Club chief executive Neil Wilson.

"We understand how important the pre-Cup entertainment is and we look forward to providing an update (on other acts) shortly."

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Indonesia's toxic haze affecting Borneo's orangutans – rescuers

Yahoo – AFP, 17 September 2019

Orangutans at a rehabilitation centre in Nyaru Menten, central Kalimantan are
showing signs of respiratory illness as a result of choking forest fires

Massive forest fires in Indonesia that have caused a toxic haze to spread as far as Singapore and peninsular Malaysia are also seriously affecting endangered orangutans and their habitat, a rescue foundation said Tuesday.

Jakarta has deployed thousands of troops as temporary fireman and deployed dozens of water-bombing aircraft to battle blazes that are turning pristine forest into charred landscape in Sumatra and Borneo islands.

The fires -- usually started by illegal burning to clear land for farming -- have unleashed a choking haze across parts of southeast Asia.

The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation said Tuesday that the haze was affecting hundreds of great apes in its care at rescue centres and wildlife re-introduction shelters.

"The thick smoke does not only endanger the health of our staff... but also it affects the 355 orangutans we currently care for", the foundation said in a statement, referring to just once cetre in Kalimantan.

The toxic haze was so bad in parts of Kalimantan that rescuers at an 
Orangutan shelter were keeping the great apes indoors for much of the day

"As many as 37 young orangutans are suspected to have contracted a mild respiratory infection," it added.

Conditions were so bad at their Samboja Lestari facility in East Kalimantan that outdoor activities for the animals had been restricted to a few hours a day.

Orangutans have been particularly vulnerable to commercial land clearances and have seen their natural habitat shrink dramatically in the last few decades.

The population of orangutan in Borneo has plummeted from about 288,500 in 1973 to about 100,000 today, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The toxic smoke caused by the forest fires is an annual problem for Indonesia and its neighbours, but has been worsened this year by particularly dry weather.

On Borneo island, which Indonesia shares with Malaysia and Brunei, pollution levels were "hazardous", according to environment ministry data.

Hundreds of schools across Indonesia and Malaysia were shut.

Friday, September 6, 2019

Minister pledges action on animal transports during heat waves

DutchNews, September 5, 2019 


Farm minister Carola Schouten is bringing in a ban on live animal transports when temperatures reach at least 35 Celsius, she told MPs on Thursday. Voluntary agreements, the minister said, are too easily ignored and the time is now right to anchor the limit in law. 

While factory farmers and slaughterhouses had taken steps to protect animals against the heat, government inspectors had noted several serious incidents during the high temperatures, the minister said. In one case, 90% of the chickens in transport crates had died during their journey. 

Esther Ouwehand told the minister during Thursday’s debate that while she welcomed the minister’s action, 35 Celsius is still far too high a temperature to be moving animals.

Sunday, September 1, 2019

Denmark to retire its last four circus elephants

Yahoo – AFP, August 31, 2019

Denmark is set to retire its last four circus elephants. Here, firefighters spray water
 to cool an elephant in high temperatures at the Arene circus in Gilleleje (AFP
Photo/Mads Claus Rasmussen)

Copenhagen (AFP) - The government of Denmark will buy the country's last four circus elephants in order to retire them, a minister said Saturday, as more countries move to shield wild animals from the practice.

Highly regulated, though still controversial, elephants, sea lions and zebras are the only animals that can be used in circuses in Denmark.

But a new anti-cruelty law will be introduced to parliament soon to impose a blanket ban for all animals, the ministry of food, agriculture and fisheries said in a statement.

The government will pay 11 million krone ($1.6 million, 1.4 million euros) to buy Ramboline, Lara, Djunga and Jenny, it said.

The animals will be sent to a zoo to live out their last days, though it is not yet clear which one.

"The elephants will be sent to the establishment that can offer them the highest level of well-being," said the ministry.

More than 40 countries around the world, about half of them in Europe, have restricted or banned the use of wild animals in zoos.

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