Indian scientists discover 12 night frogs

After years and years of hard work and studies, a group of Indian scientists finally discovered new frog species. They are 12 absolutely unique frogs and other 3 species that are apparently did not die out, as it has been thought before.

These frogs are a great find, since around 32% of amphibian species over the world are considered endangered species.

"Frogs are extremely important indicators not just of climate change, but also pollutants in the environment," said the project's lead scientist, biologist Sathyabhama Das Biju of the University of Delhi.

Biologist Sathyabhama Das Biju claimed that people do not take much interest in frogs or amphibians in India, because they are more focused on elephants and tigers.

The 12 species of frogs that were found are night frogs. The group of researchers had to spend nights listening to all sounds and trying to distinguish frog’s sounds. These frogs croak in a quite unusual way, similar to a cat’s call.

Winter around the world

Hello, privet, hola, ni hao! I’m back to my blog finally, and it’s winter now. Yes, the winter season is over the world, but not everywhere will you find snow :) I’d love to dedicate this article to winter and the winter nature. At that time of year the nature changes completely. Whatever you say, winter has some hidden mystery. Probably the nature falls asleep and it’s not that lively, probably the snow charms with its purity :) Here are some nice winter pictures. I really love them, hope you will too.

The northern lights in Alaska. It’s a spectacular scene. No wonder lots of tourists are rushing to Alaska each year in order to watch the beauty and more than that have fun skiing, walking.

The Canadian winter nature is something that you should see with your own eyes. Snow-covered pine-trees and snow-clad mountains.

That’s a Russian winter picture that I took myself in the nearby park.

Winter in Algeria! No comment :-)

What is pet allergy caused by?

The human has been living close to animals or I'd say together with them for millions of years.

Now many have to defend themselves against some animals such as pets because they are allergic to them. Pets considered to be important in our life. They show the affair to us, accompany and protect us. The discovery that you’re allergic to pets is really heartbreaking for owners who have been living with their pets for a long time. Anyway there are some ways to solve this problem.

First of all, what is allergy? Allergy (also called Hypersensitivity) is an abnormal, acquired sensitivity to a given substance, including pollen, drugs, or numerous environmental triggers.

Studies show that approximately 15 percent of the population is allergic to dogs or cats.
More than 70 percent of U.S. households have a dog or cat. An estimated one-third of Americans who are allergic to cats (about two million people) live with at least one cat in their household anyway. Allergic rhinitis afflicts 20%-30% of the US population.

Pet allergens are proteins, which either in contact with the skin or inhaled, cause an allergic reaction that provokes the body into producing histamine.

There are no “non-allergenic” cats or dogs. All cats and dogs are allergenic (allergy-causing) to people who are allergic to animals.Cats tend to be more allergenic than dogs, although some people are more sensitive to dogs than cats. allergist advice hairless breeds to pet-allergic humans (for example Sphynx cats).

Pet allergen comes mainly from the animal’s saliva, it is a protein transmitted by licking, sometimes hair but more often it’s dander. Humans after contacting with animals carry allergenic proteins on their hands and clothes. Also a lot of them are stuck in such places as carpets and you’ll lift them up into the air by foot traffic. The striking fact is that it can take months or even years to remove pet allergen from your home after the pet is given away.
Air purifiers can help you. Just by spraying it into the air you’ll reduce allergenic particles. Furthermore try to wash your hands after each interaction with your pet.

The symptoms are similar to a “cold” so sometimes it’s difficult to notice that you’re allergic to pets. Signs to look for are:

1. Eyes becoming itchy, watery or even red

2. Runny nose

3. Throat may itch

4. Cough

5. Rash on your skin or hives

If you have some of these symptoms you should ask an allergist for help. There is medicine which can help you as well: nasal sprays or drops, eye drops or tablets.

If you still have a pet take these fairly easy steps to reduce the symptoms:

- Keep your pet out off your bedroom, close off your sleeping area and keep it clean.

-Use a high-efficiency HEPA air cleaners and avoid dust-and-dander-catching furnishings such as cloth curtains and blinds and carpeted floors.

- If you do have carpets you should use a vacuum with a HEPA Filter,since an ordinary vacuum will just stir up the allergens.

- Bathe your pet every week. That can reduce the level of allergens on fur by 85 %.

- Purchase an air purifier

- Keep windows open to circulate air

- Wash your hands after a contact with the pet

There are some hypotheses explaining the phenomenon of increasing the allergies in the past decades:

Increasing use of chemicals

The first theory is the exponential use and abuse of chemicals in affluent nations since the second world war. Vast numbers of chemicals are introduced into our indoor and outdoor environments with little or no testing regarding their toxicity to living beings. Many believe that air quality is getting worse rather than better, particularly if one considers indoor air quality as well as outdoor. (Indoor air quality has become significantly worse since building codes changed in the 1970s to make buildings more air-tight to conserve energy. This affects buildings built since that time.) Adverse reactions to toxins vary considerably from one person to another, and can involve extremes in symptoms including the neurological and endocrine systems as well as the more commonly recognized allergy symptoms listed above.

In 2004, a joint Swedish-Danish research team found a very strong link between allergies in children and the phthalates DEHP and BBzP, commonly used in PVC. Allergies are also viewed by some medical practitioners as a negative consequence of the use and abuse of antibiotics and vaccinations. This mainstream Western approach to the treatment and prevention of infectious disease has been used in the more affluent world for a longer period of time than in the rest of the world, hence the much greater commonality of allergies there. It is hypothesized that the use of antibiotics and vaccination affect the immune system, and that allergies are a dysfunctional immune response.

Obviously the allergy problem is connected with ecology and mostly with air that is too polluted nowadays. Drinking non clean water and eating modified products with chemical additions can cause allergy. Care for your health in order not to become allergic to pets.

What does a zoo mean for an animal?

Have you ever been to the zoo? I have and i've seen something i completely disliked. Those poor animals were locked in dirty stinky cages...

There are many zoos all over the world. A zoo is a place where animals are confined within enclosures and displayed to the public. The first zoo founded primarily for scientific and educational reasons was the Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes in Paris (1794). The founders and members of the Zoological Society of London adopted the idea of the early Paris zoo when they established London Zoo in 1828.

Some zoos try to supply animals with more natural living conditions, especially such animals as penguins. Others are usually kept in cages like in jail, whether they are big or small. Zoos are for entertainment. Can you imagine, all their life passes under the eye of people that gaze at them, throw food, tap on the bars or windows to make animal move their heads or make sounds. The animals definitely have a lack of freedom. They are still caught from wildlife and put into zoos. The human thinks that animals need any help. Quite the contrary the human has been killing animals to get food or make clothes

So, there was a solution. The first wild animal park Whipsnade Wild Animal Park was opened in 1931 in Bedfordshire, England.
The park covers 2.4 km² and it's still one of Europe’s largest wildlife conservation parks where animals are kept within sizeable enclosures. Since the early 1970s was built a 7 km² remarkable zoo in the Pasqual Valley near San Diego - San Diego Wild Animal Park that is run by the Zoological Society of San Diego. Another zoo comparable to these wild animal parks is the Werribee Open Range Zoo in Melbourne, Australia, focusing on displaying animals living in a wide open savanna. This 500-acre zoo is managed by the Zoological Parks and Gardens Board which also manages Melbourne Zoo. One of only 2 American state supported zoo parks is the 535 acre North Carolina Zoo located in Asheboro, North Carolina. So as you see, people have started to think about wildlife preservation. Wildlife preserves or national parks have been set up in some countries to protect wildlife and their natural habitants. These parks are also considered to be good for tourism, ecotourism, environmentalism. I believe it's a good opportunity to save endangered species, because the wilderness is full of dangers, such as habitant destruction and natural predators. Animals manage to get food, to bred but only under the guard. The largest national park in the world is the Northeast Greenland National Park, which was established in 1974. National parks are usually located in places which have been largely undeveloped, and often feature areas with exceptional native animals, plants and ecosystems (particularly endangered examples of such), biodiversity, or unusual geological features.

on the map:

Canada's national parks system

New York's national parks

California's national parks

England's national parks

Texas national parks

See also:

Zoos worldwide

World Heritage Sites

UNESCO — Man and the Biosphere Programme

Links about UNESCO