Amazingly Beautiful and Truely Heart Rending Videos

The You Tube, Videos give a snapshot of our amazing world some will bring tears of Joy to your eyes as you watch dolphins blow bubbles then play with them underwater, others will make you ashamed you are part of a human race, that subjects these amazing creatures to untold torture.
Alas, I was sickened again to see Japanese fishermen catching dolphin and whale, and the Faroe Island Yearly dolphin/ pilot Whale Slaughter still takes place some 25 years on from the last time it was exposed in many of the tabloid newspapers.
If you have tears of Joy at the amazing Videos, and are as horrified as me at the Opposite, do what you can find out how to protest by writing letters, or supporting the conservation projects.
Those of you who have no tears of Joy or Feel No Pain at the Suffering, perhaps you should consider why.

Conservation Projects

Global warming is here, and is really happening, please take time to read this post and take a look at the links and video about Polar Bears.....
http://wwf.worldwildlife.org/site/R?i=fqRiehXebWRYv3ykARn-1Q..
There are many endangered species on Earth and we all know that we are using up Earth's resources too quickly. We are consumers and polluters and that leads to climate change and loss of animal and plant habitat. Just how do we know what is endangered? The World Conservation Union published this list in July 2006: Categories: Extinct in the Wild ~ known only to survive in cultivation or in captivity. * Hawaiian Cotton Tree - 23 plants in cultivation world wide * Lonesome George - last known survivor of the Pinta Island species of Galapagos giant tortoise; a worldwide search has failed to find a mate for George of his own species. * Scimitar-Horned Oryx (an Antelope) - 450 reintroduced to protected parks in Africa; 2000-3000 in zoo captivity Critically Endangered ~ considered to be facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. * Amur Leopard - 35 left in the wild (Russian Far East, North Korean & Chinese borders) * Azraq Killifish - a few thousand left in eastern Jordan * Black Rhino - 3600 left - the fastest disappearing large mammal in the world * common Skate (stingray) - about 500 left in north-east Atlantic * Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Fly - only 2-3% of habitat left in southern California dunes * Grand Cayman Blue Iquana - 10-25 in 2002; 120 young have been placed into protected areas * Grey Nurse Shark - less than 500 on the east coast of Australia * Gurney's Pitta (SE Asian bird) - 50-100 left in the rainforest * Kipunji (African monkey) - less than 100 in East Africa * Leatherback Turtle - 26,00-40,000 on tropical beaches * Mediterranean Monk Seal - 400-500 left in Greece, Turkey and Spain * Land Snail species "Powelliaphanta Augustus" - 500 left in New Zealand * Pygmy Hog - 500 left in northeast India * Scottish Wildcat - 400 left in the Scottish highlands; only captive breeding may save it. * Seychelles Sheath-tailed Bat - 30-100 left * Siberian Crane - 2500-3000 left in Siberia and Iran. * South China Tiger - 10-30 left in the wild; 60 more in China zoos. * Sumatran Rhino - 300 in Malaysia and Borneo; the world's rarest large mammal. * Telmatobius Gigas (South American frog) - unknown; found only in the Andes region of South America. * Trinidad Piping Guan (pheasant) - less than 200 left. * Tsodilo Daisy - only a few plants left in Botswana; seeds have been harvested and stored for conservation. * White-backed Vulture - few thousand left in South Asia; declined by 97% in the past 15 years. Endangered ~ facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. * African Wild Dog - 3,000 - 5,000 left in the wild * Asian Elephant - 35,000-50,000 left in the wild (10-15% of the African elephant population) * Bengal Tiger - 3000-4500 left in the Bengal India jungles * Black-browed Albatross - 618,153 pairs left (399,416 pairs in the Falkland islands) * Bowhead Whale - 8,000 left in eastern Canada; a few hundred in eastern Russia * Cheetah - 3,000 in the wild; protected in Nambia (12,000 there); 100-200 in Iran * Chimpanzee - population has declined by 2/3 in last 30 years * Drill (African primate) - 3000 baboons left in Nigeria * Eastern Lowland Gorilla - 2000-3000 left in the Congo * Ethiopian Wolf - 500 left in Ethiopia * Giant Panda - 1600 left in SW China; a natural carnivore that has adapted to a vegetarian diet to survive * Golden Conure (Parrot) - 2500 in the wild in Brazil; 1500 in captivity * Gouldian Finch - less than 2500 adult birds in the savannas of northern Australia * The Great Barrier Reef - largest tropical reef system in the world - visible from space; home or nursery to one quarter of the known species of marine fish; in danger from agriculture and development despite protected status. * Green Sea Turtle - 88,000 adult females worldwide * Grevy's Zebra - 2000 left in Kenya; 150-250 in Ethiopia * Hemiphlebia Dameselfly - unknown * Jocotoco antpitta (bird) - 50 left in the Andes * Mangrove finch - 40-50 pairs in the Galapagos islands * Northern Right Whale - 300 left * Bornean Orangutan - 50,000-60,000 left in rainforest, including critically endangered Sumatran orangutan. * Philipine Eagle Owl - 3-4 at several sites in the Sierra Madre mountains * Piping Plover (shore bird) - 6,000 adults worldwide; 500 in Canadian Atlantic * The Rainforest - once covered 14% of Earth's land surface - now less than 6%; produces 40% of Earth's oxygen and neutralizes air pollution; an area equal to 50 football fields is lost every minute. * Red Ruffed Lemur - 15,000 left in the forests of Madagascar * Snow Leopard - 3800-6000 left in the mountains of central Asia and the Himalayas; more rare than tigers. * Sonoran Pronghorn - 500 left in American Southwest and Mexico; less than 30 of those are in the US. * Spiny Seahorse - unknown; found in the European waters of Britain but very rare. * Tadpole Shrimp - unknown; species so old that it is known as a 'living fossil'. * Tasmanian Wedge-tailed Eagle - less than 1500 birds left in Australia; less than 500 breeding pairs; large enough to hunt kangaroos. * Yellow-eyed Penquin - 430 pairs in New Zealand (up from 190 pairs in 1990). Vulnerable ~ facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. * African Elephant - 440,000 - 660,000 left in the wild * African Lion - 23,000 - 39,000 - endangered in 10 countries with a population of less than 200 Near Threatened ~ will qualify for one of the above in the near future. Least Concern ~ widespread and abundant, but may be regionally threatened. So those are some details to get you started on next month's theme. You may have even more information than I've covered here! AND - did you know that the World Land Trust (WLT) has a program to buy an acre (or half-acre) of rainforest? I don't pretend to know all the politics of this organization and what they do, but I would like to propose that we consider saving some rainforest http://www.worldlandtrust.org/supporting/donation.htm The price of an acre is $100 US £50UK and the minimum purchase is $50 ,£25 for half an acre. Please log on & read, Richard Attenborough Pleads their case,...

Sailing

As the Dinghy week and Cowes week approach,

everyone is out practising, just like the weeks

prior and post Wimbledon Tennis Championships.

Jackdaws,Bikes and Sea

Today has been a Good Summers Day, Bright Sunshine, but with a nice offshore breeze to keep the temperature pleasant. I listed some Limited Edition Prints andgift items on Etsy Sunday and Monday. This afternoon I took a trip down to The post office to mail a package, and then took a pleasant detour to the local seafront. The Medina's sea roads were busy,gearing up for Dinghy Week. we Held in the week prior to Cowes Week, Dinghy week is for the smaller sailing dinghys with movable keels. They are usually unlucky with the weather, Wind, Rain, and Storms so if this balmy weather continues it will be a pleasant change for them. I sat on the Bike, and enjoyed an icecream, because you have to, its tradition, unfortunately I hadn't taken my camera, but if the weather stays good I might try for some pics tommorrow.

Island Views

Listed on Etsy an Original Watercolour named 'Jim Crow', who was the oldest recorded Ravens at The Tower of London, at the age of 44yrs. Pictured in one of his favourite Chapel Haunts.London’s Tower RavensIt had been thought that there have been at least six ravens in residence at the Tower for centuries. It was said that Charles II ordered their removal following complaints from John Flamsteed, the Royal Astronomer. However, they were not removed because Charles was then told of the legend that if the ravens ever leave the Tower of London, the White Tower, the Monarchy, and the entire Kingdom would fall. Charles, following the time of the English Civil War, superstition or not, was not prepared to take the chance, and instead had the observatory moved to Greenwich.This and scattered subsequent references to the Tower ravens, both literary and visual, which appear in the late nineteenth to early twentieth century place them near the monument commemorating those beheaded at the Tower, popularly known as the “scaffold.” This strongly suggests that the ravens, which are notorious for gathering at gallows, were originally used to dramatize tales of imprisonment and execution at the Tower told by the Yeoman Warders to tourists. There is evidence that the original ravens were donated to the Tower by the Earls of Dunraven, perhaps because of their association with the Celtic raven-god Bran. However wild ravens, which were once abundant in London, and often seen around meat markets (such as nearby Eastcheap) feasting for scraps, could have roosted at the Tower in earlier times.The legend that Britain will fall if the ravens leave the Tower appears to date from fall of 1944, and to come from the Stag Brewery in London, where ravens were used as mascots and perhaps unofficial spotters for enemy bombers.No one can remember the Tower without ravens, though during the Second World War most of them perished through shock during bombing raids – the sole survivor being a bird called 'Grip'.] However, before the Tower reopened to the public on 1 January 1946, care was taken to ensure that a new set of ravens was in place. There are eight raven, whose wings are now clipped to prevent them from flying away, and they are cared for by the Ravenmaster, a duty given to one of the Yeomen Warders.

Tea and Fairy Cakes

This is a few of the little watercolours I produced in the ongoing series Tea and Fairy cakes, I hope to offer these as premounted prints on Etsy in the near future.They each have a little storyline which accompany the artwork,, making them a perfect gift for adults and children alike.Heres an example From , Tavish hiding in Buttons Cup.Mac, the Fairy Godmothers Westie, made his first appearance last year, he is back again, helping with the Panto season, and today is minding his young nephew, Tavish. Tavish, a very smart Puppy, has crept into Buttons Lucky Teacup, to escape The Fairy Godmothers Wand twirling Practise.I respectfully ask readers to honour the copyright of all my images, Thank You.

Hunters Moon LE Prints

The picture is a mounted print I am Offering now in my Etsy Store, taken from an Original Watercolour miniature,which was originally produced and donated to sell with The Whoa Sketchbook Project.

Please click on and read the Blog, all about the different artists taking part, its concept and originator, in Favourite Blogs. Its a worthy project, with its eventual auction sale income going to benefit a Horse Charity.

The Print is called 'Hunters Moon', it shows a Friesian horse, set against the Ethereal background of a Hunters Moon, with Ivy and Berry Frieze, and the First Star of Evening, just appearing in the Nights Sky.

Please Respect that Copyright of all Images remain solely with the Artist Linda.M.Woolford 2008 Artwolf

Bat Pigeon

The summer has been a bit of a non starter as good weather goes , very unpredictable. We have had cold wet and windy days that wouldn't have been out of place in October, Because the weather has been so bad I have continued to fill the bird feeders with seeds,and put out fruit and soft food scraps for the birds. This pigeon in the Photo after making several attempts to land on top of the feeders finally discovered the perfect 'upside down Batflip'.

The photos aren't the best as they were taken through a rainy window.

Day One.

My Friends have encouraged me to start a blog, I am carefully blundering through the process, its becoming very apparent, I need help! Help!,. I am going to ask my friend Jen for some asap, and hopefully you see a few pictures of art, and some links... I really need to go now and get a cup of tea and a chocolate fix to calm my nerves...