 | DEFORESTATION-Degradation of humid tropical forests CAUSES OF THE DEFORESTATION IN THE WORLD Climatic hazards or natural catastrophes are pratically independent from the actions of the man. However, the worries concerning eventual future climatic changes, due to the consequences of green house gases from industrial pollution are going to grow. It is sufficient to study here not the ways of fighting these aggressions, but those measures to take before forestry stands are subjected to these events. Forests are submitted more than any other terrestrial ecosystem to climatic hazards, due to the duration of their maturity, wich can take up to 200 years. In such a period the number of climatic hazards can be great. The importance of human factor The main causes of contemporary fires and anthropogenic : This is the case with the recurrent fires in the European Mediterranean zone, or those fires provoked in tropical humid zones, which have their goal the clearing of land for agriculture. In dry tropical zones with mixed broadleaved forests and rich undergrowth, human populations have always used fire to make way for grazing and agriculture. In Europe, figures gathered by the FAO permit one to establish the area of forest burnt annually between 1980 and 1988, i.e. some 585.000 ha. During the same period North America lost some 3.5 million hectares of forest to fires. That percentage attribued to human causes being around 97% in Europe, 91% in the United States and 66% in Canada. Very little is known concerning the equivalent information for the entire world. The total wooded surface touched by fire annually is around 10 million hectares, which represents some 0.3% of the total world forested area. However the impact of these fires is more important than this small percentage suggests. In fact, in the zones where the frequence of fires is high, the destructive character of such fires is worsened by the fact that forest stands do not have the time to reconstitute themselves between the passage of two consecutive fires. Fire has always been an element present in many forestry ecosystems. Natural causes of fire exist such as lightening and volcanic eruptions. The area subjected to natural fires has been very important and can cover millions of hectares. However the lapse of time is generally long between successive fires, permitting the ecosystem to recover and reconstitute itself. Large fires have always ravaged the surface of the earth. The importance of human factor The main causes of contemporary fires and anthropogenic : This is the case with the recurrent fires in the European Mediterranean zone, or those fires provoked in tropical humid zones, which have their goal the clearing of land for agriculture. In dry tropical zones with mixed broadleaved forests and rich undergrowth, human populations have always used fire to make way for grazing and agriculture. In Europe, figures gathered by the FAO permit one to establish the area of forest burnt annually between 1980 and 1988, i.e. some 585.000 ha. During the same period North America lost some 3.5 million hectares of forest to fires. That percentage attribued to human causes being around 97% in Europe, 91% in the United States and 66% in Canada. Very little is known concerning the equivalent information for the entire world. The total wooded surface touched by fire annually is around 10 million hectares, which represents some 0.3% of the total world forested area. However the impact of these fires is more important than this small percentage suggests. In fact, in the zones where the frequence of fires is high, the destructive character of such fires is worsened by the fact that forest stands do not have the time to reconstitute themselves between the passage of two consecutive fires. |
 | Classic Game Room reviews HYDRO THUNDER for Sega Dreamcast Classic Game Room season 1. November, 1999. HYDRO THUNDER!!!! Yell it loud, this is a racing game for those of you who like fast paced, fun, intense and out of control racing games. Hydro Thunder is late 90's arcade gaming at it's best. Hyrdo Thunder was first released for the home in the form of a Sega Dreamcast game in 1999. It was later made for the N64 and Playstation video game consoles. The game is part of the series of games called the "Thunder" series by Midway, like Arctic Thunder and Offroad Thunder. This game is a lot like Star Wars Episode 1 Racer and Fatal Inertia on the Xbox 360. Your speedboat drive through a variety of futuristic and wild environments like the Escape from New York landscape and a bunch of tundra and tropical regions. You can hit boosting icons and boost your boats through the air off ramps and into tour boats, animals or the enemy. It's a fun game and a great addition to the Sega Dreamcast lineup. This is the third Classic Game Room episode. Classic Game Room was the FIRST classic video game review show on the Internet in 1999. Classic Game Room HD marked the return of the series in 2008. The original Classic Game Room reviewed Atari, NES, Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Dreamcast and Playstation... too bad they didn't get to Xbox 360, PS3, PS2 or Wii. Now Classic Game Room HD is covering the new systems |
 | The Praying Mantis - Deadly Predator The praying mantis is a predatory insect found in temperate and tropical regions of the world. There are more than 2,000 species that belong to the mantis group. The name praying mantis derives from the fact that its front legs are held up in front of its body and positioned in a manner which resembles that of a human praying. These insects are noted for their superior predatory capabilities. Frequently, they are brown or green in colouring, virtually undistinguishable from the plants which they inhabit. This camouflaging enables them to go unnoticed as unsuspecting prey drifts into the praying mantis' territory, only to be devoured. The praying mantis can manoeuvre its head 180 degrees. Its two large compound eyes, along with its three simple eyes, located between its antennae, provide this insect with exceptional eyesight. Some are able to detect movement from more than 50 feet away. The diet of this carnivore consists of insects, among them crickets, flies, grasshoppers and aphids. The larger of the species can prey on small birds, lizards, snakes and even mice. The mantis eats its prey live, using its mandibles, or jaws to cut it apart. Females lay masses of hundreds of eggs in a liquid that hardens into egg cases. When the nymphs hatch, usually during the spring, the tiny hatchlings look like miniature versions of their moms and dads. Adult mantis can range in size from 1 cm to 15 cm long. |
 | ►◄ The Great Escape ►◄ http://www.origami-kids.com/paperairplanes.htm Parrots are birds of the roughly 350 species in the order Psittaciformes, found in most warm and tropical regions. Also known as psittacines they are usually grouped into two families: the Psittacidae (true parrots) and the Cacatuidae (cockatoos). Most parrots are predominantly green, with other bright colors, and some species are multi-colored. Cockatoo species range from mostly white to mostly black, and have a mobile crest of feathers on the top of their heads. Most parrots are monomorphic or minimally sexually dimorphic. Parrots, along with crows, jays and magpies, are some of the most intelligent birds, and their ability to imitate human and to escape of their cages. This video is the proof. My three parrots Godzilla, Lorenzo and Didi, escaping from its cage Visit my site: http://www.origami-kids.com/paperairplanes.htm |
 | Surf Nicaragua Wanderlust Properties is located on the Pacific Coast of Southern Nicaragua in an area that is known as the "Nicaraguan Riviera". This area contains Nicaragua's most spectacular coastline and many pristine beaches. We have many beautiful properties to offer and look forward to seeing those that wish to sample them "first hand". For further information please contact rentals@wanderlust-online.com or phone us @ 505(country code)-868-3165 The Lay of the Land Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America and occupies about the same amount of land as England. It is located in the heart of the Central American isthmus between the Caribbean Sea on the east, the Pacific Ocean on the west, Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. With 54,054 square miles, Nicaragua is divided into three very distinct geographical regions: the Pacific lowlands, the North-Central Mountains, and the Caribbean Lowlands also called the Mosquito Coast or Mosquitia. There are about 40 volcanoes in the Pacific Lowlands. The country has a total of 58, of which San Cristóbal and Concepción are the largest and most imposing. The country's most prominent feature is Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America and the 10th largest fresh-water lake in the world with a surface area of about 8,157 sq. km. The lake is also famous because in it live the world's only fresh water sharks. Scientists think the lake was originally connected to the sea and was cut off by an earthquake resulting in changes to the land formation. Lake Managua is the country's other important lake. There are several smaller volcanic lakes near or right inside the city limits of Managua. Laguna Masaya and La Laguna de Apoyo are spectacular lakes, which lie in volcanic basins. Weather Like other areas in Central America Nicaragua's climate varies according to altitude with different regions of the country having distinct climates. The Pacific lowlands are always warm with a moderating breeze. The mountainous region in the north is much cooler than the lowlands. The Caribbean part of the country is hot and wet, and rain can fall heavily even in the "dry" season. As in most tropical regions, Nicaragua has a dry season or summer from November to May and a rainy season (invierno) which roughly runs from May to October. Nicaragua can be called the land of eternal summer in that there is not much difference in temperature from month to month and from season to season. In general, average temperatures range between 80 to 90 degrees F during the dry season and between 85 to 95 degrees F in the rainy season. The lowest average temperature is 77 degrees F and the highest is 104 degrees F. Managua and the Pacific area of Nicaragua are usually far less rainy than most of Central America. Rancho Santana ~ Tola ~ Rivas ~ Nicaragua Phone: (505) 868-3165 • email: rentals@wanderlust-online.com |
 | Tropical Rain Forests slideshow Tropical Rain Forests slideshow |
 | REGION OST - DAMIT DIE WELT (Live @ Tropical Islands) www.agerec.de |
 | Potter Wasp (Eumenes fraternus) Potter Wasp (Eumenes fraternus) Potter wasps (or mason wasps) are a cosmopolitan wasp group presently treated as a subfamily of Vespidae, but sometimes recognized in the past as a separate family, Eumenidae. Most eumenine species are black or brown, and commonly marked with strikingly contrasting patterns of yellow, white, orange, or red (or combinations thereof), but some species, mostly from tropical regions, show faint to strong blue or green metallic highlights in the background colors. Like most vespids, their wings are folded longitudinally at rest. They are particularly recognized by the following combination of characters: Recognition 1) Mesoscutum with a posterolateral projection known as parategula; 2) Tarsal claws cleft; 3) Hind coxae with a longitudinal dorsal carina or folding, often developed into a lobe or tooth; 4) Fore wing with 3 submarginal cells. Biology Eumenine wasps are diverse in nest building. The different species may either use pre-existing cavities (such as beetle tunnels in wood, abandoned nests of other hymenoptera or even man-made holes like old nail holes and even screw shafts on electronic devices) that they modify in several degrees, or they construct their own either underground or exposed nests. The nest may have one to multiple individual brood cells. The most widely-used building material is mud made of a mixture of earth and regurgitated water, but many species use chewed plant material instead. The name "potter wasp" derives from the shape of the mud nests built by species of Eumenes and similar genera. It is believed that Native Americans based their pottery designs upon the form of local potter wasp nests. [von Frisch, 1974]. All known eumenine species are predators, most of them solitary mass provisioners, though some isolated species show primitive states of social behaviour and progressive provisioning. When a cell is completed, the adult wasp typically collects beetle larvae, spiders or caterpillars and, paralyzing them, places them in the cell to serve as food for a single wasp larva. As a normal rule, the adult wasp lays a single egg in the empty cell before provisioning it. Some species lay the egg in the opening of the cell, suspended from a thread of dried fluid. When the wasp larva hatches, it drops and start to feed upon the supplied prey for a period of time that normally last some few weeks before pupating. The complete life cycle may last from a few weeks to more than a year from the egg until the adult emerges. Adult potter wasps feed on floral nectar. Taxonomy They are the most diverse subfamily of vespids, with more than 200 genera, and contain the vast majority of species in the family. The overwhelming morphological diversity of the potter wasp species is reflected in the proliferation of genera described to group them in more manageable groups. You can see here the list of potter wasp genera. Eumenes is the type genus of the subfamily Eumeninae ("potter wasps") of Vespidae. It is a large and widespread genus, with over 100 taxa (species and subspecies), mostly occurring in the temperate portions of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are black or brown, and commonly marked with strikingly contrasting patterns of yellow, white, orange, or red (or combinations thereof). Like most vespids, their wings are folded longitudinally at rest. The first metasomal segment is narrow and elongate, creating a "bulbous" appearance to the abdomen. The genus was named after the Greek general Eumenes. The root of the name has been widely used to construct many other genus-level names for potter wasps with petiolated metasoma like Brachymenes, Santamenes, Oreumenes, Pachymenes, Katamenes, etc. Most of those groups have been treated as part of the genus Eumenes for a long time. |
 | parrot Australian mountainous parrot. http://free--easy--money.blogspot.com/ http://marketing-brings-money.blogspot.com/ Parrots are birds of the roughly 350 species in 85 genera comprising the order Psittaciformes, found in most warm and tropical regions. Also known as psittacines. Parrots, along with crows, jays and magpies, are some of the most intelligent birds, and their ability to imitate human voices enhances their popularity as pets. Trapping of wild parrots for the pet trade, as well as other hunting, habitat loss and competition from invasive species, have diminished wild populations, and more parrots are threatened with extinction than any other group of birds. The most important components of most parrots' diets are seeds, nuts, fruit, buds and other plant material, and a few species also eat insects and small animals, and the lories and lorikeets are specialised to feed on nectar from flowers, and soft fruits. The diversity of Psittaciformes in South America and Australasia suggests that the order has a Gondwanan origin. The parrot family's fossil record, however, is sparse and their origin remains a matter of informed speculation rather than fact. The phylogeny of the parrots is still under investigation. The classifications as presented reflects the current status, which is disputed and therefore subject to change when new studies resolve some of the open questions. For that reason, this classification should be treated as preliminary. Parrots have a strong, direct flight. Most species spend most of their time perched or climbing in tree canopies. They often use their bills for climbing by gripping or hooking on branches and other supports. On the ground parrots often walk with a rolling gait. The diet of parrots consists of seeds, fruit, nectar and pollen and to a lesser degree animal prey. Without question the most important of these to most true parrots and cockatoos are seeds. The evolution of the large and powerful bill can be explained primarily as an adaptation to opening and consuming seeds. All true parrots except the Pesquet's Parrot employ the same method to obtain the seed from the husk; the seed is held between the mandibles and the lower mandible crushes the husk, whereupon the seed is rotated in the bill and the remaining husk is removed.[14] A foot is sometimes used in order to help holding large seeds in place. Parrots are seed predators rather than seed dispersers; and in many cases where species are recorded as consuming fruit they are only eating the fruit in order to get at the seed. As seeds often have poisons to protect them, parrots are careful to remove seed coats and other fruit parts which are chemically well defended, prior to ingestion. Many species in the New World, Africa, and Papua New Guinea consume clay which both releases minerals and absorbs toxic compounds from the parrots' gut. Studies with captive birds have given us insight into which birds are the most intelligent. While parrots have the distinction of being able to mimic human speech, studies with the African Grey Parrot have shown that some are able to associate words with their meanings and form simple sentences (see Alex and N'kisi). Along with crows, ravens, and jays (family Corvidae), parrots are considered the most intelligent of birds. The brain-to body size ratio of psittacines and corvines is actually comparable to that of higher primates. Humans and parrots have a complicated relationship. Economically they can be beneficial to communities as sources of income from the pet trade and are highly marketable tourism draws and symbols. But some species are also economically important pests, particularly some cockatoo species in Australia. Some parrots have also benefited from human changes to the environment in some instances, and have expanded their ranges where agricultural practices, and many parrots have declined as well. As tens of millions of individuals have been removed from the wild, parrots have been traded in greater numbers and for far longer than any other group of wild animals. The popularity of parrots as pets has led to a thriving - and often illegal - trade in the birds, and some species are now threatened with extinction. A combination of trapping of wild birds and damage to parrot habitats makes survival difficult or even impossible for some species of parrot. |
 | Angle-wing Katydid (Microcentrum retinerve) Angle-wing Katydid (Microcentrum) * Kingdom: Metazoa ((=Animalia) multicellular animals) * Phylum: Arthropoda (arthropods) * Class: Insecta (true insects) * Order: Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets, katydids, etc.) * Family: Tettigoniidae (long-horned grasshoppers, katydids, bushcrickets) * Genus: Microcentrum * Species: Microcentrum retinerve * Common Names: Lesser Angle-wing Katydid, Angular-winged Katydid The family Tettigoniidae, known in American English as katydids and in British English as bush-crickets, contains more than 6,400 species. It is part of the suborder Ensifera and the only family in the superfamily Tettigonoidea. They are also known as long-horned grasshoppers, although they are more closely related to crickets than to grasshoppers. Tettigoniids may be distinguished from grasshoppers by the length of their antennae, which may exceed their own body length, while grasshoppers' antennae are always relatively short. The name "katydid" comes from the sound produced by species of the North American genus Pterophylla (literally "winged leaf"). The males of katydids have sound-producing organs (via stridulation) located on the hind angles of their front wings, which in some species produce a sound thought to resemble the words "Katy did, Katy didn't", hence the name. In some species females are also capable of stridulation. There are about 255 species in North America, but the majority of species live in the tropical regions of the world. The diet of tettigoniids includes leaves, flowers, bark, and seeds, but many species are exclusively predatory, feeding on other insects, snails or even small vertebrates such as snakes and lizards. Some are also considered pests by commercial crop growers and are sprayed to limit growth. Large katydids can inflict a painful bite or pinch if handled but seldom break the skin. The spike headed katydid is somewhat notorious for its plantlike appearance, which allows it to blend in with the vegetation on which it lives, and the spikes discourage potential predators. The males provide a nuptial gift for the females in the form of a spermatophore, a nutritious body produced with the males' ejaculate. The katydid is a leaf-like insect which camouflages on leaves.The eggs of a katydids are oval shaped and laid in branches and are laid in lines. |
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