Dyed Birds and Chicks Appear to Kids as "New Species."

Don't get fooled!

Dyed Birds and Chicks Appear to Kids as "New Species." 

Dr Abe V Rotor

 

 

Wonder what these kids are thinking, amazed at these colorful feathered pets

Ambulant bird vendors clandestinely ply their trade among unsuspecting kids. The birds, mainly the cosmopolitan house sparrow, field maya, and three-day old chicks, have been colorfully dyed to appear rare and unique, attracting parents to give in to their children's plea. Some specimens are specially dyed to make them appear as new species. San Vicente, Ilocos Sur town fiesta. (Circa April 2018)

Dyed three-day old chicks attract children, who make them pets. Dyed birds and chicks may not last long.  Dyes carry substances that are not only harmful to the birds, but also to humans and to the environment.  This practice is not in keeping with environmental laws and regulations, and therefore, should be discouraged. if not banned. ~

Black Cat Before a Waterfall

  Black Cat Before a Waterfall   

"She sits comfortably calm under the sun while the waterfall roars and the river flows." avr

                                           Wall Mural by Dr Abe V Rotor

Superstition makes Black-black a rare pet,

     her being black is bad luck,

not even when you meet her on the street,

     surely you stop and turn back.

Black is beautiful they say, but not a cat,

     like black diamond, black hair;

console one wearing black, save the cat,

     really it's not at all fair.   

She finds peace and content by a waterfall,

     its water falling free, 

purring while the waterfall roars and the river

    flows out to the sea!

 

 

Black-black is a native domestic feline, counterpart of the mongrel.  

Her lineage is traced to cats in the neighborhood, however as to 

how she got her pure black coat is unknown.  Author's pet at home, 

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur. 

Trees - Life of the Landscape

Trees - Life of the Landscape  

Dr Abe V Rotor

Fire trees and a Waterfall, acrylic on canvas AVRotor

Summer sky and fiery hill,

a shy waterfall in between,

drifting clouds its twin, 

 and a dash of breezy chill. 

  

 Forest Adventurers in acrylic showing details, AVRotor,

Young adventurers in a forest,

where the world of wildlife lies,

caress a confetti of butterflies

 as the sun breaks into prism,

and the forest laughs and cries.  

 Forest Stream, section of a wall mural by AVRotor, Greater Lagro QC

Born in the mountains high,

rivulets into stream divine;

don't hurry up in your prime,

where everything is young ,

in the stillness of time. 

Into Your Light, in acrylic by AVRotor 

Sleep, it's autumn for the trees

to shed off their crown;

save the pine and cypress,

and white doves of peace.

  

Green Parthenon, in acrylic on wood by AVRotor 

Living columns, Parthenon of the forest,

your fate in the hands of man,

what time did to a temple of the gods -

ruins of beauty gone. ~

Natural Toxins in Food Plants

Natural Toxins in Food Plants

Dr Abe V Rotor

Arusip or lato is the most popular sea vegetable in the market.  Too much intake may cause dizziness and may have sedative effect to some. This is traced to a substance called caulerpin, named after its genus Caulerpa. The species shown is Caulerpa racemosa.  It is served fresh with sliced ripe tomato and onion.  

Food contains natural chemicals that are essential for growth and health which include carbohydrates, sugars, proteins and vitamins. But some foods contain potentially harmful natural toxins. Here are some common plants that carry natural toxins.

• Number one in the list is cassava (Manihot utilissima) yields natural cyanic acid mainly in the bark.
1. Crop should be harvested in about 6 months. Over mature tubers contain more of the toxin.
2. Avoid cassava growing along fences and borders; they are likely there for a long time.
3. Choose tubers that are freshly harvested, especially when buying in the market.
4. Remove the entire bark, and wash the tuber thoroughly. Cut into pieces and boil.
5. When the pot starts to boil, remove the cover. This allows the cyanogas to escape.
6. Well cooked cassava is generally safe, but exercise moderation especially among children.
7. Note that there are varieties of cassava which have higher cyanic acid content. Your local agriculturist and the old folks know best.

• Potato (Solanum tuberosum) contains natural toxins called glycoalkaloids The levels are usually low but higher levels are found in potato sprouts, and the peels of potato. These natural toxins are produced by the plant to counteract pests and pathogens, and stress fro ultraviolet and injury. Because glycoalkaloids are not destroyed by cooking, these are the things to do.

1. Don’t eat sprouted potato.
2. Remove any damaged part of the tuber.
3. Don’t eat cooked potatoes that still taste bitter.
4. If you come across a green potato crisp, it’s best not to eat it.
5. Store potatoes in a dark, cool and dry place.
6. Note that Solanum tuberosum belongs to the same family as tobacco – Solanaceae.

• Seeds of apples and pears, and the stony pit or kernel of apricot and peaches contain a naturally occurring substance called amygdalin. Amygdalin can turn into hydrogen cyanide in the stomach causing discomfort or illnesses. It can sometimes be fatal.

Others:

Bamboo shoots (labong) contains a certain amount of cyanic acid, similar to that in cassava. Cook well with the pot open to allow the gas to escape.

• Nicotine in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) is among the most poisonous substances in nature. Extract of the poison from a single stick of cigarette can instantaneously kill a person when injected into the bloodstream. Smokers die slowly of nicotine, one of the top ten causes of death in modern society, early death notwithstanding heobromin in cacao (Theobroma cacao)
• Caffeine in coffee (Coffea spp.)
• Capsicin in red pepper
• Ricinin in castor bean (Ricinus communis)
• Caulerpin in lato or ar-arusip (Caulerpa racemosa)
• Aflatoxin is a substance produced by a fungus, Aspergillus flavus, that grows on harvested crops like corn, rice and copra that are not properly dried and stored. Aflatoxin causes cirrhosis of the liver and other related ailments.
• 
  
• 
• cassava
  
  

The Art of Diorama: Museum of Natural History, UPLB Laguna

 The Art of Diorama: Museum of Natural History, 

UPLB Laguna 

A diorama is a miniature three-dimensional scene, for example, in a museum, in which models of figures are arranged against a background.

1. a miniature three-dimensional scene, in which models of figures are seen against a background

2. a picture made up of illuminated translucent curtains, viewed through an aperture

3. a museum display, as of an animal, of a specimen in its natural setting

4. cinema - a scene produced by the rearrangement of lighting effects Collins English Dictionary

Photographed and Edited by Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog [avrotor.blogspot.com]

Philippine Eagle lords over the vast landscape atop Mt Apo, its home. Fewer and fewer sightings tell us the bird may soon join the list of extinct animals - if we don't protect its remaining population estimated to be less than a thousand

The idea of a diorama is likened to a showcase in a mall. It is an enclosure of glass, multi-dimensional so that the viewer enjoys a natural panoramic scenery - foreground and background, ground and ceiling, and a spacious center view for the main subject.  From one side to the other, and back, the viewer finds freedom of vision to explore the whole diorama.  

Natural history dioramas gain attention to naturalness.  The stuff animals look real, a pond reveals the secret of its bottom.  Water always looks fresh and invigorating.  Trees and the whole vegetation retain their freshness. Depth of field leads the eye to the farthest point disappearing in thin air. 

Emphasis is given to interaction of the living with the non-living world, the  interrelationships of organisms in food chains and food webs, and by the flow of energy from one organism to another.  

A diorama artist is multi-skilled: he is a sculptor, a painter and an architect.  Above all,  he is a scientist who understands the working of biology and ecology.  He must be a naturalist, and being one, must uphold the philosophy of reverence for life that makes man the custodian of creation. 

The Museum of Natural History is an educational center with a sprawling natural setting - Mt. Makiling, a tropical rainforest reached in three hours from Manila. It is a world-famous center of studies and researches in agriculture, environment and many related sciences, including humanities.  

I recommend the place for a whole day educational field trip. An itinerary includes the Mt Makiling Botanical Garden, tour of UPLB campus (agriculture and forestry) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). Special lectures and guided tours may be arranged. Packed lunch under the trees is a rare experience.  Nature photography, is at its best - so with on-the-spot composition (drawing, musical sketch, poetry). 

Happy field trip!

.   

The Hornbill is another endangered Philippine bird.  The first and last time I saw hornbills was in the seventies at the tip of Luzon along the treacherous Patapat road joining the Ilocos Region and Cagayan Valley. They are a closely knit family moving on the forest canopy. Their call is heard far and wide.  It is resonated by their big hollow bills and echoed by big trees and cliffs.  

Cave bats in a simulated habitat.  Being nocturnal, the bats hunt from flying insects in the dark locating their prey through echolocation, the principle of the radar.Their droppings make a huge guano deposit mined for agriculture. 

A rare rodent that lives on trees in Palawan, the last bastion of rare animal species, among them the porcupine, mouse deer and anteater.  

Nesting pigeons keep vigil for intruders and predators. Masters of camouflage they blend with the surroundings and remain extremely quiet and still at the sign of danger. But when imminent, the mother bird stealthily dashes to another place and decoys away the attention of the enemy.  

 Instead of a diorama, the actual skeleton, and replica, of a whale  are displayed for anatomical and morphological study. In  the Smithsonian the blue whale, the biggest creature that ever lived on earth spans the length of a hall the size of a typical chapel. 

 

                                                     Tree mushroom garden 

                     A cluster of nature dioramas, each an ecosystem pristine and unspoiled.  

 Centennial celebration of UPLB, pictorials at the museum's lobby. 

Author and wife are among the countless visitors.   

Books, are the Greatest Treasure of Mankind

 Books are the Greatest Treasure of Mankind

A Tribute to the late "Ka Mao" Chanco, veteran journalist, publisher and environmentalist.

Dr Abe V Rotor

 Author inspects piles of books for display at a family museum 
and reading center, or donated to other reading centers. 

Books, once the privilege of a few in pre-printing machine era, each page painstakingly handwritten, each book a well-kept treasure. 

Books, the authority, the final say, unquestioned, un-refuted, else any one rising contrary faces punishment, including death or damnation. 

Books, the diary, the ledger, the document of conquest and discovery, of battles fought, often in favor of the writer and party.   

Books, the novels that carry the greatest stories of all times are called classics, for which they are regarded timeless for their universal values.

Books, the epics of Homer, stories of the Grimm Brothers distilled from oral literature passed through generations to the present. 

Books, written ahead of their time - Galileo's astronomy, Darwin's evolution, Martin Luther's Protestantism ignited dis-pleasure of the Church.

Books, bedtime stories, baby's introduction to the world, legends and fantasies that take young ones to the land of make-believe. 

Books, the record of ultimate scholarship, are the epitome of the greatest minds in thesis and dissertation, theories and principles. 

Books, the precursor of the Internet, the framework of the i-Pod, Tablet, Galaxy, and other gadgets that man becomes a walking encyclopedia. 

Books, the progeny of the earliest forms of writing like the cuneiform, hieroglyphics, cave drawings, etchings, scrolls of the Dead Sea.     

Books, that gave the idea and structure of the Wonders of the Ancient World, and the significance and belief for which they were built. 

Books, that grew with knowledge, brought new schools and movements in arts and philosophy, in unending search for truth. 

Books, the most widely read, the Bible; the shortest, Albert Einstein’s e=mc2, and book-to-cinema versions of Spielberg, Lucas, Cecil B de Mille et al. 

Books, the greatest treasure of mankind, its collective attributes as humanity, the very stimulus of man's rationality to rise above other creatures - and himself.

Books, that brought about man's disobedience to his creator, playing god, and questioning if god made man, or that man made god.  

Books that enlighten man to care for the environment, guide the young and future generations to a better future, and lead man to save his own species from extinction. ~
-----------

The 100 most meaningful books of all time (Internet)

A 2002 survey of around 100 well-known authors from 54 countries voted for the most meaningful book of all time in a poll organized by editors at the Norwegian Book Clubs in Oslo. Voters included Doris Lessing, Salman Rushdie, Carlos Fuentes and Norman Mailer. Miguel de Cervantes’ tale gained 50% more votes than any other book, eclipsing works by Shakespeare, Homer and Tolstoy.

Ten authors got more than one book on to the list. After Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoevsky emerged as the most worthwhile read with four books listed. The only Shakespeare plays the authors agreed on were Hamlet, King Lear and Othello. The Bard was matched by Franz Kafka whose three angst-ridden tales of grotesque alienation on the list were The Trial, The Castle and the Complete Stories. Three works by Leo Tolstoy made it: War and Peace, Anna Karenina and The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories. William Faulkner and Virginia Woolf both scored twice, along with the Colombian Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

Other than Don Quixote in first place below, the remaining 99 titles are reproduced as published by De Norske Bokklubbene in alphabetical order and are not ranked.

·         Don Quixote Miguel de Cervantes

·         Things fall apart Chinua Achebe

·         Fairy tales and stories Hans Christian Andersen

·         Pride and prejudice Jane Austen

·         Old Goriot Honore de Balzac

·         Trilogy: Molloy, Malone dies, The Unnamable Samuel Beckett

·         Decameron Giovanni Boccaccio

·         Collected fictions Jorge Luis Borges

·         Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte

·         The Outsider (The Stranger) Albert Camus

·         Poems Paul Celan

·         Journey to the end of the night Louis-Ferdinand Celine

·         Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer

·         Nostromo Joseph Conrad

·         The Divine Comedy Dante Alighieri

·         Great expectations Charles Dickens

·         Jacques the fatalist and his master Denis Diderot

·         Berlin Alexanderplatz Alfred Doblin

·         Crime and punishment Fyodor Dostoyevsky

·         The Idiot Fyodor Dostoyevsky

·         The Possessed Fyodor Dostoyevsky

·         The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoyevsky

·         Middlemarch George Eliot

·         Invisible man Ralph Ellison

·         Medea Euripides

·         Absalom, Absalom William Faulkner

·         The Sound and the fury William Faulkner

·         Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert

·         A Sentimental education Gustave Flaubert

·         Gypsy Ballads Federico Garcia Lorca

·         One hundred years of solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez

·         Love in the time of cholera Gabriel Garcia Marquez

·         The Epic of Gilgamesh

·         Faust Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

·         Dead souls Nikolai Gogol

·         The Tin Drum Günter Grass

·         The Devil to pay in the backlands Joao Guimaraes Rosa

·         Hunger Knut Hamsun

·         The Old man and the sea Ernest Hemingway

·         The Iliad Homer

·         The Odyssey Homer

·         A Doll’s house Henrik Ibsen

·         The Book of Job Anon

·         Ulysses James Joyce

·         The Complete Stories Franz Kafka

·         The Trial Franz Kafka

·         The Castle Franz Kafka

·         The Recognition of Sakuntala Kalidasa

·         The Sound of the mountain Yasunari Kawabata

·         Zorba the Greek Nikos Kazantzakis

·         Sons and lovers D H Lawrence

·         Independent people Halldor K Laxness

·         Complete poems Giacomo Leopardi

·         The Golden notebook Doris Lessing

·         Pippi Longstocking Astrid Lindgren

·         Diary of a madman and other stories Lu Xun

·         Mahabharata Anon

·         Children of Gebelawi Naguib Mahfouz

·         Buddenbrooks Thomas Mann

·         The Magic Mountain Thomas Mann

·         Moby Dick Herman Melville

·         Essays Michel de Montaigne

·         History Elsa Morante

·         Beloved Toni Morrison

·         The Tale of Genji Murasaki Shikibu

·         The Man without qualities Robert Musil

·         Lolita Vladimir Nabokov

·         Njal’s saga

·         1984 George Orwell

·         Metamorphoses Ovid

·         The Book of Disquiet Fernando Pessoa

·         The Complete tales Edgar Allan Poe

·         Remembrance of things past Marcel Proust

·         Gargantua and Pantagruel Francois Rabelais

·         Pedro Paramo Juan Rulfo

·         The Mathnawi Jalalu’l-Din Rumi

·         Midnight’s children Salman Rushdie

·         The Bostan of Saadi (The Orchard) Sheikh Saadi of Shiraz

·         A Season of migration to the north Tayeb Salih

·         Blindness Jose Saramago

·         Hamlet William Shakespeare

·         King Lear William Shakespeare

·         Othello William Shakespeare

·         Oedipus the King Sophocles
·       The Red and the Black Stendhal

·         The Life and opinions of Tristram Shandy Laurence Sterne

·         Confessions of Zeno Italo Svevo

·         Gulliver’s travels Jonathan Swift

·         War and Peace Leo Tolstoy

·         Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy

·         The Death of Ivan Ilyich and other stories Leo Tolstoy

·         Selected Stories Anton Chekhov

·         Thousand and One Nights

·         The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain

·         Ramayana Valmiki

·         The Aeneid Virgil

·         Leaves of grass Walt Whitman

·         Mrs Dalloway Virginia Woolf

·         To the lighthouse Virginia Woolf
  Memoirs of Hadrian Marguerite Yourcenar ~