#15 A Tree with Dragon's blood

Off the coast of Yemen, the island of Socotra has been isolated for about 10 million years after Arabia and Africa split apart. In this ruthless, prehistoric and scorched environment, a large amount of unique species can be found here and no where else. Even if the soil is thin, sandy and stony, the most remarkable trees can be found here.

The Socota Dragon tree or Dragon's-blood tree can stand up to 6m (20 feet) tall and is perfectly adapted to this brutal landscape. However, due to the harsh conditions of it's environment, the tree is slow growing and takes about 200 years to reach maturity. The tree gets its name due to the blood-red resin that oozes from it's bark.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Mark-flammable Photography Feature

Mark Bridgwater is a professional photographer who owns a freelance graphic design and photography business, Marx. His Deviantart name, mark-flammable, is actually related to a clothing company he is setting up called Flammable.

When he was 11, his family moved from England to Christchurch, New Zealand where he grew up. He later became a member of the Alpine Ski Racing NZ National team for 5 years, allowing him to travel the world.

His photography began with landscapes, taken on his travels, mostly on overnight hikes. However, this is not all he photographs. Since he has a love for action sports, Mark also shoots a lot of skiing and mountain biking for various magazines and personal projects. See an example here. I Hope you enjoy these photos :)

Serenity

People's choice: Instructions to Vote

So I heard there was some confusion with the voting so I will post a step-by-step guide to voting.

Step 1: Click on this picture. It will redirect you to Best Australian Blogs 2012 competition people's choice page.
 
Step 2: Click on "Vote Here". This will take you to another website.
Step 3: Click next and it will take you to a list of blogs listed in alphabetical order.
Step 4: Tick the box next to 1000 Natural wonders. This is the third blog.
Step 5: After ticking the box, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click next. Keep clicking next until you get to the contact detail page.
Step 6: Enter you contact details. Make sure these are Correct as any fake emails will not be considered as votes. Then click next.
Step 7: Click done! and you're finished.

I hope this all makes sense. If you get confused, please don't hesitate to comment below and ask me questions. :)
Enjoy!

#14 The Australian Easter Bunny

Yesterday I went to the Sydney Royal Easter show and there was a tent for Featherdale Wildlife Park. There I learnt a horrible fact....that there was only about 400 Bilbies in the wild. This shocked me so much that it has inspired me to write about bilbies and how everyone can help with their conservation and protection from extinction.

Source: natureswonderland.com.au

The bilby is a native Australian animal which is endangered. There was once two species of bilbies but after the European colonisation of Australia, the lesser bilby became extinct by the 1950s. Now the greater bilby, the largest of the bandicoot family, is left but is still considered endangered. Of the six bandicoot species that once lived in Australia's arid lands, the blby is the only one left.

Best Australian Blogs 2012 People's Choice

About a month ago I heard about the "Best Australian Blogs 2012 Competition" and I thought, 'Wow! why not enter?'. And just last night they opened people's choice, allowing the public to vote for the blog/s which they thought deserved the honor.

By clicking on the image above, you will be taken to the People's choice page where you will be able to cast your vote on the blog you want to win or just vote for a blog that you like. Only Australian blogs were allowed to enter however, voting is open to everyone around the world!

So, if you have enjoyed reading my blog, if you believe that I write for a worthy cause, if you have found the photographers I've featured amazing or you just really like the photos of the animals and plants I've written about. Please vote for my blog 1000 natural wonders. :)

Voting will close Wednesday 9 May at 5.00 pm. All winners will be announced on Thursday 10 May at 10.00 am. The winner of the People's Choice Award will receive $1000 worth of courses (online or face-to-face) at the Sydney Writers' Centre in Milsons Point.

And just for fun, I'll add some of my own photos :) All of these photos and more can be found on my deviantart account: jennytheturtle. To learn more about my photos or to see a larger image, just click on the names of the photos.

Freedom isn't Free: Orange Lacewing Butterfly (Cethosia penthesilea)

Frozen Maple

Over the...traffic lights?

Sea the reflection

 

Happy reading!

Velian Jagev Photography Feature

There is a photographer on Deviantart who goes by the name of VJagev. Although a small collection, his gallery is full of amazing macro photos of insects, mainly covered by condensation and droplets of water. He has had one Daily deviation and is surely on his way to a second. I really did think that he could be a professional and had a great interest in insects. However, turned out to be someone who just spends a lot of time outdoors and wants to show extraordinary things to ordinary people.

I hope you enjoy our mini interview. :)

Autumn Beauty

In the News - March 2012

Good News
YAY! Heaps of cute baby animals born this month :) However, I have just 2 babies that I want to introduce to you. They are the cutest out of the whole pack! So I hope you really like them :D

March 20th: Meet Linford and Christie! A pair of orphaned Burrowing Owlets who are now under the 24-hour care of keeper, Jimmy Robinson, who works at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire.  Since they have to follow Jimmy around everywhere, they taken a liking to all the nooks and crannies of his apartment. 

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk/news