Amazing Baby Fish. There are all kinds of fish in sea and some of them get very big. But all fish have to start off as tiny babies. Have you ever wondered what the baby fish of different species look like? I’ll give you a hint…cute and adorable.

Puffer fish Facts

By softschools.com

Puffer fish is an easily recognized type of fish due to ability to transform and enlarge its body in a split of a second. There are more than 120 species of puffer fish which live mostly in the warm waters of the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, with only 30 species that are living in the freshwater. Some species move from marine to brackish or fresh water during the breeding season. Although number of puffer fish is stable in the wild, they are vulnerable due to overfishing, pollution of the ocean and loss of natural habitats.

Interesting Puffer fish Facts:

• Puffer fish vary in size from one inch long pygmy puffer, to a two feet long freshwater giant puffer.
• Main feature, common for all puffer fish, is ability to ingest huge amount of water (and air sometimes) which increases their body size and turn them into odd-looking ball-like creatures. Quick transformation scares predators.
• Scientists believe that puffer fish developed this tactic as a method of the self-defense because they are poor swimmers that cannot escape from the danger quickly.
• Increase of the body size is not the only tactic used against the predators. Almost all species of puffer fish contain toxin (called tetrodotoxin) that can be 1200 times stronger than cyanide.
• One puffer fish contains enough toxin to kill 30 adult men.
• Toxin is not located in all parts of the puffer fish, and certain cultures prepare puffer fish (meal called fugu in Japan) as a delicacy. Only specially trained chiefs can clean the fish properly and prepare delicious and toxin-free meal. Just one wrong cut of the fish meat can result in the death of the customer.
• Sharks are the only species immune to the puffer fish’s toxin. They can eat puffer fish without any negative consequences.
• Puffer fish can be discretely or brightly colored. There is often relationship between the body coloration and the amount of toxin produced by the fish (brighter colors are often associated with large quantity of toxin in the fish).
• Puffer fish do not have scales. Their skin is thick and rough. Some species have spines on the skin, which offer additional protection against the predators.
• The most elastic part of their body is skin on the stomach area. When puffer fish ingests water, skin on the stomach expands several times of the normal size of the fish.
• Puffer fish have four teeth that are fused in the beak-like structure. They use their teeth for opening of mussels, clams and shellfish. Puffer fish also eat algae and different types of worms and crustaceans.
• Puffer fish have excellent eyesight.
• Puffer fish reach sexual maturity at the age of five. Male guides the female to the shallow water (close to the shore) where she will release (usually) between three to seven eggs. Young fish are protected by the hard egg shell that will crack as soon as they are ready to hatch. After leaving the egg, young puffer fish swim toward the reef’s community.
• Although some baby puffer fish cannot be seen without magnifying glass, their body shape resembles those of the adult animals.
• Average lifespan of the puffer fish is around 10 years.

A blessing we just cannot do without
Because friendship is what
Living is all about…

~sms4smile

http://leelavadeeflower.blogspot.com/2014/08/a-blessing-we-just-cannot-do-without.html

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Transform your drawers and closets and tame those laundry piles with this tricky–to–learn but easy–to–master technique for folding t-shirts in seconds! Howdini shows you how with this awesome hack.

Rachel Curit, One Green Planet, August 29, 2014  

Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo recently announcedthat its 45-year-old African elephant, Watato, had been euthanized after she was found lying in the elephant yard and unable to stand. While euthanasia might seem like the kindest option for an elephant who can no longer walk, it’s important to dig a little deeper.

In the wild, the average lifespan of an elephant is up to 70 years, but many live beyond that. So, what  caused this 45-year-old elephant to suddenly become so unwell? Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants believe that her condition was brought on by her living space, or lack thereof. She shared just one acre divided into five pens with two other elephants, Bamboo and Chai – not to mention the fact that Watato and Bamboo were incompatible – meaning they had to be kept separated and as a result never had full access to the entire area.

An elephant roaming free in the wild will walk up to 30 miles in a day making a fraction of an acre cruel confinement. Unsurprisingly, an elephant so severely confined is likely to develop captivity-related diseases. Watato was no exception. She suffered from arthritis, lameness and “neurotic repetitive behaviors – outward signs of trauma, stress and boredom.” Is it any wonder why she collapsed?

Unfortunately, Watato’s story is not unique. Her situation is indicative of a much larger problem. The fact is, elephants do not belong in captivity.

Lifespan in Captivity vs. Wild
As mentioned before, wild African elephants live anywhere between 60 and 70 years of age. According to the National Geographic, the median lifespan of a zoo-born female is just 17 years with Asian elephants living up to 19 years in captivity and 42 in the wild.

In order to keep these elephants living longer, experts suggest “routine screening for obesity … as well as monitoring stress via a chemical known as interleukin-6.”

For animals who would ordinarily spend much of their day moving and exercising, it’s no wonder captive elephants are prone to obesity. To keep them living longer, we shouldn’t we just allow them to remain in the wild, rather than keep them in captivity.

Family Structure and Social Interactions
Elephants live in herds of anywhere from 8 to 100 individuals with the head of the herd being the oldest female. Baby elephants stay by their mother’s side for up to 15 years, but they are reared and protected by the entire heard. Males leave the family unit around this time and will either live solitarily or temporarily with other male elephants.

Defenders of Wildlife states, “Recent discoveries have shown that elephants can communicate over long distances by producing a sub-sonic rumble that can travel over the ground faster than sound through air.”

With such complex communication and tight-knit family structures, it’s rather shocking to imagine an elephant like Watato living with just two other elephants, one with whom she didn’t even get along. That sounds like a lonely and isolating existence.

Mental and Physical Stimulation
Because of the lack of space, elephants in zoos aren’t able to get the amount of mental or physical stimulation they require. Nature provides elephants with all they need for healthy lives.

Having a variety of ground surfaces, “including clean dirt, mulch, sand and, probably most importantly, grassy areas and pasture, as well as slopes, hills, gullies, scrub and forest” is essential for getting enough exercise and mental stimulation. Captive elephants require at least 10 km of space and the opportunity to engage in natural elephant behaviors such as foraging, exploring and socializing are vital to their wellbeing.

Elephants who are denied these basic needs develop diseases, just as Watato, Bamboo and Chai have. Aside from obesity, Elephants in Canada states that common ailments captive elephants face include arthritis, foot infections – the leading cause of death, reproductive problems (such as low fertility, high rate of stillbirths and difficulty giving birth), difficulty raising young, psychological disorders, early mortality and engagement in abnormal behaviors such as killing young and aggression towards other elephants.

What We’ve Learned From Watato, and How You Can Help Others
Elephants like Watato, Bamboo and Chai have needs that humans generally aren’t able (or willing) to provide. Sanctuaries do a wonderful job taking in captive, retired elephants, but there is simply no denying that these elephants should never have been in captivity in the first place. Watato’s passing is a reminder of this for us all.

For those of you who would like to protect Bamboo and Chai from the same fate, please write to Seattle’s Mayor and City Council to order the zoo to release them to a sanctuary. You can find contact information at the bottom of this page.

Image source: Benoit Dupont/Flickr

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FILE – In this June 5, 2014 file photo, Myanmar model May Myat Noe, winner of Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 pageant, waves a miniature flag of the country upon her arrival at Yangon International Airport in Yangon, Myanmar. The first Myanmar national to win an international pageant has been stripped of her title for being rude and dishonest, and has allegedly run off with the expensive crown and breast implants. (AP Photo/Khin Maung Win).

By Robin McDowell, AP, Aug.  29, 2014

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar’s first international beauty queen has absconded with her $100,000 crown after being stripped of her title for being rude and dishonest, organizers said Friday.

May Myat Noe’s photograph was blacked out on the Miss Asia Pacific World website, the word “dethroned” stamped alongside her name.

“She thinks as long as she keeps this crown she’s the winner,” said David Kim, director of media for the South Korea-based pageant. “She’s not.”

Organizers said Noe had “lied” and proved to be untrustworthy, but provided few details.

Noe was not immediately available for comment. She planned to hold a news conference at a later time, according to Eleven Media, a Myanmar newspaper.

Hla Nu Tun, who initially acted as her unofficial manager, said Noe and the organizers had disagreed over who should oversee her career. Noe’s mother wanted control but so did the organizers, she said.

A half-century of military rule and self-imposed isolation kept Myanmar contestants off the stage of international beauty contests until 2012. When Noe was crowned in May, it was seen as a new beginning for young, talented beauties.

Following her victory, the organizers said they would arrange singing and video deals for her. But they also wanted to change the 172-centimeter (5-foot 7-inch) teen’s looks, Kim said.

One of the pageant’s primary goals, he said, is to turn winners into regional superstars: actresses, pop icons, and world-class models.

It was decided that Noe’s breasts were too small and could hold her back, and she accepted an offer of enhancements, he said.

“We thought she should be more beautiful … so we sent her to the hospital to operate on her breasts,” Kim said, adding that sponsors picked up the $10,000 tab, as they had for previous winners.

“It’s our responsibility,” he said. “If she has no good nose, then maybe, if she likes, we can operate on her nose. If it’s breasts, then breasts.”

Kim said that troubles started from there, with the beauty queen bringing her mother to Seoul for what was supposed to be a 10-day visit but stretched into three months.

A bright moon is rising over the sea,
both of us are looking at her
from far away sides at the same time.
I know you are sad for the night is too long,
to stay up for thinking of me for a white night

You have turned off the candle,
for you love the bright moonlight.
You are covering a coat
for you have felt the wet of dew.
You realize that you can not hold some moonlight to me,
so you decide to go back to sleep
and to wish us to meet each other in a sweet dream…

Written by Wang Yue Hua Yuan

If you want to awaken all of humanity, then awaken all of yourself.
If you want to eliminate the suffering in the world, then eliminate all that is dark and negative in yourself. Truly, the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self-transformation.

~Lao Tzu

The act of opening your heart is a bond of trust. It is the act of sharing the whims of the heart. You trust that you are being listened to and that the the person has a honest response. Opening your heart is not about good reception or making things better, it’s about making yourself understood.

1. It’s not about you. You know yourself, your heart and your love, they don’t. The first thing you need to know about opening your heart is that you don’t do it for yourself. Don’t expect a particular outcome; the truth is your goal.

2. Groundwork. You need to ensure that you are being listened to. When you open up to another person about your love, make sure that you have their total attention, make sure they are listening to you. Miscommunication is pointless pain.

3. Be honest, even if you don’t know what you feel or want. If they care, they will help you sort through whatever mess your heart is in.

4. Ask for honesty. Show your expectation of mutual trust.

5. Whatever happens, walk away with pride knowing you honored yourself, your feelings, and the your relationship with the other person. Nothing is a beautiful as honest love.

Source: wikiHow

http://leelavadeeflower.blogspot.com/2014/08/every-smile-is-like-ray-of-sunshine.html

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Don’t search for a someone that will solve all your problems.
Find one that won’t let you face them alone. ~Anonymous