The Ark In Space

The Caterpillar with Penguins on Its Back

Sunday, 18 November 2018

If you look at the caterpillar of the forest tent caterpillar moth (Malacosoma disstria) with a little imagination you can see something remarkable. Found throughout North America, along the top of this caterpillar is ranged a set of what looks like dancing penguins. It looks as if his grandma knitted him a sweater for Christmas but decided that one motif simply wasn’t enough.

Image Credit MattyBravo

The Tortoise Beetle - Amazing Metallic Arthropods

Monday, 8 August 2016

They look almost manufactured. Many tortoise beetles have transparent cuticles, the tough but flexible outer covering which gives the insect family its name protects the delicate creature within. The living tissue is often metallic in color and can in some species even change color. The combination is as diverse as it is extraordinary – many look like tiny robots assembled to infiltrate, the ultimate bug. Take a look in at the amazing variations of tortoise beetle our world holds.

Image Credit Flickr User CharlesLam

The Indian Giant Squirrel – Secret Supersize Squirrel on Steroids

Sunday, 29 May 2016

If you are not a particular fan of squirrels then perhaps you had better leave the page right now. Whoever gave the Indian Giant Squirrel its name was not joking. It makes the European and North American squirrel look like dormice in comparison. This is no ordinary squirrel – secretive and shy, it is indeed a giant among its kind.

Image Credit Rakesh Kumar Dogra

Before you start to lock your windows and gaze worriedly at the canopy as you pass beneath, be assured that you may only come across one of these if you live in Peninsular India or you happen to be visiting a zoo.

They live in the evergreen and mixed deciduous forests there as far north as Madhya Pradesh in isolated ranges.

Galapagos

Sunday, 20 December 2015

Have you ever wanted to travel to the Galapagos and witness for yourself all the marvel of natures to be found on those (not so these days) isolated islands? Well, courtesy of Tom Pinsard, now you don’t have to. Just sit back and enjoy this serene and gorgeous tour of the Galapagos Islands. It may not be quite the same as going there yourself, but it’s the next best thing.

In Between: The World of the Musk Ox

In between refers to the fact that although most consider the Ice Age over, it is really still dying out – not quite disappeared for good. Yet many of the animals we associate with it, the saber-toothed cats and the woolly mammoth have long since gone the way of the dinosaur. One creature still persists in the Arctic – the Musk Ox. This beautiful short, photographed by Rolf Steinmann, shows a world unknown to most of us.

Amazing Spy-Cam: Unique Technical Solutions in Wildlife Film-making

Wednesday, 20 August 2014

As camera technology has developed over the last few years it has meant that those filmmakers who would ordinarily have been labelled amateur in the past can now create amazing footage.

The playing field between the amateur and the professional has been leveled out, so to speak. Now, award winning wildlife filmmaker like John Downer must be ever more resourceful to produce something better than your average ten year old with a camera (yes, that was probably a slight exaggeration).

Spy-cams have been used in wildlife film-making for a number of years but the secret in creating astounding footage like the above is in truly understanding how the animals behave. From that outset point, involving research and great deal of dedication, new ways to capture amazing moments have been devised which, through the sheer inventiveness of their technical solutions, enable filmmakers to tell their subject’s story in new and enthralling ways.

The London Parakeets: Perfect Pest or Welcome Guest?

Saturday, 19 October 2013

At some point in the late sixties some Parakeets made a bid for freedom in London. For decades they were treated as an exotic guest and viewed with a mix of bemusement and pleasure. However, their days in London seemed to be numbered a few years ago but so far, the numbers seem to be increasing.

Image Credit Flickr User Electropod

Image Creedit Flickr User Ian-S

For a while the number of Parakeets in London remained small and toleration was the name of the game. After all, London has a long and proud history of welcoming foreigners to its heart and making them its own. So it was with the parakeet. However, their numbers exploded in the late nineties and many now seem them as a pest. From the beginning of 2010 open season on the cockney parakeet was declared.

We Are All Connected

Saturday, 5 February 2011

This is the latest campaign by the World Wildlife Fund and it is an excellent piece of animation which shows that however intricately, everything on planet Earth is connected.

It is a lot gentler than some of their recent short ads but it nevertheless gets its point across just as well – which goes to show that you don’t always have to shock in order to make people think.

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