Japan, the Persian Gulf and Energy | STRATFOR. I also show you a nicely-franked cover, containing 12 superb postcards that I received in 2010 from my Japanese partner/friend Cockie

Please read this interesting article: Japan, the Persian Gulf and Energy | STRATFOR

Thank you again, Cockie!

Best wishes to the Japanese people, under such a catastrophic situation.

We should count our blessings, not our troubles...:)

Maybe you know what BONG means. How about BONGO? The Western or Lowland Bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus eurycerus) and The Eastern or Mountain Bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci) - WWF maximum cards/ maxicards/ dorincards about Ghana

"The western or lowland bongo, Tragelaphus eurycerus eurycerus, is a herbivorous, mostly nocturnal forest ungulate and among the largest of the African forest antelope species.

Bongos are characterised by a striking reddish-brown coat, black and white markings, white-yellow stripes and long slightly spiralled horns. Indeed, bongos are the only Tragelaphid in which both sexes have horns. Bongos have a complex social interaction and are found in African dense forest mosaics.

The lowland bongo faces an ongoing population decline and the IUCN Antelope Specialist Group considers the western or lowland bongo, T. eurycerus eurycerus, to be Near Threatened on the conservation status scale.

The eastern or mountain bongo, T. eurycerus isaaci, of Kenya has a coat even more vibrant than that of T. eurycerus eurycerus. The mountain bongo is only found in the wild in one remote region of central Kenya. The mountain bongo is classified by the IUCN Antelope Specialist Group as Critically Endangered with more specimens in captivity than in the wild.

In 2000, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) upgraded the bongo to a Species Survival Plan (SSP) Participant and in 2006 named the Bongo Restoration to Mount Kenya Project to its list of the Top Ten Wildlife Conservation Success Stories of the year."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bongo_(antelope)

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As a side note, look what I saw in the FEEDJIT LIVE TRAFFIC widget of this blog, where I (and you, too) can see where the visitors come from (what country, what search terms, what referring websites...).

"Klang, Selangor arrived from search.yahoo.com on "Dorincard: The second-biggest owl in the world: The Eurasian Eagle-Owl (Bubo bubo) - maximum card from Romania" by searching for the buboos biggest girls photos. 00:36:35 -- 4 hours 8 mins ago"

Man, oh, man...:)

The correct search terms should have been..."Photos of girls with the biggest Bubo bubo owls", I guess.

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Please visit and join ABC Wednesday meme!

http://abcwednesday-mrsnesbitt.blogspot.com/

Today,  I is for Interesting color patterns for some animals. :)

WWF maximum cards/ maxicards/ dorincards from Marshall Islands: 1) the largest land-living arthropod in the world; 2) the largest living bivalve mollusc; 3) the maxima clam; 4) the Triton's trumpet.

DID YOU KNOW that there are 2 kinds of giant clams?

Giant Clams...and Small Giant Clams!

[UL= upper left] "The coconut crab, Birgus latro, is the largest land-living arthropod in the world, and is probably at the upper limit of how big terrestrial animals with exoskeletons can become in today's atmosphere."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_crab

[UR] " The giant clam, Tridacna gigas (known as pā’ua in Cook Islands Māori), is the largest living bivalve mollusc. T. gigas is one of the most endangered clam species. It was mentioned as early as 1825 in scientific reports.
[2] One of a number of large clam species native to the shallow coral reefs of the South Pacific and Indian oceans, they can weigh more than 200 kilograms (441 lb) measure as much as 120 centimeters (47.2 in) across, and have an average lifespan in the wild of 100 years or more.[3]."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_clam

[LL] "The maxima clam (Tridacna maxima), also known as the small giant clam, is a species of clam found throughout the Indo-Pacific. They are much sought after in the aquarium trade, as their often striking coloration mimics that of the true giant clam, however the maximas maintain a manageable size, with the shells of large specimen typically not exceeding 20 centimetres (7.9 in) in length."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tridacna_maxima

[LR] "Charonia tritonis, common name Triton's trumpet, is a species of very large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollus[k] in the family Ranellidae, the tritons."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charonia_tritonis

"The words mollusc and mollusk are both derived from the French mollusque, which originated from the Latin molluscus, from mollis, soft.Molluscus was itself an adaptation of Aristotle's τᾲ μαλάκια, "the soft things", which he applied to cuttlefish.^[27] The scientific study of molluscs is known as malacology.^{[28]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mollusc}

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Happy Blue Monday! (meme)

Please visit:  http://smilingsally.blogspot.com/