Blogging with mehar_mah

  A new born pup is sleeping on the Mummy Sea Otter,  Monterey Bay  California. Sea otters shower their pups with attention, cradling them and grooming them for hours. But it's more than a gesture of affection - a mummy will rub her pup to fluff the pup's coat, which causes the fur to retain air bubbles. The air insulates the pup from chilly water and sometimes causes the youngster to float like a cork. Sea otters can survive on land, but they spend most of their time in the water, sleeping above the surface and anchoring themselves with kelp or by holding onto each other. When they get hungry, they use rocks as tools to hunt for food and pry open shells - something that makes them relatively unique, as they're one of the few mammals that can use tools.

Burchell's zebra mother and foal in Rietvlei Nature Reserve, South Africa by Richard Du Toit. Happy Mother's Day! On Mother's Day, we're looking at a Burchell's zebra mother and foal. An interesting fact that zebras can walk within 20 minutes of being born, but they still need help from mum. For the first two days after the foal is born, the mother will keep it close by and limit contact with other zebras, so the foal gets to know her by sight, smell and sound. Over the next year, the foal will follow its mother, learning what to eat, where to migrate in the dry and rainy seasons, and how to avoid predators. Those might not be the exact skills your mum taught you, but she surely played a part in your survival and growth - so be sure to wish her a happy Mother's Day today.

Fairy chimneys and cave dwellings in Uçhisar, Cappadocia, Turkey And to think that I saw it in Cappadocia The fantastical 'fairy chimneys' found in central Turkey's historic Cappadocia region were formed by a collision of the natural and the man-made - and they form a scene that seems straight out of a Dr. Seuss illustration. The landforms were created when volcanoes deposited mounds of soft, porous rock called tuff, which was later covered with hard basalt. In the 10th century (though possibly starting up to 5,000 years ago) humans excavated the tuff to create caves and catacombs that could fit thousands of dwellers. Through not only the astonishing ruins but the many 'cave hotels' hewn into rock in the city of Göreme, the memory of those ingenious city planners lives on. (© Ivan Kmit/Alam)

A Wallace's flying frog glides to the forest floor It's leap day! For leap day (the extra day added to February every four years), we're looking at a Wallace's flying frog. Also known as parachute frogs, these critters live in the tropical jungles of Malaysia and Borneo. They spend most of their time in trees, gliding down to the ground to mate and lay eggs. They 'fly' by leaping and using their webbed fingers and toes to glide as far as 15 metres. Leap years keep our calendar (the Gregorian calendar) aligned with the Earth's revolutions around the sun. People often refer to a calendar year as a 'trip around the sun', but that trip takes longer than the 365 days of a typical calendar year. It really takes 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds. Adding an extra day every four years solves the problem - almost. To keep our calendar mostly synchronised with the astronomical year, some further adjustments need to take place. Years tha...

Stubben Alberg, Austria This historic ski resort is Stubben Alberg, and the view of the village may be similar to what you imagine when reading "Historic Alpine Village".  Near the Alberg pass, this Austrian village is a must for ski enthusiasts.  This is also the birthplace of ski instructor Schneider, whose methods and skills spread throughout the world in the 20th century.

Pilgrims throwing wind horses into the air above Ganden Monastery for the New Year in Tibet, China Wind horses carry wishes for a new year For the first day of Losar, or the Tibetan New Year, we're paying a visit to these Buddhist pilgrims at the Ganden Monastery in Lhasa, Tibet. Losar is celebrated for 15 days, but most events occur in the first three days. They include wishing family members a prosperous year, praying at monasteries or temples, exchanging gifts, burning incense, chanting, wrestling, horse racing, and more. Celebrations for the new year end with Chotrul Duchen, or the Butter Lamp Festival. The pilgrims in this image are releasing prayer flags called 'wind horses' or lungtas, a ritual they perform during Losar and during the rest of the year as well. Upon releasing the prayer flags, the pilgrims ask the mountain deity to 'increase their fortune like the galloping of a horse and expand their prosperity like the boiling over of milk'. ( ©...

Malham's night sky, North Yorkshire, UK. Stars in the night sky Light pollution can cause trouble for astronomy enthusiasts who want to see the galaxy.  But for those who are preparing to go out in warm clothes on these dark winter nights, some of our national parks offer great views.  Our homepage picture was taken in the village of Malham in Yorkshire Dales National Park, which, along with North York Moore National Park, offers the best night sky in the UK. Now the fifth annual Dark Sky Festival, low-light pollution and clear vision provide future astronomers with the opportunity to see up to 2,000 stars at once without street lights.  In some places you can see our galaxy, the Milky Way, with the naked eye and through the park, you will get great views of the night sky.  There are also ghost walks, night pulls, moonlight canoeing, and mountain biking, which are suitable for those brave quasi-astronists, while others may want to relax and enjoy the sta...

Feature film scenes on screens in the mirror hall of the Deutsche Kinemathek at Potsdamer Platz, Berlin, Germany. A festival of film !!!! At the beginning of the Berlin International Film Festival, Berlinale for short, we will prepare you for this cultural highlight in the capital with a recording from the Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin.  While more than 400 feature films will be competing for the Golden Bear at the 70th Berlinale from February 20 to March 1, visitors to the Museum of Film and Television opened in 2000 can learn about the history of German film. In addition to a permanent exhibition, which also includes the "Hall of Mirrors" shown on our homepage, a whole series of special exhibitions are shown.  Numerous exhibits such as film posters, photos, film costumes, sound and written documents and props provide an excellent overview of film history.  During the Berlinale, special exhibitions will also be presented to accompany the film festival's retrosp...

"Statues of Louis Armstrong Park", New Orleans, Louisiana, USA Currently, New Orleans, Louisiana, is in the midst of New Orleans Mardi Gras.  A famous carnival in the United States alongside the Rio Carnival.  There will be a parade every day for about two weeks until the last day of the 25th… New Orleans is the home of jazz, home to Louis Armstrong, nicknamed Satchmo.  In the birthplace of jazz, there is a park named after him.  The Mardi Gras parade is accompanied by a jazz band, giving the sound of marching.

Aerial view of a little park on a snowy day in Toronto.

"Pluto shining on the crescent moon" NASA, New Horizons.

 The City of festivities and colors, Perth, Australia. If you're a travel junkie then it's that time of the year when you must visit Perth, the capital of Western Australia. The city is full of things that attract the tourists and provide a range of activities you will love to do here.  Perth is warm and sunny round the year, with cooling sea breezes in summer from December to February so mostly travelers visit during October–April. Perth is famous for its sandy beaches, the huge parks and the Botanic Garden, situated on the Mount Eliza which is a vantage point of the city. The city is snuggled among the banks of River Swan and the southwest coast. Perth is full of festivities, colors and merriment. In the day, you will enjoy the warm sun, the cool breeze of Sunset Coast and fishing at Boat Harbour and at night, you will be amused by music, theater and of course !!! FOOD. Perth is the heaven for foodies. It's the center of seafood restaurants. ...

The 2019 Lemon Festival in Menton, France.