Life
of a Coleopteron
Beetles inhabit nearly the entire
planet. They have one important thing in common: the
hard wing shell that gives them their armored appearance.
But beyond that, beetles are one of the most diverse
families that exist. One other thing they share is
their ''official'' name: they belong to the order
''coleoptera.''
''The beetles are the largest
order including more species known to science than
any other order not only in the Class of Insecta,
but also in the entire animal kingdom (Animalia)...
beetles constitute more than a quarter of all known
animals,'' reports a website based in St.
Petersburg.
Since ancient times beetles have
formed a part of human culture. People have studied
them and copied them in forming mythology, adornments
and even fairytales. Even old Aesop
used them in his fables.
Some beetles are famous for their
incandescent colors, others for the extraordinary
designs that adorn their wings. Some stand out
because of their strength, and others due to their
ability to survive, often for years, in the most adverse
conditions.
One Internet site affirms there
are 140 to 173 different species. Their diversity
is evident, for example, in size: there are some that
measure just 25 millimeters and others that reach
more than 10 centimeters.
Their omnipresence on Earth even
includes the Internet, where beetles are the stars
of digital
games, or simply the theme of unassuming directories.
Beetles
and coleopterists
Coleoptera
site
Aesop's
Fables: The eagle, the hare and the beetle
Digital
games, 3-D, etc.
Coleoptera,
info and photos
Beetles
illustrated
Directory
of beetle sites
The
Bug Page: Beetles
Armored
Mammals
To find this unique animal on
the Internet, try using some of the different names
people have given them: armadillo, mulita, quirquincho,
tatú, cachicamo. These words are used in different
countries and regions to describe one of the strangest
inhabitants of the Americas: an armored mammal.
From the scientific point of
view, it has another designation: it forms part of
the Edentata order and the Dasypodidae
family. There are more than 20 different armadillo
species living at different latitudes of North and
South America, and exhibiting different habits, though
all share the characteristic shell, which is made
of a bone and horn.
Armadillos or quirquinchos inhabited
South America some 50 million years ago. There are
numerous fossil remains that indicate their presence,
as well as their now-extinct relatives, like the glyptodont.
The animal's strange appearance amazed the first Europeans
who saw them, but the armadillo had by then had already
enriched the knowledge of indigenous peoples.
This mammal is somewhat elusive.
But it is easy to detect them in our culture: in tales
and legends from places such as Peru,
Mexico
and Bolivia.
The shell of the quirquincho has been used to create
the 'charango,'
a stringed instrument originating in Bolivia. And
in some areas, this species is considered a delicious
main dish.
Today, different armadillo species
can be found from southern Chile to the lower half
of the United States. Their presence in North America
dates back to the mid-1800s, and in some places, such
as Texas, they are so abundant that many people consider
them a plague.
But in other regions there are
armadillo species that are on the verge of extinction,
whether from over-hunting or from the destruction
of their habitat. That is the problem facing the giant
armadillo of Brazil.
Armadillo
Online
The
World of the Armadillo
Armadillos
invade the United States
Armadillos
in Texas
The
Other World
Oceans and seas represent an
endless mystery. Their waters cover most of the planet
and provide 99
percent of the inhabitable space for living beings
- in other words, plants and animals - in a world
that we, perhaps ironically, call 'Earth.'
On Earth, or land, coastlines
represent a frontier to the great beyond that is only
partially known, where deep-sea explorations pose
as many challenges as those of outer space as humans
seek knowledge and opportunity. Science assures us
that life first formed in the oceans, and some visionaries
believe it is in the oceans that we will find the
key to humanity's future - for starters, as a provider
of resources.
Oceans are usually associated
with enormity, given their dimensions and the stunning
biodiversity they hold in their saline waters. Nevertheless,
they face grave threats. Their chief enemies are pollution
and over-exploitation through activities that originate
on land.
The relationship of our civilization
with the oceans is marked by their unavoidable presence
in our lives, the center of numerous human activities,
and of many cultures, vocabularies and adventures.
And now also because of the initiatives to defend
the quality of the environment.
The planet, according to human
geography, has three oceans and 18
seas, each with a regionally defined vocation.
''The sea unites nations instead of dividing them,''
affirms the executive director of the United Nations
Environment Program (UNEP), Klaus Topfer, referring
to the need to work
together to prevent their degradation.
Those who want to navigate the
oceans, but via the Internet, can embark on an adventure
through the following websites,
surfing the fascinating world of water and learning
about the urgent need to prevent its destruction.
Ocean
Planet, Smithsonian Institute
Inter-Governmental
Oceanography Commission, UNESCO
International
Year of the Ocean - 1998
Regional
Seas, United Nations Environment Program
Global
Program of Action for the Protection of the Marine
Environment (UNEP)
Ocean
Information Sources
The
Oceans as Seen from Space
Ocean
Information Center
Ocean
Pilot (directory), UNESCO
Tsunami
Temperatures
Rising
When we try to conceptualize
''the greenhouse effect'' we can think about it like
this: a layer of gases that envelopes the Earth's
atmosphere and traps the energy emitted by the planet.
It is a natural phenomenon, but a new reality has
become evident over the last few decades - the greenhouse
effect has gone beyond its normal parameters because
of human activity.
The emission of greenhouse gases
can be attributed to naturally occurring fires or
volcanic eruptions. But in the 20th century the major
source has been the combustion processes created by
our civilization, largely those involving the burning
of fossil fuels, whether by factories or automobiles.
The problem with an abnormal
greenhouse effect is that it leads to planetary climate
change, in our case global warming. Scientists
predict temperature variations that may seem minimal
- a few degrees Celsius - but they are enough to gravely
damage the Earth's ecosystems.
This phenomenon has triggered
worldwide alarm. The nations of the world have been
convened to take an active role in a United Nations-sponsored
Framework Convention
on Climate Change, and to sign the Kyoto
Protocol, an agreement intended to counteract
the greenhouse effect and its potentially devastating
consequences.
Industrialized countries, which
are the principal energy consumers, are being asked
to take the lead in curbing greenhouse gas
emissions.
The executive director of the
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Klaus Topfer,
has stated that the greatest threat confronting humanity
today is that our economic activities are causing
global warming.
Some of the consequences scientists
predict are the melting of polar ice caps, rising
sea levels, and even the disappearance or massive
migration of species. And some of these ''symptoms''
are already evident.
Tierramérica:
Climate Change
Map
of greenhouse gas emissions
UNEP.net
explains the greenhouse effect and climate change
Convention
on Climate Change - Official Site
Kyoto
Protocol
What
is the greenhouse effect?
Cattle
also contribute to global warming
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