Jun
03

This is one seriously awesome little pup. “After a cyclist gave her food during a cross-country race through China, Xiao Sa, a little stray dog with a really big heart, followed the cyclists 1,100 miles across very rough terrain.  The incredible journey of Xiao Sa began on the streets of Yajiang, Sichuan province. Zhang Heng, a 22-year-old student from Hubei, was on a graduation cycling trip to Lhasa, when he saw the small dog lying tired on the street. He and his friends stopped to feed her, and the pooch started following them. At first, they thought she was just doing it for fun and would give up when she got tired, but the dog stuck with them day and night, and the guys felt she really wanted to go with them, so they decided to take her along to the end. It turns out the cyclists were right, Xiao Sa really wanted to accompany them on their trip, and she showed incredible determination over the 20 days she ran alongside her new-found friends, all the way to Lhasa, Tibet. She traveled a total of 1,138 miles, climbed ten mountains over 4,000 meters high, and ran on uphill sections where many bikers prefer to take the bus. The only portion of the journey where Xiao Sa didn’t have to run was on a steep slope in Litang, where downhill speeds reach 70 km per hour, which made it impossible to catch up. So the cyclists made a cage for her and gave Sa a ride to the bottom, where she resumed her journey on foot. Seven days after they met their small fluffy companion, the cyclists opened a microblogging account for her. Called “Go Go Xiao Sa”, the webpage got over 37,000 visits in two weeks, and about 4,000 comments when the group posted a photo in front of Potala Palace, in Lhasa. Her story went viral, and other cyclists traveling along the same route reported meeting Xiao Sa on their journey. They said she was very smart and never got lost even when they passed through mountains, and never seemed to get tired, even when she ran up to 60 km a day, all uphill. Upon completing their 20-day journey to Lhasa, Zhang He, the man who fed her in Yajiang, called her “a buddy and a friend” and said he ‘would like to take the dog home and take care of her. She has been a stray on the road for a long time.’” Visit Oddity Central or BBC News to watch video of Xiao Sa running her heart out along with the competing cyclists. We were cheering her on in a matter of seconds. And it sounds like Zhang He has made a friend for life.

This is one seriously awesome little pup. “After a cyclist gave her food during a cross-country race through China, Xiao Sa, a little stray dog with a really big heart, followed the cyclists 1,100 miles across very rough terrain. 

The incredible journey of Xiao Sa began on the streets of Yajiang, Sichuan province. Zhang Heng, a 22-year-old student from Hubei, was on a graduation cycling trip to Lhasa, when he saw the small dog lying tired on the street. He and his friends stopped to feed her, and the pooch started following them. At first, they thought she was just doing it for fun and would give up when she got tired, but the dog stuck with them day and night, and the guys felt she really wanted to go with them, so they decided to take her along to the end.

It turns out the cyclists were right, Xiao Sa really wanted to accompany them on their trip, and she showed incredible determination over the 20 days she ran alongside her new-found friends, all the way to Lhasa, Tibet. She traveled a total of 1,138 miles, climbed ten mountains over 4,000 meters high, and ran on uphill sections where many bikers prefer to take the bus. The only portion of the journey where Xiao Sa didn’t have to run was on a steep slope in Litang, where downhill speeds reach 70 km per hour, which made it impossible to catch up. So the cyclists made a cage for her and gave Sa a ride to the bottom, where she resumed her journey on foot.

Seven days after they met their small fluffy companion, the cyclists opened a microblogging account for her. Called “Go Go Xiao Sa”, the webpage got over 37,000 visits in two weeks, and about 4,000 comments when the group posted a photo in front of Potala Palace, in Lhasa. Her story went viral, and other cyclists traveling along the same route reported meeting Xiao Sa on their journey. They said she was very smart and never got lost even when they passed through mountains, and never seemed to get tired, even when she ran up to 60 km a day, all uphill.

Upon completing their 20-day journey to Lhasa, Zhang He, the man who fed her in Yajiang, called her “a buddy and a friend” and said he ‘would like to take the dog home and take care of her. She has been a stray on the road for a long time.’”

Visit Oddity Central or BBC News to watch video of Xiao Sa running her heart out along with the competing cyclists. We were cheering her on in a matter of seconds. And it sounds like Zhang He has made a friend for life.

Source odditycentral.com

These pictures give a rare insight into the secret lives of tiny harvest mice (Micromys minutus). Photographers Jean-Louis Klein and Marie-Luce Hubert spent one year in Alsace, France photographing the adorable little creatures in a project that saw them released from captivity into the wild.

The harvest mouse is only two or so inches tall, but it’s adapted well to the reeds, wheat fields and other tall vegetation in its homeland thanks to its amazing acrobatic skills. Just look at his amazing prowess.

“The feet are specially adapted for climbing, with the outer of the five toes on each foot being large and more-or-less opposable,” writes University of Michigan’s Francesca Ivaldi. “This mouse can grip a stem with each hindfoot and its tail, leaving the forepaws free for collecting food. It can also use its tail for balance as it scurries along long grass stems.”

Visit Telegraph.co.uk to see many more wonderful photos of these awesome little creatures by Jean-Louis Klein and Marie-Luce Hubert!

[via Neatorama]

Source neatorama.com

Christopher of Colossal shared these photographs by Shikhei Goh, who lives and works on a small industrialized island called Batam Island, which is a 45 minute boat ride south of Singapore. Goh calls himself a “macro addict” and indeed his portfolio is loaded with incredible photographs of the local flora and fauna of Batam from turtles, lizards, birds and especially insects. We agree with Christopher who said,  ”My favorite images are his intimate shots of insect eyes that appear metallic and almost robotic.” So awesome! See more of Shikhei Goh’s fantastic photos over on 500px.

[via Colossal]

Source thisiscolossal.com

Jun
02

“Flamingos aside, you do not get to see the color pink in the animal kingdom a great deal. A notable exception is the pink katydid. Yet this is by no means a separate species – this coloring affects around one in 500. You may have already guessed that the condition is something similar to albinism.

Known as erythrism, the condition causes a curious reddish pigmentation. It can affect the body of an insect as well as its skin, and it is so rare that it was not noticed by western scientists until 1887. The reason for this oversight was perhaps due to the inclination of the insect to remain perfectly still during daylight hours.

You may also be wondering where this insect got its unusual name. It sounds like a scientific designation but in fact it comes from the noise that the insect makes which forms a song of sorts - katy did katy did katy did. There are literally thousands of species of katydids and many look like leaves or other shrubbery, some have even evolved to look like slime mold.”

Visit The Ark in Space to learn more about and view more wonderful photos of pretty pink katydids. These two were photographed by Richard Whitby (top) and janetandphil (bottom).

[via Neatorama]

Source neatorama.com