Interacting with giraffes

Giraffe Manor is a small hotel in the Lang'ata suburb of Nairobi, Kenya which, together with its associated Giraffe Centre, serves as a home to a number of endangered Rothschild giraffes, and operates a breeding programme to reintroduce breeding pairs back into the wild to secure the future of the subspecies.
History

The Manor was modelled on a Scottish hunting lodge, and was constructed in 1932 by Sir David Duncan, a member of the Mackintosh family of Mackintosh's Toffee fame on 150 acres (61 ha) of land running down to the Mbagathi River, the southern boundary of the city of Nairobi. In the 1960s the Manor was purchased by a local investor who leased it to a succession of people, including the late Dennis Lakin, before it fell into disrepair, unoccupied.

In 1974 the Manor was purchased by Betty Leslie-Melville and her husband Jock, along with 15 acres (6.1 ha) of the original 150 acres. Since then a further 60 acres (24 ha) of those have also been purchased, which along with an additional 40 acres gifted by Peter Beard which used to form part of his "Hog Ranch" has brought the total acreage of the Manor up to 115 acres (47 ha).

[edit] Life as a giraffe sanctuary

Shortly after purchasing the Manor, the Leslie-Melvilles learned that the only remaining Rothschild giraffes in Kenya were in danger due to a compulsory purchase by the Kenyan government of an 18,000-acre privately owned ranch at Soi, part of Lewa Downs, which was their sole habitat. Inevitably the purchase would result in the land being sub-divided into smallholdings, and the giraffes being slaughtered.[1]

Since the Manor was already home to three wild bull giraffes (nicknamed Tom, Dick and Harry), the Leslie-Melvilles agreed to rehome one of the giraffes, an eight-foot tall, 450-pound baby they named Daisy, about whom Betty subsequently wrote the book "Raising Daisy Rothschild", later turned into the film The Last Giraffe.[2]

Daisy was soon joined by another baby giraffe, Marlon (named after Marlon Brando), and since then the Manor, in conjunction with locations such as Woburn Safari Park in Bedfordshire, England, has run a breeding programme to reintroduce the Rothschild giraffe into the wild to expand the gene pool. At any one time the Manor has around a dozen giraffes in residence, although at present there are only eight,[3] and part of the land of the Manor is given over to the Giraffe Centre, run by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife, a charitable organisation set up by Jock Leslie-Melville in 1972.[4] By tradition the giraffes themselves are named after individuals who have contributed significantly (whether financially or otherwise) to the work of AFEW, such as Lynn, named for author and journalist Lynn Sherr, a giraffe devotee who wrote an entire book devoted to the creature.[5]


In 1983 Rick Anderson, Betty's son from her first marriage, and his wife Bryony, moved into the Manor, and a year later opened the Manor as a small, privately hosted hotel where guests could feed the giraffes from their breakfast table, through the front door, and out of their bedroom window. The Manor has six bedrooms, one of which is furnished with the belongings of Karen Blixen,[6] and all profits from the hotel go to furthering the charitable objectives of AFEW.

Over the years the Manor has welcomed guests such as Mick Jagger, Walter Cronkite (after whom one of the Manor's resident warthogs was named),[4] Johnny Carson, Brooke Shields and Richard Chamberlain, as well as hosting Richard Branson, Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman on the launch of Virgin Atlantic's London–Nairobi service in 2007.[7]

In March 2009 the Manor was purchased by Mikey and Tanya Carr-Hartley[8] and now forms part of the Tamimi group of lodges and hotels.[9]

The Natural History of Palm Trees

"The author of over 150 botanical titles, including the great flora of Brazil, Karl Friedrich Philipp von Martius also wrote the still-definitive three-volume treatise on the palm family, one of the first plant monographs. He developed his life-long fascination with palms during an expedition through Brazil [map] from 1817 to 1820, and he worked nearly 30 years to prepare this grand summation, including palms found only as fossils." [source]


All three volumes of 'Historia Naturalis Palmarum' are available at the Botanicus website from the Missouri Botanical Gardens. This lavishly illustrated series included systematic descriptions of all known species in the palm family (Arecaceae). The illustrations were produced by Martius himself and Ferdinand Bauer (among others).

The Living Bridges of Cherrapunji

It might sound like an exaggeration, but the root bridges of Cherrapunji are indeed alive. Unlike most parts of the world, these bridges are grown, not built.
Known as the wettest place on Earth, Cherrapunji is home to some of the most amazing plants. One of these is the Ficus elastica tree, a sort of rubber tree that grows a ind of secondary roots from higher up in the trunk. The War-Khasis, a local tribe, noticed this plant and realized its potential.

Using hollowed-out betel nut trunks, the tribesmen are able to direct the roots in whatever way they like. When the roots grow all the way across a river, they are allowed to return to the soil, and over time, a strong bridge is formed. It takes up to 10-15 years for a root bridge to develop, but it becomes stronger with each passing year and are known to last for centuries.

Boulders and stones are placed among the rubber tree roots for an easier crossing. The living root bridges of Cherrapunji are incredibly sturdy, able to sustain more than fifty people at a time.

The Incredible Doctor Fish Spa

Doctor Fish spas and skin treatment facilities are becoming more and more popular in countries like Japan, China, Turkey and across Europe. They use an amazing species of fish known as Garra rufa as a cosmetic beautifying treatment and as a cure for a variety of skin diseases. Garra rufa can be found in river basins around the Northern and Central Middle East, in countries like Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran, but it is now artificially bred in outdoor pools specifically for the spas.

The so-called Doctor Fish spas first appeared in Turkey, where people suffering from a terrible skin disease called psoriasis, from all around the world started coming for treatment. Psoriasis sufferers develop raised red patches on their body covered by grey, scaly skin, which is sore or very itchy. Fortunately the Garra rufa love to nibble on dead and diseased skin and as soon as the patients insert their limbs in the water, an army of these little guys start eating away the skin that’s been softened by the warm water. Doctor Fish can survive in waters as hot as 43 degrees Celsius, but nutrients can’t and their not fed either, so when somebody dips their feet in their pool, it’s a real treat.

Rainbow River

The Caño Cristales is a river of Colombia about 100 km long that is located in the Sierra de la Macarena. It was called the “River of five colors” or the most beautiful river in the world. Normally, the Caño Cristales is indistinguishable from another river. However, for a short period each year, thanks to its red, yellow, green and blue algae, the river "flourishes" in a rainbow of colors. It can be said that the river is the biological heritage of humanity.

Australia's coral reefs

Preemie deer

Meet a deer little handful called Rupert who was delivered by Caesarean section after his mother was killed by a car

He is growing up without a mother's love. But this tiny muntjac fawn appears to have a lucky streak nonetheless.

He was born three weeks early after his mother was hit by a car.

Vets battled to save her but she died soon afterwards.
Enlarge Rupert

Orphan: Muntjac fawn Rupert was delivered by Caesarean section after his mother was killed by a car. He was just six inches tall and weighed 500 grams

Enlarge Deer

Sleepy head: The male has short antlers, usually four inches or less, and uses them to push enemies off balance so he can wound them with his two-inch upper canine teeth. The small deer is also called the barking deer

The little orphan, delivered by Caesarean section, was just six inches tall and, at 500 grams, weighed little more than a bag of sugar.

It looked like he, too, would face a tough fight for survival.

But staff at Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital in Buckinghamshire believe Rupert, as he has been named, will make a full recovery after his dramatic arrival.

At five days old, he is being kept in an incubator and has just opened his eyes.
Enlarge deer

Wee thing: Rupert is growing into quite a handful. The muntjac grows to 37 inches in length, and weighs between 22 and 40lbs when fully grown

Les Stocker, founder of Tiggywinkles, said: 'Rupert's mother had very severe injuries. We brought him out and got him breathing and then he went into an incubator on oxygen. He is now being fed by a tube.'

'Deer are very, very tricky but this one has spirit. He's an extremely feisty little guy and quite pushy,' he added.

Muntjac are the oldest known deer, appearing 15-35 million years ago, with remains found in Miocene deposits in France and Germany.
Enlarge deer

First steps: An unspecified species of muntjac was introduced to the grounds of Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire in the 19th century by the then Duke of Bedford
Enlarge Deer

Alien species: Larger numbers of muntjac escaped from Whipsnade Zoo, and they are the more likely ancestors, in addition to other releases

The present-day species are native to south-east Asia and can be found from India and Sri Lanka to southern China, Taiwan, Japan and Indonesian islands.

Reeves's Muntjac has been introduced to England and is now common in some areas there.

Inhabiting tropical regions, the deer have no seasonal rut and mating can take place at any time of year.

However, this behaviour is retained by populations introduced to temperate countries.

Males have short antlers, which can regrow but they tend to fight for territory with their tusks.
Enlarge Deer

Widespread: Muntjac colonies exist throughout England below Derbyshire, and the population continues to grow. Small groupings of muntjacs have been seen in large urban parks in the Islington, Highgate, East Ham, Finchley and Greenwich areas of London

Kuroshio Sea

Kuroshio Sea - 2nd largest aquarium tank in the world - (song is Please don't go by Barcelona) from Jon Rawlinson on Vimeo.