Jenna: Hi there, Fanimals! We have so many holidays to cover this week, so let’s jump right in. The most widely known holiday from these past two weeks was probably Father’s Day. We want to say “Happy Father’s Day” to all of the Fanimal fathers out there. Amazingly, LiveKindly reported that about six million dads will celebrate their special day with vegan meals in place of meat. These dads, dubbed “mindful millennial dads” by Meatless Farm, are certainly paving the way for a more sustainable future.
AJ: We have two more holidays to highlight from the last two weeks. June 21 was World Giraffe Day and the Giraffe Conservation Foundation has shared some ways we can all be involved, even from home. You can also learn more about giraffes and animal-related topics from the organization’s environmental education video series. Lastly, June 22 was World Rainforest Day. This holiday has a growing importance as deforestation increasingly threatens wildlife. Mongabay elaborates on the holiday here.
Jenna: After the terrifying fires rampaged throughout Australia’s wildlands, the platypuses of Tidbinbilla park were left homeless and malnourished. The New York Times explains that, worried that the platypuses would die without their ponds, the officials from the reserve contacted Targa Zoo. After extensive rehabilitation and examinations, these platypuses are ready to tackle the wild again. Miraculously, the very pond they lived in where habitable due to flash floods refilling them and testing negative for harmful fire retardants. Dr. Bino warns that increasing climate change could make these rescues occur regularly unless something can be done.
AJ: Now, hummingbirds can pull off some amazing aerial acrobatics, but did you know that they can also see colors that we cannot? Humans can only see a small scale of colors compared to what natural UV light can produce. According to The New York Times, hummingbirds have the ability to use their wide range of colors to identify food sources.
Jenna: Here’s another amazing animal adaptation that is used to find food. Dolphins have the ability to adapt and problem solve due to their high intelligence. According to this article by New York Times, Some small fish are dolphins’ favorite food, but catching these fish is not an easy task as they are slippery and fast. Recently, dolphins have been observed chasing these fish into large shells and using their beaks to snatch them into their mouth. This behavior is turning into a trend as dolphins adopt tactics they see other dolphins succeed with.
AJ: On to an important topic that is relevant to dog owners everywhere. As anyone with a dog should know, heat can have a big impact on a dog’s health. NBC News explains that as summer heats up, some dog breeds are more vulnerable to heat stroke. Chow chows, bulldogs, dogue de bordeaux, are among the top breeds at risk. The article also stated that chow chows are 16 times more vulnerable to heat strokes than labradoodles. Make sure you keep the outdoor temperature in mind as you and your dog enjoy the summer sun.
Jenna: We’ll end this week with a study covered in a Faunalytics article highlighting the welfare of elephants involved in Thailand’s tourism industry. Researchers studied ways to provide elephants with better lives through suggested operations and processes. Related to this article, Dr. Carol Kline, Fanimal’s founder, collaborated with Nora Livingstone from Animal Experience International and Carolyn Ray from Journeywoman to give a webinar on ethical traveling when it comes to animals in tourism. Find the webinar here.
AJ: Check out the webinar and the rest of the articles, and tell us what you think! Talk to us on our Facebook page; we’d love to hear from you. See you next week.
This week’s animal news:
Australian Mouse Feared Extinct After Fires Found Alive from Smithsonian Magazine
Dogs can get heatstroke, too. Here’s which breeds are most at risk. from NBC News
Hundreds of animals need new homes after zoo forced to close from Independent
MSPs Ban Unlicensed Culling of Mountain Hares from BBC
Forest loss escalates biodiversity change from ScienceDaily
African lion counts miss the mark, but new method shows promise form ScienceDaily
Hummingbirds Navigate an Ultraviolet World We Never See from The New York Times
The Return of the Platypuses from The New York Times
See How Dolphins Learn This Eating Trick from The New York Times
A US dog and dolphin have been best friends for 8 years and have the adorable photos to prove it from Business Insider
Cloud cuckoo land? How one bird’s epic migration stunned scientists from The Guardian
KEEP [Environmental Education] Videos from Giraffe Conservation Foundation
‘Extinct’ Harlequin Toad Rediscovered; Such Survivors Are Bringing Hope That Amphibian Apocalypse is Abating from Good News Network
World Rainforest Day: The world’s great rainforests from Mongabay
‘It’s a success’: Pangolins return to a region where they were once extinct from Mongabay
The Dangers Of ‘Biofouled’ Ocean Plastic from Faunalytics
Sea turtles can carry more than 100,000 tiny animals on their shells from National Geographic
Vegan Cheese Industry Projected to Increase by Nearly 300 Percent by 2030 from VegNews
Canada Just Invested $100 Million Into Vegan Meat from LiveKindly
6 Million Dads to Eat Vegan on Father’s Day from LiveKindly
Memory Like An Elephant: Improving Conditions for Elephants in Tourism from Faunalytics
Thank you to John Delconte for sending in articles.
Photo credit to Gary Bendig from Unsplash
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