On Free Range Free Chat it’s all animals all the time, not just mammals and not just reptiles and not just amphibians, it’s the animal kingdom outside and inside your house. Since Spring is about upon us, I’m thinking about butterflies and moving on from there. . . .How are the critters in your neck of the woods?
Overall eastern monarchs have declined by more than 80% over the past two decades.
“Monarchs are the face of the wildlife extinction crisis where even once common species could now disappear. They need us because if we don’t act now to save them, monarch migrations will collapse and that would be morally unforgivable,” said Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity.
The eastern monarch population is made up the butterflies east of the Rocky Mountains and accounts for roughly 99% of all North American monarchs. They migrate each winter to oyamel fir forests on high-elevation mountaintops in central Mexico. Scientists estimate the population size by measuring the area of trees turned orange by the clustering butterflies. That population has been dangerously low since 2008.
In other news: What’s going on with the Manatees? And how are the turtles affected by the oil spill along the Israeli coast?
Some of the sea turtles that were left cold-stunned by a winter storm in Texas were released back into the ocean on February 22. In all, about 5,000 sea turtles were rescued from the cold snap which hit Texas from Feb. 13- 17, 2021. Credit: Texas Sealife Center via Storyful
Remember last week when Newsmax spent an entire segment criticizing Champ? That didn’t go over well on social media…Others took the opportunity to remind people that just days before, Republican Ted Cruz reportedly left his poodle Snowflake behind in Texas – which was dealing with freezing temperatures and power outages – to jet off with his family to Cancun, Mexico.
Brian Williams, host of MSNBC’s The 11th Hour, also took issue with Newsmax for the Champ segment. “Think of it this way: If Champ were to meet Greg Kelly, he would probably love Greg Kelly unconditionally,” Williams said in part. “That’s what dogs do. Probably also why there are no dogs anchoring Newsmax.”
Update: Lady GaGa’s two dogs were returned safely by a woman who said she found them tied to a pole. Police are saying she was not involved with the robbery, but her name has not been released. No word on the reward. The dog walker walking the dogs was shot once in the chest and is expected to recover fully.
Sources: Huffington Post and Center for Biological Diversity
