I love the ocean, and I also LOVE ocean birds. Birds are beautiful creatures, predator or prey. Here are some of my favorites. Birds of a feather!
Fab Photos Friday: Beach Birds of a Feather
Our Oceans are in Critical Danger…can you really make a difference?
Yes. You can. Each and every one of us can make a difference. How? By making small, but important, choices. Here are some easy examples of how you can start to make a difference:
1. Only eat sustainable and responsibly fished seafood. How do you know what is okay to eat? Go to http://www.seafoodwatch.org/, the app updated regularly by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and when you go out to eat…check to see which seafood on the menu is sustainable. The lists are separated by area of the country (or world), and given a Green, Yellow, or Red light. Red means the fish is critically overfished. Ever wonder why Red Snapper is hard to find these days? They’ve been overfished, and their populations have critically declined. You can read about it here, at NOAA Fishwatch. In some areas of the world it is okay to eat Snapper…fresh, line caught snapper….but in others, the populations are not sustainably fished. By using the SEAFOOD WATCH app, you can check which fishes are okay to eat, and which ones to avoid. Here is the worst cop out of all: well, it’s already dead so I might as well order it. It is the demand for it that drives over-fishing. When people realize that in order to eat Red Snapper in the future they must not order it now, our fisheries will recover. Until then, if it is on the Red List, don’t eat or order it!
2. Do not eat at restaurants that serve endangered animals. Do not eat at restaurants serving shark. Any kind of shark. Why? Sharks are endangered. If we lose our sharks, our oceans will collapse. That seems pretty dramatic, right? But it is true. Sharks have been around for 450 million years. They are the apex predator (except for humans) in the ocean. They keep marine populations in balance. Sharks tend to eat the older, sicker, slower members of a population, which keeps that population healthier. They keep populations in check, which protects other food sources in the ocean like grasses, plants, corals, mollusks, etc. The foodweb is a constant balancing act, and sharks are a keystone species, meaning that they must be in the ecosystem or that ecosystem will collapse. Sharks kill around 5 people a year. Humans slaughter 75 to 100 million sharks a year, mostly for their fins. For that matter, do not eat turtle, turtle soup, turtle eggs, etc. They are critically endangered!
3. When you travel, fly airlines that do not carry endangered species cargo. American Airlines just announced it will no longer carry shark fins as cargo! They join, just to name a few, Air New Zealand, Air Pacific, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Jet Airways, and United Airlines. Many, many carriers are joining the crusade to stop transporting ivory, rhino horns, shark fins, manta fins, sea turtles and other endangered species parts. Choose your airline based on this kind of criteria. If they contribute to the shark fin trade, do not fly them. And let them know why you won’t fly them. Use social media to chastise any transport of these endangered species parts.
4. When it comes to trading in endangered species, we know the major consumer is China. Other Asian countries are also consumers, but the heart and soul of the shark fin trade is in Hong Kong. The nation of China has stopped serving Shark Fin Soup at state functions…a huge leap forward! Hong Kong has recently followed suit. 95% of shark fins are consumed by Asian countries and go through Hong Kong. The trade is beginning to decline, but we have to keep up the pressure. Shangri-La Hotels and the Peninsula Hotel Group just announced they will no longer serve shark fin soup, bird’s nest, or black moss, all endangered. If you are traveling to Asia, ask the hotel if they sell shark fin soup, any ivory products, or anything with rhino horns. If they do, make the decision not to stay there, and let them know why. The USA is an offender…it has not yet banned shark fins! Tell your congressperson to outlaw trade or transport of shark fins!
5. Don’t buy Chinese medicines with rhino horn, shark liver, or any other endangered species ingredient. Believe me, no scientific study has ever shown that these ingredients cure disease or serve as an aphrodisiac. If there is no demand, the trade will collapse.
Do you know the extent that humans depend upon the ocean to live? The Nature Conservancy points out that the ocean absorbs 1/3 of human produced carbon-dioxide and supplies us with oxygen. Kelp, a plant from the ocean, is used to make salad dressing, dairy products, shampoos and medicines. Compounds from the coral reefs, plants and animals, help treat numerous diseases. Oceans produce 70% more goods and services into our economies and GDPs than land products. Each and every one of us needs the ocean healthy in order to survive. We all have a responsibility.
Rob Stewart, producer of the film Sharkwater, and Revolution, recently passed away while diving. His life was dedicated to the ocean, and it is tragic it was cut short. He said: “by 2050, we will live in a world with no reefs, no rainforests, no fish, and 9 billion hungry people.” You might not be here, but if you have children, they will. It is horrifying to think about how catastrophic living in that world would be. There are only a finite amount of resources, and we cannot keep allowing our population to grow without serious consequences to the quality of human life.
Start small, but start soon! If we all make small, good decisions, we can make a big difference. We must all begin now.
5 Reasons to Adventure Travel!
“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.” Terry Pratchett
I love to travel, I love to meet new people, see new things, experience new cultures. I am curious about everything, and excitable. I have never become jaded…I seek that thrill, that little something extra which waits around the corner. I realize that not everyone is a traveler, but you don’t have to go far to find some adventure or a new outlook!
1. Adventure takes you out of your comfort zone. Your comfort zone is…comforting, but it does not give you the opportunity to stretch yourself, to grow. It is important to challenge yourself, see something new. When you step out you achieve something…instead of stagnating you are moving, you are active. (Your comfort zone really does not exist, you know. It is a comforting illusion.)
2. Adventure can help you conquer your fears. It doesn’t have to be a big adventure. Afraid of water? Learn to swim! Afraid of heights? Climb a hill, or better yet, go to a vista point at the nearest national park. Fear is paralyzing…so get up and move. If not now, when?
3. Adventure introduces you to new people, or at least gets you out of your zone so you can observe active, adventurous, or different people! Head to the nearest lake and watch boaters, paddle boarders, kayakers, picnickers! Have you ever gone on a hike? How about to an art museum? I live in Dallas, and haven’t been to the Perot Museum yet! Shame on me.
4. Adventure introduces you to different cultures and new perspectives. The culture you live in isn’t the only one, you know! Ever thought about doing volunteer travel, especially abroad? These trips are not expensive, and you usually get all of your meals plus a place to stay. Airfare is reasonable to Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, and many other places. Volunteer travels can be eye opening and have a major impact on your life by showing you how others live, think, and do things. These volunteer trips are becoming more and more popular, and for good reason. I went on a volunteer holiday to Tofo, Mozambique in 2012, and I can tell you I learned more than I thought I possibly could, not only about Africa, but about myself. In September I’m volunteering in Ecuador, photographing manta rays for identification and study. I am so looking forward to it! There are trips for every taste, be it teaching children or diving or digging wells or teaching people skills for making a living. There are many ways to make a difference!
5. Adventuring can be a little scary, and that’s a good reason to do it! We fear what we don’t understand. Travel can educate you and make you see the world in an entirely different way. It challenges you to learn about yourself, to learn the history of other countries or peoples, and learning to understand, even if you don’t agree, is the path to knowledge, and hopefully, wisdom.
There are many ways to challenge your mind, body, ideas, and abilities. I have often traveled alone, but traveling alone to Mozambique was a completely empowering experience for me. I blogged about the trip in my blog categories Adventures in Mozambique and Dive Adventures in Tofo, Mozambique. Sometimes one sees things that are terribly upsetting, on my travels, and at home, I have learned how cruel the world can be. Everything is not always rosy, especially in the developing world. But there is beauty too…when you look. It opened my eyes, and also gave me confidence that I could achieve and go and do whatever I wanted to. Maybe a little travel, even if it is just an hour away, can do that for you as well.
My cousin in Ohio told me once that he had never been west of Indiana. He had no interest, he said, what else is there to see, what’s the point? I stood with my jaw hanging open, because I really was confounded. What else is there to see? An entire world, that’s what! If you are reading this blog, you must enjoy traveling, or want to travel, so I’m sure you can understand my complete astonishment! I think Mark Twain said it best:
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”
I have some favorite volunteer travel agents and agencies such as All Out Africa, Kaya Responsible Travel, the Giving Lens (a great volunteer program for photographers)….there are just so many! Get out there on Google and google away! Start by googling this: adult volunteer travel programs. Why not see the world and make a difference at the same time?
How to Find Ethical Elephant Tourism in Thailand
Everyone who travels to Thailand wants to trek with the Asian elephants who are advertised for trekking, riding, and shows. Elephants are highly revered in Thai and Buddhist traditions, and were used for warfare, much like horses in prior times. Elephants, thankfully, are no longer used for the logging industry in Thailand, as the country has been overlogged. At that time, the late 1980s, there were elephants and their “mahouts” (handlers, trainers, owners) who were suddenly without work. These mahouts began using their elephants to beg on the streets, they turned their elephants into trekking elephants with a box on the elephant’s back for people to sit in (these are very harmful to elephants as their backs are the weakest parts of their body), or training the elephants to perform in shows. The only safe way to ride an elephant (for the elephant) is to ride on their necks. There are still some mahouts who still work illegal logging camps on the border of Myanmar and Thailand, who give their elephants “speed” to make them work longer and faster, and who abuse their elephants with the tools of the mahout: chains, the thotti (hook), the valiya kol (long pole), and the cheru kol (short pole). These are the traditional tools used to “break” elephants, and to control them. The hook is particularly horrible, and if you see an elephant with scars, open sores, wounds…you’ll know it is being abused with the hook. Using the hook side of the tool is not necessary, regardless of what any mahout tells you, the elephant is hurt by it and it causes them pain and injury. Period.
Where once there were nearly 100,000 wild Asian elephants roaming the jungles of Asia, there are now about 2000 wild elephants left in Thailand. They are terribly endangered as their habitat has been so altered and destroyed; they migrate the same way they did for hundreds of years…only now there are farms in their way. Farmers do not hesitate to take action against elephants who threaten their crops. It is a tragedy that it is really not a question of IF the Asian elephant will go extinct, it is a question of WHEN. With only 2000 left in the wild, and approximately 2000 “domesticated” elephants in Thailand (including those in sanctuaries), it won’t be long until they are gone.
The elephant is a symbol of Thai Buddhism, and considered an animal who brings good luck. When I planned my trip to Thailand I very badly wanted to see and spend time with elephants, but I didn’t want to harm them. I did research, and among the excellent research I found Adore Animals blog on Ethical Elephant Tourism and another blog at Jdomb’s Travel which helped me understand what I needed to look for. Most sanctuaries are located in the Chiang Mai area, quite north of Bangkok, but I did find Elephant’s World in Kanchanaburi City, 3 hours from Bangkok. 3 hours is not super close, especially when you only have 5 days, but Alexandra, my daughter, and I were determined to spend time volunteering with elephants, and it was a enriching, wonderful experience.
Elephant’s World was founded in 2008 by Dr. Samart Prasithpol (head of the Department of Livestock of Kanchanaburi province) to function as a ‘retirement home’ for elephants who were too old to work, too injured, or too ill. Elephant’s World works FOR the elephants, to give them a peaceful, happy life. The elephants at Elephant’s World are well cared for, and enjoy a day of feeding, dusting themselves, playing in the mud, being fed some more, and then, having a lovely wash and dip in the river. (Meet the elephants here.)
Our day began with a 3 hour drive to the sanctuary, then we met and talked with the volunteers about the elephants. The volunteers were very like those I worked with in Mozambique, mostly young adults who want to see the world and make a real difference, so volunteer tourism is a great way for them to travel. I wish more American young adults would do this type of traveling. We started by learning the structure of the day, then we were given a huge basket of fruits to feed Lam Duan, a female elephant who is about 57 years old who was used in the logging industry, then as a trekking elephant. She is completely blind, and likes to be fed directly in her mouth instead of using her trunk. She also does not like to be stroked or touched. Lam Duan has obviously been worked far too much, and because she is blind she is not readily accepted by the other elephants. Elephants in the wild live in family groups and have deep emotional bonds…but elephants who are in sanctuaries lost their families long ago, and sometimes do not care for other elephants around them. Lam Duan is kept away from most of the others. A mahout would use a hook if Lam Duan was attacked by another elephant (which has happened) but mostly she just stays away from the group. She does like John, a small 7 year old bull who loves to play. Poor John was separated from his mother far too young, and seems to think that he should be able to make little elephants with the 50 and 70 year old matriarchs around him! They seem to just brush him off, but he does get excited!
During the volunteer day one feeds, makes sticky rice balls with protein powder and veggies for the elephants to eat (they eat A LOT). Then you enjoy the show as the elephants have a mud bath, which they really enjoy. After that, it is time for the river, and swimming with the elephants! What an incredible privilege to swim around an elephant, and to climb up on its neck for a ride and a dunk. The elephants really love their river swim and bath! After their baths, once again we fed them baskets of fruit. We fed an elephant who used her trunk, and it was so incredible! The elephant trunk has more muscle in it than the human body does. Isn’t that amazing? They grab that food and stuff it in their mouths very quickly, and if you don’t stuff food in the trunk, the trunk comes looking for you!
Our day ended after feeding time, but there is one thing I want everyone to know: the sanctuary is trying very hard to raise the money to build a fence to keep the elephants out of the sugar cane of neighboring farmers. Until that fence can be built, the elephants have to be chained when they are not being active. They need $20,000.00 to build that fence. Here is the link to donate: http://elephantsworld.org/en/donate. Be sure and let them know Travels with Tam sent you! It really is a good cause…these poor elephants have suffered so terribly, and it would be such a gift to them to be able to roam instead of be chained. I very much encourage you to give, even if it is just a few bucks! You can also volunteer, whether for a day or a month or a year. What a great experience! Do check out Elephant’s World in Thailand! It was one of the best days of my trip to Thailand, and Alexandra felt the same.
One final request: should you go to Asia, please avoid the touristy trekking and shows with elephants and choose Ethical elephant tourism. We can all help make change in our world with just simple, good choices. The “nellys” (nellyphants) will thank you!
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