Polar Bear Special

Polar bear

Scientific Name- Ursus maritimus (sea bear)

Range- Arctic Circle
Conservation Status- Vulnerable
Main Causes of Population Decline- Climate change, pollution, hunting, oil and gas development

Well, I think I succeeded in compressing the Wikipedia page on polar bears. Now, why a sudden article on polar bears? I'll get to that soon.
The last time I saw a polar bear was in the Singapore Zoo. Most probably, the bear I saw was Inuka, a 23 year old male. Inuka was the first polar bear to be born in the tropics. There were some issues regarding the well-being of this animal and plans were made to move it to a zoo in the temperates, this wasn't realized ultimately. It was here that I also heard that polar bears actually have black skin and colourless hair which looks white in the snow. Also, they can swim distances of 350 km or more for ten days straight!
There are no polar bears in India (to my knowledge), if you do a internet search for 'polar bear India' most entries will be for the ice cream company. The fact that they make delicious ice creams is besides the point. It is probably a good thing that there are no polar bears in India. Maintaining one in Indian climate will be terribly expensive and will require much attention. Unfortunately, India may not even have enough time and money to protect our national animal, the tiger. If we did have one, he probably would have been as sad as Arturo.
Arturo, a polar bear in Mendoza Zoo, Mendoza, Argentina, has been given the title of the 'World's saddest animal'. He is alone, in sweltering heat (35 degrees Celsius, that's boiling hot if you are a polar bear) and has a tiny pool of water to swim in (remember how much polar bears love swimming?).

http://www.change.org/petitions/please-allow-arturo-to-have-a-better-life-in-the-assiniboine-park-zoo-in-canada?recruiter=64066218&utm_campaign=signature_receipt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

Is a petition to send Arturo to a zoo in Canada, where he will be happier. Please sign it, it'll only take a few minutes.
So, that's the end of the Polar Bear Special, dedicated to Arturo.

Nandi Hills and Sparrows

Many cities all over India have thousands of these cheerful little birds everywhere. So did Bangalore.
cite - http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article1508480.ece
Apparently there still are sparrows in Bangalore. I never saw any.

Anyway, my friends and I went on a delightful trip to Nandi Hills and Chikkaballapur, a little more than an hour from Bangalore. To my surprise, there were sparrows EVERYWHERE, zipping in and out of peoples' houses while deftly avoiding the ceiling fan (a task my birds seem to never accomplish, resulting in a state of fan-deprivation in our living room when they are let in).

The topic of these bubbly avian beings was brought up, eventually, and I some how ended up mentioning my finches. These birds look almost the same to an untrained eye (which some of my friends undoubtedly possess). Unable to convince my companions that they were not the same (as I myself do not have a very well trained eye), I consulted the internet. This is what I found:-

1) While finches and sparrows share the same Superfamily, they come from different families. OK, now I am no bio-pro, therefore I don't know what the above statement really implies. So let's just conclude that they aren't the same.
2) Sparrows are slightly bigger than finches and have a relatively smaller beak. Plus finches are much more colourful. According to some website, finches are found only in North America while sparrows are found in Europe, North Africa and Asia.

As soon as I informed my mom about the numerous sparrows, she tried to convince me to bring some (50 nos.) over, attempting rehabilitation in Bangalore. I evidently was unable to do so. I do hope that one day they'll find our city worthy and come chirping back. My finches would love to meet their cousins.

Zebra Finch

Sparrow

First Post

Enough dormancy! Soon this blog will be filled with (I hope) posts on animals and other things that nibble your toes.