Butterflies, beetles and dragonflies declining in Europe!

The Violet Copper Lycaena helle (Endangered) is a rare and threatened butterfly in Europe. Photo : Chris van Swaay

Habitat loss is having a serious impact on Europe’s butterflies, beetles and dragonflies, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said today. Nine percent of butterflies, 11 percent of saproxylic beetles (beetles that depend on decaying wood) and 14 percent of dragonflies are threatened with extinction within Europe, the Switzerland-based conservation organization said in a news release.

Read more on Vijay Barve’s Biodiversity India blog post here.

Download the section of the IUCN Red List on European butterflies here.

The situation is far worse in India. Even worse our scientific footprint is so weak, we don’t even have comparable data. God preserve my beloved country’s wildlife!

Image credit : IUCN. Displayed under “Fair use”.

The butterflydiaries ‘Scribbler’ awards go to….-

Avdi, she who brings eggs that be rotten to her feast, hath given me ye famous award.

The Superior Scribbler Award!

As is the case with awards, ye olde “you scratch my @%$e, I’ll scratch you%’$” rule applieth.

I hereby proclaim ye grande old rules for all to follow:-

Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass The Award on to five most deserving blog friends.

Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author and the name of the blog from whom he/she has received The Award.

Each Superior Scribbler must display The Award on his/her blog and link to the original post at The Scholastic Scribe which explains The Award.

Each blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award must visit the original post at The Scholastic Scribe and add his/her name to the Mr. Linky List. That way, we’ll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who wins This Prestigious Honor.

Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules to his/her blog.

Shince ve ar awl Indian and my blohg, excuz pliss, is of naturalist caste, you know…

So though I am enjaying sew menny good blogs – by penniless Roshmi-amma, Gilpa (Rosie)  Sharg, Mr farce, Miss-tedious Kadduji, LS didi, ty ‘notso’ nice, the finer noisy note and so menny udders…

the awards naturally going to these blogs…

(long roll of drumbeats….)

Madras Ramblings

There was a literary flowergirl of Madras
who had quite a cute little …  😉 blog
who wrote of birds and  things so passe
as a spider, plant, dragonfly and frog.

Rocksea & Sarah

With his lady love in Italy
Rocksea may enjoying be
but he hasn’t lost the knack
of describing nature or  scenery

Shtories & shtuff

“Mera Bharat is mahaan enough!”,
proclaims this naturalist undercover.
because of matunga-kaapi,  chai-shai, shtories and shtuff
but no mention of forgotten courser!

Anush Shetty’s journal

In Anush‘s Livejournal
you never know what are the new treats
photos, anecdotes, delights eternal
culture, running, tech-stuff, tweets

Small Wonders

Yuwaraj, photographer extra-fine
sneak previews nature’s party
records cute little colourful vignettes
and blog-posts them in Marathi

There, that be done, begone all of ye and propagate five little scribblers each….

The flowergirl and her birds

In the South Indian city of Madras
lives a sweet little nature-loving lass,
who rambled on about that city fair
And wrote about living things worthy of care.

One day, she got a bonnet in her bee;
She had just discovered the IATB,
where you find nice things that people had written
about our avian wonders; every reader was smitten.

Then she laboriously listed them in her post
of Madras Ramblings. What a sweet host!
For everyone to admire and to see.
All the publicity! That too for free!

What’s more it was all set to rhyme,

“Hurry up there, we have no time!”

Just to cut a short story long,
You’ll find there one of my song –
Of Spiny-tailed lizards and more than one raptor.

Never mind me, read her post!  Feel the rapture!