Leaderboard
728x15

idool Columpios en el parque - Juegos y Juguetes Infantiles

Cool Toy Animals images

A few nice toy animals images I found:

"Toys of Christmas Past"
toy animals

Image by brizzle born and bred
Did you know that toys and games have been part of childhood for thousands of years? As early as 4000 B.C. (before Christ), games became a source of entertainment. At that time, people of Babylon played a game that preceded the present day game of chess.

4000 BC - A Babylonian game, which is the ancestor of modern draughts begins to be played

3000 BC - First Game resembling modern Backgammon is played in Sumeria.

2000 BC - Stone marbles first used in Egypt.

1000 BC - Kites appear in China. Stone Yo-Yos begin to be used in Greece

600 BC - An ancestor of chess called ‘Chaturanga’ is played in India.

1759 - Roller skates are invented by Joseph Merlin.

Victorian Era - Victorian children had fewer toys than you have today. Poor Children - Poor families made their own, such as cloth-peg dolls and paper windmills. Children would save their pocket money to buy marbles, a spinning top, skipping ropes, kites or cheap wooden toys.

Rich Children had rocking horses with real horse hair manes, and dolls houses full of beautifully-carved miniature furniture. Other popular toys for rich children included china or wax dolls for the girls and clockwork train sets for the boys. Girls played with dolls and tea sets whilst boys played with toy soldiers and marbles.

During Victorian times, people became fascinated by toys that made pictures move. One of the earliest and simplest of these was the thaumatrope. This is a disc with a picture on either side that is attached to two pieces of string or a stick. When you spin the disc quickly, the two pictures appear to combine into one.

1901 - Meccano goes on sale in the UK. Invented by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, it captures the spirit of the age with a challenging construction toy. One of the century's leading toy makers and creator of Hornby train sets (1920, and see 1925) and Dinky Toys, Hornby died in 1936.

1902 - In the USA, the Teddy Bear is created by a Russian emigrants Morris MiTchtom who had seen a report of US President Teddy Roosevelt who declined to shoot a bear cub while out hunting. Clifford Berryman's celebrated newspaper cartoon captured this moment and Mitchcom launched his range of "Teddy" bears in his Brooklyn shop. German toymaker, Margarete Steiff began making jointed toy animals including bears, and they were also able to cash in on the teddy bear craze in the USA, which spread worldwide.

1903 - Edwin Binney & Harold Smith patent the first ‘Crayola’ crayons.

1908 - Plasticine goes on sale.

1909 - Kewpie Doll-devised by Rosi O’Neill patented in 1935

1910 - Daisy Air Rifles go on sale.

1914 - Tinker Toys - interlocking construction toy.

1914 - Frank Hornby manufactures ‘0 Gauge’ Clockwork model trains

1925 - The first electric ‘Hornby’ train appears..Hornby produce the first electric train sets in the world.

1928 - Mickey Mouse is created by Walt Disney. The licensed toy is born. Dolls from 1930

1929 - Duncan Yo-Yo’s are first launched in Los Angeles when Frank Duncan saw waiters from the Philippines playing with their tradit-ional Yo-Yo. It can be traced back to Ancient Greece - in the Philippines it was a weapon (like a boomerang) for hunting and war until later it became a sporting item then later a plaything. In 1930 Frank Duncan brought over demonstrators to Europe to play the music halls - and the craze took off.

1930 - Charlotte Cla in the USA starts making Micky Mouse dolls based on the first Disney cartoon first screened in 1928.

1932 - US architect, Alfred Butt begins work on what will become the board game, Scrabble. He calls it Lexico. (See 1940) In Denmark, Ole Kirk Christiansen started his Lego toy company. Lego means 'play well' in Danish. (leg godt). Later he discovered Lego in Latin means 'to put together'.

1934 - Corgi starts to manufacture toy cars and other models. In 1965 their model Aston Martin from the first James Bond film became the very first BATR Toy of the Year.

1935 - Monopoly arrives in the UK. Invented in the USA by Charles Darrow in 1933, patent filed 31st August 1935 while on sale in America. It was made under licence in the UK by Waddingtons. Darrow died in 1967.

1935 - Minibrix made by the Premo Rubber Co. using the studs and cavity device which paved the way for plastic interlocking bricks pioneered by Hilary Page in the 1940s.

1943 - Richard James, researching a suspension device develops the Slinky. It goes on sale in 1945.

1948 - Criss Cross Words invented by Alfred Butt (originally Lexico) fails to sell well and is sold to James Brunot who changes the name to Scrabble. Sales average just 8,000, but from 1953 - 55 it suddenly takes off - sales reach 4.5million sets.

1949 - Leeds-based Waddington's produces mystery board-game, Cluedo. This year (1999) it celebrated its 50th birthday.

1949 - Ole Christiansen, invents Lego bricks. Just six bricks will fit together in 102,981,500 ways !

1950 - Disney's latest release, Cinderella, spawns toy products. Meanwhile, Disney was telling the toy industry to gear up for their next full-length cartoon, Alice in Wonderland, out in 1951. Popular Toys: a wind-up Cinderella dancing doll (with Prince) and Palitoy's Archie Andrew Ventro Doll...Minibrix, 'the world's finest toys' from Dean & Son, Flying Saucer from Cascelloid, Electric Contact Quiz - 'lights up your party - mysterious, unique, amusing' - claims the makers, Spears. Other events: First Toy Fair in Harrogate. First meeting of the NATR - the toy retailers association.

1951 - best selling toys: Alice (from Alice in Wonderland film), Talking Eggs from Selcol with a crank-handle to make Humpty Dumpty squeak (6/9d) - about 32p...Muffin the Mule push-along toy by Kohnstam...Kiddicraft's 'Sensible' range of cot and pram toys designed by Hilary Page.

1951 - A Muffin The Mule push-along toy is the best seller this year.

1952 - Mr Potato Head is launched. Jack O’dell creates the first Matchbox car.

1952 - Popular toys: Crazy Ball from Louis Marx...Negro dolls from Pedigree called Mary Lou and Dixie...Flop: Loopo, a game with a ball and small hand-held loop promoted as 'the sensation of the year'...Lines Brothers, Britain's largest toymaker celebrated its 70th birthday...

1953 - A ‘Little Princess’ doll designed by Norman Hartnell is launched to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

1953 - Pedigree launch dolls with 'flesh-like' vinyl plastic heads with 'hair that grows out of their heads!' using a "Angela, the doll with magic flesh" - it also has 'sleeping' eyes and lashes. Another pedigree doll out this Coronation year, is Little Princess dressed by Norman Hartnell...retailers read for the first time that out-of-town shopping centres are being tried out in the USA...Dean's Rag Books are 50 years old...New Toys: Flower pot Men based on the TV series. Wembley - the football board game, Keywords (from Waddingtons) which has some similarities to Scrabble. Novelty Toys: Atom Bomber with A-bombs with automatic releases, and Slinky, the toy that slithers down steps - still a big seller to this day.

1954 - Sooty appears on TV and turns out to be an actual Chad Valley glove puppet...sales soar. The British Toy & Hobby Association hold their first Toy Fair in Brighton. New Toys: Dan Dare Rota Spinner for the beach...and at Christmas: Matchbox vehicles, Painting By Numbers. Scrabble arrives.

1955 - Scrabble sold in the UK by Spears begins to grow in popularity. Scoop from Waddingtons challenges.

1956 - New Game: Beat the Clock (Spears) based on the game on TV's Sunday Night at the Palladium...Flops: New Footy Table Soccer as recommended by Stanley Matthews, and Newcrikit , recommended by Freddie Trueman...the Corgi Model Club formed...Triang T-T Gauge trains launched...Radio comedian (and chairman of Chad Valley) Kenneth Horne is seen on TV trying out the new Rise'n'Shine shaving kit and beauty shop - the first seen on TV...and the launch of the sputnik inspires the Bleep Bleep satellite toy.

1956 - A Mr B. Francis puts small electric motors in his scale models of cars and ‘Scalectrix’ is born.

1957 - Combex brings out the Sooty toothbrush flute...and following the Disney film's release, a rash of Davy Crockett hats and toys.

1958 - New: The Hula - Hoop arrives! 20 million sold in the first year. Scalextric electric model racing first introduced...but whatever happened to Pictorama which can create 14 million different combinations of pictures? It's the 50th birthday for Plasticine...and Frisbees (invented 1957 at the Frisbee Pie Factory) compete for attention.

1959 - Barbie is created by Ruth Handler, and is named after her daughter Barbara.

1959 - Stanley Matthews endorses Frido playballs. Selling well: Matchbox's Scammel Breakdown truck, Board Games: Careers, and Wack-O (based on Jimmy Edward's TV series)

1960 - For the first time, the Brighton Toy Fair allows imported toys to be shown. The craze that swept France, Loopyloop is predicted to sweep Britain...it doesn't...Lego is seen at the Toy Fair for the first time...plastic kits dominate the market and toy market (at retail) is worth £85m through 11,000 outlets.

1961 - A mini-boom in costume dolls...Airfix launch their Betta Bilda sets at 10 shillings each (50p)...Fuzzyfelt bring out Noddy finger puppets, Scalextrics slot car racing sets, and trains are amongst this year's top sellers.

1962 - Tipped as the craze of the year, Airtoy's Spinning Satellite...it isn't. Dinky launch Ford Fairlane, Corgi offer a model Silverstone with pit stops, Chad Valley launches the Give-a-show projector...Barbie and boy friend Ken impress US market...the Pogo stick is fun again...and Dinky's First Engine is the first ever with flashing lights.

1963 - The board game, Diplomacy arrives...Matchbox offer cars with doors that open...and there is 'the greatest money spinner ever from Frido' - Disky Discs and goal posts to play '1-dimensional football'.

1964 - The latest craze: Booma Boomerang, Corgi is 30 years old and celebrates by introducing Corgi Classics...Diana Dors promotes the Trolls.

1965 - Dr Who and the Daleks on TV and toys available this Christmas...the James Bond Aston Martin Car is the big seller and will be the first ever Toy of the Year (to be announced as it will be in future in January of the following year at the NATR Dinner). Waddington's launch Spyring board game, and the Noise Abatement Society complains about the V-rroom roar maker fitted to bicycles...the Gonks arrive to challenge Trolls...Denys Fisher launch the Spirograph. Craze that never was - Nik Nok - cup and ball game.

1965 - The James Bond Aston Martin from Corgi is the most popular toys this year. A version of the toy is still on sale today.

1966 - Action Man, the first ‘Doll For Boys’ is launched and is a massive success. Toy of the year this year will be Action Man - causing a sensation as the first doll for boys...for girls there is Tiny Tears. To rival Action man, Pedigree launch Tommy Gunn. Another craze that never was: Ippy Op - ball come skipping rope...but party game, Twister is a success.

1967 - Spiro-Graph is toy of the year. Rolf Harris Stylophone (Musical toy with a strangely annoying pitch. Apparently invented by accident the Stylophone enjoys cult popularity among musicians and has been used by bands as diverse as David Bowie and Blur.

1968 - Sindy is top doll and will win Toy of the Year. Ride-a-Roo ball is launched, as are Joe 90 products, Beatles's Yellow Submarine, and the Go Car game which includes a breathalyser test as a hazard. Other new products: a multi-cube game called Instant Insanity and Glow-Globs, modelling compound that glows in the dark, and paintwheels.

1969 - Hot Wheels cars will win Toy of the Year. The Newton's Cradle (Klikkies) sells well...but Tic Tac Tosser has a shorter life.

1970 - Sindy wins Toy of the Year for a second time...the NATR launches their Toy Token scheme..."The computer is becoming such an important part of our lives that a mini-computer for kids is in the office"...Super markets begin selling toys, and Matchbox makes 900 redundant.

1971 - Space Hoppers, inflatable orange bouncers with horns for handles. Klackers, a modernised version of conkers that made a very annoying ‘Klick Klack’ sound and lead to dozens of imitations. Katie Kopycat writing doll wins Toy of the Year. The giant Lines Brothers collapses, the arrival of Space Hopper, Craze of the year Clackers or Klik Klaks – first seen on Spanish beaches. Fun Bubbles sell over 7 million in first year.

1972 - Plasticraft modelling kits win Toy of the Year.

1973 - The first Game of the Year - Invicta's Mastermind...a shortage of plastic causes problems...children's pocket money averages 9p. New dolls: Disco Girl, Chelsea Girl, Daisy. Toy guns concern when gunmen using toy guns are shot dead by police outside India House.

1973 - Mastermind, a game that had nothing to do with the TV show and everything to do with cracking the code of your opponents coloured plastic pegs.

1974 - Magna Doodle. The magnetic drawing toy which was invented in Japan by pen engineers trying to create a clean mess free chalk.

1975 - Wombles. Womblemania hit the UK and Womble toys where everywhere.

1976 - Raw Power. A handle that you added to your bike and ‘revved’ to create the sound of an engine.

1977 - Slime, a bright green PVA based blob that came in little plastic pots and ruined many a households soft furnishings! Othello, the strategy game of Black & White counters. Holly Hobbie, dolls based on the popular character. Skateboards, 1977 saw the high point of the 1970’s skate craze and featured thin ‘surfboard’ style boards.

1978 - Star Wars, after the release of the movie the previous year the toys soon followed and became one of the most successful movie licenced properties of all time, the toys dominated toy shops until the middle 1980’s when their popularity waned. Simon, the electronic game where you followed a sequence of lights and sounds before you threw it across the room in sheer frustration!

1979 - Space Lego, the humble building brick went where no man had gone before. Stop Boris, a game where you stopped Boris, a creepy spider, with a light gun.

1980 - Rubiks Cube, invented by Hungarian designer Erno Rubik over 100 million of these tricky little puzzles were sold between 1980 and 1982.

1981 - Lego Train. Lego launches their first electric ‘train set’ which featured strangely enough blue rails!

1982 - BMX Bikes, everybody went BMX crazy, BMX is short for Bicycle Motocross. ZX Spectrum, the first ‘affordable’ home gaming computer arrived in UK households.

1983 - My Little Pony, based on an Animated TV series there was an entire world of small plastic horses and accessories to collect. My Little Pony went on to become one of the most successful girls toy concepts of all time. Boys did not miss out this year as they got He Man & The Masters Of The Universe which followed the same based on animation format and became one of the most successful boys toy concepts of all time.

1984 - Care Bears. Following the successful ‘toys from an animated series’ format from the previous year the Care Bears arrived from Care-a-Lot. Shortly before Christmas Cabbage Patch Kids, created by artist Xavier Roberts also arrived and created chaos in toy shops across the land as parent competed to buy one of the sought after dolls. The Board game Trivial Pursuit was the best selling board game in 1984 and dolls based on popular Pop Stars Michael Jackson and Boy George was also big hits.

1985 - Transformers, robots in disguise. These ‘action figures’, which transformed from vehicle to robot and back, again confounded parents and delighted children. Optimus Prime was THE toy to have in 1985 and lead to huge shortages of product.

1986 - In this World Cup year the playground graze was Panini Football stickers. If you managed to complete an album you were a playground hero.

1987 - Sylvanian Families, a range of cute and cuddly animals with play-sets and vehicles. Rubiks Magic, a follow up to the Rubiks Cube.

1988 - Ghostbusters, based on the popular movie and animated series, children across the land strapped on ‘proton packs’ and set out to capture ghosts. Slimer, one of the lead characters was also a firm favourite in toy shops, along with the vehicle Ecto-1.

1989 - Another hit movie, another toy shop success. The Tim Burton movie ‘Batman’ breathed new life into an old favourite and Batmania swept the UK.

1990 - Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo and Raphael, the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles arrived in toy shops and where an immediate hit. Originating in the US from a comic book the original word ‘Ninja’ in the title was replaced with ‘Hero’ in the UK for fears that it would violent connotations with parents.

1991 - Nintendo launched Game Boy in the UK.

1992 - Thunderbirds enjoyed a re-birth this year and dads of a certain age across the land re-lived there childhoods with their children. Shortages of the most popular toy, Tracey Island were so severe that Blue Peter ran an episode where the showed you how to make your own….

1993 - Power Rangers, the TV show arrived on our screens and children’s TV has not been the same since. Toys based on the show sold out immediately.

1994 - Magic Eye Pictures were all the rage and toys and puzzles featuring these pictures within pictures prompted even more people to ask ‘can you see it?’

1995 - POGS, small cardboard disks stormed into playgrounds and became a huge craze. Star Wars toys start production again after a short hiatus, 1970’s kids are now adults and collect the toys out of nostalgia but a new generation of kids also embraces the saga.

1996 - Toy Story, the animated film from Pixar was a huge hit in the cinema and toys from the movie were more than elusive. Parents went to desperate measures to secure a Buzz Lightyear doll. The rights to produce toys from the film went to a small independent Canadian toy company who simply could not cope with the demand. Why? Because all of the major toy manufacturers turned down the chance to make Toy Story merchandise, as they felt that the movie would never catch on. Corinthian figures, small figurines of football stars with oversized heads were the hot collectible and equally popular with adults and child collectors.

1997 - The year of T, Teletubbies, Tamagotchi and TY Beanie Babies are toy shop best sellers.

1998 - The humble Yo Yo returns as the craze of the year, after last being seen in the 1950’s and the 1970’s. The ProYo II is the Yo Yo of choice. Just before Christmas the interactive pet, Furby arrives in toy shops.

1999 - A board game based on the hit TV quiz show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ is the best selling board game. Toys and games based on Pokemon the Nintendo game prove to be quite popular. The firm favourite are the trading cards hundreds of millions of which are sold, swapped and traded across the globe.

2000 - Robotic Pets and Aluminium Folding Scooters are this year crazes. They are also accompanied by another familiar face, The Thunderbirds return again and Tracey Island is another Christmas best seller.

2001 - Bob The Builder toys are big hits, Folding Scooters continue to be the must have accessory for both kids and style guru’s alike. Closely followed by Pogo Sticks which enjoyed a resurgence of interest this year.

2002 - Bratz Dolls, steal some of Barbie’s position as top fashion doll, a place she has held since she was born in 1959. Beyblades, customizable spinning tops and Micropets, miniature robotic pets are the favourite crazes

2003 - Beyblades continue to be the playground craze closely followed by Yucky Yo Balls, fluid filled stretchy balls on an elastic string. However Yucky Yo Balls are swiftly banned by the government over safety fears. This is the first time that the government has banned a toy in over 10 years.

2004 - Toy of the Year 'Terrain Twister' radio controlled vehicle.

2005 - Fisher-Price top-selling Dora's Talking House"

2006 - The overall winner of the title Toy Of The Year 2006 was awarded to the Dr Who Cyberman Voice Changer Mask. This Voice Changer is a replica Cyberhead that will give you a robotic voice. It features speech, sound effects and lights! It has 3 play buttons, one that plays Cyberman phrases, one that changes your voice into that of the Cybermen and one with Cyber weapon sound effects.

2007 - The Toy of the Year Award was given to Blanket Time Iggle Piggle Dancing Soft Toy, from the massively popular 'In The Night Garden'. Boys Toy of the year was chosen as the Ben 10 Omnitrix FX, which is like a wrist watch which transform Ben into different alien superheroes.

2008 - Toy of the Year Ben 10 Action figures 10" and 15" - Pre School Toy of the Year Kidizoom camera, Vtech - Collectable toy of the Year Go Go Crazy Bones - Construction toy of the year is Lego - Girls range toy of the year is Sylvanian families. - Boys range of the year is Ben 10, Bandai - Girls toy of the year is FurReal Biscuit my lovin' pup.

2009 - Last year the toy of the year award as voted by the Toy Retailer Association went to the Ben 10 series. The year before it went to a set of toys from In the Night Garden. The theme seems to be a toy connected to a popular children's television character and this will probably be the same pattern for the best selling toy of 2009/2010. Young children love toys that are familiar, toys that they identify with the television characters that they see. In 2008 the pre school toy of the year was again, In the Night Garden and toys such as Star Wars and toys featuring Thomas the Tank engine (pre school toys of the year in 2005) regularly win toy awards.

Toy Facts

Hasbro is the largest toy manufacturer in the world.

The 20th century saw the invention of dozens of much-loved toys as well. Still-popular board games like Tripoley, Sorry and Monopoly have been around since the 1930s, and Crayola Crayons are more than 100 years old! Twister, made by a division of Hasbro, sold more than 3 million games within a year of its release in 1966. It has sold more than 22 million since then.

Toys aren't always a hit the year, or even the decade, they're created. Unemployed architect Alfred Mosher Butts invented the game of Scrabble, which he first called "Lexiko" and later "Criss-Cross Words," in the 1930s. Entrepreneur James Brunot acquired the game in 1947, but it wasn't until 1953, when the president of Macy's — now owned by retail giant Federated Department Stores — discovered the game on vacation that things really took off. More than 100 million sets have since been sold worldwide.

The fortunes of other playthings are more cyclical. Troll dolls, which hit big during the 1960s, had all but disappeared by the 1980s until troll nostalgia ushered in a second boom in the early 1990s. As Generation Xers grow older, toys like Cabbage Patch Kids, now made by Mattel, and Koosh balls could stage a comeback as well.

And there's serious money to be had. Mr. Potato Head, made in 1952 by Hasbro's Playskool unit, was the first toy advertised on television, and it grossed more than million in its first year (that's billion in 2005 dollars). Play-doh, which was originally designed for cleaning wallpaper, made inventor Joseph McVicker a millionaire by his 27th birthday. And Mattel sells an astounding 1.5 million Barbie dolls each week — that's two dolls per second.

Animal Preserves on the Pantry Shelves
toy animals

Image by judy_and_ed
Iain Baxter&'s exhibit will be at the North Vancouver Museum in Presentation House (and three other venues) from June 17 until December 30, 2012.

idool Tarjetas para cumpleaños - Escribe aquí tu mensaje de felicitación - Postales para ocasiones especiales

Tarjetas para cumpleaños - Escribe aquí tu mensaje de felicitación - Postales para ocasiones especiales

Game Room

Some cool animals games images:


Game Room
animals games
Image by rickpilot_2000
At the Animal Kingdom Lodge
While waiting for our Boma reservation
P1016381.jpg


Game fence
animals games
Image by mgjefferies
In Central Province, 1963. Designed to stop large animals carrying tsetse flies into the cattle ranch areas

Information on tsetse flies


Rat Game Pieces
animals games
Image by arturbo
A mock-up of the rolled up game pieces. This is made of felt. What's not shown here is the tube this would go in to keep it clean, the dice rollers or the dice for backgammon, and the fact that it would be longer.

idool Autos clásicos en la rotonda del Jardín Marti's, centro de la ciudad de Cienfuegos, Cuba.

Autos clásicos en la rotonda del Jardín Marti's, centro de la ciudad de Cienfuegos, Cuba.

idool Helicóptero militar aterrizando en el helipuerto de la ciudad

Helicóptero militar aterrizando en el helipuerto de la ciudad

idool Vuela bajo el cielo y sobre el mar, en la búsqueda contínua de tu libertad.

Vuela bajo el cielo y sobre el mar, en la búsqueda contínua de tu libertad.

Stormy Clouds, New Horizons

Check out these animals that are extinct images:


Stormy Clouds, New Horizons
animals that are extinct
Image by Mark Witton
It’s hard to escape the increasing realisation that my friends and I are twenty-somethings. When you’re, say, 22-23, you can dump yourself in the ‘early-twenties’ category and be content that youth and vigour are still happily with you, albeit without the angsty energy of adolescence. Then you hit the 24-26 category, where you’re around the cusp of your third decade on the planet and it slowly dawns on you that time is getting on. A quarter of a century has passed since you were born and doubts start creeping in. You spend a bit of every day wondering if you’re on the right career path; whether you should have your own place by now; thinking a bit more seriously about having some little versions of yourself running around and when, Jesus when will you loose that gawky physique you gained when you were 16 and turn your naked self into something resembling a man rather than a baby chimp.

However, if one thing comes with age, it’s a taste for good beer. As an underage teenager trying to be served in my local pub – complete with a soft teenage-moustache and enormous goggle-glasses - I was an avid lager drinker. You know: the likes of Kronenberg, Stella and, as a special treat, big bottles of Budweiser. Nowadays, though, I’m really not a lager fan at all. Nope, I’ve moved away to the considerably more interesting and mature world of ales and bitters. Ignoring the weak, crappy taste of Boddingtons and the like, ales are the way to go. Each has its own unique flavour and strength: some are very watery, some pack strong tastes that linger in your mouth for minutes, and others taste so flowery that I suspect brewers have been liquidising and bottling their local florists. Compared to lager, they’re incredibly flavoursome and rich and, once you’ve matured to Ale Age, there’s no going back. Still, as I watch my younger chums sucking up their lagers, I don’t judge or try to change them: nope, I quietly know that in a few years they’ll be watching other young men through the same, ale-distilled eyes. It’s all right, lager drinkers of the world: we were all there once, we understand, and we’re just waiting for you to join us.

Now, believe it or not, the professional interests of palaeontologists go through a similar maturation. 90 per cent of fresh-faced, first-year palaeontology students are only interested in one thing: dinosaurs. It’s dinosaurs this, dinosaurs that: they tolerate the molluscs and echinoderms put in front of them for description, they begrudgingly look at sediments and will consider basic geological principles like Walther’s Law of Superposition and continental drift but, given any freedom of choice over their topic of study, and they want dinosaurs. Some palaeontologists never grow out of this and, for them, they’re only interested in a fossil animal if their remains are big enough that you can wield them like guitars and pose on the front cover of scientific rock magazine equivalents, National Geographic and New Scientist. Thing is, though, this blinkered view obscures some of the true marvels of the fossil record. Some of the most fantastic, amazing things require more patience and contemplation to appreciate. The mysterious Ediacaran fauna. Small but intricately-spiralled graptolites or spiny trilobites. 30 million year-old molluscs and beetles with bona fidecolour patterns. It’s frustratingly incomplete, but, for the mature palaeontologist, the fossil record is freaking awesome even without its A-listers like dinosaurs and enormous marine reptiles. Sometimes it’s the richness of a particular fossil deposit that is fantastic, and not necessarily the likes of the Chinese Jehol Group or German Solnhofen Limestones which, with their fantastically preserved early-birds and whatnot, are predictable headline fodder. No, given enough time and patience, even the most unassuming fossil-deposits can be veritable goldmines, assuming you know what you’re looking for and where to find it.

Step in, then, my University of Portsmouth colleague, Dr. Steve Sweetman. Clearly not interested in discovering fossils that you can pose alongside while being circled by expensive photographers, Steve’s spent the last several years working on the microfossils of the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight. To find them, he dried samples of silty clay taken from lignite-infested plant debris horizons found within the Wessex, washing the clay away and painstaking sifting through the remaining plant material to find the animal fossils. This required literally hundreds of hours of work to retrieve the fossils alone, let alone figure out what they were. As you might expect, such a project is worthy of a several-hundred page book, and, indeed, it’s results formed the subject of Steve’s Ph.D. thesis. However, the God-knows how many hours spent identifying his fossils have, thus far, only allowed him to review the Wessex tetrapods – vertebrates with/that once had four limbs – without even approaching the fish discoveries. Thing is, this alone has, by Jingo, totally changed what we know of the Wessex palaeofauna. Essentially doubling the number of known tetrapods from the Wessex Formation, Steve found a whopping 48 new types of critter from the Wessex, including dirty-big dinosaurs, tiny amphibians and mammals, and more middling-sized lizards, birds and mammals. His work allows for a much more complete picture of the 115 million year-old ecosystem record in these deposits, and, luckily and very honourably for me, Steve asked yours truly to paint a picture of the ecosystem that he is now more acquainted with than anyone else in the world. The result is above: it’s the biggest picture I’ve ever painted digitally and took 7 days to get from rough paper to your screens. There’re lots of things I would change if I had a few more days to work on it: some details of the water need work, there’s not nearly enough shading, everything looks too clean, some areas have been really, really, roughly coloured… Thing is, with a tight deadline to meet, I had to draw the line somewhere: eventually, you have to concede that you’re out of time and a project will have to be presented as it is. I guess it’s all right, but I reckon it could be better. Ho hum.

Anyway, enough moaning about my lack of artistic finesse: what’s going on in that crowded scene? Well, the picture can be divided into two parts. The top-half of the image is pure, Classic Wessex, full of big dinosaurs, big trees and big crocodiles. It also presents the Wessex palaeoenvironment, showing the kilometre-wide river that was responsible for depositing the clays of the Wessex Formation. This river meandered its way eastwards across a vast, seasonal floodplain through a landscape covered with ponds, conifer trees and ferns, with the biggest trees localised on the low hills found to the west of the floodplain. To the right of the image, the vegetation on these hills is being set alight by lightning storms that seasonally ravaged the floodplains, burning off the canopy and creating the floods that filled ponds, river channels and what-have-you with the sediment and plant muck that would eventually form the plant debris beds. En route, these floods would pick up animal carcasses and other remains – shed teeth, loose bones - and deposit them in the same plant debris horizons. As such, these storms played a vital role in recording the story of the Wessex fauna. Hooray for ancient storms, then.

The back- and midground of this scene holds some familiar characters - in fact, these well-known critters have already featured on this corner of the Interweb (check out this set here for some old sketches of vanilla Wessex forms). In the far distance, there’re a couple of titanosauriform sauropods: big ‘Angloposeidon’-type brachiosaurs and more derived titanosaurs next door. To the right of these strapping chappies is a lone Caulkicephalus, an ornithocheirid pterosaur surveying the water for fishy morsels (see this for a discussion of dip-feeding in ornithocheirids). To the right of him, moving into the middle ground, is a small group of Iguanodon-like ornithopods, though they aren’t necessarily Iguanodon proper. Why? Well, bucko, the taxonomy of iguanodonts was overhauled recently, suggesting that many of the large ornithopod remains lumped into Iguanodon actually represent several, highly-distinctive forms. Hence, the slender forms shown in the picture here aren’t Iguanodon, but the smaller, recently-christened Dollodon.

Just in front of the wading Dollodon is another group of ornithopods, the 2 m long Hypsilopohodon, some of which are being harassed by the large crocodilian Goniopholis (oh, and look closely and you can see some baby Hypsilopohodon amongst the adults, too). Just right of the central midground and around the Goniopholis are basking and swimming Bernissartia, crocodilians that specialised in grubbing-out and eating molluscs. Left of these, in the mouth of the tributary feeding the main river, is the back of Lepidotes, a metre-long armoured fish being eyed by the biggest predatory dinosaur yet known from the Wessex, Baryonyx. The fish-eating habits of Baryonyx are well-documented, being based on gut content (including digested remains of Lepidotes, dontchaknow), tooth morphology, skull biomechanics and other observations of spinosaur functional morphology, so it’s interest in the Lepidotes here is well-founded.

Now, these chaps are undeniably interesting, but they’re nothing new. No, the real interest of this picture is found in the foreground and in the skies. Looking skywards first: Steve’s found that Istiodactylus, a pterosaur found in the Isle of Wight’s lagoonal Vectis Formation, also occurred in the terrestrial deposits of the Wessex. Next to this critter is a mysterious ‘early bird’, here suggested to be an Archaeopteryx-type thing but, in actuality, only represented by teeth that, while undeniably avian, could belong to a number of basal birds. Moving to the bottom of the image, you can find a pond in the bottom-left corner that features a bonzanza of new Wessex forms: salamanders and frogs sit on the pond margins and swim beneath the water (and, hey, check this out: I found one of Steve’s best salamander specimens during my dissertation studies); ctenochasmatoid pterosaurs sieve the water for prey; lizards of all shapes and sizes bask on a dead tree and rare turtles watch the river slink by. Alongside our anapsid friends are a pair of hesperornithiformes, two sitting on the riverbank and another swallowing a fish in the river itself. Some derived hesperornithiformes famously lost all ability to fly, becoming specialised diving predators in the process. However, early Cretaceous hesperornithiformes weren’t anywhere near as specialised and, to my shame, I probably should’ve drawn such early forms instead of fully-fledged, aquatic forms – whoops. Another mistake is to be found in the foot morphology of these chaps: rather than goose-like webbed feet as I’ve drawn here, hesperornithiformes are known to have individually lobed toes like grebes and coots. Annoyingly, this thought crossed my mind when drawing them, but I thought I was confusing them with something else and didn’t think to verify it. Grr.

Anatomical and temporal blunders aside, the middle foreground features a small maniraptoran dinosaur - suggested here to be a small troodontid. Dangling from its mouth is a tiny, tiny albanerpetontid; an amphibian that, if it weren’t busy being lunch, would be happy burrowing through damp soil. Beneath these fellas is yet another lizard, while to their right are the flagfliers for Wessex Formation Mammalia: rat-sized multituberculates and a shrew-sized dryolestid. These chaps are climbing over lumpy termite mounds, things that, to my knowledge, are yet to appear on reconstructions of the Wessex palaoenvironment. Now, no termite mounds have been found in the Wessex, but the sheer abundance of termites is clear from the masses of termite droppings that Steve sifted through in the course of his studies. The morphology of these mounds is very speculative: while there are some Late Cretaceous termite nests known, we known next-to-nothing of Mesozoic termite mound structure because their fossilisation potential is pretty poor. It’s entirely possible that the Wessex termites were entirely subterranean, but the Wessex clays weren’t kind to terrestrial trace fossils and any evidence of such termites has probably disappeared entirely. Hence, while we know that termites were swarming all over the Wessex floodplain, the jury’s still very much out on their accommodation of choice: the depiction you see above is merely to demonstrate their presence, not infer their way of living.

And that’s just about it, I suppose. I should re-emphasise that the animals you see here are only representative of the kinds of animals in the Wessex Formation: they were considerably more speciose than depicted here, but, hey, you can only fit so many types of critter on a sheet of paper before it becomes overcrowded. Still, it’s a far richer scene than anyone would’ve been able to paint years even four years ago, so hats-off to Steve for taking all that time and effort to turn the Wessex from a bland(ish) lager to a deep-tasting palaeontological ale. On that note, it’s time to finish my nice, floral-tasting beer and get myself to bed. Hence, I’ll thank Steve for asking me to help present his findings to the world – I’m genuinely honoured that he holds my work highly enough to ask me to illustrate what I think is a real scientific achievement – and point out that full-size versions of this image can be found on various news websites around the ‘Net, including this one here. Oh, and Steve and I have produced a visual key to the different forms if you’re having trouble finding them: in fact, one look at this and you'll realise that you needn't have read the last 2000 words.

Anyway, ‘night all.


Uroplatus guentheri
animals that are extinct
Image by bsmith4815
This is a very rare gecko from Madasgacar that some experts predict will be extinct in the wild within the next 5 years.


2006-12-15 - KC-Artspace - Cryptozoology-0103
animals that are extinct
Image by smiteme
From the exhibition Cryptozoology: Out of Time Place Scale, as shown at the Kansas City Art Institute's Artspace, October 28 - December 20, 2006:

A marginalized practice or a farcical adventure, cryptozoology is the quest for unknown, rumored, or hidden animals. Three themes are traced through the exhibition and catalog: Artists, Adventurers, Environmentalists; History of Science, Taxonomy, Dioramas, and Museum Displays; and Pop Culture, Myth, Spectacle, and Fraud. The exhibition is organized by the H&R Block Artspace at the Kansas City Art Institute and Lewiston Maine’s Bates College Museum of Art.

The exhibition is curated by Mark H. C. Bessire and Raechell Smith and organized by the Bates College Museum of Art and H & R Block Artspace.

Artists include: Rachel Berwick, Sarina Brewer, Walmor Correa, Mark Dion, Sean Foley, Ellen Lesperance, Robert Marbury, Jill Miller, Vic Muniz, Jeanine Oleson, Rosamond Purcell, Alexis Rockman, Marc Swanson, Jeffrey Vallance and Jamie Wyeth.


--------------

V for Vegan: www.easyvegan.info > Banner Credits

Karma

The Thylacine

was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It is commonly known as the Tasmanian Tiger (because of its striped back), the Tasmanian Wolf, and colloquially the Tassie (or Tazzy) Tiger or simply the Tiger. Native to continental Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea, it is thought to have become extinct in the 20th century. It was the last extant member of its genus, Thylacinus, although several related species have been found in the fossil record dating back to the early Miocene.

The Thylacine became extinct on the Australian mainland thousands of years before European settlement of the continent, but it survived on the island state of Tasmania along with several other endemic species, including the Tasmanian Devil. Intensive hunting encouraged by bounties is generally blamed for its extinction, but other contributory factors may have been disease, the introduction of dogs, and human encroachment into its habitat. Despite its official classification as extinct, sightings are still reported. [...]

The last captive Thylacine, later referred to as "Benjamin" (although its sex has never been confirmed) was captured in 1933 and sent to the Hobart Zoo where it lived for three years. [...] This Thylacine died on 7 September 1936. It is believed to have died as the result of neglect—locked out of its sheltered sleeping quarters, it was exposed to a rare occurrence of extreme Tasmanian weather: extreme heat during the day and freezing temperatures at night. This Thylacine features in the last known motion picture footage of a living specimen: 62 seconds of black-and-white footage showing it pacing backwards and forwards in its enclosure in a clip taken in 1933 by naturalist David Fleay. National Threatened Species Day has been held annually since 1996 on 7 September in Australia, to commemorate the death of the last officially recorded Thylacine. [...]

The Thylacine held the status of endangered species until 1986. International standards state that any animal for which no specimens have been recorded for 50 years is to be declared extinct. Since no definitive proof of the Thylacine's existence had been found since "Benjamin" died in 1936, it met that official criterion and was declared officially extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.


In December '06, Shane and I caught the exhibit Cryptozoology: Out of Time Place Scale at the Kansas City Art Institute's Artspace. While most of the pieces dealt with cryptids - animals thought, but not proven to exist - one exhibit caught my eye.

In front of a projection screen sat a statute of the Tasmanian Tiger (pictured below). There playing, on a never ending loop, was the 62 seconds of Benjamin's life immortalized on film. 62 long, lonely seconds, spent pacing - in what? Frustration? Anger? Sadness? Boredom? Heartbreak? Only to die of human neglect, one of the last of her kind. I found the footage haunting then; I still do, upon recollection.

As an atheist, I don’t believe in unprovable religious concepts like karma. As an animal advocate, I sometimes wish I did.

idool Fotografía de tulipanes de colores con espacio en blanco para escribir tu mensaje personalizado

Fotografía de flores tulipanes de colores con espacio en blanco para escribir tu mensaje personalizado

idool De paseo por las profundidades del bosque natural

De paseo por las profundidades del bosque natural

idool Rocas a orillas del mar - La era de piedra - Stone age

idool Campo de flores silvestres muy cerca de la comunidad rural - Unforgettable natural landscapes

Nice Photo Of Animals photos

Some cool photo of animals images:


Photo Release: Picasso or Panda? Budding Animal Artists Emerge at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo
photo of animals
Image by Smithsonian's National Zoo
In this photo: Golden Lion Tamarin
Photo Credit: Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Sans berets, smocks or palettes, the animals at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are getting their paws dirty with non-toxic, water-based paint and creating one-of-a-kind works of art. Painting is one among many activities that fall under Animal Enrichment—a program that provides physically and mentally stimulating activities and environments for the Zoo’s residents. The animals have the opportunity not only to choose how to behave, but also to use their natural abilities and behaviors in new and exciting ways.

Enrichment is an integral part of the daily care of the species in the Zoo’s collection. Keepers and curators carefully study animal behavior and determine what kinds of enrichment are appropriate for each species and, occasionally, individual animals. Keepers have a number of novel options for enrichment. They may alter an exhibit; train an animal; introduce new smells, sounds, foods, and objects; or enlist an animal in a research project, such as a study about foraging skills or cognitive research. Adding a variety of engaging activities helps keepers ensure the Zoo’s animals have a high quality of life.

Though the subjects of the animals’ paintings remain mysterious, the ways visitors can support the Zoo’s enrichment program are as clear as a starry, starry night. Drop off any size canvas, art paper, paint brush or non-toxic, water-based paint at the Visitor Center for the animal care staff to distribute. Animal keepers are collecting gifts for the animals this holiday season. Browse the list of needed items on the Enrichment Giving Tree section of the Zoo’s website or the Enrichment page of the Zoo’s online store.

Art produced by many of the Zoo’s mammal and bird residents will be available for purchase at the National Capital chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) Art Show, which will take place spring 2012.

# # #


Photo Release: Picasso or Panda? Budding Animal Artists Emerge at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo
photo of animals
Image by Smithsonian's National Zoo
In this photo: Naked Mole-Rat
Photo Credit: Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Sans berets, smocks or palettes, the animals at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are getting their paws dirty with non-toxic, water-based paint and creating one-of-a-kind works of art. Painting is one among many activities that fall under Animal Enrichment—a program that provides physically and mentally stimulating activities and environments for the Zoo’s residents. The animals have the opportunity not only to choose how to behave, but also to use their natural abilities and behaviors in new and exciting ways.

Enrichment is an integral part of the daily care of the species in the Zoo’s collection. Keepers and curators carefully study animal behavior and determine what kinds of enrichment are appropriate for each species and, occasionally, individual animals. Keepers have a number of novel options for enrichment. They may alter an exhibit; train an animal; introduce new smells, sounds, foods, and objects; or enlist an animal in a research project, such as a study about foraging skills or cognitive research. Adding a variety of engaging activities helps keepers ensure the Zoo’s animals have a high quality of life.

Though the subjects of the animals’ paintings remain mysterious, the ways visitors can support the Zoo’s enrichment program are as clear as a starry, starry night. Drop off any size canvas, art paper, paint brush or non-toxic, water-based paint at the Visitor Center for the animal care staff to distribute. Animal keepers are collecting gifts for the animals this holiday season. Browse the list of needed items on the Enrichment Giving Tree section of the Zoo’s website or the Enrichment page of the Zoo’s online store.

Art produced by many of the Zoo’s mammal and bird residents will be available for purchase at the National Capital chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) Art Show, which will take place spring 2012.

# # #

idool Tigre de Amur o Tigre Siberiano (Grandes Felinos)

Tigre de Amur o Tigre Siberiano (Grandes Felinos)
Foto: Lenor

idool Flores de primavera - Spring flowers - Imágenes para compartir

Flores de primavera - Spring flowers - Imágenes para compartir
Foto: Gitarm

idool Cerveza de barril fresca y espumosa. ¡Se acabó la ley seca!

idool Yorkshire Terrier puppie and adult dogs - Lindos caninos

Shashliks

A few nice names for animals images I found:


Shashliks
names for animals
Image by Evgeni Zotov
Shashlik is Russian and Kyrgyz name for shish kebab.

Animal market, Karakol


Fur champions 1500 for 2
names for animals
Image by Boston Public Library
File name: 08_06_018441
Title: Fur champions 1500 for 2
Creator/Contributor: Jones, Leslie, 1886-1967 (photographer)
Date created: 1950
Physical description: 1 negative : film, black & white ; 4 x 5 in.
Genre: Film negatives
Subject: Fur trade; Animals
Notes: Title and date from information provided by Leslie Jones or the Boston Public Library on the negative or negative sleeve.
Collection: Leslie Jones Collection
Location: Boston Public Library, Print Department
Rights: Copyright Leslie Jones.
Preferred credit: Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection.


Molly, Waddy, and Tony perform for the Red Cross and children on Boston Common.
names for animals
Image by Boston Public Library
File name: 08_06_000648

Title: Molly, Waddy, and Tony perform for the Red Cross and children on Boston Common.

Creator/Contributor: Jones, Leslie, 1886-1967 (photographer)

Date created: 1919-06-07

Physical description: 1 negative : glass, black & white ; 4 x 5 in.

Genre: Glass negatives

Subjects: Elephants; Trained animals

Notes: Title and date from information provided by Leslie Jones or the Boston Public Library on the negative or negative sleeve.

Collection: Leslie Jones Collection

Location: Boston Public Library, Print Department

Rights: Copyright © Leslie Jones.

Preferred citation: Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection.

idool Juegos Olímpicos de Londres 2012 (10 fotos gratis)

idool Rosas rojas - Flores para regalar - Escribe tu mensaje

idool Ardilla comiendo mazorca de maíz - Chipmunk eating corn

Ardilla comiendo su mazorca de maíz - Chipmunk eating corn

idool Catarina sobre las flores lilas - Ladybug on flowers

Catarina sobre las flores lilas - Ladybug on flowers
Imagen: Pics4ads

idool Casitas de madera en las praderas de Mittenwald, Alemania.

Casitas de madera en las praderas de Mittenwald, Alemania. - Germany amazing landscapes
Foto: Michael Breitung

Nice Endangered Species Animals photos

Check out these endangered species animals images:



Cheetah at Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre
endangered species animals
Image by féileacán
The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is a large-sized feline (family Felidae) inhabiting most of Africa and parts of the Middle East. The cheetah is the only extant member of the genus Acinonyx, most notable for modifications in the species' paws. As such, it is the only felid with non-retractable claws and pads that, by their scope, disallow gripping (therefore cheetah cannot climb vertical trees, although they are generally capable of reaching easily accessible branches). The cheetah, however, achieves by far the fastest land speed of any living animal—between 112 and 120 km/h (70 and 75 mph) in short bursts covering distances up to 500 m (1,600 ft), and has the ability to accelerate from 0 to over 100 km/h (62 mph) in three seconds.

www.hesc.co.za/

idool Casas bonitas y jardines con flores en el cielo azul

idool 23 fotografías de animales con fondo blanco para trabajos escolares, diseñadores gráficos y webmasters.

The Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare

Check out these about pet animals images:


The Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare
about pet animals
Image by Aspex Design: Photos by Dean Thorpe
Thank you for viewing my photos of The Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare, a great local place well worth supporting, looks like Raystede does a lot of good. Constructive comments on my photos are always welcome! - Dean
Information about Dean Thorpe
Dean Thorpe on Facebook
Dean Thorpe on Tumblr
Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare


The Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare
about pet animals
Image by Aspex Design: Photos by Dean Thorpe
Thank you for viewing my photos of The Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare, a great local place well worth supporting, looks like Raystede does a lot of good. Constructive comments on my photos are always welcome! - Dean
Information about Dean Thorpe
Dean Thorpe on Facebook
Dean Thorpe on Tumblr
Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare

idool Río que viene de las montañas - Tributo a la naturaleza

idool Cafetería en la playa tropical - Memorias de un atardecer

Cafetería en la playa tropical - Memorias de un atardecer - Sunset

idool ¿Y usted qué prefiere, la rosa o el pastel? Postres y Flores

idool Arroyo que cruza el bosque con hermosas cascadas

Arroyo que cruza el bosque con hermosas cascadas - Paisajes naturales - Rio de aguas claras
Leaderboard