Wednesday 21 June 2017
The ascidians or sea squirts - Ασκιδιοειδή - Cyprus
Ascidiacea (commonly known as the ascidians or sea squirts) is a paraphyletic class in the subphylum Tunicata of sac-like marine invertebrate filter feeders. Ascidians are characterized by a tough outer "tunic" made of the polysaccharide cellulose.Ascidians are found all over the world, usually in shallow water with salinities over 2.5%. While members of the Thaliacea and Larvacea (Appendicularia) swim freely like plankton, sea squirts are sessile animals: they remain firmly attached to their substratum, such as rocks and shells.
There are 2,300 species of ascidians and three main types: solitary ascidians, social ascidians that form clumped communities by attaching at their bases, and compound ascidians that consist of many small individuals (each individual is called a zooid) forming colonies up to several meters in diameter.
Sea squirts feed by taking in water through a tube, the oral siphon. The water enters the mouth and pharynx, flows through mucus-covered gill slits (also called pharyngeal stigmata) into a water chamber called the atrium, then exits through the atrial siphon.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascidiacea
Underwater photos at Akrotiri by Kostas Aristeidou
Tuesday 20 June 2017
Sunday 18 June 2017
Friday 16 June 2017
BirdLife Cyprus: Cyprus Bird Report 2013 - Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax) - Photo by George Konstantinou
The report contains 37 colour photos, the 2013 Systematic List of 293 observed species or recognised forms which was compiled from nearly 65,000 records, the 2013 Ringing report, papers on the first Asian Buff-bellied Pipit in Cyprus, the Southern Grey Shrike species complex, the BirdLife Cyprus 2013 monitoring programmes and Cyprus ringing recoveries updated to 2013. The Report includes species charts and tables and a full Cyprus bird List. The front cover features the Eurasian Griffon Vulture, the subject of a reintroduction project -GYPAS.
Unfortunately though the story doesn't have a happy ending as most of you will now know. On 15th December a photograph of a shot bird was sent to BirdLife Cyprus Chairman Melis Charalambides by someone wanting to know what species their friend had shot. The photograph was of a shot Little Bustard and despite the fact that it is claimed that it had been shot in the area of Potamia, the Geri bird had not been seen since 14th. It is too much of a co-incidence and it can be safely assumed that the shot bird was George's bird.
According to P.Flint and P. Stewart in the second edition of 'The Birds of Cyprus' Little Bustard were seen, before 1946, usually in pairs, most winters especially in the Morphou area. They describe it as 'formerly a scarce to fairly common winter visitor to low ground Nov -- Feb'. They also mention many records of shot birds in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The most recent accepted record of a live Little Bustard on the island is from the Paphos area in December 1979. Tellingly however there are reports of shot birds most years and such a report was received less than a month before the Nicosia bird was found. There are authenticated reports of specimens in taxidermist shops that support this otherwise hearsay evidence.
Little Bustard are the smallest member of the bustard family in Europe and are slightly bigger than a Black Francolin although have a more upright stance than that species. It is listed as Near Threatened by BirdLife International due to reduction in range and numbers -- especially in the west of its range - thought to be mainly due to habitat loss and degradation as well as what they describe as low-level hunting pressure. In the west of Europe it occurs in Spain, Portugal, Italy and France and in the east of its range it occurs in Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, north-west China, northern Iran and Turkey. Many overwinter eastwards from Turkey to Azerbaijan.
News of the shooting of this individual shocked all who had seen it and other local birdwatchers but giving its confiding nature some
By Jane Stylianou
BirdLife Cyprus: Cyprus Bird Report 2015 - First Lesser Flamingo in Cyprus and a rare leucistic European stonechat - Photos by George Konstantinou
The Report contains 55 colour photos, the 2015 Systematic List of 301 observed species or recognised forms which was compiled from nearly 66,000 records, the 2015 Ringing report, papers on the first Lesser Flamingo in Cyprus, putting geolocators on Cyprus Wheatears, the BirdLife Cyprus 2015 monitoring programmes, the diet of Red-footed Falcons while in Anarita Park, and autumn bird numbers in Western Paphos.
Thursday 15 June 2017
Wednesday 14 June 2017
Ένα πολύ ενδιαφέρον ντοκιμαντέρ για τον άγριο Ακάμα - City Free press - Sigmalive - 14.06.2017
See also
Ένα πολύ ενδιαφέρον ντοκιμαντέρ για τον άγριο Ακάμα
14.06.2017
Όταν ο παράδεισος είναι μόνο λίγα μέτρα μακριά!
Την μοναδική και πολύ σημαντική βιοποικιλότητα του Ακάμα θέλησε να αναδείξει και να εξηγήσει ο Πρόεδρος του Συνδέσμου προστασίας φυσικής κληρονομιάς και βιοποικιλότητας της Κύπρου Γιώργος Κωνσταντίνου.
Στο πλαίσιο του Περιφερειακού Συνεδρίου «ΕΕ – Κύπρος Αειφόρος Ανάπτυξη – Φυσικοί Πόροι» προβλήθηκε μια ταινία για την βιοποικιλότητα της περιοχής του Ακάμας η οποία αναλύει τη σημαντικότητα της υπάρχουσας χλωρίδας και πανίδας, που φιλοξενείται στην περιοχή.
14.06.2017
Όταν ο παράδεισος είναι μόνο λίγα μέτρα μακριά!
Την μοναδική και πολύ σημαντική βιοποικιλότητα του Ακάμα θέλησε να αναδείξει και να εξηγήσει ο Πρόεδρος του Συνδέσμου προστασίας φυσικής κληρονομιάς και βιοποικιλότητας της Κύπρου Γιώργος Κωνσταντίνου.
Στο πλαίσιο του Περιφερειακού Συνεδρίου «ΕΕ – Κύπρος Αειφόρος Ανάπτυξη – Φυσικοί Πόροι» προβλήθηκε μια ταινία για την βιοποικιλότητα της περιοχής του Ακάμας η οποία αναλύει τη σημαντικότητα της υπάρχουσας χλωρίδας και πανίδας, που φιλοξενείται στην περιοχή.
Tuesday 13 June 2017
Thursday 8 June 2017
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