Pet Animals on Malta’s Stamps

Pet Animals are animals kept for companionship and enjoyment or a household animal, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful characteristics, for their attractive appearance, or for their song. Keeping pets has been shown to help relieve stress to those who like having animals around. Mostly dogs have known as "therapy animals" . Walking a dog can provide both the owner and the dog with exercise, fresh air, and social interaction.People most commonly get pets for companionship, to protect a home or property, or because of the beauty of the animals.In many locations, animals that are considered pets by their owners but are legally classified as livestock, including horses, pigs, camelids, and fowl may be banned from being kept within the city limits or restricted to property of a certain larger size.

Regards to the human habits, Malta post has issued a miniature sheet featured the pet animals such as horse, dog, cat, fish , turtle, bird, rabbit, hamster or others mammals.

The life circle of Hawksbill Turtle on stamps.

The Green Turtle and Hawksbill Turtle species are relatively common in Fiji, whereas the Loggerhead and the Leatherback are quite rare.

The Hawksbill turtle is one of the smaller species and has a distinctive and very beautiful shell made up of overlapping plates. It is most easily recognised by the notched edges or 'spurs' to the 22 edge plates of its shell. The adult turtle is about 90cm long. Hawksbill turtles feed on sponges and soft corals, which are found on the reef. Hawksbill turtles live near the shore and the females come ashore on many small islands in the Fiji group between November and February to lay eggs.

The following stamps have issued by Fiji Post on 1997, depicted a stage in the turtle's life cycle that very little is known about on 4 stamps and one souvenir sheets. The issues are very helpful to human for learning the Hawksbill life.

63 cents - Female Hawksbill

The stamp has depicted a female Hawksbill turtle, laying her eggs after having struggled up the beach to dig out her nest by using the front flippers and back flippers to form a vertical tunnel, the egg chamber. Turtles lay eggs every 2-3 years.The number of eggs laid, is generally between 100-200.

81 cents - Group of baby hawksbill This stamp depicted a group of Baby Hawksbill turtles emerging from the nest, and scrambling towards the sea. It is hard to tell the sex of a small turtle just by looking at it. An adult male can be identified by its long tail and long claws on the front of the flippers.

$1.06 - Hawksbill at adolescence

After leaving the nest and entering the ocean, turtles are seldom seen until their carapace is 35-40cm long when they move to live and feed in shallow waters.Those hatchlings, which survive to cross the reef, swim until they reach deep water where ocean currents help the turtles drift for the first few years.

$2 - The adult Hawksbill

The stamp depicted the results of many years of seclusion and a life fraught with danger.After mating, the males return to the feeding grounds, while the females stay near the nesting beaches, where a month later she clambers out of the sea and up to the beach to lay her eggs.

Sea Turtles of Barbados

Barbados have issued the stamp featured the Turtles which comprised of 4 pieces stamps with different value each. The depicted turtle species are Green Turtle, Loggerhead Turtle, Hawksbill Turtle, and Leathered Turtle.

10c Chelonia mydas, Green Sea Turtle.

Green Sea turtles are long-lived and require 25-35 years to reach sexual maturity in the Caribbean. Individuals of varying sizes between small juveniles and sub-adults are present in the waters surrounding Barbados throughout the year. Green turtles are herbivorous and in the Caribbean they feed primarily on the sea grass Thalassia testudinum. Adults attain weights of 230 kg and generally measure 95-120 cm straight-line carapace length (nuchal notch to posterior tip).Green turtles nest uncommonly in Barbados and adults are rarely seen. In contrast, juveniles are relatively common in coastal waters, especially on the east coast and more recently at “Swim with the Turtles” feeding sites on the west coast.

50c Caretta caretta, Loggerhead Sea Turtle

Loggerhead turtle is recognized by its large head, thick, somewhat tapered carapace , brown and gold or reddish- brown colouration, and characteristically heavy encrustation of invertebrate epifauna (especially barnacles). They have large head and strong jaws that are necessary adaptations to a diet of mollusks and hardshelled crabs; tunicates, fishes, and plants are also eaten.Loggerheads are not known to nest in Barbados, but juveniles and sub-adults were in the past occasionally caught opportunistically by pelagic fishermen.. The species is considerably rarer around Barbados than either the green turtle, the hawksbill turtle or the leatherback turtle.

$1.00 Eretmochelys imbricata, Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Hawksbill Sea Turtle is distinguished by a narrow, pointed beak with which it pries sponges and other soft-bodied organisms from the reef. The carapace is often posteriorly serrated and carapace scutes overlap, like shingles on a roof. They have bright mottled colouration (brown, orange, gold) .Adults rarely exceed 80 kg and a carapace length of about 90 cm .Hawksbills are "spongivores" feeding on reef-associated sponges in the Caribbean region.The numbers of hawksbills in the Caribbean were greatly reduced by over-exploitation for their shell (tortoiseshell) in the latter half of the last century. Numbers have recovered slowly since international trade in shell ceased. However, their habit of nesting on the highly developed west and south coast beaches of Barbados has meant that hawksbills are now threatened by coastal development and beach erosion.

$2.50 Dermochelys coriacea, Leatherback Sea Turtle

Leatherbacks Sea Turtle are the largest of all the sea turtles (nesting females often weigh 300-500 kg) and widely spread in any country but occurs in Barbados only during the egg-laying season. Leatherbacks are easily distinguished because they lack a bony shell. The smooth, black skin is spotted with white. The carapace is strongly tapered, measures 130-165 cm in length , and is raised into seven prominent ridges. Powerful front flippers extend nearly the length of the body. Adults are excellent divers, having been recorded at depths exceeding 1000 meters in Caribbean waters. Leatherbacks feed predominantly on jellyfish and other soft-bodied prey.

Woodland Spring Flowers of Estonia

On year 2004, Estonia Post issued stamp series featured the spring flower which grown in the Estonian woods. The depicted flower are the common dog-violet (Viola riviniana), the wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa),the common hepatica (Hepatica nobilis),the common globeflower (Trollius europaeus) .

The Common dog-violet (Viola riviniana), can be seen flowering on moist soils in woods and in wooded meadows from the middle of May. The violet (Viola) is a genus of flowering herbs of about 500 species. Fifteen species grow naturally in Estonia.

The wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa) blossoms in Estonian woods in the early spring. The anemone (Anemone) is a genus of poisonous perennials from the family Ranunculacae and it has nearly 150 species all growing in the northern hemisphere. The flowers are simple, mostly with white or blue petals and grow singly at the tip of high stem.

The Common hepatica (Hepatica nobilis) open in the early spring in decisious and mixed forests. The plant is poisonous before the growth of new leaves and has been used in folk medicine in earlier times. The hepatica (Hepatica) is a genus (family Ranunculaceae) of perennials of about ten species from the family Ranunculacae and it has about 10 species in the temperate zone of Eurasia and North America.

The common globeflower (Trollius europaeus) mainly grows in the meadows and wooden meadows of mainland Estonia. Globeflowers are poisonous plants.The globeflower (Trollius) is another genus of perennials from the family Ranunculaceae; there are 25 species mainly growing in the Arctic and temperate zones of the northern hemisphere.

Birds of Nevis

Nevis has issued the stamp series depicted birds of Nevis, Broad-winged Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Little Blue Heron, and Great White Heron. The stamps has issued on year 1975.

Broad-winged Hawk (20c), (Buteo platypterus) is a small hawk of the Buteo genus.Broad-winged Hawks inhabit forested areas.The diet is variable, but small mammals, like rodents and shrews, are the most regular prey. They are thought to take many amphibians,reptiles, insects and other invertebrates.Adult birds range in size from 34 to 45 cm , weight from 265 to 560 g and have a wingspan from 81 to 100 cm .

Red-tailed Hawk (40c),(Buteo jamaicensis)road-winged Hawks are long-distance migrants.They travel in large flocks during migration. During days with favourable winds, enormous kettles of tens of thousands of Broad-wings can be seen along flyways. Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey ,occupies a wide range of habitats and altitudes, including deserts, grasslands, coniferous and deciduous forests, tropical rainforests , agricultural fields and urban areas . It lives throughout the North American continent, except in areas of unbroken forest or the high arctic . The Red-tailed Hawk is carnivorous , and an opportunistic feeder. Its diet is mainly small mammals , but it also includes birds and reptiles . Prey varies with regional and seasonal availability, but usually centers on rodents , comprising up to 85% of a hawk's diet

Little Blue Heron (60c),Egretta caerulea, is a small heron.This species is about 60 cm (24 in.) long, with a 102 cm (40 in.) wingspan, and weighs 325 g .It is a medium-large, long-legged, heron with a long pointed blue or greyish bill with a black tip.The Little Blue Heron stalks its prey methodically in shallow water, often running as it does so. It eats fish , frogs crustaceans, small rodents and insects.It breeds from the Gulf states of the USA through Central America and the Caribbean south to Peru and Uruguay .

Great White Heron ($3) are a white colour-phase of great blue herons and are only found in the Florida Keys. The refuge was created to protect great white herons from extinction since the population was decimated by the demand for feathered hats.

Botanic Garden 0f Singapore

Worldwide there are now about 1800 botanic gardens and arboreta in about 150 countries (mostly in temperate regions) of which about 400 are in Europe, 200 in North America, 150 in Russia and an increasing number in East Asia. These gardens attract about 150 million visitors a year so it is hardly surprising that many people gained their first exciting introduction to the wonders of the plant world in a botanical garden.

Singapore Post issued a souvenir sheet for celebrating the 15o years of Singapore Botanic Gardens. The sheet comprised of one stamp depicted geese in the lake and background of the green plants surround it.

Botanic gardens are generally well-tended parks displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names. They may contain specialist plant collections such as cacti and succulent plants, herb gardens, plants from particular parts of the world. The botanic gardens are often run by universities or other scientific research organizations and often have associated herbaria and research programmes in plant taxonomy or some other aspect of botanical science. In principle their role is to maintain documented collections of living plants for the purposes of scientific research, conservation, display and education, although this will depend on the resources available and the special interests pursued at each particular garden.

Philippine Wild Ducks.

Philippine post issued wild ducks stamp series in one souvenir sheet. The stamps depicted wild ducks, Northern Pintail, Common Shelduck, Northern Shoveler, Greater Scaup.

The Northern Pintail or Anas acuta is a migratory fairly large duck, with the male's two long black tail feathers, which in flight look like a single pin or twig .These feathers are very distinctive, accounting for a quarter of the total length of the drake when in full plumage.Fast and graceful fliers, pintails are equipped with long wings, small heads, and long necks that seem built for streamlined aerodynamics. Both sexes have blue grey bills and grey legs and feet.The Northern Pintail is a bird of open wetlands which nests on the ground, often some distance from water. It feeds by dabbling for plant food and adds small invertebrates to its diet during the nesting season.The Northern Pintail is a fairly large duck with a wingspan of 23.6–28.2 centimetres.The adult female is mainly scalloped and mottled in light brown with a more uniformly grey-brown head, and its pointed tail is shorter than the male’s; it is still easily identified by its shape, long neck, and long grey bill.The Northern Pintail has a large range, estimated at 10 million square kilometres and a population estimated at 6.1–7.7 million individuals. The population declined in more than 30% for ten years or three generations, and is evaluated as Least Concern.

Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) is a waterfowl species shelduck genus Tadorna.The Common Shelduck resembles a small short-necked goose in size and shape. Common Shelduck is a striking bird, with a reddish-pink bill, pink feet, a white body with chestnut patches and a black belly, and a dark green head and neck. The wing coverts are white, some part in black and green (only showing in flight) . The underwings are almost entirely white. Sexes are similar, but the female is smaller, with some white facial markings,Common Shelduck is mainly associated with lakes and rivers in open country, breeding in rabbit burrows, tree holes, haystacks or similar.Common Shelduck is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata), is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and Asia and across most of North America.This species is unmistakable in the northern hemisphere due to its large spatulate bill. The breeding male has a green head, white breast and chestnut belly and flanks. In flight, pale blue forewing feathers are revealed, separated from the green speculum by a white border.Northern Shoveler feed by dabbling for plant food, often by swinging its bill from side to side and using the bill to strain food from the water. Northern Shoveler also eats mollusks and insects in the nesting season.Northern Shoveler is a bird of open wetlands, such as wet grassland or marshes with some emergent vegetation.The Northern Shoveler is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.The conservation status of this bird is Least Concern.

Greater Scaup (Aythya marila), is a small diving duck.Greater Scaup breeds on the ground by lakes and bogs on the tundra and at the northern limits of the boreal forest across Arctic and subarctic regions of northern North America, Europe and Asia.The adult Greater Scaup is 42–51 cm long with a 71–80 cm wingspan. Greater Scaup has a blue bill and yellow eyes. The male has a dark head with a green sheen, a black breast, a light back, a black tail and a white bottom. The adult female has a white band at the base of the bill and a brown head and body.The Greater Scaup mainly eats mollusks and aquatic plants, obtained by diving and swimming underwater.The Greater Scaup is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Endangered Species of Canada.

Canada post has issued the stamps series of the endangered species in one miniature sheet.The species are Prothonotary Warbler, Taylor’s Chekerspot, Roseate Tern, and Burrowing Owl. All stamps have same face value.

Prothonotary Warbler,is a small songbird of the New World warbler family and as the only member of the genus Protonotaria.The Prothonotary Warbler has characterized by 13 cm long and weighs 12.5 grams. They have an olive back with blue-grey wings and tail, yellow under parts, a relatively long pointed bill and black legs. They breeds in hardwood swamps in southern Canada and the eastern United States, nesting in a cavity, sometimes using old Downy Woodpecker holes.

Taylor’s Chekerspot or Euphydryas editha taylori, is a subspecies of Edith’s checkerspot, is a striking, red-, black- and white-checked butterfly. They are so named because of the checkerboard pattern on the dorsal side of the wings.The females can be larger than the males. Taylor’s checkerspots have been recorded in the Pacific Northwest from south-eastern Vancouver Island, through the Puget Trough (San Juan Islands to Tenino, Washington) and to the Willamette Valley in Oregon. In spite of intensive searching in 2001, there have been no confirmed sightings of this butterfly since 2000. This subspecies may be close to extirpation.

Mollusk Shell of Argentine. 2008

Argentine Post has issued the stamps depicted the mollusk shell species, Calliostoma militaris ( 25c), Epitonium fabrizioi (50c), Odontocymbiola magellanica (75c), Trophon geversianus ( $1.0) on August of 2008.

Calliostoma militaris is species of the genus Calliostoma. Calliostoma is a large genus of medium-sized sea snails with gills and an operculum, marine gastropod molluscs within the family Calliostomatidae.The distribution of this genus is worldwide, found mainly on hard substrata. Calliostoma militaris occur from shallow waters to bathyal depths.Calliostoma militaris are mainly herbivorous or feed on detritus, feeding on a wide range of algae .

Epitonium fabrizioi is species of the genus Epitonium. Epitonium shells are high-spired, and are all-white in most of the species within this genus.The shells typically have blade-like vertical ribs, known as costae.Epitonium is a genus of small predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks

Odontocymbiola magellanica is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Volutidae, the volutes.

Trophon geversianus is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Muricidae, the murex snails or rock snails.

Asean Environment Year 1995.

Philippine has issued the souvenir sheet composed of two stamp depicted symbolic of environment protection . All human activities have influenced the ecosystem. Therefore Asean has remind it on year 1995 as Asean Environment Year. in this case Philippine Post has issued the souvenir sheet as commemorative stamps.

Roses of Bangladesh.

Roses are ancient symbols of love and beauty.In horticulture roses are propagated by grafting or rooting cuttings. To improve the flower, Cultivars selected for the flowers, based on the growth habit, cold and/or disease resistance, and many other factors. Then they grafted onto a rootstock that provides sturdiness, allowed to develop their own roots. Roses require 5 hours of direct sunlight a day during the growing season.Many thousands of rose hybrids and cultivars have been bred and selected for garden use; most are double-flowered with many or all of the stamens having mutated into additional petals.In 20th-century rose breeders generally emphasized size and colour, producing large, attractive blooms with little or no scent.

Bangladesh Post has issued the stamps series depicted the cultivated varieties of Roses in Bangladesh.The stamp sheet featured 13 kind of roses. A rose is a perennial flower shrub or vine of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae, that contains over 100 species and comes in a variety of colours. Most are native to Asia, with smaller numbers of species native to Europe, North America, and northwest Africa. Natives, cultivars and hybrids are all widely grown for their beauty and fragrance.

Deep-Sea Corals of South Georgia.

The seafloor surrounding South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands seems to provide a particularly good habitat for corals to settle onto and the productive waters provide a rich food supply for growth. Consequently a wealth of coral has been recorded from these waters.

The authorized Post of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands issued the stamp series of deep water coral on year 2010. The stamps issued can remind the people who are care the environment to make the effort to protect the deep-sea coral.

Deep-water corals are quite varied; black corals, hard corals, soft corals, lace corals and octocorals all live in deep water, some to depths of more than 5 km. Deep-sea corals provide homes to hundreds if not thousands of different species of starfish, brittlestars, worms, sponges and other invertebrates.

Lace corals, as the one represented on the 90p stamp, are a type of hydroid with a hard skeleton and can look very similar to hard corals. Hard corals have a solid calcium carbonate skeleton whereas soft corals have just small scales of calcium carbonate embedded in their tissues, making them very flexible.

Octocorals are defined by having polyps with eight tentacles. In the deep water around Antarctica, families of octocorals tend to have polyps covered in plates of calcium carbonate and it is the structure and shape of these plates that define different species.

Three unidentified octocoral species of the Thouarella and Paragorgia genera are represented in the 55p, 65p and £1.10 stamps. The difficult to tell the species names of the corals represented in this stamp set. Many new species of corals have been described from Antarctica in recent years and there are many more to come.

The protection of coral in fisheries management against of the destroyed coral due to contact the seabed is important. The coral habitat is a part of the life of other species, as feeding ground or for egg placement. Further more many deep sea coral have a very slow growing and extremely long-lived to make recovery from damaged in centuries. Recently a black coral was aged at over 4250 years old, making these corals some of the oldest living creatures on earth. Black corals, confusingly, tend to have bright orange or white polyps; they are so named as their skeleton is black

Peony Flower of Croatia. 2010

On 8th of March 2010, The Postal Administration of Croatia issued the beauty stamps, Peony flower series. The family of peony (Paeoniaceae) is composed of only one genus of about thirty herbaceous and about ten woody tree peonies spread mostly in hilly and mountainous areas in temperate zones of the north hemisphere. Several hundreds of cultivars (sorts) of different peony species are known which are in horticulture divided according to their flower shape and their size . The chosen species are Wild Peony (Paeonia mascula) and Common Peony (Paenonia Officinalis) which are found in Croatia.

For thousands of years the symbolics of peony has been present in mythologies and legends of many peoples of Europe, Asia and North America: the peony is especially respected and admired in China and Mongolia. Croatian Flora includes three species and several subspecies of peony - all of them strictly protected by the law.

Wild Peony (Paeonia mascula.) is a Tertiary relic (the remainder of pristine Flora before Ice Age) a very rare plant also in Croatia, protected by the law even since 1958. It is a perennial plant, 80 cm high, with tuberous, thickened roots. Numerous, not branchy stalks are upright and bare, overgrown by leaves to the top, on which only one flower develops. The leaves are threefold, composed of integral, shiny, green leaflets. The flowers, up to 10 cm in diameter, have many yellow stamens surrounded by five petals, in colours from pink to purple. The number of petals can sometimes spontaneously increase and all the cultivars have “full” flowers with numerous petals. The Wild Peony blossoms in April and May in sunny habitats of bright and warm woods and shrubberies, at higher altitudes. As curative plant the wild peony is in some areas used in veterinary and human medical care and is a very popular decorative plant.

Common Peony (Paeonia officinalis L.),is rare in Croatia . This species has fragile structure and grows up to 60 cm, has leaves composed of leaflets split in three parts and dark red flowers with five petals. Common Peony grows in bright woods and on grassland, usually on limestones from France to Albania. In spite of its toxicity the common peony has been used in folk medicine for more than 2000 years as an effective remedy against convulsions, and today is mostly used in homeophatic remedies.Now it has been grown for centuries primarily for its curative properties but also for its beauty.

Crabs and Lobster of Croatia. 2007

In continued the isssuance of the fauna theme on stamps series, the stamps series of Lobster have issued by Croatian Post Office on year 2007. The species have depicted are Lobster ( Palinurus elephas ), Norway Lobster (Neophrops norvegicus) and River Crayfish (Astacus astacus).

Lobster (Palinurus elephas).

Lobsters are species of the genus Palinurus – long-tailed or spiny lobsters which are distributed from Norway on the north, along the western coast of Ireland, the western and southern coast of the British Isles (to the north up to the Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands), to the south to the Azores, in the western Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea and the Aegean Sea. Lobsters can be found in the open deep-sea rocky bottom in the circa-littoral and infra-littoral zone (below the sub-littoral zone of the tide) at the depths of 5 to 70 metres,

They actively migrate in the course of the year into greater depths of the Atlantic to return to the shallower parts of the -coastal area.The body of adult lobsters is covered with a thick shell, an exoskeleton. The adult samples have the total length of between 40 to 50 cm, (maximal length up to 60 cm), and weigh between 6 to 8 kilos. The males are usually larger than the females. They do not grow continuously but through molting, which means when they lose their rigid shell and while their body is soft they grow in length and then their shell gets rigid again. They are omnivorous though their diet is mainly based on brown bullhead, mollusks (snails and shells), shrimp larvae, invertebrate, Pentapora fascialis and seaweed. They are social animals, gathering in groups.The population has been significantly decreasing due to the fishing results and the average smaller length of the caught lobsters.

Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus L.)

Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus L.) often called scampi belongs to the family Nephropidae – crawfish .The animal lives in the soft sediment of the Atlantic Ocean (from Iceland on the north to Portugal and Morocco on the south), the Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea. The densest populations in the Adriatic Sea have been recorded near the island Jabuka/Poma, in the Velebit channel, in the sea of the Kvarner Bay and in Kvarnerić. They live at the depth of between 200 to 800 metres but they can also be found in shallower parts.

Norway lobster dig burrows in the muddy bottom for their place of life. The burrows are 10 cm in diameter, about one meter long and enter the muddy bottom some 20 to 30 centimetres. Norway lobster stay in their burrows during the day, and at sunset they come out to find some prey.Norway lobster are solitary predators feeding mostly on molluscs and other crabs, but they also eat dead animals. Norway lobster live on their own burrow , sometimes share the with other crabs (scampi).

The body of the Norway lobster is slim, orange-pink in colour, elongated and flat laterally. The head and thorax are fused into a non-segmented cephalothorax, while the abdomen consists of clearly segmented carapace ending with a fan-shaped tail that helps the lobster to swim. The first three pairs of legs bear claws. The first pair of claws is very narrow and elongated and has laterally placed longitudinal spiny ridges. Their eyes are large, black and placed on mobile stalks.Females grow to 17 cm in length and males up to 25 cm.It is known that they can live up to the age of 15 years. They spawn once a year, usually in summer.

River crayfish or noble crayfish (Astacus astacus L.)

The river crayfish or Astacus astacus.is one of the four autochthonous species of freshwater decapodous crabs from the family Astacidae that lives in Croatian rivers and lakes. They live in rivers and lakes with clayey and pebbly bottoms and along the coast among the water vegetation. In Croatia they are spread in the waters of the Sava and Drava river-basin, and they have also been brought into some rivers of the Adriatic river-system territory

The river crayfish rarely grow bigger than 15 cm in total length. On the back side the animal is usually dark brown (olive green to black, sometimes bluish or reddish), while the lower side is green-brown coloured. The surface of the body is covered by a strong “shell”, a carapace (exoskeleton), so that crayfish cannot grow continuously. In the warmer seasons of the year they molt – lose their old shell. While they are soft they grow in length and grow a new, strong exoskeleton, usually using minerals from the old shell by eating it.

The river crayfish are nocturnal and sedentary animals, living on the bottom, they are not territorial but show aggressive forms of behaviour in cases when the space becomes a limiting factor. It is well-known that this type of a small radius of movement is characteristic of animals adapted to a habitat.

The river crayfish is endangered by the great quantities of waste matter in water ecosystems, the regulation of water courses and the excessive uncontrolled fishing out. Therefore the river crayfish in Croatia is to the full protected by law . It is also protected on the European level as a rare and endangered species and listed in the IUCN ((International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Red List of Threatened Species.

Croatian Flora On Stamps. 2006

Croatia Post Office issued the stamps series concerning the Croatian Flora on year 2006. The species that depicted are White Water Lily (Nymphaea alba L), Yellow Water Lily (Nuphar lutea ), and Buckbean (Menyanthes trifoliata L.).

White water lily (Nymphaea alba L.) .

The white water lily is a freshwater earth-like perennial without a stem. The rhizome spreading wide into several hard roots is laid horizontally in the muddy underwater soil and sends up shoots from which large, leathery and egg-shaped to circular leaves grow up some 30cm in length.Their subtly sweet-scented radials symmetric flowers are hermaphrodite (they have both male and female organs), individually they are large (up to 20 cm in diameter), open almost the whole day and often rise out of the water.The water lily prefers sunny positions in stagnant and slow-moving waters of Europe, north-western Africa and the Middle East.The Water lily rhizome is sometimes used as food, boiled or fried (as it is rich in starch), and in the First World War it was used as the source of the anaesthetic nymphein. However, this plant has for a very long time been considered to be a highly appreciated decorative plant, so a great number of cultivars have been developed, in various colours and with different sizes of the flowers.The Water lily can be found in watery habitats of Croatia.

Yellow pond-lily (Nuphar lutea L.)

The yellow pond-lily or spatterdock is a freshwater earth-like perennial embedded in the muddy soil by the widely spread thick rhizome (8 cm in diameter), which is the favourite food for many animals. It has no real stem, but the elongated heart-like leaves grow out directly from the long stalk attached to the rhizome. The flowers with their faintly alcoholic fragrance are hermaphrodite (they have both male and female organs), they grow individually and are large (up to 6 cm in diameter), with protruding calyxes with circularly spread-out floral parts.In various cultures the rhizome of the spatterdock was used for medicinal purposes (as poultice to treat boils and abscesses and as an anaphrodisiac) and more rarely as food. The plant likes sunny places in stagnant of slow-moving freshwater.In Croatia it is still a relatively frequent plant.

Buckbean (Menyanthes trifoliata L.)

The buckbean is the only species of its genus in the European flora, spread over the cold and temperate Northern Hemisphere.The buckbean blossoms in May and June, and grows on moist and marshy habitats deficient in air, in sunny patches.The buckbean, also called marsh trefoil, is an aquatic or marsh perennial plant with creeping stems overgrown with scaly sheaths of the leaves which turn into a raised leafstalk 50 cm high. The leaves are basal, alternate and trifoliate, on long stalks wider down at the base.. The flowers are regular and hermaphrodite (they have both male and female organs), 10 to 20 in a vertical bloom cluster on top of a stalk. The medicinal properties of the buckbean were highly appreciated in the past as a remedy for scurvy, the dangerous disease which is the consequence of shortage of vitamin C. In Croatia the buckbean is on the list of endangered herbal genera (EN), but is not protected by law.

LiveJournal Tags: White water lily,Yellow water lily,Buckbean,Croatia,Flora

Cephalopods of South Georgia. 2010

The Cephalopods have many species, around 650 species. The waters of South Georgia are home to 13 species of squid and 6 species of octopus. Cephalopods are most intelligent of the invertebrates, having well-developed senses and large brains. Most cephalopods have three ways to protect against the predator, the first way is to change colour for camouflage since they possess chromatophores, the second way is expel a cloud dark ink through the funnel in the water so make confuse predators, and the last action is move by jet propulsion for escaping possible predators. Squid and cirrate octopods use their tail fins for more routine swimming. Cephalopods usually eat small fish and crustaceans. Most cephalopods have short lives, growing rapidly, reproducing once and then dying.

South Georgia Post has issued the stamp series depicted Cephalopods on April 2010. The stamp series comprised of one set stamp of 4 pieces stamps, one souvenir sheet and 2 pieces of First day Cover.The Cephalopods species which depicted are Galiteuthis glacialis, Psychroteuthis glacialis, Thaumeledone gunteri and Stauroteuthis gilchristi.

Galiteuthis glacialis (27p value) is one of the most abundant and widely distributed of the Antarctic squids. It is a delicate mid-water (pelagic) species that lives from the surface down to around 1 km deep. The stamp depicts a juvenile squid (around 5 cm). Galiteuthis glacialis is eaten by many predators including light mantled sooty albatross, grey-headed albatross and white-chinned petrels.

Psychroteuthis glacialis (65p value)is an active glacial squid, muscular species, which reaches a moderate size of 40 cm body length. The glacial squid is abundant throughout Antarctic waters and South Georgia is at the northern end of its range. Psychroteuthis glacialis is an important prey for many predators including elephant and Weddell seals, wandering and grey-headed albatross and emperor penguins.

Thaumeledone gunteri (90p value) is a small species (less than 10 cm) as one of the incirrate octopods which living between 400 and 700 m all around South Georgia.

Stauroteuthis gilchristi (£1.10p value) is a mid-water species, living at depths of 700-1000 m around South Georgia. The arms of Stauroteuthis gilchristi are connected by thin membranous tissue to form a web and the stamp depicts the octopus expanding the arms and web. This maybe a defensive posture, which makes the octopus appear bigger to possible predators.

The souvenir sheet depicted one stamp of £ 2.0 value depicted the Sperm whale is catching the Colossal squid.

The Protected Fishes of Croatia

Croatia Post Office has issued the one set of 3 stamps featured species of the Protected Fish on the first of September 2009. The species are the Adriatic Sturgeon on 3.50 of value, the Visovac Goby on 5.00 of value, and the Danubian Bream on 5.00 of value.

The Adriatic Sturgeon (Acipenser naccarii Bonaparte)

The Adriatic Sturgeon is an endemic species of the Adriatic Sea and the sub-Adriatic rivers. Its habitats are the rivers of northern Italy and in Croatia it is found in the river mouths of the rivers flowing into the Adriatic Sea. The Adriatic Sturgeon is a demersal species inhabiting freshwater, brackish water and seawaters of the Adriatic. It lives in the sea, at places with silty or sandy bottom. It mostly stays close to the river mouths, up to a depth of 40 m, although it sometimes goes deeper.

Its body is elongated and spindle-shaped and is not covered with scales but with bony plates or scutes, extending along the body in five rows.Their back is olive-green and brown, the sides are lighter in colour and their belly is white. The top of the head is a projecting wedge-shaped snout, broad and relatively short, and with the rounded tip. The Adriatic Sturgeon has a subterminal moth (mouth posterior to the tip of the snout). The dorsal fin is located far on the back and the caudal fin is asymmetric (heterocercal).

The Adriatic Sturgeon feeds on invertebrates from the bottom and small fishes. The Adriatic Sturgeon is an anadromous species: it lives in the sea and migrates to fresh water (rivers) to breed. It is a long-living species that grows slowly.The Adriatic Sturgeon may grow up to 2000 mm in length and reach the weight of 25 kg, although it is usually considerably smaller.

The Adriatic Sturgeon is threatened by the pollution of watercourses and partition of rivers, which prevents their migrations and the overfishing of still growing fishes.Pursuant to the existing protection based on the law, the Adriatic Sturgeon is a strictly protected species.

The Visovac Goby (Knipowitschia mrakovcici Miller)

The Visovac Goby occurs only in Croatia, in Visovac Lake on the Krka river. This fish was discovered and recognised it as a new species in 1989. The Visovac Goby has the elongated body and laterally flattened to the tail. There are few scales, only on the sides and the tail. Males are slightly bigger and heavier than females on average and have more than 10 transversal stripes on the sides. Dimorphism is very visible during the spawning season, when the males have darker heads and fins. The Visovac Goby can reach 45 mm in length. The Visovac Goby feeds on nutrients found on the bottom, mostly small water invertebrates. Its life span is short. The Visovac Goby is a demersal, freshwater fish inhabiting the silty, sandy and gravel bottom of Visovac Lake on the Krka river. It has a small movement range.They have limitation of their habitat.

The Visovac Goby belongs to the category of endangered species ,due to sensitive to eutrofication, i.e. the quantity of nutrients in the water, pollution and all other changes in its habitat. According to the IUCN Red List, this species is Endangered (EN) in Croatia. Pursuant to the existing protection based on the law, the Visovac Goby is a strictly protected species.

The Danubian Bream (Ballerus sapa )

The Danubian Bream inhabits big lowland rivers, estuaries and backwaters.They live in schools and are more active during the night. Its habitats in Croatia include the rivers flowing into the Danube: the Sava, the Drava and the Danube itself, as well as its bigger tributaries.Its favourite spawning locations are more peaceful places in rivers with thick aquatic plants.

The body of the Danubian Bream is laterally flattened and relatively high. The most conspicuous on its small head is the size of the eyes. The mouth is small and semi-inferior. The back is dark blue to greenish and the sides and the belly is silver. The anal fin is extremely long and extends to the tail and its base is three times longer than the base of the dorsal fin. The length of the anal fin covers one third of the body length. The outer edge may be darker. The Danubian Bream usually reaches the length of 15 to 25 cm, or maximum 40 cm, and the mass of approximately 1 kg.

The Danubian Bream is endangered by partitions, regulation and channelling of water streams, as well as by their pollution.Pursuant to the existing protection based on the law, the Danubian Bream is a strictly protected species.

Preservation of Nature on Slovakia stamps

In relation with the Preservation of Nature , Slovakia Post issued the stamps features specific dogs on 18th of April 2007. The dogs are Slovensky čuvač and Slovensky kopov which both breed in Slovakia.The face value of stamps are same, 31 sk.The issued product of stamps are one set of 2 stamps, one souvenir sheet as shown, FDC for each single stamp.

Slovensky čuvač

Early last century the čuvač was a popular breed in Slovakia.The characteristics of this breed, a robust body and thick white coat, are similar to those of mountain dog types. Slovensky čuvač size is 62-70 cm high. Slovensky čuvač moves with ease, quickly, and likes to run. Historically the Slovensky čuvač was a valuable helper to border guards, shepherds, and cattlemen. It protected sheep pens, chalets, and farms. This wide range of skills shows its immense value and character. Slovensky čuvač is a calm sheepdog, and if bred in suitable conditions displays not only inherited skills but also new tasks

Slovensky kopov

Slovensky kopov is not very sturdy; it has a height range from 45-50 cm (40-45 cm), and typically a black coat with brown to mahogany marks. The breed is extremely fierce; therefore it is used mainly for wild boars and vermin. It has a highly developed sense of orientation Slovensky kopov follows a fresh scent unwaveringly for several hours. However, it is also good at tracing shot animals. Nevertheless, Slovensky kopov is not a kennel dog. It works best when hunting individually. Despite its typically fierce character and temperament, Slovensky kopov is a cuddly and friendly companion.Currently, the Slovensky kopov is the highest-bred hound in Slovakia. On average, 300 - 400 puppies are registered annually.