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Save rivers, lakes from worshippers
Before every Ganesh Chaturthi, people from across India, especially Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa, get busy with preparations for celebrations. But, as the momentum of activity increases, officials of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) start feeling queasy in their stomachs. For, though festivals like Ganesh Puja and Durga Puja are a time for fun, it is also the time when rivers and lakes around the country are abused. Unlike in the past when the idols of gods and goddesses were made of ordinary colours and plain clay that dissolve in water easily, without causing widespread pollution, now they are made of plaster of Paris, distemper, plastic paint, dyes, metallic powders, adhesives, varnish, fluorescent powders and oil paints, which can have an adverse effect on the eyes, skin and respiratory system....
Do centipedes really have 100 feet?
They are called centipedes because it is believed that they have 100 feet. Actually, they don’t. Of the 3,000 different types of centipedes on our planet, none have 100 feet. Some have 50 and some as much as 350. The extremely venomous Peruvian Giant Yellow-leg or Amazonian Giant Centipede. These eat everything from insects to birds! All centipedes have an odd number of body segments, and each segment has two legs attached to it....
Storm Petrel: A Bird that Walks on Water
You must have heard of St. Peter, the saint, who is said to have walked on water. Well, there is a bird which is named after the saint, because it looks as if it is walking on water. It is called the stormy petrel. It is not known whether the petrel actually walks on water. But, it somehow manages to stay above water. This gives the impression that it is walking on water. Wilson’s Storm Petrel (Oceanites oceanicus): A bird that seems to walk on water But, if a storm arises, the petrel cannot “walk on water”....
Why are Moths Attracted to Light?
Have you seen moths zoom into a flame and die? It looks as if they are pulled by some unseen force. It is an unseen force that attracts the moth — the ultraviolent light in the flame, which is invisible to humans. The moth finds it irresistible. It is driven to the light by its mating instinct. Why are Moths attracted to light? Ultraviolet vision helps moths get together in the dark....
Beautiful Flowers that Stink!
A blow-fly was looking for an ideal place to lay eggs. Like rotting meat. So that when her little maggots were born, they could feed on the meat. As she turned a corner in the grassland, she smelt something stinking in the air. The smell of rotten meat! With great joy she perched on it and laid her eggs. She was happy that her children would have enough food to eat. The blow-fly did not know she had made a great mistake....
Long Memory of Female Elephants is Responsible for the Well Being of their Families
You must have heard the phrase ‘elephant’s memory’ being used for people with a long memory. It seems the long memory of elephants, especially female elephants, is directly responsible for the well being of their families. This fact was discovered by a group of researchers of the University of Sussex who studied the elephants of Amboseli National Park in Kenya, the Telegraph newspaper reported. Elephants live in matriarchal families or families that are headed by the mothers....
Do Raccoons Wash their Hands Before they Eat?
We wash vegetables before cooking it. And we wash our hands before we start eating. That is because we have been told that washing would clean our food and that cleanliness is necessary to keep diseases away. But, have you seen cows, dogs or cats wash their food? They don’t. But there is one kind of furry mammals called racoons, which wash their food before eating. And it has been noticed that racoons refuse to eat if they cannot find water around....
A Lizard that Squirts Blood from its Eyes
Are you scared of lizards? There is no need to be unless you come face to face with one kind, called the Horned Lizard. It sprays blood from its eyes, and may just make you jump a bit. A lizard that squirts blood from its eyes [Illustration by Shridevi] Not all time. Only when it feels threatened. Surprisingly, the Horned Toad or the Horned Lizard, found in North America and Mexico, is often kept as a pet....
The Deadliest Animal in the World
Do you know, it is one of deadliest creatures in the world? No, it’s not the cobra. It is the sea wasp. It is a kind of jelly fish and is called the Chironex Fleckeri, commonly known as sea wasp. It has a bell-shaped body with long tentacles that trail behind it. These tentacles have hundreds of thousands of tiny cells, which contain a cobra-like poison. When a victim brushes against the tentacles, the poison is injected into his body, killing him in less than five minutes....
How Stars Came into Being
This is a story about a long, long time ago. There was once an old man who smoked tobacco. He smoked tobacco in terracotta or clay pipes, called pikka. This old man had three sons. When the three sons grew up, he got them married one after the other. How Stars Came into Being [Illustrations by Sudheer Nath] It happened once, that the eldest son went to his wife’s parents’ house to attend a marriage....