Today, I learned about a really cool invertebrate that Auckland Zoo and its conservation partners have been working for 15 years to bring back from the brink of extinction. The wētāpunga. The wētāpunga is the heaviest orthopteran in the world. This insect group includes grasshoppers and crickets. These wingless gentle giants are nocturnal tree dwellers that mostly eat leaves and they help germinate, fertilize and distribute plant seeds throughout the forest. Wētāpunga were once widespread across northern New Zealand, but habitat destruction and human-introduced predators such as rats and stoats wiped them out everywhere except one island. Today, more than 11,000 wētāpunga have been released across eight predator-free islands and two fenced mainland sanctuaries. Motuora and Tiritiri Matangi islands now have officially established populations, with at least four generations born in the wild. The other release sites are still being monitored, with wētāpunga continuing to be seen and spreading beyond some of their original release areas. Their conservation status has improved from Threatened–Nationally Endangered to Threatened–Nationally Increasing. When I see people working together to restore a species we humans had a hand in wiping out, it gives me hope for the animals, for the Earth, and it gives me hope for us. Together, we can bring this world back to what I believe it was originally created for: cohabiting with every form of life. We cannot remove one of the vital pieces and expect to survive. We were created together, to live together, not one without the other. I’m including two videos because I just couldn’t choose between them. One is from eight years ago, and the other is from five years ago. They tell different stories with the same beautiful goal for the wētāpunga. The first explains the breeding program, follows a release and shows how children are being taught about conservation. The second includes another release, a beautiful ceremony surrounding the return of this special species, and additional information on the program.

Hi everyone: I am sharing a post that @Lynne Vella shared in her community. Please be wary of any unsolicited DM, emails, calls and text in general. There are some people out there that took their talent and used it in the wrong direction. I have said for a long time that wouldn't it be incredible if they would use their amazing talent for something good. SKOOL SCAM ALERT PLEASE READ 🚨 Quick but IMPORTANT heads-up because I want everyone in our communities to be aware of this! 💗 There have been reports of fake Skool account verification messages being sent through DMs. (Thank you @Kelly V elly V and @Marie Sales !!) These messages claim your Skool account has been restricted or needs verification, then direct you to click a link to fix it. 🚩 DO NOT CLICK THE LINK! If you receive a suspicious message: ❌ Do NOT click any links or provide your login information 🚫 Block the sender 🚩 Report the account or message to Skool ✅ If you’re concerned about your account, go DIRECTLY to the official Skool website or app to check This comes to me from another skool owner who has sent it out to her members. I know we have a lot of owners in this community. So please let everybody you know about the scam.

The votes are in, and the Harvest Mouse has been hired to decorate our pads! So sit back in your comfy chair because this little artist has a big story to tell. There are several kinds of mice known as harvest mice around the world, but we’re heading to Scotland to meet the Eurasian harvest mouse (Micromys minutus). These tiny architects weigh about as much as a quarter and can weave beautiful round nests using nothing but grass, their teeth and little paws. Their breeding nests are about the size of a tennis ball, while their sleeping nests are even smaller. The female splits blades of grass lengthwise with her teeth, then carefully weaves them together while they’re still attached to the growing plants. The result is a tightly woven nursery suspended among tall grasses, with a soft lining to keep her babies comfortable. They’re also the only British mammal with a prehensile tail, which acts like an extra hand, wrapping around grass stems to help them grip and balance while climbing. Although Eurasian harvest mice aren’t globally endangered, their conservation status in Great Britain is Near Threatened, with populations in Wales classified as Vulnerable and Scotland as Critical. Habitat loss, changing agricultural practices and disappearing grasslands are among their biggest challenges. Because they’re so difficult to observe, researchers often rely on abandoned nests to determine where they live. The Mammal Society’s 2026–2027 National Harvest Mouse Survey began October 1. Volunteers search for abandoned nests during autumn and winter, helping researchers learn where these tiny animals live without disturbing mothers raising their babies. In April 2026, a volunteer discovered a harvest mouse nest on Scotland’s Isle of Mull, the first recorded evidence of these little animals on any Scottish island. Whether they’ve been quietly living there for years or recently found their way to the island is still a mystery. Either way, to me, it’s another reminder of how resourceful and determined animals are to survive. As humans continue destroying their habitats, animals are often forced to adapt and find new places to call home. Maybe these little architects are rearranging the furniture and looking for new real estate to build their luxury homes.

Hi, everyone.....This is my first time posting here, so I hope the following is OK/appropriate.... The biggest help I could get, aside from financial help, are great pet people who would love to adopt a genuine Jerusalem cat. I can get them from Tel Aviv to the NY/NJ area and to Washington, DC. I have 8 kittens, several young cats, and at least 8 big cats, plus several cats who have moved outside because they don't like the number of kittens inside. Plus I feed cats in about 8 different feeding stations around the neighborhood, plus constantly bringing sick street cats for expensive treatments. Yesterday I drove a cat to her forever home an hour away. Driving home, I got a call about a very sick street cat. I brought him to a clinic, where he died on the table. All this, despite that I am constantly doing TNR, including tonight and every week this month, throughout my half of the Old City (1/2 square kilometer). I advertise them on about 40 local cat rescue Facebook groups. A Russian Orthodox nun friend (Sister Olga) also advertises them on local Russian cat rescue Facebook groups. But when people call, many are unsuitable, based on how they answer our questions. So---again, if anyone knows of anyone who can give a Jerusalem cat a great home, it will make it easier for me to take in more street kittens that people dump on me.

For 34 years, Stana lived in captivity, but last week, thanks to Harmony Fund, this beautiful elderly bear finally got to experience something she had been denied for almost her entire life. Her freedom to be a bear. Stana's story began in the forests of Serbia, where she and her sister Mara lived with their mother as cubs. Their mom was teaching them how to be a bear. How to fish, where to find berries and where to shelter from the rain. Then a hunter killed their mother and had her taxidermied as a trophy. And in a heartbreaking twist, Stana and Mara ended up spending their lives dependent upon the same man who had killed their mother. Four years ago, authorities finally found the sisters, removed them from the property, and took them to Palic Zoo, but sadly, Mara passed away last year and Stana had now lost both her mom and her sister. But her story wasn't over yet. Last week, Harmony Fund helped move Stana to ARKA Sanctuary in Banostor, where at long last she could experience a different kind of life. A life of being a bear. Her first day was spent exploring, eating fresh fruits and vegetables and discovering her new pool. And she apparently decided clean water was highly overrated because within a couple of hours she had climbed in and out so many times that she'd turned it muddy. Fun! 😂 But what she did that evening absolutely got my heart. As the day came to an end, Stana began digging into the earth. She made a little depression just big enough for her body. Then she gathered dry grass and arranged everything the way she wanted it to make herself a natural bed. Stana hadn't lived in the forest since she was a cub, but after 34 years she remembered how her mama taught her to be a bear. It was the first time in all those years she got to sleep outside under the stars and be a beary happy bear again. We can't give Stana those lost years back. She cannot be released into the wild, both because it isn't permitted by law and because after so many years in captivity she lacks the survival skills she would need. But she can now have grass beneath her paws, fresh food, and a pool to make as muddy as her heart pleases.