Author: Lisa Mungovan

Last week, there was a herd of water buffalo wandering the streets of Surrey, in British Columbia Canada. 24 heifers had escaped from a local farm, swam through a culvert that ran under a highway, and took a leisurely stroll around town. Farm employees safely rounded up the water buffalo, and walked them home.

Wild Przewalski’s horses are once again roaming the steppes of Kazakhstan, after 200 years. Thanks to breeding programs in Berlin and Prague, 7 horses were reintroduced to their native lands last year. This year, 6 more mares and a stallion were released. The endangered Przewalski’s horse is the last truly wild horse.

Today is World Sea Turtle Day. Sea turtles can stay underwater for hours at a time, diving deep in the ocean. Most species only come to shore when it’s time to nest. They lay eggs in clutches, and the temperature of the sand, determines if the hatchlings will be male or female.

Did you know it’s Cannoli Day? If you’ve never tried the sweet dessert with a crunchy shell and cheese filling, make that your goal for the day. It’s also Fudge Day, and Fresh Veggies Day. You wouldn’t think they’d go together, but I think a hot fudge salad sounds pretty awesome.

When some people hear the word lobster, they think of dinner. But lobsters are amazing creatures. The oldest known lobster, was 140 years old! The large crustaceans have teeth in their stomachs, and brains smaller than a grain of rice. Lobsters have clear blood, and can be blue in color. Happy Lobster Day!

Today is Turkey Lovers’ Day. Wild turkeys and oscillated turkeys are found in North America, but they probably got their name when European settlers confused them with guineafowl from Turkey. Wild turkeys love to eat nuts and berries, as well as grain and insects. Males have fleshy wattles, called snoods, and beautiful feathers.

Today is Megalodon Day. Millions of years ago, Megalodon shark babies were bigger than a human at birth. Paleontologists believe the shark pups hatched from their eggs in the womb, growing bigger and stronger before they were born. The 6-foot newborns would grow into 50-foot-long mega-sharks, and lose 40,000 teeth over their lifetime.

Today, celebrate everyone’s not-so-secret power. It’s Smile Power Day! See how easy it is to make other people feel better, just by giving them a big smile! It’s also Nature Photography Day. Head outside with your camera or phone, and focus on a blade of grass, the moon, or that cheeky squirrel!

Happy Father’s Day! Don’t forget to say thanks to your dad, and all the men in your life that help raise you. Spend time doing something fun together, like flying a kite or making a pinwheel, for Global Wind Day. Wind turbines turn the wind’s energy, into electricity. Enjoy the breeze!

Did you know dragonflies, can fly upside-down and backwards? Dragonflies are known as a sentinel species, because they’re a good indicator of the health of wetlands. They lay their eggs in water, where the larvae can live for 6 years before becoming adult dragonflies, so they’re sensitive to pollution and drought. Happy Dragonfly Day!