Author: Lisa Mungovan

In 2021, an iceberg the size of Chicago broke off from Antarctica. Scientists took advantage of the easy access, exploring the newly-exposed, 209-square-mile area of seafloor. They found an astonishing deep-sea ecosystem, thriving despite a lack of nutrients raining down from the surface. Samples are still being studied, to identify new species.

What looks like a hippopotamus, but is even cuter? A pygmy hippo! Pygmy hippos are much smaller than regular hippopotamuses, weighing only 400-600 pounds. A full-size hippo can weigh 4000 pounds! There are fewer than 2,500 pygmy hippos left in their native habitat, the West African rainforests. They’re nocturnal, so tell them Happy Pygmy Hippo Day tonight.

Today is Zoo Lovers Day. Look for the A-Z-A logo, to show that a zoo is accredited. That means they take great care of their animals! It’s also Draw A Picture Of A Bird Day. Try sketching the unusual birds at the zoo’s aviary, common ones at home, or crazy imaginary birds!

Today, eat all your meals packaged in pastry, because it’s Empanada Day. To make empanadas, fold dough around the filling of your choice. You could use cheese, vegetables, fruit, or whatever else you’d like. The pockets are then baked or fried. They’re so popular, some cities even have empanada carts on the street corners.

People at a Missouri museum, were going bananas over their new world record. Actually, they were dressed as bananas. 309 participants gathered at the City Museum in St Louis, to take the title for most people wearing banana hats. Everyone looked quite a-peel-ing dressed in yellow, and fortunately, no one slipped on banana peels.

Today is Beaver Day! Beavers are the national animal of Canada. The master engineers build dams and canals, and make lodges out of mud and sticks. Their dams create valuable wetlands. They can stay underwater for 15 minutes, and use their flat tails like rudders. Beavers eat trees for dinner, including the toothpick.

Today is World Health Day, commemorating the creation of the World Health Organization. This year’s theme, is Healthy Beginnings, Hopeful Futures. Maternal health is important, to give newborn babies the best start in life. Healthy children are the best hope for the Earth’s future, and people of all ages deserve health care.

There are 12 inches in a foot, 3 feet in a yard, and 1760 yards in a mile. Also, there are 10 millimeters in a centimeter, 100 centimeters in a meter, and 1000 meters in a kilometer. The second group is the metric system, which certainly seems easier to remember. Happy Metric Day!

Western Santa Cruz Galapagos tortoises, are critically endangered, with only around 3,400 left in the wild. The Philadelphia Zoo was excited to announce their Galapagos tortoises, named Mommy and Abrazzo, are parents to 4 hatchlings. Mommy has lived at the zoo for 93 years, and she and Abrazzo are both about 100 years old.

What’s your favorite kind of rock? If you answered igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic, you know your geology! Today is Geologists’ Day, so go rock-hounding for new specimens, then ask an expert to tell you about it. Do something nice in exchange, since it’s also Good Deed Day. You can make everyone’s day!