Victoria Fox's Blog, page 90

A symbol of status and neglect in Poland? Evenly trimmed lawn

I grew up on a quiet street in a small town in eastern Poland. My parents had and still have a classic PRL “block” – a two-story single-family house, which was used to build entire housing estates in the 1970s. This house usually stood in the middle of the plot, in front of it there was space for a flower garden, and behind it there was a little more land intended for a large vegetable garden and a piece of orchard. It was the same with my parents. At this time of year, lilacs bloomed in front of the house, and my mother would bring radishes and chives from the garden. All the neighbors had their plots arranged in a similar way.

I still visit my parents in their quiet neighborhood and look at the houses where my friends grew up. Today, many of them have passed into new hands, completely changed – new fences, self-closing gates and behind them impressive garages, no longer for babies or Polonaises, but for proper SUVs.

I also look at the gardens and see that only a few of them have flowers and vegetables. They are increasingly replaced by neatly trimmed lawns with trampolines and swings for children, or plastic garden furniture and barbecues. Instead of apple, pear or cherry trees, there are ornamental shrubs and – of course – thujas, with which everyone tries to hide from the prying eyes of their neighbors. No one has time to sow, weave or preserve crops. Even in my parents’ house, part of the vegetable garden has been replaced by a lawn.

Lawn instead of beetroot

The lawn trend took off in Poland in the 1990s. Maybe it was then that we first felt that there was enough food in the shops and we didn’t have to queue for everything? So not only backyard pigsties and chicken coops disappeared, but also vegetable gardens. Or maybe we went to the West and saw that this is what they have there? The richer the residence, the better-groomed the lawns and the more beautiful they surround famous palaces or aristocratic residences. And we wanted it to be the same way – elegant, Western and noble, not peasant. Today, a lawn is a “must have” in practically every suburban house, every park and even in a backyard.

But today the situation in the world is completely different from the 1990s. I think everyone is already aware that the climate is changing, Poland is becoming drier, and nothing is more conducive to water leakage from the soil than grass that has been cut to the ground. This is most noticeable on lawns when there has been no rain for a long time – they turn into dry, yellow, bald patches of earth. “In a meadow, the roots of plants reach several metres deep into the soil, and the cut grass develops a shallow root system, only a few centimetres long, which is very ineffective at retaining water. Lawns dry out quickly,” says Prof. Łukasz Łuczaj from the University of Rzeszów.

But of course there is a way. It’s watering. A well-trimmed lawn, to maintain its appearance in a dry summer, requires hectoliters of water and the energy needed to collect it, clean it and pump it to the water supply. And water and energy are truly scarce commodities today. Pouring water on a uniformly cut lawn is an activity that has as much in common with ecology and a sustainable lifestyle as driving a few kilometers to work every day through the city center in a large SUV or all-terrain vehicle.

Save life on the grass

The trend towards mowed lawns is also a tragedy for animals, for whom long grass can be a great place to live. “Mowing grass reduces the diversity of plant and animal species. For example, there are far fewer insects on lawns than on meadows that are mowed once or twice a year,” explains Prof. Luczaj. And insects are an extremely important element of the food chain; their numbers determine the number of birds in our gardens and villages. In turn, the number of insect species depends on the diversity of plants.

— In our nature, many insects are closely related to a specific plant species, for example, the beautiful red-winged butterfly feeds only on sorrel. If there is no sorrel on the lawn, the red sorrel will disappear, says Prof. Luczaj.

And today there are more species-poor lawns than ever before. — This trend, which started somewhere on the few estates of the rich in the past, has become very democratic. Everyone mows their lawns, cities, towns, parks and backyards, and ditches near roads and paths are often sprayed with glyphosate, a strong herbicide, so that nothing grows there – lists our common sins, Prof. Luczaj. That is why huge areas of our country are turning into a biological desert.

When to mow the lawn?

According to Prof. Luczaj, it would be ideal if nature cut Łuczaj once a year, when biodiversity is at its highest. – But it is a good idea to avoid cutting in May, because it is a key month for the growth and flowering of many plants and for the reproduction of insects and birds – says Prof. Luczaj.

In England and the USA, they are promoting No Mow May. It is worth instilling this idea in our country as well. Or maybe you should only get your lawn mowers in mid-June? — I only mow my lawn for the first time after June 20th, because that is the least harmful to biodiversity. Of course, you can’t mow with a regular lawn mower; you have to use a scythe, hand trimmer or tractor, because the grass is already very tall. Then you can mow the lawn more often, for example once a month, and keep the grass tall, says Prof. Luczaj.

And no more lawns where nothing grows except one or a few species of grass. Let’s sow flower meadows around our houses, in green belts, in city parks or in rural yards and let them flourish freely. Then they will turn into pastures. Grass does not require expensive and time-consuming care, it maintains itself and contains various plants, also colloquially called weeds by lawn lovers. Let these weeds become the most elegant elements of our gardens from now on. Just like forgotten vegetable gardens.

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Huawei CEO Richard Yu spotted using tri-fold device

A few months ago, we heard that Huawei was working on a tri-foldable device. Huawei hasn’t said a word about it yet, but former Huawei CEO Richard Yu, now chairman of Huawei Consumer BG, has been spotted using one.

The image below shows Huawei’s tri-fold device with a centrally placed punch-hole for the selfie camera on the left side. The device also has two folds due to the two hinges instead of the single one we see on regular foldable smartphones like the Huawei Mate X5, vivo X Fold3 Pro, and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6.

The picker Digital Chat Station said that the device Yu is seen with looks similar to the R&D prototype they saw earlier. Its screen is expected to be around 10 inches, and the device is expected to have a Kirin 9-series chip at the helm.

DCS also said that the tri-foldable device will be officially available before the Mate 70. There were rumors that it would arrive before the end of June, but that did not happen. Rumors have it that the Mate 70 will launch in China in the mid or late fourth quarter of this year.

Source 1, Source 2 (both in Chinese)

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Trump appears to be confusing former mayor Willie Brown with former governor Jerry Brown

Former President Donald Trump appeared to embarrass the former mayor of San Francisco on Thursday Willie Brown With the former governor of California. Jerry Brown recounting what he characterized as a near-death experience.

Speaking at a press conference from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said he was flying with Willie Brown in a helicopter that “went down” when asked about Vice President Kamala Harris’ past relationship with the former mayor. and whether she felt the relationship had played a role in her career path.

“I actually landed in a helicopter with him. We thought maybe this is the end. We were in a helicopter together going to a certain place and there was an emergency landing. This was not a pleasant landing, and Willie was He was a little worried, Trump said. I know him well enough.”

Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown outside John’s Grill in San Francisco on October 4.

In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle after the press conference, Willie Brown, who dated Harris years ago in San Francisco, denied several aspects of Trump’s account.

“You would have known if I had gone in the helicopter with Trump,” he said, according to the newspaper. “I’ve never been in a helicopter with Trump.”

In 2018, Trump was in a helicopter with Jerry Brown and his successor, then-governor-elect. Gavin Newsomthe day they toured Paradise, California, a town ravaged by wildfires.

Then-Gov. Jerry Brown answers a question during a news conference on January 10, 2018 in Sacramento, California.

A representative for Jerry Brown did not immediately return a request for comment Thursday night. Newsom’s spokesman confirmed to NBC News that Newsom was in the helicopter, but said there was no emergency landing and that they were not in danger. The governor first denied Trump’s announcement in comments to The New York Times.

Trump also claimed during Thursday’s news conference that Willie Brown told him “terrible things” about Harris and that Brown “wasn’t a fan of his at that point.”

Brown denied badmouthing Harris in comments to the Chronicle.

“No, not exactly at all,” he told the paper.

Willie Brown did not respond to requests for comment from NBC News.

Reached for comment by NBC News, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung did not respond to questions about whether Trump had confused the two California Democrats, saying, “Slick Willie has been telling some interesting stories about Kamala Harris.”

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

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Republika TV’s MUX-8 programming Republika YouTube offers how to watch

The launch of the new Telewizja Republika station was announced by its president on Wednesday. – We have completed the tests and tomorrow we will broadcast two programmes from the Republic. One Republika on the existing bands and Telewizja Republika on the Internet and some cable channels. The first band is related to MUX and has an informative and journalistic character. The second one is under reconstruction, but will eventually contain more lifestyle, culture and sports. Both will be branded with different logos – wrote Tomasz Sakiewicz on the X website (formerly Twitter).

For now, the reach of the additional channel is limited to the Internet. Over time, it will appear on cable networks and satellite platforms. – We have been saying for a long time that we have several different business ideas that will be developed. Republika Channel covered with additional channels. We are in negotiations to attract investors. This is an ongoing process. We are currently thinking about three channels that are at different stages of engagement. We decided to start with a general channel first, – said Jarosław Olechowski, head of the station’s editors, Wirtualnemedia.pl.

The offer includes, among others: reruns of Miłosz Kłeczek’s program

On Wednesday afternoon, the logo of the first Telewizja Republika channel was changed. The inscription Republika appeared next to the R that had been used since 2017. Journalists of the “Dzisiaj” program began to introduce themselves at the end of the reports as representatives of “Republika”, and not “Telewizja Republika”, as before. The Republika signal is available on digital terrestrial television (MUX-8), cable networks, digital platforms, streaming services and YouTube (Telewizja Republika channel – 1.19 million subscribers).

On Thursday, Republika Plus TV started broadcasting on the Telewizja Republika Plus YouTube channel (34.1 thousand subscribers). In the case of this broadcaster, the left part of the letter R in the logo is slightly forward. On the first day of the additional station, both channels broadcast the morning program “Republika Wstańmy”. Instead of “#Vamos” you could watch Holy Mass on the internet TV Republika.

Newsletter WirtualneMedia.pl in your mailbox

Later instead of Adrian Klarenbach’s current affairs programs that were broadcast by Republika Viewers of TV Republika were able to watch a rerun of the formats of the culinary program “W Ruchu Miłosz Kłeczek” with the participation of the former president of Telewizja Polska, Jacek Kurski“Interview with a hooligan”, “From the mix archive”. “Review of the German Press”. On the 12th, the news service “Republika Dzień” was broadcast. The news and journalistic programming continued until the 15th, when TV Republika broadcast the Divine Mercy Chaplet. At that time, Republika broadcast a news service.

Later, TV Republika aired a rerun of “Hits on the Internet” with the participation of Oskar Szafarowicz, and then another episode of the Kłeczka program. The news wave continued in the Republic. At 5 pm, both channels aired “Express Republika”. After hours On the 18th, instead of the program “Miłosz Kłeczek invites”, TV Republika aired a rerun of the “World is a theater” format and another rerun of “W Ruchu Miłosz Kłeczek”. The main edition of the “Hoje” program has already been shown on both antennas.

The Republic’s satellite license is of a universal nature

The Republic, which recently received a license to broadcast digital terrestrial television under MUX-8, is expected to have an informative and journalistic profile. In turn, TV Republika, which has been broadcasting for over a decade, has a satellite license to broadcast a universal program. Therefore, there will be less news and journalistic content on this channel. The broadcaster does not rule out that the name will be changed over time to avoid confusion between the two broadcasters.

In both licenses, the program name must be visible on the screen. – According to the information I received from the Regulatory Department, the program broadcast via satellite should be called TV Republika, and the program broadcast on terrestrial TV should be called Republika. These are the requirements specified in the license, Agnieszka Gniado from the office of the chairman of the National Broadcasting Council recently told Wirtualnemedia.pl.

TV Republika’s satellite license states that the station must broadcast on a 10.911 GHz transponder, Polish. V orbital position of Hot Bird 13E. The Lyngsat listing shows that the channel broadcasts on the 10.758 GHz transponder, Polish. V, so the license data is not up to date. Furthermore, Polsat Box offers Republika, not TV Republika. The National Broadcasting Council did not respond to our questions on this matter on Thursday.

In recent terrestrial broadcasting tenders, the National Broadcasting Council expected new television stations to submit their applications. Extension of the concession was not permitted. For example, Telewizja Polsat received a license to broadcast W24 last year. It later applied to change its name to Event 24 and to change the name of Event 24 to Polsat News Polityka. The regulator considered the applications positively, but Polsat took a long time to rebuild Event 24 coverage on cable networks (it was mostly replaced by Polsat News Polityka). Red Carpet Media Group did something even different. It licensed CTV9, changed the name of the station to ViDoc TV, and transformed the existing channel, with the approval of the National Broadcasting Council, into ViDoc TV1.

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Bitcoin (BTC) Price Rises Above $62K as BTC Bulls Recover Revisiting $100K Target

“If Trump wins, a flood of new buyers could push bitcoin prices above $100,000,” Terpin said, adding that the six months following the halving have seen pullbacks — and this fifth bitcoin cycle is no exception. “October and November are historically strong months for bitcoin, especially in the halving year and the year after,” he said.

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A man of holy name. Who was Traugutt?

After Traugutt’s death, many circles saw him as a role model. Who was the now almost forgotten dictator of the January Uprising?

“I was struck by Traugutt’s physical ugliness, there was something bat-like about him, and in times of publicity this ugliness would have harmed him; but his strong will and extraordinary energy were visible, the good faith he felt inspired confidence; he understood and assessed the situation in Czersto, manfully, without illusions” – this is how the Kraków historian Stanisław Koźmian characterized Romuald Traugutt. Known for his critical approach to the uprising, the Kraków conservative did not rely on legends, but on very cold observations.

Who was Traugutt? If it weren’t for the last year of his life, if it weren’t for half a year of leading the uprising, 36 years of his life would have been lost, as would the fate of hundreds of thousands of Poles living in the harsh reality between uprisings. Like many, he adapted to the harsh political realities prevailing in the lands of the Russian partition. He simply lived.

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Ditch your dish to get Sky TV and Sky Sports at ‘lowest price ever’

Sky has this week launched a brand new Sky Sports channel called Sky Sports Plus, just in time for the busy start of the English football season. Sky says the addition of the channel, which is free to all existing Sky customers, will mean every game in the Championship, League One and League Two will be televised on the opening weekend for the first time ever.

If you don’t already have Sky TV or get your TV from another satellite provider such as Virgin Media, you may be tempted to save with Sky’s introductory deal at the launch of Sky Sports Plus, which the company says is its “lowest price ever” package that includes Sky Sports, Sky TV and Netflix.

For £43 a month for new customers, you can sign up to this package and use a Sky Stream hub that you plug into your TV and stream all your content in the same way you can with an Amazon Fire TV Stick or Roku device.

The addition of the new Sky Sports Plus channel seems like a real boon as there’s simply more sport on offer so you can watch the matches you want, not just the Premier League.

“On Saturday 10 August, fans can look forward to 30 matches across all three divisions either on Sky Sports’ linear channels or via Sky Sports Plus,” a Sky spokesperson told Express.co.uk.

See the Sky Sports offer here

The channel allows all viewers to pause and rewind live action, and when there is no sport to broadcast, it shows other content such as sports documentaries. Sky Sports Plus can be found on linear channel number 410 for Sky Glass customers, 412 for Sky Q customers and 416 for ROI customers.

“Sky Sports Plus is here to take sports viewing to the next level, offering unparalleled access and choice across a range of live broadcasts and our new dedicated channel,” said Jonathan Licht, CEO of Sky Sports.

“This season we’re showing football fans more than ever before, showing every EFL team over 20 times a season and this weekend our viewers can look forward to every EFL match live. We’re thrilled to be able to offer this at no extra cost to customers so they can enjoy even more of what they love this summer about sports.”

The Sky Stream package, which gives you Sky Sports, Sky TV and Netflix, used to cost £52 for a minimum 24-month contract, so for £43 you save £9 a month, which equates to a saving of £216 over two years. .

Just remember that this and all Sky contracts are subject to mid-contract price increases, so you’ll likely end up paying more per month over two years than this original price. And of course, if you don’t need a new TV package, don’t sign up – think before you commit to such a contract.

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Kaczmarek aims for a medal, the canoeists want to advance to the final. Polish starts in Paris

Natalia Kaczmarek is making no secret of her medal aspirations ahead of Friday’s 400m race at the Paris Olympics. On that day, the Reds and Whites will have five chances to advance to the canoeing final.

Canadian players Dorota Borowska and Sylwia Szczerbińska in the qualifying race

/Adam Warzawa /PAP

The European champion achieved a score of 49.45 in the semi-finals, winning her series. Ultimately, Kaczmarek secured it third time. The fastest in this phase of the competition was the 2019 Doha world champion Salwa Eid Naser from Bahrain – 49.08, which is her best result this season. The second result was achieved by Marileidy Paulino, winning the second heat (49.21). The current world champion, who was definitely leading, slowed down noticeably in the last 30-40 meters. Jamaican Nickisha Pryce, who arrived in Paris with the best result in the world this year, finished fourth in this event and did not advance to the final.

The women’s 400m final is scheduled for the 20th.

Salwa Eid Naser and Marileida Paulino will be very strong in the final, but I haven’t shown everything yet – said the Polish woman.

Natalia Kaczmarek before the fight for gold: I haven’t shown everything yet

The Polish record holder was not satisfied with her performance in the semi-final. I slept a little during the arc, because after 200 meters I didn’t see anyone. I managed to win. In the final I could already see from the track layout that I was chasing Nasser, so I’m not going to miss the curve, I’m going to keep the rhythm of it. – Kaczmarek said.

His coach, Marek Rożej, argues that your wing is ready for a big race. An athlete in Paris wants to follow in the footsteps of Irena Szewińska and become the next Polish Olympic medalist in the 400m individual race.

Polish fans have high hopes for the performance at the Stade de France Pia Skrzyszowska. The European Championships bronze medallist will be in the 100m hurdles semi-final. (12/05). Earlier, both Polish 4x400m relay teams will compete in the final.

In the kayak race, up to five Polish settlements will compete in the semifinals. They will perform in C-2 500 m (10:30). Dorota Borowska and Sylwia Szczerbinska, who only advanced from the quarterfinals. Borowska was allowed to participate in the Olympics at the last minute. On Sunday, the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) cleared her of any charges of using prohibited means. She arrived in the French capital only on Monday, just a day before the first start. As she admitted, recent training has not been the easiest.

In the K-2 500m (10.50), two teams will compete, White and Red, including the silver medalists from Tokyo Karolina Naja and Anna Puławska. They will also participate in the competition Martyna Klatt and Helena Wiśniewska. The first two will want to make up for their lack of a medal in the K-4 500 m, where they finished fourth.

Jakub Stepun and Przemysław Korsak in K-2 500 m (11/10) they won the qualifying race and advanced directly to the semifinals. We don’t hand out medals; we want to be as high as possible – Stepun said.

He had an equally successful start to qualifying in the C-1 1000 m, the fastest of his series Victor Glazunov. His start in the semifinals is scheduled for 11:30 am.

The second day of competition awaits the pentathletes (1pm). Łukasz Gutkowski and Kamil Kasperczak After the first competition – fencing, they occupy places 7 to 14 ex aequo with several other competitors.

On Friday, the Polish swimmer will start earlier (7:30 am). Piotr Woźniak. Last year’s European junior champion will compete in the 10km open water event. He will compete in the qualifying round of the 10m tower dive (10h). Robert Lukaszewicz.

Classic style fighter Roberto Baran in the round of 16 of the up to 125 kg category (11:30 am), he will face Yusup Batirmurzayev, a Kazakh.

They will compete in the sprint qualifying phase (14h) for track cycling Marlena Karwacka and Nikola Sibiak. In turn, the final of the Madison competition (September 18) is dominated by the sisters Daria and Wiktoria Pikulik.

CANOEING

10:30 C-2 women’s 500 m, semi-finals – Dorota Borowska, Sylwia Szczerbińska

10.50, women’s K-2 500 m, semi-finals – Martyna Klatt, Helena Wiśniewska; Karolina Naja, Anna Puławska

11/10, men’s K-2 500 m, semi-finals – Jakub Stepun, Przemysław Korsak

11:30, Men’s C-1 1000m, Semifinals – Viktor Glazunov

1:00 p.m., women’s K-2 500 m, final B

1:20 p.m., men’s K-2 500 m, final B

1:40 p.m., men’s C-1 1000 m, final B

13/10, Women’s K-2 500m, Final

1:30 p.m., men’s K-2 500 m, final

1:50 p.m., men’s C-1 1000 m, final

TRACK CYCLING

2:00 p.m., women’s sprint, qualification – Marlena Karwacka, Nikola Sibiak

2:48 pm, women’s sprint, 1st lap

3:38 p.m., women’s sprint, repechage

9/18, Women’s Madison, Final – Daria Pikulik, Wiktoria Pikulik

19/02, men’s sprint, final

19/10, women’s sprint, 2nd round

7:58 pm, women’s sprint, repechage

SPORTS

10:05, long jump, heptathlon – Adrianna Sułek-Schubert

10:40, women’s 4x400m relay, heats – Poland

11/05, men’s 4x400m relay, qualifying round – Poland

11:23, javelin throw, heptathlon, group A – Adrianna Sułek-Schubert

12/05, Women’s 100m hurdles, semifinals – Pia Skrzyszowska

8pm, women’s 400m – Natalia Kaczmarek

20.15, 800 m, heptathlon – Adrianna Sułek-Schubert

MODERN PENTATHLON

13:00, men, horse riding – Łukasz Gutkowski, Kamil Kasperczak

1:40 p.m., men, fencing

10/14, men, swimming

2:40 p.m., men, shooting race

5:00 pm, men, horse riding

5:40 p.m., men, fencing

10/18, men, swimming

6:40 p.m., men, shooting race

SWIMMING

7:30, 10km open water, men – Piotr Woźniak

JUMP INTO THE WATER

10:00, men’s 10m tower, qualification round – Robert Łukaszewicz

FIGHT

11:30, Men’s Freestyle -125kg, 1/8 Finals – Robert Baran – Jusup Batirmurzajew (Kazakhstan)

12.50, 125kg Men’s Freestyle Quarterfinals

18s35, 125kg men’s freestyle, semifinals

20.50, 57 kg in women’s freestyle, for the bronze medal

21s15, women’s freestyle up to 57 kg, final

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These rare pink insects hide among the leaves in Ojibway Park

It’s a rare sight: a small, elongated insect in bright Barbie pink.

It’s a pink katydid, an insect resembling a grasshopper that has a recessive gene that changes its usual light green color to bright pink.

Geoff Pekor is an insect enthusiast who spends his hobby searching for these and other unusual insects in Ojibway Park. He recently spotted a pink katydid — but it’s not the first one he’s found.

In fact, he has a knack for it.

“If anyone knows anything about pink katydids, they’re not common,” Pekor said. “They say it’s about one in 500, more or less, but that’s how it started for me, I just found a couple at night and then I kept going and kept finding them.

“It was very unusual… most people only see one thing in their entire life, but I was able to see a whole bunch.”

Some katydids, insects that resemble grasshoppers, are pink thanks to a recessive gene. They are quite rare, but Geoff Pekor of Windsor has a knack for finding them. (Geoff Pekor)

Pekor started looking for them when another nature and insect lover showed him a photo. Later, at night, he searched for insects, using a flashlight to navigate the trails.

“I accidentally pointed my flashlight right at this beautiful pink grasshopper,” he said.

Pekor is a photographer, especially interested in macro photography. He has a collection of photos of pink katydids.

Pekor works as a volunteer at several Ontario universities, cataloging insects, including some types of spiders and now pink katydids. His photos of rare katydids have even caught the attention of the Montreal Insectarium, and representatives have come (permit in hand) to collect some katydids for display.

As for why Pekor has such a knack for finding grasshoppers, he believes it has to do with the time he spends looking for them.

“My theory is that during the day, this species generally sticks to the base of the plant and stays quite low to avoid predators,” he said. “At night, I’ve noticed that my pink katydids are more or less near the tops of the plants.

“So I assume they’re comfortable at night. And that’s perfect for me because I’m out at night and I’m scanning the tops of vegetation and they’re there.”

He adds, however, that the Ojibwa appear to be home to many unusual and rare species, not just grasshoppers.

“It never ends. You just never know what you’re going to find…it’s a really special place.”

What makes grasshoppers pink?

A Michigan State University entomologist says the pink color is caused by a recessive gene.

“It’s a bit like an albino animal,” David Lowenstein told CBC Windsor.

Geoff Pekor is a photographer and insect enthusiast who has a knack for finding rare pink katydids in Ojibway Park (Michael Evans/CBC)

“Most grasshoppers are green because they are herbivores. They want to blend in with the leaves they feed on so they don’t get eaten. But sometimes a mutation happens and you have cases that are pink.”

Lowenstein said this type of coloration occurs in about one in 500 insects and persists throughout their lives.

“It would remain pink as an immature life stage and as an adult. But if a pink grasshopper were to breed with a green grasshopper, it would likely be a green grasshopper as offspring,” he said.

“They are not toxic when in contact with them”

If you see a pink grasshopper and aren’t squeamish, you might be happy to know that “they’re not toxic to the touch.” In fact, Lowenstein said, “Seeing a pink grasshopper is nothing to be concerned about. You can approach it. If it’s an adult, it’ll probably fly away. But there’s nothing to be concerned about when you see an insect that looks like that.”

According to the entomologist, this is one of the “extraordinary oddities” found in the insect world.

“Sometimes it’s about the insect’s appearance, other times it’s about its function. The reason we don’t see many pink katydids is because katydids can be food for predators. They don’t have great defenses, and if you want to avoid being eaten and you’re hanging out on plants, it’s usually a good idea to look like a plant and not stand out.”

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‘More traditional’ Olympic closing ceremony. Who will perform?

The closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics will not be as unconventional as the opening ceremony, but you can expect a spectacular spectacle at the Stade de France. The opening ceremony was graced by Celine Dion and Lady Gaga, and now the media is expecting Tom Cruise. There have also been unconfirmed rumors on social media about the participation of another star – Beyoncé.

The opening ceremony of the games

/Mike Egerton /PAP/PA

The ceremony will take place at the stadium France Stadium – France’s national stadium in the northern suburbs of Paris. It will have a more traditional route than the Games’ opening ceremony, which took place on the Seine, but Thomas Jolly is also the director. The final ceremony will also be shorter – the whole thing will last about two hours, the artistic performance – several tens of minutes.

There are repeated reports of Tom Cruise’s involvement. The presence of the American star will be a symbolic transfer of the relay to Los Angeles. They also appeared on social media unconfirmed rumors about the participation of another star – Beyoncé.

The artistic part will feature approximately one hundred dancers, acrobats and circus artists. This is what it should be futuristic vision of the world, where the Olympic Games disappeared and in the distant future someone appears to recreate them. However, it is not known exactly what will happen – the closing ceremony, like the opening ceremony, will be a surprise.

“Part of the show will take place outdoors, and huge decorations, costumes and spectacular lighting effects will take spectators on a journey through time – both to the past and to the future,” announced the organizers.

Jolly described the final performance as a “very visual and acrobatic” performance, a kind of “fresco” in farewell to athletes from all over the world.

The newspaper “Le Parisen” reported that two famous French bands will perform during the ceremony: English-speaking Phoenix and the duo Air. It will be a presentation of the currently popular French “export”, that is, electronic music from the Seine.

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