Flocks of Carolina Parakeets

The Carolina Parakeet used to be all over the South. But like the passenger pigeon, they were all shot down. Extinct! The last Carolina Parakeet died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1918, the same spot the last passenger pigeon died in 1914! I wrote about the passenger pigeon a few weeks ago.

The Carolina Parakeet was the only North American Parrot. They filled the skies in South Carolina. There were more of them than Robins. I wish I could look up and see those colorful birds flying around today. Can you imagine flocks of wild parakeets in your yard?

There are so many birds today in danger of extinction. Click here for ways to help! You should stop using poisons and pesticides in your yard, and protect the water. Check out these important bird areas.
What do you think? Click "comment" and let me know.

Koalas Future in Doubt

Have you ever seen or heard of a koala? They may go extinct within a decade!
But it doesn't mean they will. We can save them and help them stay alive for generations and generations.
We have koalas at the Riverbanks Zoo here in Columbia. Koalas are not bears. They are actually marsupials, related to the kangaroo. They live n Australia.


You can help save the koala by taking care of the earth and environment in your town. And tell people it's important. And stop by and see them at the zoo. Tell them Mossy sent you! How could let anything happen to the koala? Tell me what you think by clicking "comment."

Good Earth Day!

I had a good earth day. We went hiking at Harbison State Park where we saw a beaver by the river! It's the first time I've seen a beaver in the wild.


Then we went to Riverbanks Zoo and looked at everything. We watched elephants spray water on themselves. We saw some cute wallabee joeys. They also have many endangered species like the VERY rare bali mynah, grizzly bear, Siberian tiger, and the Western lowland gorilla.

My mom and sister planted wildflowers and worked in the garden. What did you do? Click on "comments" and tell me.

Happy Earth Day

Earth Day is a special day when we think about the earth. But every day should be Earth Day.

Many people litter and waste energy. You might think it's just Ok to litter or waste energy, but it harms the environment and hurts wildlife.

There are so many things you can do. Don't drive so much-- walk or ride your bike. Recycle (organizing the recycling is one of my chores). And take some time to enjoy nature and outside!

If you want to celebrate, go to Party for the Planet at the South Carolina Aquarium or the Riverbanks Zoo. Maybe we'll see you there!

Belugas in Danger!

In Spring 2006 I visited the Georgia Aquarium. My most favorite animals there were the belugas. I could watch them all day! But when I found out they are in danger of extinction, I felt sad. This video is from Storyteller.

You can help the beluga whale here, or write to the government here and say that we should take care of the belugas!

Thylacine really extinct?

Someone from Colorado wrote to me and asked me about thylacine sightings. Many have been recorded, but sadly, none are confirmed. But that doesn't mean they couldn't be alive.

This video was taken in 1973. It's one of the three videos I have seen of a thylacine sighting. My opinion is it gives me some hope they could be alive.

What do you think? If you'd like to let me know, please post a comment.

From billions to zero

One out of every four bird species in the USA is in trouble! Two out of three species in the world are declining! Hard to beleive?

Once there were billions of passenger pigeons. It was the most numerous bird on the planet. They were colorful and could fly 70 miles an hour! They were hunted like crazy, and a hunter even said "Don't worry. There are so many, we can't kill them all." But at the Cincinnati Zoo, the very last passenger pigeon died in September 1914. Extinct!

I've seen two stuffed passenger pigeons. One at the Museum of Science in Boston last summer, and one this March at the Natural History Museum in Washington D.C. But I'll never get to see a real one.




Will we let more birds go extinct? What can you do about it? Learn more about the birds in your yard and neighborhood. You can plant wild flowers and trees for the birds and butterflies. Build a birdfeeder so birds will use it during the winter. The Audubon says write letters. Talk to your parents about things your family can do at home. Any other suggstions?

What will you do to help the birds in your town? Let me know!

The Sad Story of the Thylacine

Have you ever heard of the Tasmanian Devil? How about its long lost relative, the Tasmanian Tiger, or Thylacine? If you think tasmanian tiger is related to a tiger, you're wrong. It's not a tiger.

The thylacine lived in Tasmania and Austrailia long ago. When dingoes appeared, most thylacines in Australia disapperaed. But in Tasmania, where there weren't dingoes, they survived until settlers arrived.

Settlers and farmers killed the thylacines because they looked even scarier than wolves, and they thought they would kill their livestock. Unfortuatley, they were nearly wiped out. They lived for a while in zoos in London, Bronx Zoo New York, Washington D.C., and Hobart in Tasmania. Hobart Zoo was where the last thylacine died in 1936.

We're pretty sure they're extinct, but there have been unconfirmed sightings. If there was a confirmed sighting I would feel really, really happy. I saw a mounted thylacine at the Natural History Museum in Washington, DC, but I would love to see a real one. For more information, check out the Thylacine Museum. Below is the last known video of a thylacine.

Have we learned anything from the thylacine? Can we stop the extinctions?

Videos of the last thylacine...

Could this be the most recent extinction?

Probably the most recent extinction would be the yangtze river dolphin. This makes me feel sad because more of earth's species are dying. Did you even hear about it? It was hardly in the news except for this clip I found. There are thousands of other species so close to extinction. Can you name any?

What can you do?

People wonder how they're supposed to help. On this blog I'm going to tell you some things you can do to help.

First, don't litter! We all see litter along the side of the roads, but this is more than just ugly. It can be poison to animals, and it can hurt the environment. So the first thing is don't litter! And recycle.

I'm a member of the World Wildlife Fund, because I like what they do.


I'm also a member of National Wildlife Federation, and a few others. Just pick your favorite, and send them some money.

See? You're doing something to help already!

Congaree Swamp

If you like nature and wildlife, you can't beat the Congaree National Swamp. Even if you don't, it's a great place to visit and learn about our environment. It's the first and only national park in South Carolina.

This is a great place to walk, paddle, and see all kinds of wildlife.

I've seen deer, river otters, snakes, turtles, hawks, owls and many other birds.

Congaree has a great boardwalk, but my favorite way to see wildlife there is in my kayak with my dad.

Welcome to Mossy's World of Animals

Welcome people of the world! This is the first day of my new blog I did on Spring break, dedicated to educating people about animals...extinct animals, endangered animals, threatened animals, vulnerable animals, and animals right in your own backyard.

It's important so that people can be more careful-- it's up to us to take care of nature and habitats and all living creatures.

I'm a fourth grader in the Midlands of South Carolina, and ever since I can remember, I have always liked animals-- animal toys, movies, books, and zoos. A few years ago I was amazed to learn about all the extinct animals I'd never get to see, and all the endangered animals people in the future may not get to see.

If you are curious, or want to help, check in with this blog and let me know what you think.

I'll try to provide interesting information, tips on how you can help the environment, and other cool stuff about animals.