General
Under the auspices of the United Nations, the World Food Programme (WFP) "works to put hunger at the centre of the international agenda, promoting policies, strategies and operations that directly benefit the poor and hungry." This capacious website contains a great deal of information about hunger-affected areas and WFP activities to curb hunger and poverty around the world. The site connects to many pertinent news stories and videos, as well as to information about WFP food-aid activities and strategies, operations, policies, and organization. The WFP site also contains a collection of downloadable publications including Annual Reports, Strategic Plans, Policy Papers, and briefs examining connections between food aid programming and food policy research. The briefs were produced jointly by WFP and the International Food Policy Research Institute; and are available in Arabic, Spanish, English and French. [NL]
http://www.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/birds/wos.html
Established in 1888 and named after the renowned ornithologist Alexander Wilson, the Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS) "is a world-wide organization of nearly 2500 people who share a curiosity about birds." Hosted by the University of Michigan, the Society website offers information about holdings in the WOS library, research grants, annual meetings, and membership. Academic advisors and undergraduates interested in advanced bird biology studies will appreciate the Society's guide to North American graduate programs in ornithology. For educators, the Society provides a number of downloadable learning exercises that comprise the Manual of Field and Laboratory Exercises for Ornithology. The Manual is available in Spanish and English. The site contains contact information for Society Officers and links to many downloadable copies of the Wilson Bulletin (the Society's long-standing scholarly journal) as well. [NL]
http://donb.furfly.net/index.adp
This website, which features exquisite photographs of birds and nature scenes, was created by Don Baccus, a naturalist, freelance photographer, and software engineer from Portland, Oregon. A sampling of the birds represented at the site includes the snowy egret, brown pelican, wood duck, and sage grouse, to name a few. Be sure not to miss the Springtime in Malheur County section which exhibits beautiful images of owls, pronghorn, golden eagles, northern flickers, and more. Baccus makes his photos freely available for certain personal, non-commercial uses such as student reports and presentations. Camera aficionados will likely appreciate the For Gearheads Only section. [NL]
http://www.sw-center.org/swcbd/
The Center for Biological Diversity works to protect "endangered species and wild places through science, policy, education, and environmental law." This site provides brief information about many species that the Center has worked to protect including amphibians such as the Oregon spotted frog; invertebrates such as the Island Marble butterfly; birds such as the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl; mammals such as the fisher; plants such as the white fringeless orchid; fish such as the Zuni bluehead sucker; and reptiles such as the Alameda whipsnake. The Center also offers information about its various programs concerning forests, deserts, marine protection, livestock grazing, urban sprawl, ecosystem restoration, and more. In addition, the site contains links to downloadable research papers; information about environmental internships; Action Alerts; and pertinent news updates. [NL]
http://www.noah-health.org/en/pregnancy/
This New York Online Access to Health (NOAH) website contains links to numerous Internet resources relating to pregnancy. The site is quite well organized with resource subtopics arranged under broad headings like Pregnancy Choices; Before Becoming Pregnant, and Delivery. Various subtopics include Labor Pain, Fetal Development, Fitness and Exercise, Sexuality During Pregnancy, and more. NOAH provides links to Internet resources organized under other health-issue headings as well, such as Bone, Joint, and Muscle; Heart Disease; Nutrition; Cancer; and Patient's Rights and Resources. NOAH also employs a nifty system for adjusting the text size on the page. [NL]
Turtle Trax was created by sport divers Peter Bennett and Ursula Keuper-Bennett in 1995 to raise awareness about fibropapilloma tumors they observed on Hawaiian green turtles off the coast of Maui. The website contains tumor-related scientific papers, and articles authored by the Bennetts and other lay writers. The site also displays good-quality underwater images of turtles that the Bennetts have captured over the years. For those wishing to learn more, the site contains a Marine Turtle Fibropapilloma Bibliography that was compiled by members of the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service. The site is rounded out by a section for kids; a glossary; and profiles of a number of marine turtles including the loggerhead, leatherback, hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, Atlantic green, and of course Hawaiian green. [NL]
Bamboo growers and enthusiasts will enjoy this website from Earthcare Enterprises, a farm and nursery located in Australia. The website displays images (accompanied by brief notes) of an interesting array of bamboo species including Bambusa textilis, Bambusa tulda, Dendrocalamus asper, Melocanna baccifera, and more. Simply click on any of the thumbnail images for a slide show of the different species. The site also offers a concise section on Lotus Germination & Growing Instructions; brief descriptions of ginger species used for culinary and medicinal purposes such as Myoga Ginger (Zingiber mioga); and information about water chestnuts. Site visitors will appreciate the assortment of recipes as well with such tantalizing dishes as Cassava Cake, Lotus Stem and Prawn Salad, Stewed Chicken with Young Bamboo Shoot and Lemon Grass, and Lotus Shoot Salad, to name a few. [NL]
The International Osprey Foundation (TIOF) is a nonprofit organization "dedicated to the continuing recovery and preservation of the osprey, others in the raptor family, wildlife and the environment as a whole." The TIOF website contains a great collection of photographs of ospreys in nests, on perches, in flight, and clutching prey in their talons. The site also contains a short movie of an osprey in flight, as well as brief sections describing osprey feeding and nesting habits, and a small collection of osprey drawings. TIOF makes available copies of its annual newsletter, and a brief downloadable instruction brochure on building an artificial nesting platform. [NL]
