Whilechatting, the huntsmen, now converted to naturalists, continued on their way,and reached a sort of vale, without surrounding hills, at the bottom of whichsnaked a more or less unfrozen river; because of its southern exposure there grew some vegetation on the banksand a certain way up the slopes. Theground displayed a veritable desire to be fertilized; with a few inches of topsoil, it would haveasked for nothing better than to produce. The doctor pointed out these manifest tendencies.
‘Look, couldn’ta few enterprising settlers settle in this valley, if they had to? With hard work and perseverance, they wouldtransform it; not to a temperate countryside – I wouldn’t go so far – but atleast a presentable patch of land. If I’mnot mistaken, over there are even a few four-legged inhabitants! Suchfellows know all the best places.’
Polar hare
‘Goodness,they’re polar hares!’ exclaimed Altamont, loading his gun.
‘Wait,’ criedthe doctor, ‘wait, you crazy huntsman! The poor animals aren’t about to flee. Come on, leave them be; let themcome to us!’
In factthree or four young hares, gamboling in the thin heather and new moss, wereapproaching the three men, whose presence they did not fear; they ran up with beautiful naïve airs, whichhardly managed to disarm Altamont.
Arctic fox
Soon theywere between the doctor’s legs, who stroked them, saying:
‘Why useshots for those who seek caresses? Thedeath of these small creatures wouldn’t serve us.’
‘You’reright,’ cried Hatteras, ‘their lives should be spared.’
‘Like thoseof the ptarmigans flying toward us,’ exclaimed Altamont, ‘and the sandpipersadvancing gravely on their long stilts.’
Arctic Ptarmigan
A wholefeathered race was approaching the huntsmen, not suspecting the danger thedoctor had averted. Even Duke, holdinghimself back, watched in admiration.
Arctic sandpiper
It was acurious sight to see the pretty animals running, jumping and leapingtrustingly; they landed on the goodClawbonny’s shoulders; they lay down at his feet; they spontaneously offered themselves to theunaccustomed caresses; they did theirutmost to welcome the unknown guests; the many birds, joyously chirping, called to each other and came fromall points of the valley; the doctorresembled a veritable charmer. Thehuntsmen continued their journey by climbing up the soggy banks of the stream,followed by this friendly group; at abend in the valley they spotted a herd of eight or ten reindeer, grazing onsome lichen half-buried under the snow, charming animals to look upon, graciousand calm, the females bearing antlers as proudly as the males. Their wooly hides were already exchangingwintry whiteness for the brown and dull grey of summer; they appeared no more frightened and no lesstame than the hares or birds of this peaceful country.
Arctic reindeer
Suchmust have been the relationship betweenthe first man and the first animals when the world was young.
Dr. Clawbonny, Duke, Captains Hatteras and Altamont in Northern Arcadia
Text excerpted from: Jules Verne, The Adventures of Captain Hatteras (1864). Trans. William Butcher. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005.
Conservationists discover more than 1,000 species in New Guinea
Treasure trove of unknown varieties of animal, bird, fish, insect and plant have been identified in the forests and wetlands of the Pacific island over a period of just 10 years
By Tracy McVeigh, The Guardian (Observer),
Wattled Smoky Honeyeater (Melipotes carolae)
A new type of tree kangaroo, a 2.5-metre-long river shark, a frog withvampire-like fangs and a turquoise lizard are among hundreds of new creaturesfound and being documented in a report by conservationists working in thePacific island of New Guinea.
Papua New Guinea tree kangaroo
Some 1,060 previously unknownspecies of mammals, fish and birds have been spotted in thevolcanic island over a 10-year period.
The Final Frontier report, whichwas put together by WWF as part ofits 50th anniversary celebrations, marks a brief respite from the escalatingrate of animal and plant extinctions which is taking its toll across the planetand has left a quarter of all known mammals on the endangered list.
The species have all beendiscovered, at a rate of two each week, in the period from 1998 to 2008 by thevarious teams and researchers who have visited the region and its extensiveforests, waters and wetlands.
Snub-fin dolphin
One team discovered a new bird,the wattled smoky honeyeater, within seconds of leaving their expeditionhelicopter.
Perhaps the most extraordinaryfreshwater discovery is the species of river shark which, given its size, hasdone well to evade discovery until now. The shy fish has been named the Glyphisgarrickiafter the New Zealand zoologist Jack Garrick, who identified it.Because of its rarity it has immediately gone on to the endangered list.
River shark
In the salt waters a snub-findolphin that comes in a delicate shade of pink was spotted in 2005 and, aftermuch scientific measuring and debating, now qualifies as the first new dolphinspecies to be found in more than three decades.
Dr Mark Wright, conservationscience adviser at WWF, said the report was a fabulousreminder that "the world is full of fantastic and fantastical creatures,of quirky and improbable lifestyles. The more we look, the more we find".
Spilocuscus wilsoni cuscus (marsupial)
But he said that speciesdiversity was rich the world over. "Perhaps it is so commonplace we ignoreit, or maybe we've forgotten how to look. Let's take flies. Britain is home tomore than 5,000 species of fly, and these are not everyone's favourite, butflies represent 5,000 entirely different responses to life's challenges.
"For instance, the holly leafminer, whose nondescript larvae cause leaf blotching at this time of year –their entire world is limited to that tiny strip between the top and bottom ofa single leaf. Those same life processes that we go through – feeding, growing,breathing – are still acted out, but now crammed into a creature far smallerthan a grain of rice."
Orange snail
New Guinea is in an area known asthe "coral triangle", a region with the most diverse marineeco-systems on Earth. In the 10-year period in question, 33 new fish specieshave been found in the waters around the island, including the damselfish, astrikingly brilliant blue wrasse and seven species of zig-zag rainbow fish, an11cm-long creature which lives in shallow waters. In all, 218 new kinds ofplants – including a flesh-like orchid, 43 reptiles and 12 mammals, 580invertebrates, 134 amphibians, two birds and 71 fish have been found.
"It is precisely thatendless variety of form and function that enthralls me, but this exuberance ofnature is under threat," said Wright. "Despite the best efforts ofgroups like WWF, it is clear that we will not save all we would liketo.
"Forest will continue to befelled, rivers dammed and coastlines developed. And species will be erased.Some extinction is inevitable – a consequence of Darwin's 'natural selection' –but humans are imposing intense pressures, leading to 'unnatural selection'.Nature is struggling to cope, but we have the ability and power in our hands toforge a future in which the environment is truly valued – we must choose to doso."
New Guinea is the second largestisland on Earth, after Greenland, and is divided between the countries of PapuaNew Guinea and Indonesia. It holds the third largest tract of rainforest in theworld and is home to around 8% of the world's species.
But while its relatively lowlevel of human population had protected its species, illegal logging is nowprojected to strip the island of half of its forest cover by 2020.
Delias duria butterfly
To support WWF's anniversaryreport, writer and film-maker Stephen Poliakoff has made a short film whichwill include footage of some of the new species from New Guinea. Called AstonishMe, the film will be shown exclusively online by the Observer laterthis summer before being shown in Odeon cinemas as a short feature prelude tomajor films.
Poliakoff said that his drama – which starsBill Nighy – had been inspired by the new discoveries made in the naturalworld.
Litoria sauroni tree frog
"What astonishes me is thereare so many animals out there we are seeing for the first time from the verycolossal squid to the largest insect in the world discovered recently – it'sextraordinary in the 21st century that this is still going on. We think we knoweverything, but we don't," he said.
Zoran Lucic, un joven diseñador gráfico e ilustrador de Bosnia y Herzegovina que lleva dedicándose desde años atrás a la realización de obras centradas en el mundo de la música, el cine o a las personalidades del deporte en general. Actualmente, ha presentado una colección de carteles sobre los mayores iconos futbolísticos de todos los tiempos, bajo el título de "Sucker for Soccer". Cerca de medio centenar de pósters realizados al estilo vintage o retro, con sabor a clásicos y aroma fresco. Un trabajo excepcional e impresionante, en el que han tenido cabida figuras míticas y actuales como: Maradona, Puskas, Messi,Zidane, Zico, Raúl o Cruyff, entre otros. A continuación una selección de carteles de dicha colección, y un pequeño repaso por parte de otras de sus obras y producciones de Lucic como es el caso de la también magnífica: "To be or not to bot", centrada en el universo del jazz.
Zoran Lucic, un joven diseñador gráfico e ilustrador de Bosnia y Herzegovina que lleva dedicándose desde años atrás a la realización de obras centradas en el mundo de la música, el cine o a las personalidades del deporte en general. Actualmente, ha presentado una colección de carteles sobre los mayores iconos futbolísticos de todos los tiempos, bajo el título de "Sucker for Soccer". Cerca de medio centenar de pósters realizados al estilo vintage o retro, con sabor a clásicos y aroma fresco. Un trabajo excepcional e impresionante, en el que han tenido cabida figuras míticas y actuales como: Maradona, Puskas, Messi, Zidane, Zico, Raúl o Cruyff, entre otros. A continuación una selección de carteles de dicha colección, y un pequeño repaso por parte de otras de sus obras y producciones de Lucic como es el caso de la también magnífica: "To be or not to bot", centrada en el universo del jazz. 
