Day 3- An unpleasant gift

Today I spent half an hour exploring my way around the underside of one leaf. Peering at this one leaf through a microscope was like going for a whole bush walk!!! I found all sorts of fascinating features, holes, oil glands and hairy bits.
The occasion was an interactive session at Canberra's Botanical Gardens, where I was able to pretend I was Darwin for a few hours. I even pressed and my first flower, documenting it in the same manner as botanists for hundreds of years.

However, the day wore on and I had not found an appropriate time to give anything (although I found myself unusually talkative to strangers, as I searched for openings :)) The sun was starting to descend as I rode my bike back along the central lake here in Canberra. There are a host of water birds always sunning themselves and feeding along the banks, and I was enjoying being a momentary curiosity to them as I wheeled by.

Upon rounding a bend, I saw a large group of cormorants sitting in a tree that overhung the lake. Stopping to take some photos, I noticed one was in a strange angle. It was then I realised that it had become tangled in fishing line, and had lost its struggle to survive. It now remained, hanging in the branches as a sad but very clear testament to the dangers of fishing line to native animals. I took some photos of the bird, to document the dangers posed by this type of rubbish. The disturbing images spoke volumes of the clash became a legitimate recreation sport and the wildlife that use the same waters to feed.

It was as I continued riding home that I thought about sending the photos to an appropriate wildlife organisation, as a means of assisting in their efforts to protect native wildlife. To tell you the truth, if it wasn't for this 29 day challenge, I am fairly sure I wouldn't have got around to it. I often think about such things without carrying through. Yet, this became my gift for the day. Although a sad, and unpleasant gift, I believe it was a valuable one.

On arriving home, I spent some time researching wildlife organisations and then sent them the photos with accompanying information. Considering that I had started the day learning how to be like Darwin, it seems appropriate that my gift for the day was a documentation on behalf of the natural world.

Cheers
Lachlan
PS: I am actually not against fishing. In fact, whilst I don't fish, I think personal fishing is a much more sustainable way to eat fish than sourcing it through the large fishing industries of the world. However, I believe we all have to continue to improve the way we go about utilising natural resources, and my offering today was a means of contributing to this improvement.