NWF naturalist Dave Mizejewski made a special "Leap Day" appearance on The Martha Stewart Show this morning, bringing along a few camera-hoppy amphibians, including green frogs, American toads, a pickerel frog and a smoky jungle frog.

Watch Martha and Dave and their jumpy guests:

Frog Facts:

• Frogs are amphibians. They start life under water breathing through gills and go through metamorphosis, growing legs and lungs.

• Females are typically much larger than males.

• All frogs are carnivorous and feed voraciously on insects and other small animals.

• As predators they play a key role in controlling insects. They are also important for agriculture, gardening and also control of insect-borne diseases.

• Frogs have very sensitive skin that absorbs liquids and gasses. This makes them "canaries in the coal mine" when it comes to monitoring how pollution or other changes are disrupting ecosystems.

• Skin secretions of frogs protect them from disease and are being studied for human medical benefits.

• One-third to one-half of all frog species are at risk of going extinct. About 120 species have gone extinct in recent years. This is the biggest potential mass extinction of one group of creatures since the dinosaurs.

Record the Ribbit!

You can help scientists know what frogs are hopping around your backyard by taking part in the National Wildlife Federation's Frogwatch USA™ program. It's fun for the whole family, a great way to get outside and it's a neat thing individuals can do to help frogs.

This year, NWF has teamed up the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Amphibian Ark and organizations around the world as an official partner of the "Year of the Frog" campaign to raise awareness about the alarming decline in global frog populations. Year of the Frog calls attention to the alarming decline of frogs globally from factors such as...

• Global warming

• Air and water pollution

• Habitat destruction

• Invasive species

• Exotic pet trade

• Chytrid fungus

Find out how you can be a part of Frogwatch USA in the Year of the Frog!

Whether they hibernate, have thick fur coats or take shelter, animals are masters of surviving the cold weather. Here are a number of interesting animals and the fascinating things they do to survive harsh conditions.

1. Japan's macaques monkeys keep warm by taking hot baths in volcanic springs.
   

2. Polar bears (or "solar bears") soak up the sun with their black skin, which is covered by a coat of  clear hair that conducts the sun's heat. Not to mention they also have a handy 4 inches of fat to insulate them.

3. Animals will also flock to warmth created by humans, such as pigeons in Chicago that huddle around the Eternal Flame and manatees that seek out warm water discharge from power plants.
   

4. Aside from having blubber, penguins avoid losing energy and heat when they exhale by using special nasal passages to reclaim the warm air.
   

5. Some honey bees huddle together to make a winter cluster in order to keep warm.

6. Bees aren't the only ones that huddle together, even bats and ladybugs will huddle for warmth in a safe place.
   

7. Various plants depend on snow to trap heat and insulate them from cold winds.
   

8. Seals have a special set of blood vessels that function to conserve heat.
   

9. Occasionally some fish will use a natural anti-freeze to keep from freezing in low temperatures.
   

10. When water is scarce, wild bactrian camels will eat snow.

Despite all these adaptations you can still do your part to help wildlife survive the winter in your own backyard. Here's a few bird feeding tips.

Phobias are no joke. But they can be interesting. I tend to be an abnormal case simply because I like (and in some cases love) the animals that cause most phobias. So when I see a long list of strange phobias, I can't help but check them out. In honor of wildlife and animals in general, I've decided to list out a few interesting phobias that deal with our fauna friends. Oh, and if any of you have a fear of phobias (Phobophobia) exit the page very slowly...

ANIMAL PHOBIAS (if you know of more, add them to my list!)

Animals – Zoophobia
Animal Skin or Fur – Doraphobia
Wild Animals – Agrizoophobia
Bees – Apiphobia
Birds - Ornithophobia
Bulls – Taurophobia
Chickens - Alekorophobia
Dogs or Rabies - Cynophobia
Fish – Ichthyophobia
Frogs - Ranidaphobia
Horses – Equinophobia or Hippophobia
Otters - Lutraphobia
The Great Mole Rat – Zemmiphobia
Insects - Entomophobia or Insectophobia
Insects that eat wood - Isopterophobia
Insects that cause itching - Acarophobia
Reptiles – Herpetophobia
Sharks – Selachophobia
Shellfish – Ostraconophobia
Snakes – Ophidiophobia or Snakephobia
Toads – Bufonophobia
Bats - Chiroptophobia
Cats - Felinophobia, Galeophobia or Gatophobia

It's no surprise why people find some of these animals intimidating. Sure, snakes, sharks and bats are scary to many people and are often portrayed negatively. But here's something to think about: Have you ever thought that maybe our phobias of them might be a crucial element to their survival? After all, it means that they are keeping predators like us at bay!

We know that our emotional connection isn't why the heart is important (to put it simply it pumps blood). However, I wanted to take this opportunity (as I stare at my newly acquired Valentines scattered with pink and red hearts) to share with you a few facts that demonstrate why the heart is amazing. Please feel free to send me other neat facts about the heart and I'll gladly post them!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day. (Believe me, this beats (ha!) me showing you some exposed wildlife hearts which I considered doing)

ADVISORY: The following facts make great date conversation.

1. The heart of a blue whale is as big as a car.

2. Frogs and lizards have three chambers whereas birds and mammals have four.

3. The human heart beats roughly 35 million times a year.

4. Octopuses have three hearts.

5. Dogs have a larger heart to body mass ratio than all other mammals.

6. Scientists have re-created the heart of a rat and it even started beating!

7. Pythons grow bigger hearts at mealtimes.

8. A blue whale's heart beats six times a minute (next to a human's 70 times)

9. A manatee's heart rate slows down by half during a long dive.

10. A giraffe depends on it's powerful heart that weighs up to 12kg so that it can fight the force of gravity up that long neck to the head.

I don't think I need to emphasize how important water is. However, I do want to say that with the number of issues we are facing we aren't paying enough attention to what makes up 75% of our bodies.

The need for water conservation is becoming more and more apparent as drought and other environmental pressures like global warming are affecting our water resources. Here are some not-so obvious tips on how to conserve water.

More Than Just the Basic Water Conservation Tips

Conserving Water: General Tips

• Turn down your water heater when you are going on a long trip.

• Keep a lookout for water saving appliances. Like this great find by Groovy Green: Eco-friendly washing machine. 

• Check your water meter while no water is being used in your house. If it moves, you have a leak.

Conserve Water in the Bathroom

• Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily. In other words, don't use it for a garbage. Dispose of tissues, insects and other similar waste in the trash rather than the toilet.

• Test for a leaking toilet by adding food coloring to the tank (not the bowl). Without flushing, note if any color appears in the bowl after 30 minutes.

• Don't let the water run when washing, brushing and shaving. Turn it on and off as needed.

• Take showers instead of baths. A ten minute shower with a low-flow showerhead uses half the water of a regular bath.

• If your shower takes a while to heat up, and you have to let the water run, put buckets in the shower o capture the water for watering plants, washing vegetables, water for pets or washing your car and bike.

• If you are designing your own bathroom, think about putting in the Japanese style of tub that is deeper but more compact - water cools more slowly requiring less input of heated water.

• Get a small sand timer that lasts about 3 minutes and bring it in the shower. Most people can have a shower in six minutes.

• Look into devices that divert water into a bucket from the shower while the water is warming up via a hose.

• Repair dripping faucets or toilets, which use enormous amounts of water.

Conserve Water in the Kitchen

• Avoid washing dishes under a stream of water. Turn off the water in between dishes. Use only a full dishwasher and clothes washer.

• If you like a drink of cold water, but you have to let the tap run for a while before the water gets cold, instead keep a pitcher of water in the fridge.

• Save the water from steaming or boiling vegetables for houseplants, vegetable broth for soup or stir fry liquid.

• Wash food in a bowl or pot of water rather than in running water. This works especially well for herbs because you can swish them around and the dirt will come off their many surfaces. Let the herbs sit a minute and the dirt will sink to the bottom while the herbs float at the top.

• Do not use water to thaw meat. Use the microwave instead.

• Avoid using your garbage disposal system in your sink. It uses lots of water to run. Compost your scraps instead.

Conserve Water Outdoors

• Mulch planting beds with newspaper, leaves, bark, or wood chips. Mulches retain soil moisture and improve soil quality.

• Water your plantings with a soaker hose or a drip irrigation system. Less water evaporates this way than with a sprinkler, and you target your watering.

• Use a timing device with any watering system.

• Use "wasted" water for your plants. A rain barrel or cistern that captures rainfall from your roof is a great garden reservoir. In some areas, gray water - water from bathing or washing clothes - can legally be diverted to garden use. Use water from your fish tank when you clean it in the garden because it contains great nutrients. Empty dehumidifiers in the garden.

• Get a squeeze nozzle for your hose. That way you only use water when you need it.

• If you have a swimming pool, keep it covered when not in use.

• Sweep sidewalks with a broom, not a stream of water.

• Group plants according to water needs so you can water with the least amount appropriate.

• Plant native plants that don't require extra watering.

• When washing your car, use a bucket and sponge rather than letting the hose run.

• When mowing your lawn, set the blades a little higher (at least three inches) and your lawn will require less watering.

• Test to see if your garden needs watering by putting a screwdriver into the soil. If it goes in easily, you don't need to water.

• Weed your garden because weeds take the water away from your other plants.

In one of our previous posts, we learned that there are more birders than baptists. Guess where some live? That's right, in our backyards! So why not welcome these musical guests by setting up a wildlife friendly backyard and who knows--they might just dress you in the morning (Cinderella anyone?).

Here are a few tips from the National Wildlife Federation:

• Provide water year-round - A simple birdbath is a great start. Change water every 2-3 days in summer and use a heater in the winter. Place the water container about 10 feet from dense shrubs or other cover that predators may use.

• Install native plants - Select a variety of native plants to offer year-round food in the form of seeds, berries, nuts, and nectar. Try to recreate the plant ecosystem native to your area. Evergreen trees and shrubs provide excellent cover through all seasons, if they are part of your local ecosystem. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center has lists of recommended native plants by egion and state.

• Eliminate insecticides in your yard - Insects are the primary source of food for many bird species and are an important source of protein and fats for growing juvenile birds.

• Keep dead trees - Dead trees provide cavity-dwelling places for birds to raise young and as a source to collect insects for food. Many species will also seek shelter from bad weather inside these hollowed out trees.

• Put out nesting boxes - Make sure the boxes have ventilation holes at the top and drainage holes below. Do not use a box with a perch, as house sparrows are known to sit on a nesting box perch and peck at other birds using the nesting box. Be sure to monitor the boxes for invasive animal species known to harm or outcompete native species. Check out more information about invasive species

• Build a brush pile in a corner of your yard - Start with larger logs and top with smaller branches. Some birds will hunt, roost or even nest in brush piles.

• Offer food in feeders - Bird feeders are great sources of supplemental food during times of food scarcity, and also enhance bird viewing opportunities.

• Remove invasive plants from your wildlife habitat - Many invasive plants outcompete the native species favored by birds, insects and other wildlife. Check with your local U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperative Extension System office for information on plant species to avoid. Find your local Cooperative Extension System office.

• Reduce your lawn area - Lawns have little value to birds or other wildlife, and they require more energy for mowing, applying fertilizers and watering.


If you've already done these tips and would like to display your beautiful, wildlife-friendly backyard, please email me at brigidad@nwf.org. I'm hoping to post about them around springtime for inspiration.

I want to thank all of you who supported or participated in the Focus the Nation Teach-in.It was a fantastic success, and the Focus the Nation team did a wonderful job. That's right, on January 31, 2008, an estimated 3 million participants concerned by the impacts of global warming met in over 1,800 institutions around the country.

This reaction to such an issue is a pleasant surprise and brings us hope for the future. Here's a taste of what happened all over the country (thanks to many of you!)

• Seminars
• Editorial visits
• Classes
• Labs
• Letter campaigns
• Email blitzes
• Films
• Rallies
• Art shows
• Concerts
• Tabling events
• Poster sessions
• Petitions And more

One of the main goals of Focus the Nation was to link up students and citizens with their elected officials. We're happy to report this goal was reached!

NWF's VP of Education, Kevin Coyle, reported back that a bipartisan group of nearly one-third of U.S. Governors, 20% of the U.S. Senate and 10% of the U.S. House of Representatives participated directly as speakers along with many state and local officials.

We should all feel good about what this means for the future of this country and the world. If you are looking for more to read, check out a few links below!

Focus the Nation's Blog
NWF's Campus Ecology Page
New York Times Article
Gristmill's Blog
The 2% Video Webcast

The Super Tuesday results are coming in - as predicted it's neck and neck between Obama and Clinton, and McCain seems to be racking up wins (though both Huckabee and Romney have pulled in one win so far).  So what does this mean for Global Warming? 

Well, both Obama and Clinton have co-sponsored the strongest global warming legislation in the Senate (the Sanders-Boxer bill) and actively campaigned on the issue.  McCain was the co-author  (with Independent Joe Lieberman, who has endorsed him) of the first ever comprehensive global warming cap and trade bill in congress.  McCain has also been public in his disagreement with President Bush on the issue.  At the last Republican debate he said "It’s no secret that I have disagreed with the Bush administration in not being more active in addressing the issue of climate change... young Americans care, Californians care, people all over this country care, and we have to address this issue."

If McCain continues to win and takes on either Obama or Clinton, the next President will definitely take global warming quite seriously.

That's right folks. For only the 12th time in its entire history, the Environmental Protection Agency has decided to use the veto process to kill an Army Corps of Engineers project. Dead in the water is the Yazoo Pumps, a project that would damage 200,000 acres of wetlands, destroy the best hunting and fishing habitat in the Mississippi River Flyway and cost taxpayers more than $210 million.

According to the EPA's letter to the Army Corps...

"...the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is initiating review, under Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act, of the proposed Yazoo Backwater Area Project in the Yazoo River Basin in Mississippi. EPA is taking this step because we have reason to believe that the recommended project plan could result in unacceptable adverse effects on the aquatic ecosystem, particularly to fish and wildlife resources." Download the EPA's letter (pdf)

Hats off to the EPA for taking a stand against this wasteful project!

"A Green Day for Bush"
By Michael Grunwald, TIME Magazine

"On the unexpected-meter, it probably falls somewhere between Man Bites Dog and Trump Declines Comment. But on Friday, the Bush administration did something excellent for the environment.

"In a letter obtained by TIME, Bush's Environmental Protection Agency moved to block a $220 million Army Corps of Engineers flood-control project in the Mississippi Delta, laying the groundwork for the first EPA veto of an Army Corps project since 1990."

Read the entire article...

This project--often called "the monster that just won't die"--still needs a few more stabs to the heart. The complete veto process could take a few more months. Stand strong EPA!

Thoughts from Jay Liles of Florida Wildlife Federation on the results of the Florida Primary:

McCain wins! “Billary” (whoops) Hillary takes big Democratic Primary. Gets NO delegates.

Welcome to voting in Florida where we didn’t have problems enough in 2000. Now we can’t even get along among political allies.