Tags
Mangrove Destruction, Our planet's health, Pacific Ocean Pollution, Sea Turtles and Shrimping, What's wrong with our planet, WordPress Photo Challenge, WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge Wrong
WordPress’s weekly photo challenge for the week is “Wrong.” We’re asked to submit images that reflect, “There’s something wrong here.”
Living along Latin America’s Pacific Coast, I often witness scenes that reek of wrongness. Most of those aren’t directly related to life in Latin America, but to the daily serving of flotsam that the Pacific Ocean offers each day. Becoming more aware plays a part in our planet’s health, though finding active and positive ways to change things is a more difficult task. Through WordPress’s platform, I am grateful to pass along these images that reflect “Wrong.”
There are other concerns, and one is shrimp boats that trawl too close to the beach with illegal nets. There are several posts about the olive ridley sea turtles on my other site.
Watching the mangroves disappear one by one has been especially difficult, as they lined the riverbank beside my house. Why a few sections of trees could not be saved still baffles me, but it reflects the vast differences and attitudes of man. (And Then There Was One)
I tend NOT to photograph the ‘wrong’ or the ugly of this world unless it shows a sense of humor. I often wonder if the local municipality ever gets environmental impact studies before bulldozing their way through nature’s rights, and Mother Nature seemed to have bitten back on another project that was happening upriver!
Two points for Mother Nature! Sometimes we have to speak up or get trampled on!
Z
(There are many great entries for this week’s WordPress photo challenge, Wrong. See them here!)
Gemma said:
So sad 😦
What was that green thing?
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
It was hermit crab wearing a green bottle cap!
Pat Williams said:
Hey Sis, I am 100 percent with you on this. Haven’t been to the Miss.River or to the sandbars in 3 or 4 years now. Too upsetting seeing all the trash and litter left behing by all the party folks out there. All those many many years that I spent out there, I always brought all my trash back with me in the boat. Cans, bottles, paper, etc. And its not just there, I hate to see anyone litter the highways and other places as well. My car stays full of trash until I take time to clean it out and dispose of it properly. It sickens me to see the sides of the roads and highways cluttered with “ugly” & lack of respect for the beauty that God put on this earth. Steve & I have finally taken a BIG step. Signing papers on property in Arizona tomorrow. Have only seen pics, but that’s good enough for us. Very remote, and unharmed by “humans”. 140 acres of our piece of heaven about 5800 feet high. We’ll be sharing it with the elk, bear, mountain lions, deer, wolves, coyotes, and whatever else calls it home. Don’t see much vegetation on it other than lots and lots of juniper trees, which I will be needing to find out how to utilize those juniper berries to benefit us with Steve’s very painful arthritis. I’ve heard they are good for that health problem. Sorry to get sidetracked on my thoughts of your posts. Keep up the great job in bringing attention to the unfairness that is being done to God’s land and other creatures of beauty. I love you, Pat
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
hey!
i am thrilled to hear that you’re heading west.. that’s probably where you’ve belonged your entire life, and i’m glad that you’re finally acting on those cravings for that kind of life! keep me posted, please, and send some photos!
yes, it’s sad to see other’s disrespect for our planet, though if we do nothing, we’re allowing that to happen. that’s what i liked about the people in bahia wearing white to speak up/against the problem of crime.
good luck with the next steps in your new life!!!! i am so proud of you!
z
travelerlynne said:
Thanks for posting this. Our bio and ecological systems are so fragile and the hand of man interferes, tramples, pollutes and so forth. Don’t get me started…
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
I snicker. You are so right! Thanks for your comment! Z
johnandmarylivingitupinecuador said:
Thanks for another great post…our beliefs are that God created this world for His children to enjoy with the command to be good stewards which entails not only using but taking care of His creations. You have great pictures of mother earth striking back…wonder when God will strike back?
Looking forward to seeing you this week.
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
Oooh! You are so right! If Great Grand Papa ever loses his temper, there will be no place to hide from His wrath!
I love you both with your grand bronzed smiles! See you this week! Z
Madhu said:
You have raised some valid points Lisa, and your photos make me sad 😦 If we don’t heed Great GRand Papa’s warnings it really is going to be too late!
Did you know Chennai beaches are nesting grounds for Oliver Ridleys as well?
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
My biologist friend, Fran, gave me a crash course on the Olive Ridleys when he was in charge of the project in my neighborhood. Isn’t India one of the countries where Olive Ridleys still come ashore by the thousands during the arribadas? Costa Rica has several beaches where they still have arribadas, and one of these days I hope to witness one.
Thanks! Z
babso2you said:
I saw once a video of an octopus making a home inside a coconut. I am not surprised about the hermit crab! Nice post Z!
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
I wonder if there’s a way to test the IQ of an octopus? They seem quite brilliant! Thanks for your comment! Z
catbirdinoman said:
Very interesting post Z! I can’t believe the hermit crabs living in bottle caps. I learned something new!!
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
In the early mornings at the beach, I often pick up a washed-up coconut and set it down in a good spot then photograph the hermit crabs as they evacuate! I was shocked – in disbelief – when that one crawled out with the white cap!
Thanks for your comment! Z
Dominick S. said:
So terrible. I hope we snap out of our plastic consumption sooner rather than later.
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
i fear that won’t happen; one great thing that i like about Costa Rica and Ecuador, is that the beer and colas are still sold in bottles, and people make sure to keep up with their bottles or they have to pay those deposits. of course they sell beer and colas in plastic bottles and cans, as well, but most bars/restaurants/home owners buy by the case and return the bottles.
oh, to roll back the time on some things!
now what are we going to do about all of those water bottles that everyone buys and discards?
z
eof737 said:
You did an amazing job of patiently observing and recording what the mini crabs were doing… Fascinating! 🙂
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
Thank you so much! I love being the daily inspector of the hermit crabs when I’m at Playa San Miguel-Costa Rica! Now I try to find the abnormal ones, and almost every outing, I find something new!
eof737 said:
Good for you! 🙂
Angelia Sims said:
Thank you for bringing such great attention to this. Unbelievable how careless we can be to our beautiful earth. And those hermit crabs? They get an A+ in recycling. WOW.
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
For sure! A+ in recycling! Thank you so much for your great comment! Lisa/Z
taniamend said:
😔😞
ioanna aggelidaki said:
Those crabs are so creative! 🙂
As for all the garbage, i though just us, Greeks, were such @#$% to dump trash on the beach…. We just can’t give nature a chance!!! Sad….
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
i just read your post for ‘wrong’ and am glad to see that i have a partner in concern for our marine environment. thanks so much for caring! lisa/z
munchow said:
I totally agree with you. It’s really sad to see how we human beings are treating our planet, be it locally or on a grander scale. I did give this post a “like”, not because I like what you write about, but because it is important issues. We all need to become more conscious about how we tread on earth, but the big question is of course how we can change governments and the cooperate world, because only then will changes have a real impact.
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
Thank you so much; It is also important to bring awareness and sensitivity to school children on a daily or weekly schedule, as it’s difficult to reach most adults who are who they are and don’t want to change.
This past week I saw the ‘doorman’ on my bus hurl his plastic bottle out the door as we raced down the highway. For the next half hour I wrestled with my inner voice on what my choices were, and I am still at a loss. In the USA, the threat of instant fines from a State Trooper will stop most people from littering…
Any suggestions on approaching this problem in someone else’s country?
Thanks so much for your feedback, Lisa/z
munchow said:
Unfortunately punishment often seems like the only way to change people’s habit. On the other hand nobody likes to have it like it is in Singapore, where chewing gum is prohibited because it may cause littering on the streets. What to do? I really don’t know. As an artist I guess the best way to approach the problem is through one’s art…
Savannah said:
Thanks for helping to raise awareness. We CAN do better…
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
Thanks; it’s so easy to find fault anywhere except our own backyard! Most of us make attempts, but most – including me – could do better! Z
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Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
very nice post, and you did some amazing work/reading to list so many other posts on ‘wrong.’
i reflected that sometimes when we ‘move on’ we often leave others behind that are torn. how beautiful is the friend who says, ‘i love you and will miss you, but i wish you the best.’
z
Zen and Genki said:
Love them all (and each such a great interpretation of the theme!) but the bench getting lapped up by the ocean takes it for me 🙂
Playamart - Zeebra Designs said:
thanks! what surprised me was that none of the locals bothered to retrieve it from the ocean. no one seemed to be around when i went by, and it was too heavy for one person to move!
z
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