The Tristan da Cunha Archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean comprises Gough Island, Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale Island, and Inaccessible Island. Gough Island, located about 350ย km from the other islands, is approximately 2,700ย km from Cape Town, South Africa, and 3,200ย km from South America, making it one of the worldโs most remote locations.
Climate change is an undeniable reality, and while natural climate variations have occurred over millennia, the current pace of change exceeds natural expectations, primarily due to human activities. The most noticeable changes are in the levels of carbon dioxide, temperature and rainfall. These changes will not be the same everywhere.
Taxonomists undertake the exciting task of discovering and describing new species across the earth, encompassing microorganisms, plants, and animals. Employing a system of binomial nomenclature, they assign names to species, drawing inspiration from people, localities, descriptive terms, or inventive words.
Almost all terrestrial animals have some type of claw. Vertebrates like mammals, reptiles and birds have claws made from a protein called keratin, while invertebrates for example insects, spiders and mites have claw-like structures made from a combination of chitin, calcium carbonate and sclerotin. A typical claw is a curved, strong, often hard appendage at the end of a limb. Nails in humans are also made of keratin, but donโt end in a sharp or curved point. Claws have various functions such as walking, climbing, digging, catching and self-defense. Anyone who owned a cat can confirm their claws are very efficient for defense!
In the current era of the internet, social media and online databases together with the development of digital photography, more and more new species and new regional records are discovered by the general public. Plant and animal enthusiasts and photographers are increasingly posting images on platforms such as Flickr, Instagram, iNaturalist, Facebook and Twitter.