Nicole Graham worked hard to keep her horse calm and above the deadly quagmire mud as the ocean tide came dangerously close. Astro, who weighs 900 lbs, had got stuck in the mud on an afternoon ride in Melbourne, Australia. 

 Nicole’s daughter Paris had joined her on her ride and her horse had also got stuck. Nicole was able to free Paris’ horse but not the larger horse Astro. Pinterest
Efforts to free Astro caused him to get stuck even more, so all Nicole could do was try and keep him calm until help arrived. 

 Paris was able to call for help and Astro was sedated while a harness was attached to him so a tractor could pull him out. 

 Nicole, who owns more than 10 horses, said it took three hours for rescuers to pull her horse to safety. “It was terrifying. It was also heartbreaking to see my horse exhausted and struggling,” Nicole said, as per the Daily Mail citing The Geelong Advertiser. 

 She added: “I’ve been riding here for 20 years and never had a drama. I’ve never seen any signs and didn’t realize it was so boggy.”

  Fire lieutenant Roger Buckle, who helped to pull the horse to safety, described the mud like “quicksand.” 

 Thankfully Astro suffered only dehydration and some muscle soreness. 

  “A lot of horses don’t make it and I think without the owner there the chance of survival would have been a lot lower,” said vet Stacey Sullivan.

  I’m so thankful that Nicole was able to keep Astro calm until he could be pulled out. I can’t imagine how frightened he must have been.
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 Brothers Kenny, Kenneth, and Kevin Dancy, along with friend Andrew Daniels, were going about rather distinguishable business in helping a local woman who happened to be moving house, when they came across a scene that would have shocked any adult.

  They discovered an abandoned dog tied to the back of a house with bungee cords. Emaciated and shivering from exposure, the poor pup was in a seriously bad way. 

 The boys knew they had to act fast. They wrapped the dog in a winter coat to keep her warm, before freeing her from her bonds and taking her home with them so they could give her food and water. 

They named her Sparkle. As fate would have it, they encountered members of the Detroit Pit Crew Dog Rescue while walking Sparkle out in the neighborhood. 

 They told the dog’s story to the men, who believed that Sparkle was also suffering from mange. The organization took her in for veterinary care, taking time to post heartfelt thanks in a Facebook video that labelled the boys “heroes”. 

  “You could tell they really love this dog,” Theresa Sumpter, the organization’s founder, told WDIV. “They were protective of the dog and wanted to make sure the dog was going to a good place.”

After Sparkle was tested at the shelter, it became apparent that she didn’t have the mange. This mean she could be fast-tracked to adoption. 

Pet Tales Rescue, a sister organization, oversaw the process, placing Sparkles with a foster mom who would give her all the love she needed. 

 Meanwhile, the four young boys, who received widespread praise for their compassion, also went on to rescue two more dogs in the same neighborhood. 

Again via Detroit Pit Crew Dog Rescue, they were able to take the dogs from the streets to the vet for treatment.

  I couldn’t be prouder of these young boys. What shining examples they are for us all.
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However, they are very vulnerable when they are sleeping. Maybe that is the reason why they like to find a place, or person, that they trust to sleep on. 

 These insects are finding it harder and harder to survive as their habitats are destroyed by pesticides and deforestation. Along with moths and other flying insects, fireflies are also being driven toward extinction by ever-increasing light pollution that so often accompanies urban growth. 

 With more than 2,000 species of fireflies around the world, researchers began their study where the data was most prevalent. 

The European glowworm and another species from Malaysia have both been extensively studied and documented, 

The Guardian reports, and declines in their populations may correlate with a likewise disappearance of North American fireflies. “If people want fireflies around in the future we need to look at this seriously,” said Tufts University biology professor Sara Lewis. 

“Fireflies are incredibly attractive insects, perhaps the most beloved of all insects, because they are so conspicuous, so magical. “They spark wonder in people. When you are in your back yard or park you notice them and are amazed. They are one of the few things that universally give people a feeling of falling in love in nature.” 

 Lewis is leading a team of biologists working with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature to survey firefly species of North America in hopes of learning more about the issues currently threatening their survival. Among those are the dwindling Bethany Beach firefly, which primarily make sits home along the Atlantic coast of Delaware. 

  “Unfortunately people also like to live on the coast and there’s been tremendous residential development there,” she said. A group of scientists that looked at 150 separate studies concluded that growing sources of light pollution are driving fireflies and other insects away, too. 

  “We strongly believe artificial light at night – in combination with habitat loss, chemical pollution, invasive species, and climate change – is driving insect declines,” the scientists wrote. 

“We posit here that artificial light at night is another important – but often overlooked – bringer of the insect apocalypse.” “Artificial light at night is human-caused lighting – ranging from streetlights to gas flares from oil extraction,” said Brett Seymoure, a behavioral ecologist at Washington University in St Louis. 

“It can affect insects in pretty much every imaginable part of their lives.” 

 According to inhabitat, light from city streets and major metropolitan areas can be brighter than a full moon in some areas. “Artificial lights can interfere with firefly courtship,” the green design and lifestyle site reports. 

“Male fireflies flash particular bioluminescent patterns to attract females, who must flash responses in return. Unfortunately, artificial lights can mimic and thus confuse the signals. Or, worse yet, light pollution can be too bright for the fireflies to emit and properly recognize their ritual signals for mating to be initiated or completed.” 

 In contrast to habitat destruction and pesticide use, light pollution is relatively easy to neutralize. Just turn the lights off.

 
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