Endangered species and conservation artist and illustrator Myrea Pettit whose long time work in progress The Last Dodo Ball is nearing completion, speaking out recently she said:

" I am passionate about the protection of the Planet and all the creatures that share the Earth, please follow my interest through the World Heritage Centre you can see from my travel album some of the wonderful work of the Darwin Centre on the Galapagos Islands as well as my own exploration of virgin Amazon jungle in Ecuador, animals, insects, butterflies and flora and fauna."

"I have the ability through the interest in my work to create awareness to the importance of protection and conservation of endangered species, my detailed painting The Last Dodo's Ball is a parody it represents the impossible as the Dodo has only been extinct since the 17th century, relatively close in human history."

"The dodo probably might not have known its destiny could be seen as a warning to present day awareness to global warming, pollution, overfishing, deforestation, and protection of other species also very close to extinction, but they have been invited to the ball and what is worrying so too has human kind. Taking centre stage the Dodo surrounded by the effigies of those that have befallen a similar fate raises his glass and speaks to the assembled company with his simple message that unless the inhabitants of Earth make a concerted effort to address the urgency of protection and conservation with education to the needs of mother Earth then each one of them including humankind will befall the same inevitable fate, extinction!"

Click here for a Slideshow from the Galapagos islands
Click here for a Slideshow from the Amazon of Ecuador
Click here for another Slideshow from the Amazon of Ecuador

The Kakapo

With literally thousands of species on the endangered list it is impossible for us to highlight all of them here, but the plight of the Kakapo caught out eye recently thanks to an article posted by Carri of Dark Angel, a friend of Fairies World.

The Kakapo, a rare bird that was thought to be extinct, was found alive and well (albeit it in small numbers) on remote islands off the shores of New Zealand. A breeding project at the Kakapo Recovery Programme has recently had some success in rearing these birds and Carri visted them herself. Read about her visit to the Kakapo's here. Do what you can to help so that we can prevent the Kakapo from going the way of the Dodo.