© Bill Yeaton |
| |
Bill
Yeaton and
Lisa Cach (a wonderful writer and good friend)
made a recent trip to Romania and Bill took some
amazing
photos. Lisa was wonderful enough to bring me back everything
I asked for, from samples of rocks to the brightly colored eggs
so popular in that region.
Traveling to many of the villages is very much like stepping back
into a different era. Few cars travel the road. Many times carts
are pulled by horses. It is a beautiful country with many churches,
colorful cemeteries, wonderful castles, monasteries and fortresses.
The buildings are amazing. The cities are modern, with contrasting
modern architecture and a wealth of cars on the streets. The mountains
themselves boast untamed forest and interesting weather patterns.
It is a land rich in history and steeped in legend.
Click
here to see Bill Yeaton's photos of Romania.
~THE REAL CARPATHIAN MOUNTAINS~
The
Carpathian Mountains are a REAL place. I have spent many hours
researching them and I hope you enjoy their beauty as much as
I do.
A
bit about the real Carpathian Mountains
information provided by:
Carpathian Ecoregion Initiative
http://www.carpathians.org/carp.htm
|
photo
courtesy of Lisabeth Hutchins |
| |
The
Carpathian Mountains are the backbone of Central and Eastern Europe.
Covering an area of more than 200,000 square kilometres, they
stretch across seven countries from the Danube in Austria in the
north-west to the Iron Gate Dam in Romania in the south. The mountains
are home to a wide array of wildlife, diverse nationalities and
rich cultural heritage.
The value of the Carpathians cannot be overestimated: exceptionally
rich in species diversity, the region supports species not found
anywhere else in the world, and it is also the last European stronghold
of large mammals, such as the brown bear, wolf and lynx (outside
Russia). In addition, the region contains some of the continent's
most extensive areas of both montane and virgin forest. More than
half of the Carpathian range lies within Romania, while its highest
peak—at an altitude of 2665 metres—is found at Gerlach, Slovakia.
|
photo
courtesy of Lisabeth Hutchins |
| |
The Carpathians play a crucial role in Central and Eastern Europe:
forming the bridge between Europe’s northern forests and those
to the south and west as well as being a vital catchment area
for the whole region. The area receives twice the rainfall of
surrounding areas and it is this freshwater that feeds the major
rivers—the Danube and the Vistula—through to the Black Sea and
the Baltic. In real terms, this has major implications for humankind.
More than 80% of Romania’s water supply (excluding the Danube),
40% of Ukraine’s supply, and one third of the outflow of the Vistula
river, come directly from the Carpathians.
The Carpathians are home to numerous different nationalities and
ethnic groups, bound together by the highland way of life. More
than five million people live in and around the Romanian region
alone. Culturally, the Carpathians are steeped in age-old traditions,
and marked by peoples who have shared climate, hardships and sense
of isolation.
Even
more info on the Carpathian Mountains
information provided by:
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Carpathian-Mountains
The
Carpathian Mountains are the eastern wing of the great central
mountain system of Europe curving 1500 km (~900 miles) along the
borders of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Romania, and
the Ukraine.
The name is probably derived from the Dacian Carp tribe, living
in the 1st millennium BC on the Eastern Carpathian slopes. Another
source could be the Indo-European word "korpata" which means mountain
or rock. As Chrawat, it was first applied to the inhabitants of
the region, whence it passed in the form Krapat or Karpa as the
name of the mountain range. In official Hungarian documents of
the 13th and 14th centuries the Carpathians are named Thorchal
or Tarczal, and also Montes Nivium.
They begin on the Danube near Bratislava, surround Hungary and
Transylvania in a large semicircle, the concavity of which is
towards the south-west, and end on the Danube near Orsova, Romania.
The total length of the Carpathians is over 1500 km and their
width varies between 12 and 500 km. The greatest width of the
Carpathians corresponds with its highest altitude. Thus the system
attains its greatest breadth in the Transylvanian plateau, and
in the meridian of the Tatra group (the highest range with Gerlachovsky
- 2655 m (8705 ft.) above sea level ). It covers an area of 190
000 sq. km, and after the Alps is the most extensive mountain
system of Europe.
The Carpathians do not form an uninterrupted chain of mountains,
but consist of several orographically and geologically distinctive
groups; in fact they present as great a structural variety as
the Alps. The Carpathians, which only in a few places attain an
altitude of over 2500 m, lack the bold peaks, the extensive snow-fields,
the large glaciers, the high waterfalls and the numerous large
lakes which are found in the Alps. They are nowhere covered by
perpetual snow, and glaciers do not exist, so that the Carpathians,
even in their highest altitude, recall the middle region of the
Alps, with which, however, they have many points in common as
regards appearance, structure and flora.
The Danube separates the Carpathians from the Alps, which they
meet only in two points, namely, the Leitha Mountains at Bratislava,
and the Bakony Mountains at Vacz (Waitzen), while the same river
separates them from the Stara Planina or Balkan Mountains at Orsova,
Romania. The valley of the March and Oder separates the Carpathians
from the Silesian and Moravian chains, which belong to the middle
wing of the great central mountain system of Europe. Unlike the
other wings of the great central system of Europe, the Carpathians,
which form the watershed between the northern seas and the Black
Sea, are surrounded on all sides by plains, namely the great Hungarian
plain on the south-west, the plain of the Lower Danube (Romania)
on the south, and the Galician plain on the north-east.
The Carpathian Mountains form the southern edge of the outer ring
of mountains around Mare Imbrium on Earth's Moon. They were raised
by the same impact event that created the Imbrium basin, and separate
Mare Imbrium from Oceanus Procellarum.
Additional
Information:
- The
Carpathian Ecoregion -- The Carpathian Ecoregion Initiative
is bringing together people in Central and Eastern Europe to
secure conservation and sustainable development in the Carpathians.
This initiative, begun in Summer 1999, involves an international
partnership dedicated to the protection of one of the most important
natural areas of Europe. The initiative seeks to combine conservation
efforts with actions to support the local economy and culture.
In this way, we aim to secure the future of the Carpathians
for both nature and the region’s people.
- Want to
visit the Carpathian Mountians? Check out some of these links:
~CBS NEWS ARTICLE~
Vampire Bats Kill 13 in Amazon Village
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (April 3) - Rabies spread by vampire bats
has claimed 13 lives on an Amazon river island, local media reported
Saturday.
The deaths occurred over the past 21 days on Portel Island, according
to the O Liberal newspaper. The island is about 1,500 miles northeast
of Rio de Janeiro.
In all, 19 people have been infected with rabies. Of those infected,
13 have died and six remain hospitalized, two of whom were in
very critical condition, the newspaper reported.
Since March 9, some 300 people have reported being bitten by the
bats, but most of them were vaccinated against rabies, O Liberal
reported.
Health officials were working to immunize people and cattle to
contain the disease's spread.
About 100 people from around the sparsely populated region are
camped out near the municipal health post distributing the vaccine
which requires separate doses over five days, O Liberal reported.
The first reported rabies death transmitted via bat bite was of
10-year-old Mailson Moura de Souza, according to the Estado de
Sao Paulo newspaper.
"My son and my relatives have been finished by this disease. I'm
afraid the rest of my family will die as well," Souza's father
was quoted as saying in the newspaper.
Some reports attribute the spike in the number of bat bites to
increased deforestation on the island that sits near the mouth
of the Amazon river.
Click
here to view article from CBS website.
~JAGUARS~
Jaguars
are majestic animals found primarily in South America and into
Mexico. This majestic animal can conquer just about any territory.
They are masterful swimmers, powerful climbers and deadly runners.
While jaguars used to roam the southern united states into the
majority of South America, they are now localized to the north
and central parts of south America because of the encroachment
of civilization. Most Jaguars reach only 150 pounds for a male
and 100 pounds for a female, but despite their relatively small
size these animals are fierce hunters with the capability to take
down almost any prey. Sadly these powerful and beautiful animals
are declining rapidly due to deforestation. Where once Jaguars
roamed freely over a large area and in fairly large numbers, there
are now only 15,000 or so remaining in North and Central South
America.
Facts About
Jaguars:
- The Jaguar
is the largest cat in the western hemisphere and the third largest
cat in the world (after lions and tigers)
- Jaguar
translated means “the beast that kills its prey with one bound”
- According
to Indian myth the Jaguar acquired its unique spots by daubing
mud on its fur with its paws. If you look closely the spots
on a Jaguars’ coat resemble paw prints!
- Typical
lifespan in the wild is fifteen to seventeen years and in captivity
up to twenty three years.
- While Jaguars
can be found in forest, savanna, scrub and desert, they are
always near a supply of water.
For more information
on Jaguars visit:
~JAGUAR CORRIDOR~
Dr.
Alan Rabinowitz is currently the director of the Science and Exploration
program for the Wildlife Conservation Society. As the director
Dr. Rabinowitz has become the backbone for an amazing proposal
called the Jaguar Corridor. The Jaguar is in need of genetic diversity
to survive. In order to accomplish genetic diversity and preserve
this breathtaking species, Dr Rabinowitz is spearheading the preservation
of large tracts of land around the globe. The ultimate goal of
the Jaguar Corridor is to have a continuous stretch of land from
Mexico to Argentina in which the Jaguars can roam.
Welcome
to my research page on the Dark Series. Over the years I researched
a wide range of subjects to help enhance my stories. The Dark
Series continues to keep me busy researching. I intend to share
my favorite findings with
you on these pages -- the ones that helped inspire elements of the Dark Series. I hope you enjoy!
