Members & Fans of the MEWSical Society come from 57 countries on six continents:  Argentina, Austria, Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, England, the Falklands, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Holland, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jerusalem, Jordan, Kenya,  Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, Sweden,  Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, U.S., Vietnam.

WE SUPPORT SELECTED CHARITIES & RESCUE GROUPS, including:

STATES Alabama   Alaska   Arizona   Arkansas   California   Connecticut   D.C.  Delaware   Florida      Georgia    Hawaii    Idaho    Illinois   Iowa   Kansas       Kentucky  Maine   Maryland   Michigan  Massachusetts   Minnesota     Missouri    Montana   Nebraska   Nevada New Hampshire  New York New Jersey    New Mexico   North Carolina   North Dakota     Oregon  Pennsylvania    Rhode Island    South Carolina  South Dakota   Texas    Vermont  Virginia    West Virginia   Washington   Wisconsin   Wyoming   Utah

PROVINCES Alberta B.C. Manitoba New Brunswick  Newfoundland Nova Scotia  Ontario Quebec Prince Edward Island WE NEED FANS FROM Saskatchewan Colorado  Indiana   Louisiana   Ohio Oklahoma  Tennessee

CANADIAN TERRITORIES Nunavut Northwest Territories Q.T. Penny  waiting for new fans to arrive

How the Fan Club works:  Any animal can join, by sending a photo in jpeg format with the animal's location. We'll add a link to any URL you want to provide as well. All fan club members were photographed by actual people we know. None have been taken from the internet.

Many of the wild animals in the Fan Club were "collected" for us by Steve Pitt, who owns lakefront property in rural Ontario. Steve is an avid photographer, whose photo of a boathouse on his property became the cover of Prose to Go: Tales from a Private List.

MEMBERS OF THE FAN CLUB

Here are two nene geese, a distance relative of the Canadian goose. Juliana Najak came across them when she, her husband, and son visited Hawaii in August. The Nene goose is the official bird of Hawaii.   Juliana found these two on the Big Island of Hawaii in the Volcano National Park. They all have tags, and they don’t fly. This is their normal color, which matches the sand they walk on.  A very determiined gait, so they must know they're protected and special!

This handsome spiny turtle with the blue shell was photographed by our neighbor, Rajae, who spent the month of June in Morocco, where she and her new husband recreated their wedding for extended family. They traveled to many resorts in the country, including one in Agadir, where they also saw many birds and quite a few friendly cats.

Miss Piggy lives with Joy and Bobby in Montana. Both Joy and Bobby work for Dana Supply, and Miss Piggy is their unofficial mascot. They built a large apartment in the former barn on the property, on the second floor so they can store their RV, boat, and other vehicles on the main floor.  Joy's parents live next door.

The most recent additions are this beautiiful duck  and her reflection in the lake,  and a chipmunk that watched the chickadees  eating peanuts out of Steve's hand,  and thought she should try their technique.

Steve Pitt says the wood ducks on his property on Lake Talon, Rutherford, Ontario, keep chipmunks from eating any seeds he scatters. Above you'll see one mother duck trying to explain to the chipmunk,
and in the next, teaching one of her ducklings how to chase the chipmunk away if he doesn't cooperate. On the right, a pine sisken perches on the edge of the colorful bird bath. 

Sometimes animals cooperate; sometimes they don't! Steve hangs his bird feeders high enough so the deer can't reach them, but this trio has figured out a clever acrobatic move! And Steve also managed to capture these two bluejays in a heated argument:

This  is a male ruby-throated  hummingbird

Steve Pitt is always sending us amazing photos. This time, he's added yet another species to this Fan Club, the Sand Hill crane. As you can see on the left, the adults have a red "cap" and the chicks a brown one, so this is a mother an her baby, even though they look the same size. At the right, you'll see the entire flock of cranes, racing across the meadow near Steve's home in Rutherglen, Ontario. Steve and his wife live on Lake Talon, but often drive around the area (including North Bay), always with Steve's camera in hand.

Spring means more activity on Lake Talon, where Steve Pitt's camera captured this muscrat:

Several familes of ducks gathered to share food:

Two of several exotic parrots Bob & Janet photographed in New South Wales.

This is a Masked Lapwing:

And these are rainbow lorrikeets:

Our first platypus, which Janet photographed swimming in an aquarium tankat the Healsville Wildlife Sanctuary To the right, two dingos are enjoying a meal.

A koala watching the visitors.

Kangaroos rolling on the ground:

Thanks to Bob & Janet Barclay for our first emu! This one was strutting proudly in  Uluru, where they visited after Alice Springs, Australia.

Bob & Janet also rode a camel in Alice Springs:

Here are several emus waiting for vistitors  to feed them!

Here's a cockatoo on the side of the road in Erldunda on the Stuart Highway. .

Steve Pitt's dog, Chocka, must have scared this white-tailed deer, because they only raise and puff out their white tails when they want to warn others that danger is near.

While Bob & Janet Barclay were in India, they visited many beautiful temples. Outside one  they saw this monk with a cat in his lap. The  Black Hat Buddhists from Tibet brought all their  ceremonial materials to Sikkim and raised money  to build this monastery, the largest in the Sikkim.

Bob & Janet are now back in Singapore, celebrating their 49th anniverary. We found two more animals in their blog this week, an otter lounging beside the path and a monitor lizard beside the road.  We have other lizards on these pages, but monitor lizards are the largest. There are about 80 recognized species. Monitor lizards have long necks, powerful tails and claws, and well-developed limbs/

Here's another species for the Fan Club from Bob Barclay  (see below). This is our first Indian lizard, which Bob and  Janet saw among the monkeys in Nandi Hills.

Channing Lagrois is an adorable cat who loves to play. He lives with our former neighbors in Buckingham, Quebec, and one of his favorite playmantes is their parakeet, Titi.

And here is Channing, ancitipating Valentine's Day by doing acrobatics on the chair.

At the The Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Bob and Janet saw this Indian muntjac, which is also called a barking deer.

A Himalayan goral, above, which is an animal that combines both a goat and an antelope.

Two bharal. also called the Himalayan blue sheep.

Steve Pitt is fascinated by chickadees. He's been trying to get a photo of their winter "nests" but the birds are so quick to enter and exit it's taken a great deal of patience. However, he persisted, and the results are at the right, first of a chickadee at the nest entrance and the second of him/her sqeezing in. Some fascinating info about chickadees is on the Animal Facts page.

Bob Barclay, former Ottawa Independent Writers' President and the Editor of the OIW anthologies, is on holidays with his wife this winter,  visiting many countries around the world. They haven't photographed many animals, but did send this magnificent swan from Singapore.

Steve Pitt decided to build a snowman outside his house on Lake Talon, in Rutherglen, Ontario. Lacking coal lumps, he used purple carrots for eyes and buttons and the traditional orange carrot for a nose. Those ingredients were the inspiration of the snowman's name - Carrot Top. Perfect, he thought.

The bird thought so, too, but Steve had to replace the carrots more than once after the deer came on the scene. And here is one of the deer, caught in the act!

The granddaughter of Bobbi's oldest friend was traveling in Greece when she came across this friendly orange cat in Petra. Every cat loves a head-scratch, even from a total stranger! Since Bobbi's friend died many years ago, it's wonderful that her children and grandchildren stay in touch! Thanks, Carolyn!

Steve Pitt, who contributes so many wonderful photos to this page, describes Blue Jays as like a big rowdy family. They argue, pretend to fight, and then, after everyone has managed to eat their fill, they gather around like old pals.

This is a nuthatch on Steve's finger. The photo on the right shows Canada geese flying over the lake as they head south. Steve managed to capture their reflection in the water. I'm urging Steve to put his photos into a book that will introduce kids to birds. His previous kids' books have sold very well!

Steve found this at www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ " Like all other blue birds, Indigo Buntings lack blue pigment. Their jewel-like color comes instead from microscopic structures in the feathers that refract and reflect blue light, much like the airborne particles that cause the sky to look blue." He and his neighbors have surely seen the bird at other times, when it's feathers are dull brown.

Steve has never identified an Indigo Bunting before because only the males are blue, and they are only blue for part of the year, during mating season.   Notice the seed in this bird's beak.

Here's a Sei whale, one of the fastest of all cetaceans (Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises), as well as the third largest.

Below are photos of Common Bottlenose Dolphins, which proved easier to photograph. Dolphins differ from porpoises in the shape  of their snouts and dorsal fins. Notice how much more "churned" the water is as the dolphins dive in and jump out. They also seem to be much more social!

Steve saw lots of Old World Sparrows, whose offspring populated North America.

A deer at the bird feeder, one sharing seed with a chipmunk, and a red fox,  photographed by Steve Pitt on his property on Lake Talon.

Fran Shaw shares a bench with a fur seal in the  Galapagos. They prefer land to water. In Costa Rica, Fran spotted this white-faced Panamaian capuchin monkey in tree

The Galápagos Islands are off the coast of Ecuador, home to many exotic species Here, the fur seals take over the bench: This rare giant tortoise was thought to be extinct until found in the last century.  Here's a caiman in Tortugero, Costa Rica.

These are marine iguanas, which can forage in the sea as well as on land, only found in the  Galápagos Iguana Park in Guayaquil, Ecuador, also houses green iguanas, who are male. The females are orange.

Garry & Judy Stephanson sent us photos from their trip to Japan, including these deer:

There are 17 species of penguins, so here are the third species in the Fan Club:

Here's Garry petting a cat:

Barbara Bunce-Desmeules,  one of the contributors to Prose to Go: Tales from a Private List, is a frequent traveler who took several great photos at Disney World in Florida, including our first of the elusive cheetah:

She also caught sight of our first hippos, enyoying a swim: and, to the right, and our first rhino.

Disney has many animals seldom seen outside Africa, including these addax, a species of antelope from the Sahara:

this ankole-wattusi, a type of cattle only fournd in Africa:

and these gnu, also known as wildebeast:

Barbara also sent us our first zebra:

Steve Pitt helped us identify some of these animals. And he also sent us this pair of grackles. The one with the white tale is a Leucistic Grackle, a mutant variation of a common grackle that has albino genes.

Steve Pitt continues to keep us posted on what's going on the shores of Lake Talon, in Rutherglen, Ontario. The other day he watched two pairs of geese jointly watching over their brood of goslings.  But here's what happened when the rambunctious Chocka ran down to the shoreline to see what was happening:	Steve also saw this snapping turtle on a rock in the lake.

Steve Pitt has been photographing ruffed grouse on his property in Rutherglen, Ontario.

He sent us this close-up, as well as a lovely side view showing the full spring brown feathers.

Steve has also sent us many shots of chickadees eating peanuts our of his hand. But this one shows the bird in full flight:

Juliana Najak, her husband and son, spent five weeks in India, where they said these fruit bats were everywhere, day and night :	Also common everywhere were cows, which are sacred. They are fed by the side of the road:	Also seen all over India are chital,   also known as axis deer, a species of deer native to India. These were photographed in Tamil Madu. The other animals were photographed in the foothills of the Chamundi Hills, southwest of Bangalore, some in Mysore in the state of Karnataka. The more exotic species were at a zoological park.
There were able to get close to the elephants, but the leopard and tiger were behind fences.

		They also went to the Maldives, where they encountered some exotic fish while snorkeling. The stingray is hard to see, but they were delighted by the pretty school of teira batfish and the Indian Ocean oriental sweetlips, species of grunt native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean.
	The Indian Ocean oriental sweetlips

Barbara  Bunce-Demeules, one of the contributors to Prose to Go: Tales from a Private List, found this trio of stray cats on a street outside Madrid: Barbara also enjoyed the antics of the famous Barbary Apes in Gibraltar. They are a distinct species of macaques, and the only wild monkey population in the European continent.

This pair of Barbary Macaques like to watch tourists on the street below:

And this guy is just strolling along. Notice his long "fingers".

Flora Hagenguth is a purebred calico Persian, who was a brought to Egypt from Thailand to join the furry gang in Cairo.

Look closely and you'll see the distinct track of a snowshoe hare, which we spotted in the snow in our front yard. Bobbi thinks they nibble on the pine cones in our winter planters.

Noel Russo, sent us this photo of her friend, Drew, holding two puffer fish while they were at the beach in Florida.

The willet is a species of sandpiper, one of the shorebirds Barbara  Bunce-Demeules photographed in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico.

Barbara and Pierre happened to catch these sea turtles in the process of hatching on the beach.

Here they are, waddling away from their discarded shells.

The elegant egret, left, was one of the shorebirds Barbara photographed, along with this willet, a species of sandpiper.

Steve Pitt, who knows Barbara because they both contributed to Prose to Go, found this squirrel who took over this bird house for winter shelter:

This monk seal was spotted by Fran Shaw from the window of their hotel in Kauai. This is our first fan from Hawaii, and Fran said these guys are often found sleeping on the beach after a long night of fishing. Note the footsteps in the sand. Evidently the sleeping seals aren't bothered by humans walking close by.

Our first cardinal, captured eating sunflower seeds  by author Brooke Broadbent in Nepean, Ontario.

Here's our first fan from Washington, D.C. Larry Mirel photographed this  mature male White Tail deer. who jumped the fence into Larry's back yard.

Guanacos in Patagonia photographed by  Sharmagne Leland.St. John.

Sharmagne captured these Belgian Blue and Belgian Red cows grazing in Bois_de_Villers, Namur, Belgium.

Polo ponies in Santa Barbara, California

Dan Halperin's Epiphany Pictures,  was filming in Jordon when he came across this camel crossing the desert with a local man. Then, in the Garden of Gesthemane in Jerusalem, he saw this cat jumping down to the foot of stone stairs, to drink from water under a grate. Dan's connection to us is that he's one of Bobbi's former students at The Latin School of Chicago, where his class just celebrated their 50th reunion.

Helen Maris Russo is in Montana for the holidays, and captured this young mule deer bull near their property, and next door, the neighbor's horse, Roxy.

Colby Jones spotted this cat in Seoul, South Korea.

Also in Seoul, this magpie:

Colby saw this dog when she visited Da Nang, Vietnam:

Steve Pitt saw these redwing blackbirds and grackles on the lawn in front of his home.

Don Duquette was driving on a busy street in Gatineau, Quebec, when these turkeys crossed the street and then gathered on the lawn of this house.

Steve Pitt grabbed his camera when he saw this ruffled grouse on his lawn in Rutherglen, Ontario. Yet another species he's added to the Fan Club!

Steve captured this battle between a Blue Jay and a Sharp-skinned Hawk.

Steve saw this female hooded merganser  on the lake. It's a type of duck that nests in trees and dives for its food.

The granddaughter of a friend visited the butterfly garden at Carleton University in Ottawa, and here are a few pics her mother took:

The give visitors slices of fruit that encourage the butterflies to land on their hands.

Steve Pitt sees many Canada geese in the vicinity of his property on Lake Talon, in Rutherglen, Ontario, but this is the first snow goose he spotted on the lake.

Steve Pitt reports that a family of five raccoons has been on his deck, and he caught this one trying to open the well-secured garbage can.

Steve's sister Kerry captured this bull moose in a field beside her house, and then saw him in pursuit of a cow moose.

a cotton-topped tamarin,

an alpine ibex at the Salzburg Zoo, in Anif, Austria,

and a capybara, all photographed by Neven Humphrey

White swans in a park in Bruges, Belgium, photographed by Steve Pitt.

Neven Humphrey patting the tummy of a vary cooperative Arctic wolf. And he captured these bat-eared foxes on film at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City, adding Utah to our list of states.

Barbara Bunce-Demeules sent us more photos from her recent trip. Here are geese crossing the road in Helsinki, Finland.

A seagull in Norway

A horse in Oslo

A dog on the beach in Copenhagen, Denmark

Steve Pitt saw this ginger cat waiting for his motorcycle ride in Amsterdam

Jennifer Pulling lives in the U.K., but has been helping stray cats in Sicily.  Here's one, persuading a visitor to adopt her:

We have other fish in the Fan Club, but had to feature this huge rainbow trout David Russo caught in Pray, Montana.

Steve Pitt saw these carp in the river in Brussels. They started life as pet goldfish, thenreleased into the sewer system.

Gord Gibb, writer and broadcaster in Peterborough, Ontario, discovered this spider outside his window. The only other insects we have in the Fan Club are bees.

This baby bobcat was photographed by  Neven Humphrey at the Soper Creek exhibit at the Gloucester Fair.  Her name is Aurora.

Our first woodchuck was also found by  Neven at the Gloucester Fair. His name  is Alan.

Neven Humphrey loves animals, who are characters in his books. He photographed these lions at Jungle Cat World in Orono, Ontario. as well as this Amur leopard: and, to the right, a Bengal Tiger.	Here is Neven holding a baby Arctic fox.	Neven contributed our first ring-tailed lemurs: and a fennec fox:

Barbara Bunce-Demeules has added to this page many times before as she is a avid traveler. Here's a tiny chipmunk who shared their picnic table in Tallberg, three hours north of Stockholm, Sweden. As you can see, it's very red with barely any back stripe.

Luna Grava, who lives in Caen, France.

Borealis, the new male alpaca at the Katz-Couvrette homestead in the NWT, with her mom, Carmel.

Barbara Bunce-Desmeules photographed sheep grazing in  the mountains of northern Norway, including this little black one.

These goats were on a mini-farm  in the town of Flam, Norway.

This photo shows the long fur on these particular goats. The sheep at the left are tagged, but these goats are wearing bells.

While Mark Kearney, one of the Trivia Guys, was in Poland, he snapped these pictures of pigeons, above, and a jackdaw, right, in a park in Warsaw.

Steve Pitt, who is always on the lookout for wildlife in northern Ontario, spotted this osprey  mom with her chicks, nesting on top of a telephone  pole near Lake Talon.

and here's osprey mom delivering a meal:

Steve, who lives near Lake Talon in Rutherglen, Ontario, is always on the lookout for wildlife, his camera at the ready. He sent us nine shots, of which I selected just these three.

Helen Russo photographed a lovely bluebird in Montana.

Jesse Siskin, whose novels are set in ancient Greece, photographed this donkey in the village of Tzermiado in on the island of Crete.

Crackers, a friendly parrot at the Couples resort in Negril, Jamaica.

Noel Russo captured this skunk racing through a hayfield in Montana.

Marlene & Drum Hudson's left Orpheus behind when their latest adventure took them on a cruise down the coast of South America. Here are a family of swans in Argentina:

And here's a culpeo, the world's largest species of fox, also in Argentina:

Our first fan from Peru is showing off his finery for visitors, Marlene & Drum Hudson.

This steamer duck was on the shore in The Falklands, off the southern coast of Argentina.

This is a close-up of a Humboldt penguin, in the Falklands.

This is our first close-up of an eagle, taken by Marlene & Drum Hudson in Point Roberts Washington.

Steve Pitt continues to add to the Fan Club.  We had a hive of bees already, but here's a bumblebee at one of the lupins in his yard in Rutherglen, ON.

Griffin, the tiny new groundhog who has just joined the AcroCats.

Although we added Canada geese to the Fan Club a while back,  Steve Pitt managed to capture this entire family near his property in Rutherglen, Ontario.

Steve also  photographed this redwing blackbird, and the red-chested grosbeak, right

This long shot of a bald eagle was taken by Steve Pitt who also captured the chimney swifts, and a sharpskinned hawk.

Cuba has become the 40th country in the Fan Club!

Lorri Benedik went with her husband and son from Montreal to vacation at Varadero, Cuba, where  she said an entire colony of cats hung around the dining room at every meal. Here are two near the door. Lorri said the black one reminds her of the cat she had as a child, named Angel. To the right is a pretty calico watching the diners.

Trudy Kelly Forsythe has many deer who camp out in her back yard in New Brunswick. This young one was resting on a snowbank. Frigid water didn't keep this otter from enjoying a swim in  Lake Talon in Rutherglen, Ontario. Captured on film by Steve Pitt. Our first skatefish and yet another country, the Maldives, where Colby & Rich Jones were on vacation.  They sent us our first sharks, as well.   This Common Grackle was photographed in Troy, Vermont, by Bobbi's cousin, Anthony Florio, a wildlife professional, conservationist and Delaware artist. The Woodland Beach Wildlife Area was named in his honor last year. Meanwhile, Steve Pitt captured this shot of a mob of finches:

The Fan Club's latest species: our first bighorn sheep, elk and coyote.

All three of these were taken in Montana by Helen Maris Russo.

Here's a close-up of a young bison, looking for food under the snow.

Helen Maris Russo is spending Christmas in Montana, and took these photos at farms near their home in Pray.

Helen apologizes for how blurry this shot is, but she used her phone to capture this coyote chasing the elk. Helen is reponsible for many of our newest species: bison, elk, coyote, and bighorn sheep.

Don't know if these geese were on the Pierce Family Ranch or the Pino Farm. They seem to be carefully avoided patches of ice or snow! The very pregnant cow on the right is on the Pino Farm.  The rabbit looks huddled against the cold.

Barbara Bunce-Demeules, a world traveler, has sent us many Fan Club members from other countries.

Barbara just added our 38th country, by capturing pics of a munching goat along the side of a road, and a curious cat on a sidewalk in St. Lucia.

A Japanese racoon dog, or Tanuki,  photographed by Alice Beck Kehoe in Okinawa.

Alice also sent this cat in the Caturday Cafe in Bangkok, Thailand.

Our first bison, photographed in Yellowstone National Park by Helen Maris Russo.

This goshawk was photographed through the window at Steve Pitt's home in Rutherglen, Ontario.

This Palm Warbler was sitting on Steve's roof. It adds yet another bird species to the Fan Club.

June Coxon contributed these photos:  a tiny frog from B.C. and a rabbit from Alberta.

Here's a woodpecker from June's yard in Ottawa, and a groundhog on the lawn at Parliament Hill:

Kermit, our first gecko, from Edmonton. Hanna the Hedgehog, a pet of the Sallows  family in Ottawa, Ontario.

These additions are courtesy of Ottawa author, Neven Humphrey, whose books can be viewed HERE. Here is Neven holding Jet, a red fox:

Neven photographed our four newest species when they were visiting the Gloucester Fair from Soper Creek Wildlife Reserve. Here's Vinnie the porcupine, enjoying some watermelon: Our first skunk is Persephone, again courtesy of Neven Humphrey.

Reilly, the opossum, being held by a Soper employee.

Steve Pitt surprised this red squirrel taking over a birdhouse to convert it into his new home. On the right, two ruby-throated hummingbirds. These males show how the throat changes color depending on whether or not they're trying to attract a female.

Barbara Bunce Desmeules, a great traveler, has just sent us our first magpie, from yet another country: the Czech Republic.

Steve Pitt snapped this female hummingbird in his sister's garden in Astorville, Ontario.

Steve Pitt has sent us our first loons for the Fan Club. Here are the parents with two of their offspring, and to the right is a closer look at mom with one of the babies on her back, on Lake Talon in Rutherglen, Ontario.

A  Mallard duck at Glendalough in  the Wicklow mountains in Ireland.

Buggles, one of the strays fostered by the Acro-Cats, now a member of this wonderful troupe.

Guzo ten Holder, a wild turkey who visits Iris & Wim regularly.

A  lamb near Sallygap in the Wicklow Mountains in Ireland.

A hooded crow in Bray, Ireland, just south of Dublin.

A gray seal swimming along the beach  at Bray, Ireland

We finally added Germany to our list of countries, thanks to Gisela Messier, who sent us this black cat, lounging on the tile in Butzbach, Germany.

Another new species! These yaks (who are a species of wild, shaggy-haired oxen) are guarding a flock of sheep in Montana.

Our first chipmunk, on the grass in front of the Spitt home in Rutherglen, Ontario. Below, Steve captured a variety of  birds at one of the big feeders.

A pair of grackles, the male on the left, the female on the right.

A rosy-chested grosbeak  at the feeder.

This charming woodduck couple was spotted by Steve Pitt in Rutherglen, Ontario.

This monkey in Honduras, was a bit too friendly with strangers!   Our first osprey, being held by Helen Russo.

Bruce Eldredge,  a white rat, waiting impatiently in his cage for pizza delivery. He lives with many dogs, cats, and other animals on the farm of Deb Eldredge, one of our favorite vets.

Steve Pitt has added another species to the Fan Club with photos of this brazen raven, stealing string from the trellis at his sister's farm in Astorville, Ontario.

And here is Sad Sally, flying away with the string in her mouth. When they noticed she had no tail feathers, they thought she might have lost them to a predator, but evidently some ravens don't have tail feathers.

Steve also sent us this photo of a big buck in the woods near his property close to Lake Talon:

this cassowary,  large, flightless bird closely related to the emu, considered very dangerous:

this echidna is a spiney anteater

and here's our first dingo

The famous laughing kikaburra, in the  Featherdale Wildlife Park in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia

This kea parrot is endangered, but that shouldn't have allowed her to steal the aerial off Drum & Marlene's car in New Zealand

The Tasmanian Devil certainly looks as nasty as its reputation. Look at those teeth!

A purple swamphen in Queensland:

Here are some Australian pelicans:

A burrowing crayfish carcass

Wild pigs blocking the road on in New Zealand.

Long-necked turtles spotted by the Hudsons on the north island of New Zealand.  And at the Right: a peahen with her chicks.

A black swan in Australia. And, at the right, a blue jay in the snow with other birds at Steve Pitt's feeding station in Rutherglen, Ont.

Floot Wiles, one of a group of cats who live with artist Ian Wiles on the island of Thassos in Greece.

This wild boar is the 60th species in the Fan Club, captured on film by Les Barran in the Yala National Park in Sri Lanka. That also brings the number of countries in the Fan Club to 32! Les and his wife, Mary Ann Simpkins sell their travel articles to North American magazines.

Big Ben Fry, our first muscrat, in Astorville, Ontario, courtesy of our favorite wildlife photographer, author Steve Pitt.

Patagonian Mara, left, and peacock, above

One of the colorful snakes in the Barbados zoo.

One of several alligators, along with turtles. And, to the right, one of the peacocks in full display, and far right, some iguanas.

This Pacific treefrog was photographed by Mark Rutherford in Oregon

Bees in Edmonton, Alberta, from an article Elizabeth Atherton wrote about the beekeeper.

Baby parrots in Barbados.

Lorna Olson photographed Farmer John in Ireland, posing with his three-generation team of sheep dogs: Max, 8,  his son Pepper,  2, Max's mother June, 18 and "retired" but  teaching Pepper what to do!

Travel writer Mary Ann Simpkins riding on an elephant in Laos:

Ducklings at the Eldredge farm in Vernon, NY, where Deb Eldredge, DVM, has horses, sheep, donkeys, and prize-winning dogs.

Babe Eldredge, left, prouding wearing her latest ribbon, and some of the sheep she herds at the farm in Vernon, New York. And Sugar Eldredge, our first donkey.

This Barbary Ape showed off her baby to Steve Pitt when he visited this macaque colony in Gibraltar.

A family of wild parakeets in their nest in Spain, our first Fan Club members from that country. Steve Pitt captured this shot while on a bus tour through  Torremolinos.

Klarissa Lebrun  Konstantin Lebrun

Carolina Lebrun  These 7 beauties live at the Siberian Cat Cafe in Chelsea, Quebec., where visitors can enjoy coffee and the company of these hypoallergenic cats.

Deborah Lebrun  Michael Lebrun and his partner, Natalie, opened this charming spot in the spring of 2015, receiving lots of local publicity.

Dimtri Lebrun Kristoff Lebrun

Kalinka Lebrun

Maggie Desulis, our first gecko, who shares her New York City home with a woman who works for Barnard College, Bobbi's alma mater.

This is Zach's Dog, sitting on the steps of a museum in Cuba.

You can see the mountains in the background of this shot of Bessie the cow, taken by our favorite  travel blogger in the Pyrenees in France.

Our second turtle is a snapper whom Steve Pitt calls Betty Crocker, because she's the size of a pie plate. She arrives on his property in Rutherglen every year to lay her eggs. He recognizes her by the dent in her shell.

This flock of flamingos was spotted at a bird sanctuary in the Camargue near Arles in Southern France. They aren't pink because of the lack of shrimp in the area. Photo by The Traveling Booky.

Our first Fan Club member from Singapore comes from their famous Cat Cafe, thanks to Juliana Najak. The first cat cafe began in Taiwan, to offer a chance for those living in tiny apartments where they couldn't have pets to enjoy the company of cats. Singapore and Japan soon followed, and there are now cat cafes all over the world, where the resident cats are often up for adoption. We didn't expect to add sand crabs to the Fan Club, but Juliana found this one on the beach on   Ko Phi Phi Island, Thailand.

Juliana also snaped this monkey at Batu Caves, Kuala Lumpur, Malasia. Near Chiang Mai, Thailand, this elephant was waiting for a rider. Note that the link connected to Juliana's name is for the Aga Khan Foundation, which has many projects around the world, including in these southeast Asian countries.

This monkey is our first Fan Club member from Cambodia, in Siem Reap at the Angkor Wat Temples. An entire family at the Monkey Forest in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. And a group of surfer dogs on the beach in in Kuta, Bali.

Panache Pitt

This stunning American wood duck is related to the Mandarin duck usually found in Asia. This one of a pair spotted on Talon Lake in front of Steve Pitt's house in Rutherglen, Ontario. Also sighted there were two common Mergansers (top right), two mourning doves, right below) and a brash squirrel who keeps raiding Steve's bird feeder. Here is , surveying his territory from a deck chair.  He's named after the Latin name for squirrel:  sciurus. Scurious Pitt hangs out in Rutherglen, Ontario.

Groucho and Chicko, on Lake Talon Sad and Sadder, the mourning doves.

Salem, capturing the attention of Barbara Bunce-Demeules as she toured Jerusalem.

Negev, a camel captured on film by Barbara Bunce-Demeules in the desert south of Beer Sheva, Israel.

Little Red, a red wolf roaming the property behind the house in  Astorville, Ontario where Kryki Fry keeps all local wildlife in check.

Woody Pitt, yet another Fan Club member from Rutherglen, Ontario

Mia Fowler, from  Warwickshire, U.K.

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Hairy Harper, Chile an armadillo Craig McMahon photographed in Chile, and named after Canada's former Prime Minister

We're excited to announce our first Fan Club members from Chile! That's not only our 23rd country, but finally adds South America, so we now have members from all six continents with permanent human inhabitants.

NASA, our first vicuna, surveying the scenery in Chile

The McMahon Penguins, Big D (left), The  Dancing Magellanics (above), and The Twins (right).

Kauro is very playful, and is shown here, twisting her trunk.

Welcome to two orphans from the  Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya. Kauro is a male elephant, born in January of 2014, and was found in a well where he had fallen. Kili is a male giraffe, born last August, and found on his own. You can foster any of the orphans on this preserve for just $50/year. You'll find a long list of rescued animals on the website, along with photos and notes on their progress.

Catizen LookSaoHang Thai. Her dad is a US Burmese and her mum is a cat from Thailand. She has delivered  two beautiful Burmese litters from her.

Nam Dtan and his sister, Mookie, to the right.

Bella, our first bear, from the Montana Grizzly Encounter, a  rescue and education sanctuary.

Sunny Mao, modeling one of the costumes created by the Suzhou Pet Age company in Suzhou City, Jiangsu province, China.

Lily Hagenguth, who was rescued from the streets of Cairo, Egypt, to live with Miss Noha (a member of the MEWSical Society) and Lucky, a lucky dog to live with these cats! The latest rescue just adopted at seven weeks is Nefertiti (right).  The came from the The Egyptian Society of Animal Friends.

Trony Solorsano, the first of four cats who have joined us from Uvita, Costa Rica.

Zorro and Norton Holm, who live in Norton, Vermont, with "Cat" Holm, author of Driving With Cats, which is on our Cat Book Favorites page. These handsome boys are our first fans from Vermont.

Rosie Fry and her baby, Rosette, our first deer fans, enjoying the Fry garden in Astorville, Ontario

RIGHT:  Steve Pitt has donated a second goat to this village in Kenya, where a family will benefit from both milk and baby goats to sell. This goat is a female, whom they named Terzo. The first goat Steve gave to this village was named Bobbi and has enabled her young owner to feed his family and go to school. These orphans live in the Mbooni Region in Kenya, and the organization that supports them is Creation of Hope.

Betty Del Rosario Cabanatuan City, the Philippines

Our fans in Rutherglen, Ontario, continue to add to the Fan Club. Here is Gaucho Hone, a new calf born on the farm next door to Chocka Pitt. Other fans from surrounding farms include next door neighbor Kryki, Toola McCully and Odin II Strang.

Socks Miles and his pal, Zippy, inspecting a new mouse at the The Institute for Kitty Cat Research.

Molly Davis, in her special cat enclosure,just ourside Portland, Oregon. Molly lives with author Christine Davis, whose books are on several of our book pages, including Cat Book Favorites and Books To Inspire.

Quincunx Flibbertygibbet Nichols whose nickname is Mouse, did well in the first cat show in the U.K. featuring LaPerms.

Quincunx Xenobia Xoom Nichols also appeared in the cat show. Both Mouse and Xena live with Anthony Nichols, the first person to bring these magnificent cats from Holland and develop the LaPerm breed in the U.K. Mouse and Xena share cat beds, toys, and other things with Omaste Nichols, who is a member of Terzo's MEWSical Society.

Morton, our first turtle, who lives in the Chonko backyard in Panama City, Florida, where he was found by Pearl and Prissy.

Zeki Moore is the Pet Safety Cat who helps teach First Aid to pet owners. Learn more at http://www.petfirstaid4u.com Zeki lives in Oceanside, California, with Arden Moore, an author, speaker, broadcaster, and Certified animal first aid instructor.

Cluck Norris is a hen who plays tambourine and cymbals and tours with the Acro-Cats. Samantha Martin has trained many chickens in her work with animals. Watch Cluck and the rest of the troupe in the new video on the website. Cluck joins the rest of the Rock-Cats who perform with the Acro-Cats both in Chicago and on tour. Watch their new video on the website.

The rest of the Moore household:  Cleo, left, surfing, Murphy, above, relaxing, and Chipper, at the right, part of the Pet First Aid team.

Our first fans from Turkey: Spike Tramantano, above, and his brother, Ace,  below. They live in a rescue sanctuary in Yalikavak, Bodrum, Turkey.

Harry Viets, a formerly feral beach cat who lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with Mystery, a grey Chartreux who joined our Fan Club a while back. Boots Faber Sacramento, California, who appears  as Thumper in Elaine Faber's mystery novel, Black Cat’s Legacy.

Casper James, Charlotte, North Carolina Star James Casper's sister

Andy Martin, our first fan from Nebraska who helps run Healthy Pet Business from their     headquarters in Grand Island, Nebraska.

Henry Freeman is a Rescue Cat, who works with a cat recovery expert in Austin, Texas. Go to http://LostCatFinder.com and download the free tip booklet HERE.

Smokey Munger, the model for Rags in Patricia Fry's books, lives in Ventura, California.  The story about his kitten adventure with a baby bunny was in our Easter, 2016, posts on the blog. Click on the 2016 blog.

This orange cat was dozing in the flower market in Hong Kong, photographed by Barbara Desmeules from Travelling Booky.com

Here's another cat photographed in Nagasaki, on the island of Kyushu in Japan, by Barbara Desmeules from Travelling Booky.com

Benny Cornelius    San Joses del Cabo, Mexico

Little Bear Lo, also called L.B., our first fan from Taiwan. He lives in Taoyuan County,  Bade City, Taiwan.  Eric, the young man LB lives with, makes exquisite wire art pieces, and send me a lovely pendant as a gift.

Bella and Moose Abdallah, Reno, Nevada

Muffy Russo, Panama City, Florida

OUR FIRST FAN  from Indonesia:  One of the chihuahua models for MyKnitt in West Java, Indonesia

Flossie & Freddie Turner, Ottawa, Ontario

Kitters (aka Tank) cuddling with Annie Kerr two of the clan in Sutton, Ontario

Ozzie and Kitters Kerr, clearly best pals.

Miss Noha Hagenguth, our MEWSical Society member in Cairo, Egypt, who lives with a feline pal, Sir Kimo, and their canine protector, Lucky.

Sir Kimo after his summer haircut. At the right, Lucky.

Jax, another member of the astounding Acro-Cats troupe.

Annie, an Acro-Cat in action.

Jimmy Pendgracs Matlock, Manitoba

Debbie Manero, our first ferret, and the subject of a book about a ferret who is taught by the resident cat how to live with humans. See the book on our Cat Book Favorites page.

Zippy Manero, who shares a Toronto high-rise with Debbie and four cats.

Our first AUSTRALIAN members, from the Bell family in Gold Coast, Queensland: Ruby, the koala, left, miniature poodles Molly and MoJo, right, Mia and Magic, twin Birmans, below left, and the hugging kangaroos, below center.

Molly and MoJo Bell Queensland, Australia

The Rock Cats are a live performing group, part of a larger act based in Chicago. The Acro-Cats have their own Facebook page, and you can also read about them in Petrogyphs, an animal-lovers' resource guide, where Terzo won an Honorable Mention in their You Ought to be in Pictures contest.  Joining the fan club are Pinky, the lead guitarist, Dakota, the drummer, and Nue, who plays piano and synthesizer. Their leader is Tuna, below, who plays the chimes as well.

Roo Clark, our first fan from South Carolina. Named after Winnie the Pooh's kangaroo pal, Roo lives in Chapin, S.C., with mystery writer Hope Clark.

Charlie Miccio, (aka The Wordy Bird) our first fan from Delaware, who lives in Felton, Delaware, with five Tibetan spaniels. See the "head Tibbie" to the right.

Coco Angel Miccio head Tibbie and Official Bed Dog

Bobbi Kamanthe was a gift from our pal, Steve Pitt, who donated the goat to a boy in Kenya as part of a wonderful charity called Creation of Hope.  One of the many orphans in tiny rural community of Kikima, Keli Kamanthe received the goat when he was 11. He's now a teenager, and his goat has been providing milk for his family and baby goats so other families can benefit as well. Keli wants to be a doctor. Support from the Get Your Goat program has allowed him to go to school.

Pepper Biniok, our first fan from Wisconsin. He lives in  Waukesha, with writer  Janice Biniok, who wrote about us in an issue of Cat Fancy magazine.

Mrs. Doyle, the parrot who helped start the MEWSical Society, in the shower at his home in Sooke B.C., where he lives with Steve Pridgeon.

The trio, above and below. are Chocka Pitt (aka Little Brown Dog), playing with his pals, Toola McCully (black), and one of our new Fan Club members, Odin II Strang.

Miss Noha Hagenguth and her new little sister, Lilly, who live in Cairo, Egypt.

Midnight Louie III, Texas newsletter editor and muse for Carole Nelson Douglas

The Halperin hens: Ethel, Lucy, Laverne and Shirley:

Lucy and Ethel Halperin, admiring each other:

Pumpkin Katz-Couvrette, the llama who keeps the alpacas in line, here with Hudson in the yard on their farm in the Northwest Territories.

Sadie Katz Couvrette with Pumpkin in their barn

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