Many books and movies are dedicated to horses. This smart animal is a symbol of grace, devotion and diligence. Horses even have different characters, depending on the type of their higher nervous activity, that correspond to the human types of characters: they can be sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric or melancholic horses.

The first horse was tamed 7500 years ago and since that time it has been the mankind’s companion everywhere – at work as well as at leisure. They are indispensable in agriculture and industry; they are also used in military service and participate in some kind of sports. Horses help people to get over some illnesses. Horse riding is good for stomach and joints. It improves posture and the work of lungs, lessens the risk of having a hypertension and cardiac infarction.

Horses are known for their quick-wittedness. Sometimes it can take them come 5 or 10 minutes to learn a new trick – of course if the owner of the horse knows how to handle the learning process correctly. For example, Bess loves to ride a car and watch TV, she brings her master a beer when asked and covers herself with a blanket when she goes to sleep on a bed.



Tricks that can be done by horses are numerous – that’s why horses often participate in different shows, like Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede and work in circuses. People will never stop adoring these beautiful animals. Horses are friendly and funny: you can search for ‘horses funny videos’ instead of ‘manly funny videos’, and you’ll be rolling with laughter. There are a lot of stories about them, they are considered to be noble animals and their image is a part of logos and advertisements of many well-known brands and companies.

People will never stop admiring cats: the way they walk, the way they play or the way they hunt. From simple domestic cats – to powerful tigers and majestic lions – they all possess a simple but unattainable grace, and black panther is, probably the best example. Black panther is a black color variation of an animal we call a panther. But in different countries different species bear this name. When we’re talking about panther in North America, we mean a cougar, while for Latin America panther stands for jaguar, and in other regions it is the second name of a leopard. But while existence of black leopards and jaguars are proved – there is no such certainty about black cougar that is supposed to inhabit North America.

There are no proved cases of truly black cougar though people from such states as Kentucky, South and North Carolina, Kansas, Texas and Nebraska report the sightings of black panthers. Biologists and breeders consider black cougar to be a myth they suppose that people misidentify the animal they see. In Florida two dark furred bobcats were caught. Their fur seemed to be black but at closer examination it turned out to be of chocolate and mahogany tint. Also there exists another species – jaguarundi, that looks like a cougar and has a dark fur. So, probably there are no black panthers in the North America. Nevertheless, Black Panthers exist in the folklore of many Indians and together with an owl it symbolizes Death. Also there are a lot of video clips that tend to multiply our doubts. It can be compared with the problem of existence of the Bigfoot - nobody knows for sure. May be the black panther myth is not a myth at all?

It is summer already – and many of us start thinking about taking a day off or going on vacation and enjoying the ocean. Bright and cloudless sky, sandy beach, roar of the surf – everything is so fine that we can hardly imagine that something wrong may happen. Unfortunately, there is danger hiding in the salty water and Sharks is the name of it.

Sharks are the most mysterious and dangerous creatures that inhabit oceans. These predators can feel the smallest electric field and sounds of the lowest frequency. Their fine sense of smell allows them to feel a single drop of blood dissolved in a million of water drops. That’s why scuba divers that fasten the harpooned fish to their belts often fall prey to the sharks. Though the shark’s vision is considered to be weak – that’s a delusion. They can see perfectly on great distances. Moreover they can feel the weakest water vibrations and identify their source. Their hearing is also very good, so it’s no use following an old belief that if you scream in the water, the shark won’t bite you. It vice versa: as soon as you make a sound you double your chances to be bitten.



If you follow certain precaution steps, such as no swimming if you have any bleeding scratches or wounds, no swimming alone, no abrupt movements in the presence of a shark, etc. – you may escape the dangers. But some people aren’t so lucky.

Sharks rarely attack without any reason. And there is an opinion that people do more harm to sharks that they do to people. And, to my mind, this opinion isn’t groundless. People sometimes act like unwelcome intruders in the sharks’ home. And isn’t it natural to protect your home and territory?
Anyway, be careful if you are going to the beach. And have a good vacation!