Sunday, September 28, 2025

Live Cams of Africam and WildEarth

Have you ever seen an orphaned rhino cub dreaming in his boma shelter? A party of young lions at the watering hole with their mother. Elephants contemplating the splendor of an African sunset. A large gathering of zebra. Wildebeest enjoying a good roll in the mud. A python snatching a meal. A family of baboons. Rare cheetah cubs at Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre. A graceful genet. A caracal whose lightning-fast reflexes leaves only a blurred smear of light. Eagle fledglings enjoying parental care. An ostrich male patrolling his beat. Terrapin taking to the water. Various interspecies encounters. Almost a decade before Netflix first launched, Africam began its wildlife livestreams, first from the Sabie Sands game reserve, then expanding to over thirty locations around Southern and East Africa, including Etosha in Namibia, the Serengeti in Tanzania, Maasai Maru and Tsavo West in Kenya, Hwange in Zimbabwe, the Boteti River in Botswana and Timbavati and the Kruger National Park in South Africa. One fascinating webcam provides unique insights into the daily lives of Black Eagles. Another shares the story of critically endangered charges such as cheetahs and rhinos who find a safe haven at the Hoedspruit. The Facebook Group shares regular highlights in the form of photos and video clips.

Members: 14.3k, at the time of writing. 
Trigger Warnings: Animal Predation.
Go here to visit or join.

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Friday, September 19, 2025

Barn Cat Network (Saving Community Cats One Barn At A Time)

Some people call them community cats. Whatever the name, they are survivors. Rugged individuals whose existence falls somewhere between the resilience of their wild hunter-ancestors and the pampered, adaptable lifestyle of their domesticated kin. But without the advocacy of a designated carer, life can be harsh. Caught between nature's relentless breeding cycles, and the fierce attention of larger predators, one compassionate human can be all that stands between these at-risk felines and death. Add to that the inconvenient reality of unsympathetic landlords, for example and you have the makings of a feline-shaped emergency. While a patient foster can sometimes work wonders to prepare some of these community cats for a forever home, many community cats are just not cut out for such a radical lifestyle change. At traditional shelters, they face the risk of euthanasia. The Barn Cat Network is all about exploring alternative opportunities. Barn cats act as nocturnal security guards to keep pests and rodents at bay, while enjoying the support of human interaction from a safe and non-demanding distance. Filled with tips and opportunities, the group functions to reach out as a safety net, to transition cats at risk into the safe space of barns, especially when previous human sponsors become overwhelmed, or can no longer fulfill their vital role, due to unforeseen circumstances. 

Members: 42.3k, at the time of writing.

Trigger Warnings: None

Go here to visit or join

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Monday, September 15, 2025

DIY Crafty Fun & Crafters on the Todooo app!

Actually, what this group excels at, is wholesome, hart-warming craft stories. The senior feline who still takes his duties as quality inspector and emotional support animal very seriously. A teen entrepreneur struggle against bullies while she works magic with her crochet needle. Stories about the husbands who are heroes (and the ones who aren't). Craft projects that work quietly in the background to preserve family memories for future generations. Meet the dog who has his own honor wall. The people who discovered the fire of creativity late in life but wouldn't let go of it again. Who repurpose found objects into accessories. Patients who craft rehabilitation and recovery into their creations. How a doctor uses art to inject warmth into his treatments. How someone rediscovered a lost family treasure in a thrift store. If this group is anything to go by, then Todooo is definitely doing something right with the commerce platform and global community they created for creators and craft fans. 

Members: 1.1 million, at the time of writing

Trigger Warnings: None.

Go here to visit or join. 

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Random Acts of Knitting and Crochet Kindness

Handmade Scotland

Dollhouse miniature made from everyday things

Friday, September 12, 2025

YESTERSONGS

Music and me? We go back a very long time, from an early taste for seventies rock to a quest for classics and rarities, and for me, this prog-loving music space hits just the right sort of sweet spot, featuring songs that don't necessarily get to live forever in endless top 40 rotation, but end up becoming timeless anyway. There was, for example, an intoxicatingly psychedelic medley from Eloy and a truly vintage Pink Floyd clip. Some sixties Rolling Stones. A cover version of I got you, Babe featuring David Bowie and Marianne Faithful. A live video of Paul McCartney and Neil Young jamming together. The truly splendid pretentions of old Genesis (Dancing with the Moonlit Knight) and a 1977 concert clip of the Eagles performing Rocky Mountain Way with Joe Walsh's delicious trademark weirdness taking center stage. The zany energy of Dutch band Focus. Homage to Blues rock, courtesy of John Lee Hooker, Taj Mahal and Stevie Ray Vaughn. Even a post paying tribute to Cape Town crooner Zayn Adam. I must confess to spending way too much time enjoying all the music, and if you share my taste, you will too. 

Members: 28.9k, at the time of writing.

Trigger Warnings: None.

Go here to visit or join.

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Tuesday, September 9, 2025

Handmade Scotland

It's been quite a busy morning on Handmade Scotland and Halloween is definitely in the air already, judging by some of the posted items on offer. This group showcases a rich variety of hand-crafted items, ranging from brightly hand-painted cabinets to a paper mâché Punk Rocker. There are also knitted scarfs and beanies, felt-crafted critters and creatures, a real menagerie of hand-crocheted animals, as well as (in a separate post) a crocheted Franken-cow. Witch's hat earrings. Burnt art functional items. Glass art. Wood carving. An adorable little sailboat crafted entirely from repurposed/upcycled materials Some wonderfully rustic-looking pottery. And best yet, a custom-made, decorated Celtic axe If you're looking for a particular item, for example a traditional tartan shawl, you can consult the hivemind for recommended crafters. 

Members: 136.1k, at the time of writing.

Trigger Warnings: None.

Go here to visit or join.

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Monday, September 1, 2025

The Phantom Planters

 

I've heard of guerilla gardening - the practice of secretly caring for plants, bushes and trees on land not belonging to you, and often for the greater good of the community. Sometimes it's about reclaiming neglected, overgrown spaces. Often it invites debate on the nature of land ownership, or requires secretive, nocturnal activity. But the network of Phantom Planters connecting through this group are often about even higher rewards. They take gently and give with love. They are passionately involved in the preservation of arboreal heritage. One example of a next-level conservation effort involves using this autumn season to harvest acorns from several very specific and famous oak trees found in various locations across the UK. Trees that are hundreds of years old and have stood as witnesses and sentinels to history and the myth that came before. The stories shared tell of trees transplanted in this way and how their produce helps the community. What a beautifully wholesome digital space. 

Members: 58.7k, at the time of writing.

Trigger Warnings: None.

Go here to visit or join.

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Image Credit: The Queen Elizabeth Oak in Cowdray Park, as photographed by Shazz for Geograph.org.uk