Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1445232
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 JANUARY 2022 9 ALMANAC Nature Notebook 798. Eurasian skylark I guess few birds have inspired poets more than the skylark. That persistent bubbly song this bird emits as it flutters high in the sky seems to be the personification of happiness. Nice as it sounds, it is nothing of the sort of course. Like all birdsong, the song of the skylark (M. alwetta) is not exultation but a very serious business of protecting territory, attracting mates and warning off potential rivals. In Malta we see skylarks mostly in autumn as they fly south to Africa. Some try to spend the winter here, but too often they fail because in this country skylarks inspire violence rather than poetry, as thousands get gunned down by men who thrill in kill- ing. Sure, the bird is listed as legal 'game' but to civilised people that doesn't make the killing of tiny songsters any less a despicable crime against nature. Victor Falzon, Aron Tanti www.birdlifemalta.org Green idea of the week 690: Join us and subscribe to our newsletter to keep updated on our campaigns https://foemalta.org/join Be Active' for young people THROUGH the project 'Be Active', Friends of the Earth Malta is organising several events for young people aged 16-20 to engage in a variety of environmental issues specific to Malta and the wider world.The sessions will include a cooking class, a beach clean-up with an art-project follow-up event, a bat night, a visit to a beehive and a DIY workshop to avoid the use of single plastics. Within the sessions topics such as the impacts of plastic pollution, food secu- rity, the need for sustainable consumption and biodiversity losses that are exacerbating the deterioration of ecosystems and the natu- ral services they provide, will be covered. Apart from raising aware- ness for the addressed topics, this project also intends to expand the participants' knowledge on those issues. Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation – www.foemalta.org/donate Don't miss this Glass & Class: The Wines of Portugal Masterclass Date: 28 January Place: Villa Bighi, Triq il-Marina, Kalkara Glass & Class: The Wines of Portugal Masterclass is a wine tasting experience is a 2-hour event where guests have the opportunity in one night to try a selection of wines from various Portuguese regions. Give nature a voice. Become a BirdLife member EROS - A Photography Exhibition by Kris Farrugia Date: 4 Febuary Place: Desko, Valletta A debut solo show, EROS promises a passionate foray through the artist's lens. Influenced by Renaissance Fine Art, Farrugia honed his staging and editing technique to capture the essence of chiaroscuro paintings in this contemporary medium. The sleek collection of large-scale works blur the lines between fashion and art, glamour and nude photography. A GOOD WEEK Good Week/Bad Week A BAD WEEK A collection of art, including rarely-exhibited works by Monet, Lowry and Turner, has been loaned to a Leeds gallery by retailer Marks & Spencer. The five paintings are being displayed at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, based at the University of Leeds. Meat Loaf, the singer whose Bat Out Of Hell album is one of the best-selling of all time, has died at the age of 74.The news was confirmed on the star's Facebook page by his family. M&S began in the city in 1884, when founder Michael Marks opened his first penny bazaar. The Bat Out of Hell star sold 100 million albums worldwide and appeared in movies like Fight Club, the Rocky Horror Picture Show and Wayne's World.