Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1506448
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 AUGUST 2023 7 ALMANAC Nature Notebook 881. European bee-eater COMPARED to birds in the other continents, most European birds are drab-coloured. But our bee-eater will give any tropical contender a run for its money. Since bee-eaters (M. qerd in-naħal) are migra- tory and gregarious, we get to see a good number of them in both spring and autumn, and since the turn of the century they seem to have increased. They are spectacular animals, especially when a flock of them pass overhead with their incessant phrww phrww phrww contact call (they sound like a distant group of PE teachers trying out their whistles together!) One or two pairs sometimes try to breed, but their colourful livery all too often attracts hunters' at- tention. As for their name, it's rather misleading: bee-eaters do eat bees, but bees are just one item in a menu that includes any flying insect that catches the bee-eater's beady red eye! We're Hiring! Friends of the Earth Malta has an exciting opportunity to join our energetic. We're on the hunt for a Circular Economy & Green Fi- nance volunteer to join our finance team. This is part of the Europe- an Solidarity Corps (ERASMUS+/ESC) volunteering programme. The selected candidate can already be based in Malta, and would be required to live on the island for a period of 8 months, ideally starting from October 2023. Travel and accommodation costs will be reimbursed as part of the ESC programme, among other bene- fits. Deadline for submission of application is 12th September 2023 at noon. Victor Falzon, Mark Sultana www.birdlifemalta.org Green idea of the week 766: For more details about the requirements of the position and the application form click here: https://foemalta.org/vacancies/202304/ 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 MPO Season Opening Concert 31 August Place:Pjazza Teatru Rjal Malta Resident conductor Michael Laus leads the orchestra in Weber's Overture to his opera Der Freischütz, a thrilling work brimming with vibrant melodies. Inspired by Mozart's epic opera Don Giovanni, Tchaikovsky wrote his delightful four-movement orchestral suite Mozartiana in his honour. The piece de resistance, Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition, arranged for orchestra by Ravel. Give nature a voice. Become a BirdLife member Ballet Intensive with Alessandro Bigonzetti 1 September Place: ZfinMalta National Dance Company This September, ŻfinMalta is hosting the first dance intensive of the season. ŻfinMalta has the pleasure hosting Alessandro Bigonzetti on our shores, where he will lead 3 hr ballet classes and repertoire training sessions for participants from 10 years old. A GOOD WEEK Good Week/Bad Week A BAD WEEK The Rolling Stones appear to have revealed the title of their new album with an advert for a fictional glass repair business in a local newspaper. The ad, which appeared in the Hackney Gazette, referenced several of the band's best-known songs. David Jacobs, the writer and producer best known for creating US soap opera Dallas, has died aged 84. He died in Burbank, California on Sunday, his son confirmed to the Hollywood Reporter. "Our friendly team promises you satisfaction," it read. "When you say gimme shelter we'll fix your shattered windows." Jacobs had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and died of complications from a series of infections.