Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1525812
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 25 AUGUST 2024 5 ALMANAC Nature Notebook 933. Common Octopus WHEN you think "clever animal" you think chimpanzee or dolphin, certainly not snail or slug. But molluscs too have their Mensa cham- pion: the octopus! Most people only see octopus chopped up in a stew, but to meet it in its home is almost magical, and you needn't go SCUBA diving. The common octopus (M. qarnita) lives happi- ly in shallow waters around our shore, as long as there are snails and crabs to catch, and rocks to hide under. Octopuses are equipped with some serious tech: well-developed eyes, eight all-purpose arms, extreme flexibility, matchless camouflage, an in-built smoke-screen device and a clever brain. These animals have been tested with maz- es and things and found to be good at learning and solving problems. Such a pity they so often meet their end impaled by a speargun. Open call for Researcher Friends of the Earth Malta is looking for a researcher to write a report on community energy in Malta. This research is part of our 'People Power Up' project, powering up our work on community energy and contrib- uting to the set up of the first renewable energy community in Malta. Start date in September 2024 Report Timeline: Sept 2024 - Jan 2025 & Launch event: Feb 2025 Freelance position, must be based in Malta. Deadline for application is 6th Sept 2024 Victor Falzon www.birdlifemalta.org Green idea of the week 800 For more information: https://foemalta.org/vacancies/2024-10/ 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 999 // IN THE VINES 31 August Place: Maria Rosa Wine Estate 1 year on from the birth of 999, we meet again for a lovely daytime- >nighttime sesh. It's been an amazing year of building a community of legends who mean business when they are on our dancefloor. This time will be no different. DOORS OPEN AT 5PM LINEUP: edd (extended set) Fresh Prince b2b Boiler CND Damz Lauren Give nature a voice. Become a BirdLife member Il Re Pastore - Valletta Early Opera Festival 2024 8-9 November Place: Teatru Manoel Out of the two dozen or operas that Mozart composed, only a handful are typically performed. For the second edition of the Valletta Early Opera Festival, Festivals Malta in collaboration with Teatru Manoel presents an enchanting rendition of Il Re Pastore. During this year's edition of VEOF, the event returns with one of Mozart's underappreciated pieces, with the return of Maestro Giulio Prandi at the helm of the orchestral ensemble in this tale of war, starcrossed lovers and triumph from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's earlier repertoire; a piece which Mozart composed when still only 19 years old. A GOOD WEEK Good Week/Bad Week A BAD WEEK Taylor Swift has finished the European leg of her Eras Tour with a record- breaking show at Wembley Stadium that was packed full of surprises. The pop star was joined on stage by Florence + The Machine, rewarded fans with the premiere of a new music video and gave the first live rendition of her song So Long, London. Hollywood stars Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are divorcing after two years of marriage. Lopez filed for divorce on Tuesday in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, according to court documents seen by the BBC. It was Swift's eighth concert at Wembley this summer - overtaking a record for any solo singer, which was set by Michael Jackson with his Bad Tour in 1988. The pair - dubbed Bennifer by tabloids - formally tied the knot in Las Vegas in July 2022 and held a larger wedding ceremony in Georgia the following month.