January 2009

LOG-BOOK:

News about Greece is in blue

January 1^st:  after quite a short night (not even 4 hours sleeping) we discovered at 4.45 a.m. in the Sick-Bay all patients alive. We hope this will be the same in the Aviaries, because at the turn of the year shot-guns were fired in a way the hail-pellets tapped at the windows !! The Long-eared Owl was 287 (-1) and the dark Barn Owl 278 (-3) gram. The Goshawk was 787 (-11) and the Kestrel 223 (=) gram. Sparrowhawks: green 151 (-6), red 270 (-2) and silver 243 (+7) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 181 (+3), red 227 (+3) and silver 210 (+10) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 287 (+7) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 44 (-5) and the other 54 (=) gram. In the Aviaries no victims could be discovered !! The place in the empty marten-nest is meanwhile occupied by quite a huge grey Tom-cat (with quite a stupid high “children’s voice”), which is named by us “Earl Grey”

He is hardly fitting in the nest-box ! It’s a house-cat, which in one way or another lost his home > we could stroke him already after some days and he loves it being rubbed up. It’s only a bit problematically with the other stray cats, which are eating here (“Brother”, “Friend”, “Pappa”, “Prummel” and “Big Boy”) and which (except from two of them) are hardly touchable !! We could remove two huge parts of dead tissue from the wing-stump of the Hooded Crow and closed it again with 3 agrafes. Outdoors it’s so cold that thrown-away water is freezing the moment it’s reaching the street !!

January 2^nd:  The Long-eared Owl was 288 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 275 (-3) gram. The Goshawk was 787 (=) and the Kestrel 220 (-3) gram. Sparrowhawks: green 155 (+4), red 270 (=) and silver 244 (+1) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 190 (+9), red 228 (+1) and silver 212 (+2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 288 (+1) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 47 (+3) and the other 56 (+2) gram. At 10.30 a.m. it started raining heavily with undercooled rain . . . . That is going to be something with the arrival of the two new trainees, because there is as well a yellow weather-alert due to thunderstorms !! After the normal duties we have been busy the whole morning with the making up of a “welcome-packet” for both trainees, in which a lot is written. At 11.10 a.m. we were called from Polichnítos about a goose with which something should be wrong > the owner has been more over here with his poultry and will pass by at 5 p.m. But it was such a heavy weather that he hadn’t arrived at 5.15 p.m. We could read on the Internet that the plane with which both new trainees should leave from Holland was delayed for almost one hour and a half > so it’s going to be a bit problematically if they will arrive tonight . . . . !! And with quite a lot of delay arrived at 9.50 p.m. Monique Brok and Charlotte Roos who have the intention staying here till in next month and to learn a lot. Luckily they both are studying at quite a distance from their home and are living in lodgings over there, so a repeat of the end of last year is not so likely . . . . !!

January 3^rd:  it was actually dry at 4.45 a.m. !! The Long-eared Owl was 284 (-4) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (+1) gram. The Goshawk was 784 (-3) and the Kestrel 218 (-2) gram. Sparrowhawks: green 154 (-1), red 270 (=) and silver 248 (+4) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 198 (+8), red 235 (+7) and silver 218 (+6) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 290 (+2) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home bred was 49 (+2) and the other 55 (-1) gram. We have for as well today as tomorrow a yellow weather-alert due to expected thunderstorms. And so we noticed, because some birds we had to take back from the aviaries due to this. Both new trainees have survived their first night over here and received a guided tour around later in the morning. Further it remained chilly-cold and wet this day !!

Fresh tension arises in the Aegean

Turkish message to Greek pilots over Farmakonisi raises concern in Athens, as president stands firm

Tensions in the Aegean are on the rise again after Turkey suggested that Greek helicopters were violating the neighboring country’s air space while flying over the small Dodecanese island of Farmakonisi.

The move has prompted President Karolos Papoulias to call Turkey a “fractious neighbor” and to make Agathonisi, another small Dodecanese island, one of his stops for the Epiphany celebrations on January 6^th.

The alarm was raised in Greece when, on New Year’s Eve, Turkish air defense control communicated with Greek helicopters via the wireless and asked them to leave the area because they were violating Turkey’s national air space.

Greece and Turkey have a longstanding territorial dispute over the Aegean. Turkey insists Greek air space extends only 10 kilometers offshore, not 16 kilometers as Greece maintains.

The demand from the Turkish side on December 31 led to an immediate visit by General Dimitris Grapsas, the chief of National Defense General Staff, and army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Dimitris Voulgaris to the island, as well as to the nearby islet of Kalolymnos.

The Greek Embassy in Ankara also filed two official protests with the Turkish Foreign Ministry. Diplomatic sources in Athens said the Turkish action is being treated as a significant escalation of provocative behavior by Greece’s neighbor, which the European Union and NATO have also been informed about.

When addressing military officers on New Year’s Day, President Papoulias told them, “We have to be ready  to face any threat.”

Greece also took over on January 1^st the one-year presidency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, where its problems with Turkey will have to be put to one side.

“Greece is called upon to assume the OSCE presidency at this international juncture, influenced by the global financial crisis, recent developments in the Caucuses and the discussion on the European security structure,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis is due to present Greece’s priorities at OSCE headquarters in Vienna on January 15^th.

January 4^th:  still chilly-cold, wet and a yellow-weather-alert !! In spite of being today the (weekly) big cleaning-day for cages & aviaries, we won’t be able placing some birds out !! The Long-eared Owl was 284 (=), the Little Owl 192 (so had diminished quite a lot in one week and needs to be fed more) and the Dark Barn Owl was 276 (=) gram. The Goshawk was 286 (+2) and the Kestrel 221 (+3) gram. Sparrowhawks: green 153 (-1), red 271 (+1) and silver 250 (+2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 205 (+7), red 236 (+1) and silver 224 (+6) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 290 (=) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 46 (-3) and the other 56 (+1) gram. And while inside the house “Tonia’s” hiding place was emptied (because she was driven away till the lowest rank of the picking-order by the other cats, she had only there dared making water and relieving > really centimeters thick !!), there was explained to one of the new-comers the secrets of folding newspapers for inside the cages (and the huge Long-legged Buzzard had to be removed doing so !!), was an early girls-soul exposed to the peering keen eyes of two Eagle Owls and at the end she was locked-in in the crow-aviary, over where a not undeserving imitation of a Green Jay was produced (only one which couldn’t get rid or her egg !!).

January 5^th:  still it’s wet and still there is a yellow weather-alert !! The Long-eared Owl was 285 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 280 (+4) gram. The Goshawk was 781 (-5) and the Kestrel 221 (=) gram. Sparrowhawks: green 158 (+5), red 269 (-2) and silver 252 (+2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 214 (+9) red 237 (+1) and silver 230 (+6) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 298 (+8) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 46 (=) and the other 56 (=) gram. We could remove 4 agrafes from the amputation-injury of the Hooded Crow > now only some days inside and he can be transferred again to the crow-aviary. Today the first meat-processing day of the new year for everybody, but squared for both new trainees (of whom one is a vegetarian and almost a vegan . . . . !!), and by the 4 present ladies 15,935 kilo of meat, liver & minced meat (for 99,93 Euro) had to be processed. And while this was happening, “Tonia’s” shelter was given a cover which is easily cleanable and resistant against what she had produced there in the past. Doing so however, some breaknecked movements on top of a ladder had to be made . . . . !! Luckily one of the trainees is quite long, so at the end a back could be “cracked” in an osteopathic manner. The sticking door of the crow-aviary is made closing well again.   

Woman killed as wall collapses after tremor

An 18-year-old Romanian woman was killed and her 20-year-old boyfriend injured when the storage room where they had made their home in Messenia, the Peloponnese, collapsed on Sunday following a mild earthquake in the area.

Firefighters, who managed to pull the 20-year-old man alive from the rubble of the building near the village of Gargaliani, said that a wall collapsed after the tremor. They added that pressure had built up on the wall after heavy rain in recent days had caused a large volume of debris to be washed up against it.

The earthquake, measuring 4 on the Richter scale, struck at 7.10 a.m. and its epicenter was in the Messenian Gulf.

The 20-year-old migrant suffered light leg injuries and was taken to hospital in Kalamata for treatment. Neither of the Romanians were named.

And Mother Earth was doing justice because of her pointless murdered children:

Final hunt . . .  (or the happy hunting grounds . . . .)

A hunter was killed on Saturday when the farm vehicle he was driving on a country road near Kerkíni, in northern Greece, skidded on the snow and crashed into a ditch, crushing him. The 64-year-old man was returning home from a hunting trip.

January 6^th:  we still have a yellow weather-alert, it’s raining like hell, it’s cold and the street-lightning wasn’t working, so it wasn’t a pleasure at all taking the doggies out at 4.45 a.m. !! The Long-eared Owl was 284 (-1) and the Dark Barn Owl, which had refused last night to eat, was 276 (-4) gram. The Goshawk was 789 (+8 > measured thrice !!) and the Kestrel 222 (+1) gram. Sparrowhawks: red 271 (+2), green 168 (+10 > eaten by himself yesterday ??) and silver 252 (=) gram. Juvenile Pigeons” red 241 (+4), green 219 (+5) and silver 235 (+5) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 305 (+7) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 41 (-4) and the other 56 (=) gram. We have noticed that in any case the right eye of the Black-headed Gull isn’t reacting on light anymore and so is blind for 100%.

January 7^th:  wonder of wonders it wasn’t raining this morning at 4.30 a.m. !! The Long-eared Owl was 284 (=) and the Dark Barn Owl 275 (-1) gram. The Goshawk was 793 (+4) and the Kestrel 219 (-3) gram. Sparrowhawks: red 268 (-3), green 171 (+3) and silver 254 (+2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: red 242 (+1), green 226 (+7) and silver 254 (+2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 317 (+12) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred was 42 (=) and the other 56 (=) gram. The Hooded Crow (08-211; December 14^th ’08) of which December 17^th the wing had to be amputated, was transferred at 8.05 a.m. again to the crow-aviary in the court-yard of the House-next-door. Had first some problems finding the balance again, but was sitting after 5 minutes again in top of the aviary !! We have given the Black-headed Gull the chance taking a bath; something which happened firstly with lots of hesitations, but which was later appreciated well. This happened in the renewed bath (which was made fitting for terrapins as well) in de pen on top of “The Keep”, where the Shearwater was lodged for such a long time. With varying success we’re busy teaching both trainees the force-feeding of birds.

Papoulias points at Turkish army

President Karolos Papoulias repeated yesterday his accusation against Turkey that it is a “fractious neighbor,” as he used his presence at Epiphany celebrations on the tiny island of Agathonisi to accuse the neighboring country’s army of being mainly responsible for stirring up trouble with Greece.

“Unfortunately, I have to repeat what I’ve said in the past: At the root of the problems in Greek-Turkish relations is the decisive role that the Turkish army plays in the politics of the neighboring country,” said Papoulias during a speech on the Dodecanese island.

Relations between the two countries became strained on New Year’s Eve when Turkish air defense control communicated with the pilots of Greek helicopters flying over (the Greek island of) Agathonisi and asked them to leave the area because they were violating Turkey’s national air space.

This led to Greece filing an official complaint with Ankara and informing the European Union and NATO about the matter.

Papoulias said that although Turkey “seeks to undertake broader peace-building initiatives, it also engages in a series of incomprehensible and irrational provocations, such as the systematic flight of its warplanes over Greek islands, such as Agathonisi.” (we as well can see and hear them regularly above our heads . . .  > note L.W.H.)

Greece and Turkey have a longstanding territorial dispute over the Aegean. Turkey insists Greek air space extends only 10 kilometers offshore, not 16 kilometers as Greece maintains.

“Like all Greeks, the Aegean islanders want a peaceful future with our neighbors but this future must be based on respect for international law,” said Papoulias.

The president underlined that Greece has to be prepared to face any threat.

Greece is one of the countries hit severely by the quarrel between Russia and the Ukraine, because no natural gas at all is delivered for the time being !! So we have bought an extra bottle, not to be handicapped in the near future. From the left leg of the adult Long-legged Buzzard we had to remove again dead tissue.

January 8^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 283 (-1) and the Dark Barn Owl 273 (-2) gram. The Goshawk was 791 (-2) and the Kestrel 219 (=) gram. Sparrowhawks: red 265 (-3), green 177 (+6) and silver 257 (+3) gram. The last one can be released today. Juvenile Pigeons: red 243 (+1), green 227 (+1) and silver 240 (+3) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 315 (-2) gram. Baby-tortoises: the home-bred 46 (+4) and the other 57 (+1) gram.

Release:

At 10.05 a.m. we have released well at the Mylopótamos-river the female Sparrowhawk (08-215) which was taken-in December 27^th ’08 after (probably) having hit something.

We used the opportunity as well giving both trainees a little excursion to the early-christian Basilica (a positive cultural contribution) and to the local landfill (so the opposite).

More friction with Turkey

Tension in the Aegean between Greece and Turkey was ratcheted up yesterday after Turkish jets buzzed a Greek helicopter searching for a boat with illegal immigrants before flying low over the small Dodecanese island of Farmakonisi.

The two Turkish F-16s were shadowed by Greek warplanes in a game of cat and mouse that lasted for several hours yesterday. Later in the day, a total of 14 fighter jets from Turkey crossed into Greek air space. The Greek helicopter was responding to a communication that 15 people were in danger near Farmakonisi.

Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said that Turkey’s behavior was “unacceptable.” “I have given instructions for a diplomatic protest to be issued. The actions harm efforts to improve Greek-Turkish relations.”

Turkey’s recent behavior in the Aegean was one of the subjects that Bakoyannis raised during her meeting with US Ambassador Daniel Speckhard yesterday. Embassy sources said they are watching events closely.

We have noticed that the left eye of the Black-headed Gull, although vague a small rest of the iris is visible, as well is complete light-stiff > so the bird is absolutely blind for 100% !! Now have a look if we can persuade him/her eating independently; something we were successful with in the past with our (blinded in the same way) Rook.

January 9^th:  we have a yellow weather-alert due to stormy weather (and this time we indeed notice so) and when the street-lightning at 4.45 a.m. isn’t working at all, it’s no pleasure taking the doggies out and as well taking care they’re all coming in again !! Not a single patient was “in the minus” this morning, and in any case that’s a more positive beginning of the day. The Long-eared Owl was 284 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (+3) gram. The Goshawk was 792 (+1), the Kestrel 220 (+1), the red Sparrowhawk 268 (+3) and the green one 179 (+2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: red 251 (+8), green 236 (+9) and silver 246 (+6) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 319 (+4) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 47 (+1) and the other 57 (=) gram. We have offered the Black-headed Gull again the chance to take a bath and this was enjoyed, but from our side it was absolutely no pleasure very chilly standing and watching this !!

Fresh violations by Turkish jets

More Turkish fighter jets flew over the small Dodecanese islands of Agathonisi and Farmakonisi yesterday as Ankara too accused Greece of violating its air space.

Military sources said four Turkish F-16s and four F-4 Phantom jets flew over the Aegean islands at about 3.15 p.m. A few minutes later, four more warplanes entered Greek air space and flew some 700 feet (about 200 meter, and that’s really an ear-cracking noise !! > note L.W.H.) above the islands.

This prompted an immediate response from Defense Minister Evangelos Meimarakis. “Turkey’s behavior is not cool-headed,” he said. “Greece believes that such behavior does not befit a country that wants to join the European Union and whose prime minister is taking on peace-building missions in the Middle East.”

However, shortly after Meimarakis’s statement, the Turkish armed forces posted on their website claims that Greek aircraft and vessels had repeatedly violated Turkish air space and waters between January 2^nd and 6^th.

January 10^th:  and again we were without street-lightning at 4.30 a.m. !! But we were already used to the dark, because we were woken-up at 3.30 a.m. because one of the trainees wasn’t well . . . . !! The Long-eared Owl was 282 (-2) and the Dark Barn Owl 279 (+3) gram. The Goshawk was 788 (-4), the Kestrel 222 (+2), the green Sparrowhawk 180 (+1) and the red one 266 (-2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: red 259 (+8), green 236 (=) and silver 246 (=) gram. Juvenile Tortoises: the home-bred was 42 (-5) and the other 55 (-2) gram. So evidently there was quite well made water and relieved yesterday !!

End of treatment:

We have transferred-back to the pigeon-cage in “The Keep” the juvenile Pigeon (08-212; December 17^th ;08) > is now enough independent.

Removing the scab from the shot-injury in the left wing of the Black-headed Gull there was discovered that there had been indeed a fracture of the ulna, but that it had healed meanwhile. At 10.03 a.m. two fellow-villagers were at our door with their dog, which was knocked-down just before > see further at HE-DOG. Is the 1^st patient of this year. And when someone has ugly and/or ill-mannered grandchildren, never go together on a hunting trip, because:  

  Boars safe

A 72-year-old man who was out on a hunting trip yesterday with his grandson in woods near Kalambaka, central Greece, shot the younger man in the foot after mistaking him for a wild boar. The 28-year-old man was taken to hospital and, after a short operation, doctors said that he was not in any danger. Police said that the man’s grandfather was extremely shaken by the incident.

And herein we’re living (and hereunder as well):

DEFENSE CONCERNS

Military on standby for any fresh violations in Aegean

Greece’s armed forces are on standby to avert possible fresh violations by Turkish fighter jets in the Aegean, sources said yesterday following a minor incident involving six Turkish F-16s. The Turkish jets violated Greek air space over Limnos and Lesvos several times, defense officials said. The next couple of days are expected to determine whether there will be an escalation of tension in the Aegean. Meanwhile, occasional skirmishes between Greek and Turkish fishermen are expected to stop when the sea bream fishing season ends on January 20^th.

And while in the siesta we tried to recuperate from a night without much sleep, we were disturbed again cruelly by a complete unnecessarily phone-call from not0thinking people. This gave lots of tensions for the doggies, which thought they could go out (and that wasn’t the case) and started in spite of with making water and vomiting inside the house . . . . !! Luckily our unhappily feelings were boosted-up a bit by at 4 p.m. the visit of two people from the Aegean University in Mytiléne, environment-department, who came to wish us a Happy New Year and as well for taking lots of pictures.

January 11^th:  it’s blowing like hell, but luckily the street-lightning is working !! The Long-eared Owl was 278 (-4), the Little Owl 201 (+9) end the Dark Barn Owl 276 (-3) gram. The Goshawk was 786 (-2), the Kestrel 221 (-1), green Sparrowhawk 180 (=) and the red one 268 (+2) gram. Juvenile Pigeons: green 236 (=), red 256 (-3) and silver 248 (+2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 317 (-2) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 45 (+3) and the other 55 (=) gram. The trainee, fro whom we had to leave our beds yesterday night is still not a 100% and is staying in between the blankets. The yesterday re-transferred juvenile Pigeon is doing well in the pigeon-cage in “The Keep”. We have given again the Black-headed Gull the chance to bath, which was appreciated quite well by the bird, but not by our toes > ice-cold and numb after the last drops !! We have removed again some dead tissue from the Goshawk’s injured wing.

Seismic activity in Andravída

Seismic activity with the epic-center in Andravída has occurred about half an hour after midnight on Sunday and was felt in the regions of Acháia, Ileías, Aitoloacarnania (many parts of which are still recovering from last year’s catastrophic forest fires) and on the Ionic Islands.

According to the Geodynamic Institute at Athene’s Observatories, the tremor happened at 0.26 a.m. and measured 4,4 on the Richter scale.

The epic-center of the tremor was 194 km west of Athens and to be exact in the area of Andravída Ilias, where a strong quake (6.5-magnitude) that killed two locals and caused serious damage last June had happened.

According to the Fire-brigade Cervices there was no damage at all. 

January 12^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 280 (+2) and the Dark Barn Owl 272 (-4) gram. The Goshawk was 786 (=), the Kestrel 222 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk, which was fed yesterday less, was 187 (+7) and the red one 267 (-1) gram. Pigeons: red 257 (+1), green 240 (+4) and silver 249 (+1) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 327 (+10) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 45 (=) and the other 57 (+2) gram. Today meat had te be “done” again and the complete female cutting-, measuring- & wrapping-up-crew let pass their diligently hands 14,435 kilo (for 97,85 Euro; total now this year 30,370 kilo for 197,78 Euro).

Rescue mission

Navy vessels and helicopter transfer 25 migrants to safety

Navy vessels and a Super Puma rescue helicopter yesterday rescued 25 illegal immigrants from a rowboat between the Dodecanese island of Samos and the Turkish coast. According to the Merchant Marine Ministry, the vessel had appealed for help, as it was being buffeted by strong winds.

Just before 4 p.m. the ex-tom-cat “Poekie” used an unguarded moment by sprinting in one run from the kitchen into the street, chasing after one of the out-door cats !! He must have been waiting for this for days. Was late in the evening still not yet seen.

January 13^th:  at 4.30 a.m. still no “Poekie” was seen. The last time he has done the same it took days before we could see a glimpse of him !! The Long-eared Owl was 281 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 274 (+2) gram. The Goshawk was 783 (-3), the Kestrel 224 (+2), the green Sparrowhawk 180 (-7) and the red one 267 (=) gram. Pigeons: red 256 (-1), green 240 (=) and silver 249 (=) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 326 (-1) gram. Little tortoises: the home bred was 45 (=) and the other 56 (-1) gram. At 8.03 a.m. we have transferred the red Pigeon (08-213a; December 24^th ’08) to the pigeon-cage in “The Keep” for flying-practices. At 10.20 a.m. we received a phone-call from the vet-nurse in the practice of vet Myrsíni Tourvalí in Mytiléne, that she had the intention sending an injured Collared Dove with the 11 o’clock-coach > it seems Myrsíni had already stitched the injury . . . . !! The bird we had in our possession at 11.45 a.m. > see further at COLLARED DOVE.  

Ties with Turkey ‘static,’ FM says

As Turkish fighter jets violated Greek air space in the Aegean again yesterday, Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said that efforts to improve relations with neighboring Turkey had stalled.

“The aim of Greece’s diplomacy is to improve Greek-Turkish relations – in our opinion this effort remained static in 2008,” Bakoyannis said following a session of the Government Council for Defense and Foreign Policy (KYSEA) which discussed national security issues in the wake of a series of provocative actions by Turkish jets in the Aegean.

Yesterday four Turkish F-4 Phantom jets flew just 100 meters above the islet of Farmakonisi before being intercepted by Greek fighter aircraft.

It was the fourth such violation since the beginning of the year.

Defense Minister Evangelos Meimarakis, who also attended yesterday’s security meeting along with Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, said that authorities were on standby and monitoring developments in the Aegean while “making efforts to reduce tension whenever it might arise.”

According to sources, officials agreed yesterday that the activities of Turkish jets in the Aegean were nothing new, as Ankara often ups the ante as part of its policy of disputing Greece’s territorial rights.

As to what Greece’s stance should be toward Turkey, the general consensus was that Athens should remain calm and report all violations to international organizations without resorting to antagonism.

“We must remain serious and cool-headed when discussing such issues,” Bakoyannis told reporters yesterday.

She said the government was “assessing” Turkey’s activities “as it has been assessing its conduct overall in view of its bid to join the European Union.”

Bakoyannis stressed that good-neighborly relations were an “obvious prerequisite” if Ankara was to pursue its EU candidacy.

We have heard by phone that the knocked-down Dog (January 10^th) is doing well !!

January 14^th:  we have an orange weather-alert due to stormy weather and thunderstorms and of course it’s raining already, but there is still street-lightning !! The Long-eared Owl was 279 (-2) and the Dark Barn Owl 274 (=) gram. The Goshawk was 279 (-2), the Kestrel 224 (=), the green Sparrowhawk 184 (+4) and the red one 266 (-1) gram. Pigeons: green 244 (-2) and silver 248 (-1) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 325 (-1) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 44 (-1) and the other 56 (=) gram. Still not yet a glimpse of “Poekie”. We have performed a P.M. on the Collared Dove from yesterday > see over there. At 11.20 a.m. a phone-call from some-one who had discovered in the woods surrounding Ágia Paraskeví a “geráki”; doesn’t seem to be injured. He wanted to come and bring the bird. It shouldn’t surprise us when it should be the Sparrowhawk, released January 8^th !!

SYROS TRAGEDY

Baby drowns when migrant boat capsizes off Dodecanese island

An 18-month-old baby drowned off the island of Syros yesterday when a boat carrying 19 illegal immigrants capsized, said the Merchant Marine Ministry. A coast guard patrol boat had spotted the smaller vessel shortly before it capsized. Coast guard officers were able to rescue 13 men, two women, two children and a Turkish man suspected of being a human trafficker. The baby was also pulled out from the water but was pronounced dead at a local health center.

Drownings

Port Authority vessels were yesterday scouring the area around the Aegean island of Leipsoi following the discovery of the bodies of two men, believed to be migrants, and a half-sunken plastic rowboat earlier in the day.

And after a cruise-ship had sunk due to a “mistake” on the map, produced by the Greek Government, one is trying to get help from the EU: so a question of the wrong responsibility:

Papoulias on board

Following a meeting with representatives of Santorini residents yesterday, President Karolos Papoulias promised them that he would speak to European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas about the sunken Sea Diamond cruise ship. Papoulias said that failure to remove the shipwreck from the sea represented a major environmental issue for Greece, not just Santorini. Papoulias said he would do all he could to promote the cause of the residents.

Earthquake

An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale shook the islands of Crete and Karpathos yesterday but did not cause any damage. The quake struck at 8.12 a.m. and its epicenter was in the sea between the two islands. Seismologists said that similar tremors have been recorded in the past and the quake was no cause for alarm.

The “geráki” arrived at 12.37 p.m. > see further at BUZZARD. At 12.50 p.m. a phone-call from Tjarda about her cat (is quite old): was tumbling and was limp > se we had a look. Most probably a minor cerebral hemorrhage. Recuperated later a bit. Further not in the statistics.

January 15^th:  still no “Poekie” to bee seen !! We received an e-mail from Holland that the measurements of the Buzzard  of yesterday as well could point in the direction of a female, so . . . ?? The Long-eared Owl was 275 (-4) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (+2) gram. The Goshawk was 780 (+4), the Kestrel 225 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 186 (+2) and the red one 269 (+3) gram. Pigeons: green 249 (+5) and silver 251 (+3) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 327 (+2) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 42 (-2) and the other 55 (-1) gram. Assisted by the two trainees the Tom-cat “Kwastje” (= little brush) was released from two (in the future for him not necessary any more) accessories > see further at TOM CAT. With both trainees we have made a short cultural excursion to the Kremásti-bridge and as well pictures were made from picturesque situations, like a huge flog of sheep in the midst of the road with a friendly shepherd.    

Turkish frigate escalates tension

A Turkish frigate that broke off from a navy exercise in the Aegean yesterday came within a few kilometers of Attica’s southern coastline in a move that Greek defense officials described as a symbolic escalation of tensions by Ankara.

The Turgut Reis broke off from other Turkish navy vessels that had been involved in the exercise in the central Aegean at around 9 a.m., officials said.

The Turkish navy had gained permission to conduct the exercise within the triangle formed by the islands of Andros, Chios and Ikaría. But the Turgut Reis moved away from this area, heading west to within 4 kilometers of Sounion and Kea when a Greek navy frigate was dispatched to intercept it.

According to defense officials, this action violated maritime rules of safe passage which dictate that a warship may enter foreign waters only if it follows a steady course, without conducting maneuvers or increasing speed, without approaching the coastline directly and with its sensors deactivated.

The Greek frigate Bouboulina communicated with the Turkish vessel, which failed to change its course and continued toward the island of Kea.

Defense officials said there would have been no problem had the Turkish ship traveled southward rather than northward, toward the Attica coastline. It was unclear whether the Turkish vessel had withdrawn completely by late yesterday.

Also yesterday, at around 3 p.m., four formations of Turkish fighter jets violated Greek air space in the central Aegean three times.

Yesterday’s developments came just two days after Athens described Greece’s ties with Turkey as “static” due to a series of air space violations this month.

As migrants are saved, Greece seeks EU aid

As authorities in the Aegean rescued 53 would-be immigrants from a foundering boat off the island of Milos yesterday, officials from Greece, Cyprus, Italy and Malta urged the European Union to support them in their efforts to stem a relentless tide of illegal immigrants.

The rescue effort, which began on Tuesday night, involved commercial vessels, a navy frigate, a Super Puma helicopter and a military transport aircraft. Initial attempts to save the migrants were hampered by strong winds but success came shortly before 3 a.m. The immigrants, whose ethnic origin was unclear, were all said to be in good health.

Meanwhile, a document seeking additional EU support in the fight to curb illegal immigration, co-signed by Greece, was sent to Brussels. Greece’s Deputy Interior Minister Thanassis Nakos and his counterparts from Cyprus, Italy and Malta signed the text in Rome on Tuesday.

At 12 o’clock we received a phone-call from Mytiléne about a slightly injured Collared Dove > will be sent with the 1.15 p.m.-coach. And the bird we had in our possession at 1.55 > see further at COLLARED DOVE.

January 16^th:  still no sign of “Poekie”, so we fear we have lost this ex-stray for ever. In the Sick-Bay all patients were still alive at 4.45 a.m. !! The Long-eared Owl was 278 (+3) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (=) gram. The Goshawk was 787 (+7), the Kestrel 224 (-1), the green Sparrowhawk 182 (-4) and the red one 268 (-1) gram. Pigeons: green 250 (+1) and silver 253 (+2) gram. The yesterday taken-in Collared Dove was this morning 166 gram., and the Black-headed Gull 326 (-1) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 45 (+3) and the other 59 (+4) gram. We have transferred the green Pigeon (08-213b; December 24^th ’08) to the pigeon-cage in “The Keep” > the first what was done was taking a huge bath !! Due to the heavy rainfall we had to take back-in again the blind Rook and as well the adult Long-legged Buzzard > at last they have no webs . . . !!

Border guards rescue migrants lost in snow

A group of Albanian migrants who got lost in fog trying to cross into Greece on Sunday and were rescued from the snowy slopes of a mountain by border guards were yesterday in good health, according to doctors in Kastoria.

One of the migrants, a pregnant woman, remained in hospital for observation but the rest, who had all suffered frostbite, were discharged. “If the police had come one hour later we would have been dead,” a 23-year-old migrant told Kathimerini. “The children were so cold they couldn’t speak,” he said, referring to two minors in the group.

The migrants crossed the border with the aim of reaching Kastoria. After hours of trudging through deep snow in temperatures of –10° Celsius, one migrant used his cell phone to call a relative in Chalkidiki who alerted authorities. Police found the migrants huddled under a tree on the slopes of the Mali Madi mountain several hours later.

There is something severe wrong with the brain of the 2^nd Collared Dove of this year: the head is constantly turned 180° upside-down. Let’s hope the injected antibiotics are beginning to work quickly !! After the siesta we got the confirmation that one of the trainees is leaving us prematurely due to a very imminent death in the direct surroundings . . . . !! And the other left us as well, because (she is really of age !!) she is “not allowed by mummy staying alone here and as well not allowed flying back home alone” . . . . !! What has happened with the back-bone of the present generation ?? But the whole night before departure “boozing” in Kallonís > that’s something the are capable of !!

January 17^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 279 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 275 (-1) gram. The Goshawk was 788 (+1), the Kestrel 225 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 184 (+2) and the red one 269 (+1) gram. The silver Pigeon was 254 (+1) and the Collared Dove 160 (-6) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 325 (-1) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 44 (-1) and the other 58 (-1) gram. The He-dog “Booby” came today for a check-up of the fracture and changing of the splint. The position of the fracture is good (there showed to have been a minor injury as well, but that was smelling good). Should came back next Saturday for a further check-up. Three weeks after the accident (January 31^st) the splint can be removed if everything is OK and he will be allowed trying without.

January 18^th:  no victims this morning. The Long-eared Owl was 276 (-3), the Little Owl 202 (+10) and the Dark Barn Owl 275 (=) gram. The Goshawk was 796 (+8), the Kestrel 226 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 181 (-3) and the red one 266 (-3) gram. The silver Pigeon was 255 (+1) and the Collared Dove 161 (+1) gram. The Black-headed Gull measured 321 (-4) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 45 (+1) and the other 57 (-1) gram. Because both lights in our court-yard had breathed their last, we had to try replacing them > however, the screws with which the caps were fastened on the lanterns, were rusted so both lanterns had to be removed from the wall and opened with the help of an angled grinder. With lots of pain (literally) and problems we succeeded and we have light again over there. Later this morning we received two Jehovah’s Witnesses, who except from trying to convert us as well showed some interest in the patients we have . . . . !! And just after 5 p.m. the little Myrsíni Papadópoulou from Kallonís with her father (the orthopedic) came to visit us again and she enjoyed having the blind Black-headed Gull in her hands !! Her father was very surprised about what we had been able to do with the Spurr-tighed Tortoise “Sophie” and looked in admiration for the results !!

January 19^th:  the Collared Dove was at 5.45 a.m. already almost “gone” and not alive anymore at 6 a.m. The Long-eared Owl was 275 (-1) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (+1) gram. The Goshawk was 803 (+7), the Kestrel 224 (=2), the green Sparrowhawk 177 (-4) and the red one 260 (-6) gram. The Pigeon was 259 (+4) and we didn’t measure anymore the Collared Dove, due to the circumstances. The Black-headed Gull was 320 (-1) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 48 (+3) and the other 58 (+1) gram. From what we have read meanwhile on the computer in the House-next-door, both trainees had absolutely not the faintest idea what so ever (not even after 2 weeks here) about the keeping of wild animals in an environment as natural as possible: e.g. they wanted covering-up all the walls in the cages in “The Keep”, adapted to the habitat of those animals in the wild by us with lots of efforts, with Perspex, because that . . . . “should me more easily to clean” . . . !! That e.g. the birds shouldn’t have any grip on this material (and not to speak about the costs), no . . . . no thoughts whatsoever hereabout !! We have transferred-back at 7.39 a.m. to the pigeon-cage in “The Keep” the silver Pigeon (08-214; December 26^th ’08). Today meat had to be processed again and due to a lack of trainees we had to make again an appeal to Douglas and Janice . . . . !! Together with Tjarda and Ineke there was “done” 15,030 kilo (for (with discount) 96,88 Euro. Total now this year 45,400 kilo for 294,66 Euro). We had to remove again the lights in our courtyard, because the two 11-Watt energy-efficient lamps gave too much light !! Changed by 8-Watt energy-efficient lamps in a yellowish color.

Olympus standing tall in seven wonders vote

Mount Olympus, Greece’s highest peak and the legendary home of the ancient Greek gods, has been selected as one of 261 candidates for the second phase of the worldwide New Seven Wonders of Nature contest.

The mountain was the only Greek candidate to make it through to the first phase of online voting at www.new7wonders.com, which featured 440 proposals from around the world.

Other Greek sites such as Meteora, Santorini and the petrified forest on Lesvos were eliminated.

Olympus must now secure as many votes as possible by July 7^th to be shortlisted among the final 21 candidates for the seven titles. The competition is being run by the New7Wonders organization, which held a vote last year for new Seven Wonders of the World, attracting more than 100 million votes.

At 8.07 p.m. a phone-call from Tavári about a doggie with one or two grown-in nails > one will pass-by tomorrow.

January 20^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 274 (-1) and the Darn Barn Owl 271 (-5) gram. The Goshawk was 807 (+4), the Kestrel 225 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 178 (+1) and the red one 264 (+4) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 318 (-2) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 44 (-4) and the other 61 (+3) gram. At 9.05 a.m. a phone-call from Mytiléne about a severe injured Pigeon > due to a lack of time they couldn’t bring the bird to the bus-station !! Because our car was somewhere else, we neither could do something. Was at last brought by a taxi at 10.37 a.m. !! See further at PIGEON. Referring to the board-meeting of the L.W.H. December 18^th Ineke went this morning together with the substitute board-member Médie to the butcher in Kallonís in a try to get some more discount. After they had heard the story and seen the figures, there was given back over the past year the amount of three hundred Euro !!  

Aegean unrest

Athens warns Turkey after F-16s approach Greek passenger jet

Government spokesman Evangelos Antonaros yesterday called on Ankara to curb the provocative behavior of Turkish jets in the Aegean after two F-16s entered Greek national air space just a few kilometers from a Greek passenger aircraft en route to the northeastern port of Alexandroupolis from Athens. “Turkey must put a stop to behavior that is unsuitable to its European orientation and with the allied relationship it wishes to maintain with us,” Antonaros said. The Aegean Airlines flight, with 91 people aboard, reached its destination safely.

The dog was here at 12 o’clock and from the right rear-leg the top of the “thumb-toe-nail” was shortened, while from the left rear-leg half of this nail had to be clipped > was removed out of the tissue with tweezers after clipping. The price of this treatment was at first one kiss from the attractive bearer, but for her this wasn’t enough, so we doubled the price. The grateful father however thought even that wasn’t enough, so he left something more tangible. Further not in the statistics. Via the village-loudspeaker-system we heard that we’ll be without electricity tomorrow from 1 p.m. until 2 p.m.

January 21^st:  all patients in the Sick-Bay were still alive this morning ! The Long-eared Owl was 272 (-2) and the Dark Barn Owl 275 (+4) gram. The Goshawk was 815 (+8), the Kestrel 222 (-3), the green Sparrowhawk 173 (-5) and the red one 260 (-4) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 322 (+4) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 49 (+5) and the other 60 (-1) gram. We have planted in the tortoise-pen four Avocado’s, given for the animals some time ago by the greengrocer (because he couldn’t sell them anymore). If they start growing, we have some “cage-enrichment” and they will be already above earth before the tortoises will return after some months or so. In the cage of the little falcons some Narcissus-bulbs were planted. We received 10 visitors this morning: 4 teachers and 6 students from the secondary school in Kallonís. And later another 5 students came. Tomorrow we’ll have a school from the island of Chíos, we heard. And after we had given all those visitors a post-card from the L.W.H., we noticed during the talking thereafter that we hadn’t mentioned the creator of this card, and as well we had forgotten mentioning more people who had been very important the last year. And se we’ll have now a “Relief ” to the Annual Report 2008:

a)      we shouldn’t let unnoticed that a relative, who further wants to be not-mentioned, after he had heard about our financial worries decided to remit every month a certain amount so we could continue buying meat for out patients !!

b)      when we noticed the situation around the Spurr-tighed Tortoise “Sophie” was worsening, because she refused to eat and became more and more languid (see for this October 11^th and following days), there was Sonja Huisman in Holland who with alternative methods (Jacket Technique) at distance in any case had helped a lot in the improvement and the recovering of “Sophie”.

c)       and the “man of the post-cards”: Hans Augusteijn, as well in Holland. Was he already responsible for the old post-cards, now he has beaten himself with the new one, of which we won’t keep away from you a picture:

Migrants detained

Port Authority officials on Lesvos yesterday detained 12 illegal immigrants who arrived on the island in an inflatable rowboat from neighboring Turkey. The ethnic origin of the migrants was unclear.

Electricity disappeared at 12.59 p.m. and came back at 1.44 p.m. And thereafter we could read that since 1.36 p.m. we have a yellow weather-alert due to expected storms and this is the case for tomorrow as well.

January 22^nd:  and that yellow weather-alert is still valid !! The Long-eared Owl was 278 (+6) and the Dark Barn Owl 276 (+1) gram. The Goshawk was 822 (+7), the Kestrel 226 (+4), the green Sparrowhawk 175 (+2) and the red one 264 (+4) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 320 (-2) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 46 (-3) and the other 62 (+2) gram. The Pigeon with the dying-off wing is eating independently and well. However, we had to amputate the wing after all > see further at PIGEON. We received 30 students and 6 adults (of which 3 from our island) from Chíos and showed them a lot. Our male Eagle Owl however didn’t like it so much being caught, and caught back with his talons; penetrating a leather glove. The weather-alert for tomorrow is meanwhile updated till orange, due to expected storms and thunderstorms !!

January 23^rd:  it’s still dry and almost calm, so . . . . ?? The Long-eared Owl was 280 (+2) and the Dark Barn Owl 269 (-7) gram, but he had refused to eat yesterday-evening. The Goshawk was 829 (+7), the Kestrel 227 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 175 (=) and the red one 266 (+2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 320 (=) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 52 (+6) and the other 63 (+1) gram. The Pigeon of which we had to amputate a wing yesterday is still a bit confused and needs to be force-fed a bit. At 7 a.m. it started raining > so we must see if we can take some birds out or not !! We were able to bring them out, but at 8 a.m. we had to take back-in again the adult Long-legged Buzzard “Granny” and weren’t we capable seeing Table-Mount opposite our house anymore due to the rainfall/clouds !! We have changed the bandage around the amputated wing of the Pigeon and in any case it wasn’t stinking anymore like before the amputation. At 08.40 a.m. it started thundering as well. And just thereafter we had to take back inside the blind Rook as well.   

Ferries moored

Passenger ferries remained moored at the ports of Piraeus, Rafina and Lavrion yesterday as winds reach gale-force intensity in many parts. Weather conditions are expected to deteriorate further over the next few days, with winds set to reach up to 10 Beaufort in the eastern Aegean (and that’s us !!) and thunderstorms likely in western Greece and much of the Aegean.

After the siesta the weather changed so we hadn’t so much rain anymore and we could take out the doggies (almost) without problems. But gale-force winds we haven’t yet noticed over here.

January 24^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 279 (-1) and the Dark Barn Owl 270 (+1) gram. The Goshawk was 838 (+9), the Kestrel 231 (+4), the green Sparrowhawk 173 (-2) end the red one 264 (-2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 320 (=) gram. Little tortoises: the home bred was 49 (-3) and the other 64 (+1) gram. The Pigeon’s wing-injury is cleaning-up day by day and is definitively stinking lesser. Even before it was midday, we had to take back inside the blind Rook and the Long-legged Buzzard “Granny” because of the rain. Exactly at 12 o’clock arrived the he-dog with the leg-fracture (see as well January 10^th, 13^th & 17^th) for a check-up: the position is good, so next week the splint can be removed. Around night-fall we could remove from the left foot of the Long-legged Buzzard “Granny” a huge stone of dead tissue; the spot was covered with Dermisol-cream.

January 25^th:  the only thing we’re seeing from the approaching bad weather is endless rainfall !! The Long-eared Owl was 282 (+3), the Little Owl 205 (+3) and the Dark Barn Owl 272 (+2) gram. The Goshawk was 649 (+11), the Kestrel 226 (-5), the green Sparrowhawk 170 (-3) and the red one 264 (=) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 319 (-1) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 54 (+5) and the other 64 (=) gram. Although there is still a lot of dead tissue present in the wing of the Pigeon, there is a begin of improvement.

January 26^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 280 (-2) and the Dark Barn Owl, which had eaten badly yesterday, was 264 (-8) gram. The Goshawk was 850 (+1), the Kestrel 227 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk was 170 (=) and the red one 263 (-1) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 318 (-1) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 50 (-4) and the other one 63 (-1) gram. At 7.59 a.m. arrived the semi-stray she-cat “PeeWee”, which should be pregnant > see further at CAT. Today again meat had to be processed, and with the help of the again “enlisted” Douglas & Janice and of course Tjarda and Ineke 16,490 kilo was “done” (price 103,72 Euro. Total this year now 61,890 kilo for 398,38 Euro).

January 27^th:  the Long-eared Owl was 280 (=) and the Dark Barn Owl 265 (+1) gram. The Goshawk was 835 (-15), but he had vomited yesterday-afternoon quite a lot. The Kestrel was 225 (-2), the green Sparrowhawk 172 (+2) and the red one 261 (-2) gram. At the latter we had to do a punction in a huge bulb on the joint of the right elbow. The Black-headed Gull was 316 (-2) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 55 (+5) and the other 64 (+1) gram.

Pilot conviction

An Athens court yesterday handed down a suspended jail sentence of four years to a Turkish fighter jet pilot involved in a collision with a Greek jet over the Aegean in May 2006 that resulted in the death of 35-year-old Costas Iliakis, the pilot of the Greek aircraft. Halil Ibrahim Ozdemir, who was convicted in absentia, has 15 days to appeal the sentence or face arrest if he enters Greece.

Bid to fell trees for car park sparks angry riots

Hooded youths clashed with police on central Patission Street in Athens yesterday after a heated residents' protest against a municipal tree-felling initiative.

The youths torched police stations in Kypseli and Aghios Panteleimonas and then firebombed the entrance of the nearby Athens University of Economics and Business. They also set fire to trash cans and threw stones at police who responded with tear gas.

Earlier, hundreds of residents had protested in Amerikis Square where police guarded municipal workers cutting down trees in a local park to clear the way for a car park. The residents have taken legal action against the felling, complaining that plans for the car park aim to facilitate shoppers visiting the area, not local residents. Municipal authorities counter that the busy area needs two new car parks. They claim to have cut down just 12 trees, not 45 as residents assert. Residents are planning to march to City Hall at 1 p.m. today.

After 5 p.m. there was a woman in our court-yard with quite a huge dog, which had am abscess in the right front-leg. After being muzzled first, the abscess was frozen with Ethyl-chloride and opened. Bandage with Ichtyol-cream was given, which should last at least 2 days. Further not in the statistics.

January 28^th:  we still have a yellow weather-alert due to thunderstorms, heavy rainfall and storms and this time it fits > one shouldn’t take a dog out !! So today again some patients had to stay in their night-cages. The Long-eared Owl was 282 (+2) and the dark Barn Owl 269 (+4) gram. The Goshawk was 851 (+16), the Kestrel 225 (=), the green Sparrowhawk 169 (-3) and the red one 262 (+1) gram. We had to open again the bulb on the right wing of the latter. The Black-headed Gull was 316 (=) gram. Little Tortoises: the home-bred was 51 (-4) and the other 66 (+2) gram. We have started treating the wing-injury of the Pigeon with Dermisol-solvens in stead of Dermisol-cream. Maybe this is speeding-up the process a bit. At 10.40 a.m. there was a man at our doorstep asking advice for a stray cat, which should have two broken rear-legs > when we told him we could see if anything could be done for the cat, he departed for Mandamádos to bring the cat. He was back at 11.35 a.m. > see further at TOM-CAT.

Residents fight to save Athens park

Local residents appeared determined yesterday to keep up their opposition to the felling of trees in a central Athens park to make way for an underground car park which had sparked angry protests and rioting.

Police had to guard municipal workers cutting down trees in Amerikis Square on Monday and residents said about 45 had been felled. But on Monday night locals struck back by replanting some 40 trees.

Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis told Skai yesterday that only three trees had actually been cut down while another 40 were taken away for replanting elsewhere.

Tension rose yesterday morning when riot police cleared residents from the park so that municipal workers could continue their task. Residents later staged a protest march to City Hall.

Kaklamanis made it clear that the project would go ahead, as the relevant contract was lawful in all respects and the income accruing to the municipality from the operation of the parking facility would ultimately benefit local residents.

He clarified that municipal authorities were in no way responsible for the intervention of riot police, since a public prosecutor had been on the scene at the time.

And as well the mental health care as the normal health care are in Greece on a “high standard” when we see which people are involved:

Priest linked to child porn ring

An Orthodox priest, two doctors and several businessmen are among 11 people charged yesterday as suspected members of a child pornography ring using the Internet to trade in hardcore videos and photographs.

A prosecutor brought criminal charges of trading in child pornography against five of the suspects, including the 44-year-old priest, with the rank of Archimandrite, and the two doctors – a neurosurgeon and a gynecologist – following raids on their homes in Athens, Thessaloniki and other parts of the country yesterday.

According to officers, the raids resulted in the confiscation of 28 computer hard drives and hundreds of DVDs containing photographs and videos of children as young as 6 months old being sexually abused by adults.

Statue of Alexander to go up in northern Iraq

Greek authorities plan to build a statue to Alexander the Great in northern Iraq to mark the site of a key 331 BC battle that led to the fall of the Persian Empire, Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said yesterday.

Bakoyannis, who discussed the project yesterday with her visiting Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari, said the host country has welcomed the erection of the statue near the oil-rich city of Mosul. According to Bakoyannis, Zebari, who is a Kurd, said of the proposed project, “It’s a great idea and we back it.”

The Battle of Gaugamela took place between Alexander and Darius III of Achaemenid Persia near present-day Mosul. It resulted in a massive victory for the Alexander’s army of Macedonians and led to the fall of the Persian Empire.

Bakoyannis said that Greece also plans to help Iraq fund the reconstruction of looted and war-damaged museums.

We could remove some dead pieces of bone out of the shot-hole in the wing of the green Sparrowhawk (08-209; December 10^th ’08). The today taken-in knocked-down Tom-Cat was sleeping quietly at 11 p.m.

January 29^th:  at 4.50 a.m. the Tom-Cat was laying quietly and watching us; didn’t show pain. The Long-eared Owl was 278 (-4) and the Dark Barn Owl 269 (=) gram. The Goshawk was 847 (-4), the Kestrel 223 (-2), the green Sparrowhawk 173 (+4) and the red one 260 (-2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 313 (-3) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 54 (+3) and the other 64 (-2) gram. The Pigeon is repeatedly removing the bandage from around the wing !! And due to the used Dermisol we could remove all the dead tissue from there and the now clean injury was closed with stitches. After breakfast the two of us have given the yesterday taken-in Tom-Cat a good bath; except from the bruised parts, we mentioned already yesterday, no further skin-injuries could be detected. After being dried with a towel, he was placed in the Intensive Care under a red heating-lamp, over where he had maneuvered himself after some time in such a position that he was sitting in a corner like an old Pasha and cleaning himself further. So the whole is indeed going in the direction of a spinal-injury. But in any case there is still a (little) bit of activity in the legs; so there is still hope !! Forced by a suddenly heavy thunderstorm, we had as a lightning take-in back the Long-legged Buzzard “Granny” and the blind Rook.  

Tree row moves to Parliament

A dispute over the felling of at least 40 trees in a central Athens park by municipal officials planning a car park moved to Parliament yesterday when Anna Filini, an MP of the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), tabled a question to the government regarding the implications of the move.

In their ongoing efforts to save the trees this week, local residents around Amerikis Square have clashed with riot police deployed to protect municipal workers clearing the planned site for an underground parking facility.

In the question submitted to Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Filini asks to be informed what measures the government intends to take to protect areas of urban greenery and how a new park will be created in the vicinity of Amerikis Square.

Visiting the park yesterday, Filini described the tree felling as an “ecological crime.”

Defiant local residents remained in the park area yesterday, stating they would under no circumstances allow the construction of the parking facility.

A statement issued by City Hall yesterday rebuffed allegations of “thug tactics” being used against residents protesting the car park plans. It added that the project was crucial for the district of Kypseli “which faces a parking problem.”

Municipal officials have said that the area, one of the most densely populated in the capital, needs at least two more car parks. Locals counter that there are already six car parks nearby. Deputy Mayor Polychronis Akritidis has said that 150 trees will be planted over the underground parking station when it is complete.

Child porn

Suspects remanded in custody

A 44-year-old Orthodox priest allegedly linked to a ring trading in hardcore child porn was remanded in custody yesterday after defending himself before an investigating magistrate. A 52-year-old Athens metro worker and a 30-year-old electrical engineer were also remanded. A total of 11 people have been charged in connection with the ring and police are seeking dozens more.

January 30^th:  still no victims this morning, but the Tom-Cat isn’t in an optimal condition: is complete incontinent, so he was quite dirty at 4.55 a.m. !! The Long-eared Owl was 277 (-1) and the Dark Barn Owl 273 (+4) gram. The Goshawk was 855 (+8), the Kestrel 224 (+1), the green Sparrowhawk 174 (+1) and the red one 258 (-2) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 315 (+2) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 52 (-2) and the other 66 (+2) gram. The wing-injury of the Pigeon is great now !! Cleaning as well the cage as the Tom-Cat, it showed that indeed there were internal bleedings: faeces were water-thin and contained a lot of old blood !! So the prognosis is now being worse and worse, as well because he isn’t eating and hardly drinking !! And because he shouldn’t be “forgotten”, we have taken a picture of him under the red lamp > see at Tom-Cat.

Residents vow to guard park

Residents of the central Athens district of Kypseli yesterday said they would guard a local park, slated for the construction of a car park, 24 hours a day to prevent municipal authorities from felling any more trees there.

Locals clashed with riot police for several days in a row as officers tried to guard municipal workers clearing the site for an underground parking facility.

Locals said at least 45 trees, many over 100 years old, had been cut down. Authorities counter that only a few trees were felled and say the site will be planted with more than 100 trees once the underground car park has been constructed.

The row over the park moved to Parliament on Wednesday when a left-wing MP questioned the government about the implications of the move for the capital’s dwindling green spaces.

Officials at City Hall have insisted that the project is legal and crucial for the densely populated district of Kypseli, where parking spaces are scarce.

And one should fell seriously ill in Greece and being transferred to Athens because of the better hospitals over there:

Hospital on alert after 19 die from infections

The capital's Evangelismos hospital has been put on alert following 19 deaths caused by infections in the facility's two intensive-care units in recent weeks.

According to data presented at a recent conference of the Hellenic Association of Intensive Care and reported by the Athens daily Eleftheros Typos, 140 patients were treated in the hospital's two ICUs in the past three months.

A total of 87 cases of infections and 19 deaths were recorded in this time, the paper said, noting that the mortality rate among patients infected in one ICU was 32 percent, while in the other, the incidence of infection reached 116 percent (as some patients were infected by more than one microbe). The main cause of the infections was the serious shortage of nursing staff, the newspaper said, quoting hospital administrators. It added that the hospital was mulling specific measures such as isolating infected patients.

Sea Diamond

An operation to raise the sunken cruise ship Sea Diamond from the seabed off Santorini is to begin within the next 70 days, Deputy Merchant Marine Minister Panayiotis Kammenos told Skai yesterday. He said a study submitted by the owner of the Sea Diamond, which sank in April 2007, had essentially been approved.

Coal plants ‘pose climate risk’

The government’s plans to build at least two new coal-fired power stations to meet the country’s growing energy needs will boost carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 10 percent, according to a study by conservation group Greenpeace.

Four sites have been slated for the planned power stations, which are to be run on anthracite, a low-grade coal. These sites are Aliveri and Mantoudi on the island of Evia, Antikyra in the prefecture of Viotia and the port of Astakos in Aitoloacarnania. In all the proposed locations residents have protested, fearful of the implications of the power plants for local pollution levels, and ultimately citizens’ health.

Greenpeace is to join residents of Aliveri next weekend in a symbolic protest at the site slated for the power station. Residents plan to plant trees in the area.

Apart from the pollution risk posed by coal-fired power stations, Greenpeace has highlighted the risk of a further worsening of global warming in a country where rising temperatures and dwindling water reserves are already a problem.

“The operation of these units, even with the most advanced technology, will release some 13.5 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year,” said Dimitris Ibrahim, Greenpeace’s energy expert in Greece. “This will result in a 10 percent increase in greenhouse gases in Greece,” he added.

The Development Ministry and the Public Power Corporation (PPC) argue that anthracite must be added to the country’s energy mix to satisfy power needs, noting that the use of lignite – an even more polluting form of coal – is being curbed.

A committee of state and nongovernmental organizations is reportedly planning to discuss the merits and disadvantages of adding the nuclear energy option to Greece’s energy mix.

Greenpeace, which is categorically opposed to nuclear power, claims that Greece could satisfy 88 percent of its energy needs through renewable energy sources if it exploited the country’s rich potential in solar and wind energy.

Tomorrow there seems to come a school from Mytiléne for an excursion, but the arrangements are still a bit vague. At 5.10 p.m. one was with the knocked-down dog at our door-step, because they had to be in Mytiléne tomorrow. The splint could be removed and with advices how to treat the dog in the coming fortnight, they left very gratefully !!

January 31^st:  at 4.35 a.m. the Tom-Cat was still breathing, but not any more at 5.40 a.m. > so today a P.M. will be performed. The Long-eared Owl was 278 (+1) and the Dark Barn Owl 270 (-3) gram. The Goshawk was 852 (-3), the Kestrel 222 (-2), the green Sparrowhawk 166 (-8) and the red one 259 (+1) gram. The Black-headed Gull was 317 (+2) gram. Little tortoises: the home-bred was 55 (+3) and the other 63 (-3) gram. We have performed a P.M. on the Tom-Cat > see at TOM-CAT. An environmental group of the 2^nd Gymnasium in Mytiléne (27 students and 5 teachers) came to visit us > never heard such a “bunch of screaming owlets”, but they were very interested and the street didn’t have to be cleaned after they had left !!

So protesting and clashing with the riot police is working-out afterwards:

PARK DISPUTE

Tree-felling protesters in Patissia win reprieve

A legal suit brought by 28 residents in the district of Patissia against the City of Athens over the felling of trees in a local park has resulted in a temporary caveat on the construction of a planned underground parking garage on the site. An Athens appeals court is scheduled to hear the case next Thursday, February 5. Meanwhile, the residents’ committee has organized a tree-planting drive and concerts at the site, which they are guarding on a 24-hour basis. Locals said 45 trees have been felled. Authorities counter that only a few trees were cut down and say that more than 100 trees will be planted once the underground car park has been constructed.

And things are worsening more and more in Greece:

Child pornography

A doctor who holds a senior position in a welfare organization for disabled children as well as a businessman have been remanded in custody after being charged with involvement in a child pornography racket that had been operating over the Internet. It was unclear whether the racket was the same as the ring busted earlier this week in which an Orthodox priest and two doctors as well as several businessmen have been implicated.

At 4.53 p.m. a phone-call from our village about a dog, which was either kicked or knocked-down > the passed by. Dog was checked completely at arrival, but (except from a few bloody drops from the penis) nothing could be detected. Owners were informed about what to check for a bladder-bleeding. Further not in the statistics. The woman who had passed-by the 27^th with the dog with an abscess in the right front-paw, passed again by at 5.30 p.m. > paw was still thick, but lesser. Again two holes were made, but no puss could be detected. At a further examination of the dog it showed he had on several places bite- and/or scratch-injuries. So the origin was known now and with advices how to keep all spots clean they left. As well this time not in the statistics.

This month showed to have been the most quiet month EVER !!

Total amount of visitors this month:  091                      (total this year: 091)

Kinds of animals who are mentioned like this were for the first time in treatment in the L.W.H. ( N 1).

Amount of kilometers (Animal-Ambulance) for bringing-in/releasing animals this month 026 (total this year 0026 kilometers)

Total amount of intakes this month: 08 [wild ones: 04; others 04], (total this year 008: wild ones 004, others 004; total since the start of registration in 1996: 4055) of which:

HE-DOG (Canis familiaris): 1 from our village, named “Booby”. Had the seize of an Flemish Ox-driver and almost the same teeth . . . !! The latter however was now quite bloody. The owners themselves had diagnosed (quite correct) a broken right pulse after their pet was knocked-down before their own eyes. After giving a muzzle the leg first was “cleaned” from lots of long hairs (trimmed) and the pulse was splinted till the elbow-joint, Blood in the mouth came in any case from a damaged under lip > left without treatment. Belly was stone-hard, so internal damage(s) is possible as well. So 1 ampoule of Konakion was injected. Had inhaled blood as well and was simmering like a coffee-machine. The owners were told how to act further and when to come back (without complications after 1 week; in the opposite case at once) (see as well January 13^th, 17^th, 24^th & 30^th).

COLLARED DOVE (Streptopelia decaocto): 2 adults from/via Mytiléne. The 1^st had a huge gangrene-like injury in the lower part of the crop (barbed wire ??) > already “closed” by Myrsíni Tourvalí in Mytiléne. Antibiotics were injected and it’s hoping for the best, because the prognosis isn’t well at all. And this showed to be so indeed, because he/she was discovered not alive anymore one hour after intake. After plucking of the feathers at 4.30 p.m. we could see there was a huge deformation in the sternum > tomorrow a P.M. will be performed.

The day after intake we have performed a P.M.: there showed to be a “dent” in the keel on the sternum, and the M. pectoralis major (big breast-muscle > with this muscle the wings are moved) was on the left side evidently bigger than on the right side. At cutting-trough tissue with a different color could bee seen, but no bleedings. What was left-over from the crop was quite well filled. Abdomen was opened: directly blood-clogs could be seen, coming from the liver. The liver itself was faded. Stomach was quite well filled. Lungs were bright and the heart had no disorders. Final cause of death: internal bleedings due to a blunt trauma. The injury in the crop was due to a sharp object. The 2^nd was evidently bitten by cats and maybe as well by a dog. Those predators however had only had their chance after the bird, due to an injured left eye (and brain-damage ??) hadn’t been capable walking and flying normally. Little injuries over the whole body, of which one was closed with 1 agrafe. Left eye was swollen and had “corpora aliena” inside, of which one could be removed with some difficulties > looked like thick, cheese-like pus. Antibiotics were injected and there was started a therapy with CAVASAN-ointment for the injured eye. Further wait and see. (see as well January 16^th & 19^th).

BUZZARD (buteo buteo): 1 male, discovered indeed in the forests of our village, but only close to the village of Mistegná and really not in the neighborhood here !! Was discovered while he was sitting close to a dead cat (of which was eaten) and didn’t fly away. Body-weight at intake was 680 gram. 1 Tablet Norit was given “in case of”. Showed to be covered with feather-lice, so PINEX-spray was used. A bit of food was fed and Ringers-solution, whereafter after some minutes vomiting started > all intestines and the smell of those wasn’t “kosher”. At that moment the pupil-reflex disappeared and 2 minutes later as well the heart-beat. So cause of death: poisoned bait had been eaten (accidentally or on purpose placed over there). (

(see for the sex as well January 15th).

TOM-CAT (Felis catus): 2; the first came from the L.W.H. “Kwastje”. Was left in a huge bag, hanging at our door, together with 4 brothers and 1 sister (08-036 a-f) April 8^th 2008. Was “de-fathered” today with the assistance of both trainees. The 2^nd came from Mandamádos and was knocked-down (at least) one day before intake. Was announced as “having 2 fractured rear-legs” > more likely however is an injury of the spinal-cord and/or pelvis. The legs are definitively not broken. Further is the whole external urogenitale system one bloody and bruised mass. Due to the injuries internal bleedings are as well possible > 1 ampoule of Konakion was injected herefor. As a pain-killer every day 35 I.U. of Metacam will be injected. After the siesta the whole cage was one bloody mess: so the prognosis is worsening with the hour !! (see as well January 29^th and following days).

Passed-away the 31^st in between 4.35 and 5.40 a.m. P.M.: quite well fed Tom-Cat. After opening of the belly the urine-bladder was bulging at once. Was intact, but the membrane was quite bloody. Was more than over-full and was hardly to be emptied by pressing. Urine inside was clear. Urethra was digged-out  and this part showed to be blocked by blood-clogs, due to which urinating was hardly possible > the more pressure was given, the smaller the spout became. The membrane of the urethra was as well quite bloody after being cut. Other organs inside nothing specific could be detected, only the membrane of the rectum was as well quite bloody. So cause of death: Uraemic coma due to the impossibility to urinate. Because of all we have discovered, a traffic-accident is quite improbable, because there was not one other damage in all tissues (skin, bones, etc) > a heavy kick in the belly however is more likely !!

PIGEON (Columba livia dom): 1 from Mytiléne. Was brought by taxi by a quite high-strung woman, who first had told us she hadn’t the time bringing the bird to the bus-station . . . . !! Due to an old trauma the left wing is dying-off, but the bone-structure is still intact. Firstly only a hanging cast was given. The dying part was later covered with Dermisol-cream. The 22^nd however it showed the wing couldn’t be spared (was stinking like hell); showed having a fracture of the radius & ulna with gangrene. So amputated. (see as well January 23^rd and following days).

CAT (Felis catus): 1 from Parákoila, named “PeeWee”. Should be pregnant, so all was prepared for a complete ovariohysterectomy > however showed to be “quite well fed”, so only an ovary-ectomy was performed.