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PICTURESQUE VILLAGE IN HOLLAND (WITH NO ROADS)

The Venice of the north

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Roads will get you nowhere in this picturesque village. Giethoorn, a village in the Dutch province of Overijssel, is an international tourist attraction in the Netherlands. The old part of the village has no roads and all transport is done by water. All visitors are welcome to enjoy the beautiful scenery while on a Whisper Boat (a special electric powered boat, which makes no noise). Other activities tourists can enjoy are picnics, swimming, sailing and windsurfing.

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THE WORLD'S HEAVIEST INSECT

The Heavyweight champion of the insect world

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What is worst than coming face to face with a creepy crawly? Coming face to face with a giant creepy crawly!

New Zealand’s Giant Weta is the heaviest insect on the planet; weighing more than 71 g, this arthropod is heavier than a swallow. There are eleven species of giant weta, which are significantly larger than other weta or any other insect. The largest species of giant weta is the Little Barrier Island giant weta also known by the Maori name ‘wetapunga’, which means ‘god of ugly things’. These heavyweights have a body length of up to 10 cm, excluding their lengthy legs and antennae. They often live under rocks and bush floor debris and prefer a vegetarian diet.

At approximately two years of age the female will lay anything between a hundred and three hundred eggs. Unfortunately, the parents of the ‘little giants’ will die before the eggs hatch three to five months later. However spine-chilling they seem, they are in actual fact gentle giants and need to be respected and protected. Weta are at risk from being eaten by rats, trampling by stock and killed by forest fires.

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THE WORLD'S LARGEST SNAIL

Ghana's snails in the spotlight

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The giant African land snail (Achatina achatina), also known as the giant Ghana snail or giant tiger land snail, is the largest snail specie in the world. You would not want to catch one of these slimy creatures in your garden, they reach up to 30 cm in length with their shells measuring up to 18 cm and can produce up to 1200 eggs per year. However, the chances are very slim for one of these slippery fellows to end up in your garden, since they are only native to Ghana.

In Ghana’s tropical forests were they live, they have no natural enemies. These pest consumes about 500 plant species, they also cause damage to the homes of people –the snails are found to eat the paint of the walls of the local people’s homes.

In the Western world they are kept as pets, where people admire them for their large size, distinctive markings and exoticism. Unfortunately, they are also considered a tasty delicacy in many countries.