the animals on the solomon islands. i havent heard how they weathered the storm (tsunami).?

The marine life would not be very effected at all.

The beach-going life would probably be able to swim, and might even be able to know of the impending danger.

People get killed because 1) we can't swim very well 2) we live in things that collapse during the tsunami.

There is little reporting on the animals because there is not a lot of evidence to find the animal caualties. In other words, you would have to have been keeping track before to know what had happened.

The most impressive thing i heard about the tsunami was how some elephant owners got saved because they followed the elephants to a higher place, on a hill, before the wave came. Some other people, like a guy who was going for a walk with his dog, stayed at home because the dog didn´t want to go. So probably many wild animals got saved because of their intuition. One more thing, i´m afraid there are not marine iguanas nor penguins in the Solomon islands.

To date, relief workers have been concerned with finding and assisting human survivors and trying to prevent epidemics of disease which can raise the death toll even higher than the 30 reported so far. With the destruction of farms, gardens, and fishing boats that villagers depended upon for sustenance, and after 4 days with no food, surviving animals become candidates for cooking pots.

UNICEF and Save the Children have responded, but UNICEF is appealing for $500,000 in donations already.

"Article Date: 06 Apr 2007 - 0:00 PDT

The American Red Cross is contributing $50,000 in response to the emergency appeal from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to assist survivors of the tsunami that left an estimated 5,000 homeless in the Solomon Islands, following Monday's powerful 8.2 magnitude earthquake in the South Pacific.

The funds will be used to assist the Solomon Islands Red Cross (SIRC) to help affected communities to have immediate access to safe drinking water, medical care and emergency shelter.

According to Nan Buzard, Sr. Director of International Disaster Response for the American Red Cross, "The main focus of the work of Red Cross in the Solomon Islands now will focus on getting relief where it is needed as quickly as possible." Reports from the area indicate that aftershocks still continue. "We are concerned about the more remote areas, which Red Cross workers are accessing by canoe where necessary," said Buzard.

The local Red Cross responded immediately to the disaster, carrying out early assessments and distributing relief goods including hurricane lamps, blankets, tarps and cooking sets which were stored in a Red Cross warehouse in Gizo.

The American Red Cross continues to assist victims of the tsunami that hit the region in 2004."

Although I agree with your statement about the American Syndrome, most disagreements are not between the people of the countries involved, but between the politics of their leaders. This said , who in good conscience would leave innocent victims of a natural disaster to lament in their own suffering without lending a humanitarian effort to relieve some of the burden. Certainly not the United States, nor any of it's allies. This is but one trait that sets us apart from the rest of the world. A trait I believe will endure no matter what . It is who we are!