British tourist killed in bee attack

A British man was stung to death by a swarm of bees while he was on holiday with his wife in Africa, it has emerged.

Mick Bryan, 61, and Jacqueline, 43, were exploring Tanzania when the killer bees launched an attack on the Cambridgeshirecouple at a remote campsite.

The father-of-three attempted to drive off after the attack but collapsed and later died in hospital. His wife was also stung but survived.

Speaking to The Sun, a family member said: “They were out in the middle of nowhere getting ready to have some lunch when they heard a buzzing noise. Mick shouted to Jacqueline to run. 

“He was covered in bees. He tried to drive off but it all happened too quickly. Jacqueline couldn't get any phone reception so she had to run to the main road for help.”
His sister Louise Adam, 64, is also quoted as saying: “He was a wonderful man. He'd do anything for anyone.”

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the death of a British National in Tanzania and are in contact with the family, providing consular assistance.”


http://uk.news.yahoo.com/british-tourist-killed-in-bee-attack.html

British tourist killed in bee attack

A British man was stung to death by a swarm of bees while he was on holiday with his wife in Africa, it has emerged.

Mick Bryan, 61, and Jacqueline, 43, were exploring Tanzania when the killer bees launched an attack on the Cambridgeshirecouple at a remote campsite.

The father-of-three attempted to drive off after the attack but collapsed and later died in hospital. His wife was also stung but survived.

Speaking to The Sun, a family member said: “They were out in the middle of nowhere getting ready to have some lunch when they heard a buzzing noise. Mick shouted to Jacqueline to run. 

“He was covered in bees. He tried to drive off but it all happened too quickly. Jacqueline couldn't get any phone reception so she had to run to the main road for help.”
His sister Louise Adam, 64, is also quoted as saying: “He was a wonderful man. He'd do anything for anyone.”

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the death of a British National in Tanzania and are in contact with the family, providing consular assistance.”


http://uk.news.yahoo.com/british-tourist-killed-in-bee-attack.html

Child Eaten By Crocodile In Front Of Father

A 10-year-old girl has been eaten by a crocodile as her father watched on helplessly.

The child was swallowed by the giant saltwater reptile after it sprang from a river in Indonesia.

District official Victor Mado Waton said the victim was searching for turtles with her father and brother in East Nusatenggara province at the time of the tragedy.

Mr Waton said villagers found pieces of the girl's clothing several hours later but there was no sign of her body.

The girl's father was a few metres away when the reptile attacked but there was nothing he could do, Mr Waton told journalists.

Last month, a boy was killed by a crocodile in the same river.

Villagers living nearby have reported a loss of livestock in recent weeks as well.

http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16153788

Croc killed Cairns spear fisherman

The Northern Coroner's Office has confirmed the fatal injuries suffered by Cairns spear fisher David Fordson earlier this month were caused by a "large estuarine crocodile".

The advice prompted warnings for boaties and divers to take extra precautions when visiting coastal Cape York this summer with crocodiles being spotted well offshore and at popular mooring sites.

In a statement, a coroner’s spokesperson said a post-mortem examination had been carried out during which police had sought specialist opinion from experts in crocodile and shark behaviour.

Mr Fordson, 49, was skipper of the cargo barge Torres Starservicing the Cairns to Thursday Island route when, ahead of schedule, they stopped to fish at the remote Cairncross Island group.

The alarm was raised when Mr Fordson failed to return to the vessel and his body was found in the early hours of December 6, with injuries initially thought to be from either a crocodile or a shark.

Underwater filmmaker and experienced boatie Ben Cropp has spent many years travelling the Cape York coastline and said he had noticed increasing numbers of crocodiles in the area.

Early summer is mating season for the animals, when the males are wandering further afield and looking for a female.

"On a recent trip we saw a lot of crocodiles and croc tracks all the way down the coast, and crocodiles at every offshore 
island we went to," he said.

"We’re talking six or eight miles out … on one little sand cay we saw three crocodiles, with three big tiger sharks in the shallows.

"These look like lovely places to moor but they are actually very, very dangerous, and Bushy Cay (where Mr Fordson was attacked) is only about three miles off the coast so it’s a lot closer to shore."

Mr Cropp said over the past seven years he had frequently seen a 3.5m crocodile lying on the sand at Bushy Cay.

http://www.cairns.com.au/article/2011/12/23/197701_local-news.html

Vet Student Gored To Death By Pygmy Elephant

A pygmy elephant has gored an Australian veterinarian student to death in a remote wildlife park on the Malaysian island of Borneo.


Jenna O'Grady Donley, 25, from New South Wales, was trekking with a friend and a Malaysian guide in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Sabah state when they were attacked by the rare elephant.

State wildlife department director Laurentius Ambu said the bull may have been startled and charged when the two tourists tried to take its photo.

While the guide and one woman managed to get away, the elephant's tusk pierced the other woman's body, and she died instantly, he said.

Ambu said that the women earlier trekked to a mud volcano but were disappointed that they did not see much wildlife, so the guide took them back another way and not on the main path.

Police are questioning the guide.

Mr Ambu said fatal attacks were rare, though single elephant bulls are known to be aggressive.


Jenna Donley's mother Liz Donley told ABC: "Bull elephants are fast, they can move with unpredictability, and they're aggressive and they're protective.

"This was an animal by itself and they startled it. This is an accident that's happened, a very tragic accident."

She said her daughter had a keen interest in large animals and had volunteered in Africa to help injured animals at a wildlife sanctuary.

Ms Donley was a final-year student at The University of Sydney studying a Bachelor of Veterinary Science.

It is understood she was due to graduate next week.

The elephant, a sub-species of the Asian elephant, is considered endangered, with around 1,500 to 2,000 left on Borneo island.


http://uk.news.yahoo.com/vet-student-gored-death-pygmy-elephant-023213709.html
...

Teenager 'dies jumping into piranha-infested river'

A teenage boy was eaten alive by piranhas after leaping into a river infested with the flesh-eating fish in northeastern Bolivia, authorities have said.


The 18-year-old man was drunk when he jumped out of a canoe in the Bolivian town of Rosario del Yata, 400 miles (640 kilometres) north of the capital of La Paz, police official Daniel Cayaya said.


The man bled to death after the attack, which occurred last Thursday, Mr Cayaya said. First word of the incident emerged on Tuesday, when it was reported by the local Erbol radio station.

Police suspect that the man had committed suicide because he was a fisherman in the region who knew the Yata river well.

Despite their fearsome reputation, fatal attacks by piranhas on humans are rare

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/bolivia/8939656/Teenager-dies-jumping-into-piranha-infested-river.html

Note from Richard Freeman:  If this is true then it is the only known case of a human being killed by piranhas

Drunk zoo visitor attacked by monkeys

Joao Leite Dos Santos, a mechanic from Sao Paulo, decided it would be fun to join a colony of spider monkeys in their enclosure to see if they wanted to play.

After climbing the fence he waded across the dividing pool where a group of the primates gathered on the bank.

Thinking that they were inviting him to join them, Mr Dos Santos reached out to touch them. But the fiercely territorial monkeys bit his wrist, while another bit and clawed his elbow and shoulder.

Zoo officals quickly dragged Mr Dos Santos out of the enclosure where he lay in a pool of blood in front of a horrified crowd.

He was taken to hospital where he was treated for severe bites to his body.

In a series of sheepish interviews to the local press Mr Dos Santos admitted drinking heavily prior to the incident.

It is not known whether he will face criminal charges.

Read more and see video here ...

Donald Mason, Miami Man Found Dead Inside Home Full Of Bees

A teenage girl found her father dead inside his home that was infested with thousands of bees living inside the walls, report the Miami Herald.

Donald Mason, 49, was found in the upstairs bedroom of a Miami home that he was renovating. Investigators have not determined the cause of death, but his brother told the paper, Mason fell from a chair while swatting at a swarm of bees and hit his head.

Mason was trying to renovate the home on a limited budget and had tried to fog spray the hive in the wall, and then tried to patch up the hole in the wall with tape.

Police told the Herald that Mason's death is considered unclassified, but it's more likely his death was due to the fall, rather than anything to do with the bees.

Willie Sklaroff, also known as 'the bee man,' who runs a bee extermination company was called into help and said there were at leas 60,000 bees living inside the walls of the house, reports Local10.com.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/06/miami-man-found-dead-inside-home-full-of-bees_n_1078677.html?ref=weird-news

Woman, 90, savaged by alligator

An alligator has attacked and severely injured a 90-year-old woman in south-west Florida.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said Margaret Webb was walking near her home in Copeland when the 8ft alligator lunged out of a canal.

Officials say the animal tried to drag Ms Webb into the water, but she was able to hang on long enough for a man driving by to stop and help her.

Ms Webb, who lost part of her leg in the attack, was airlifted to a Fort Myers trauma centre.

The agency said a trapper was sent to the area to find the alligator.

If found, the reptile will be cut open in an attempt to retrieve and reattach the leg.

http://news.uk.msn.com/world/woman-90-savaged-by-alligator-22

Another Bear attack in Yellowstone

A bear attack caused the death of a hiker whose body was found on a trail in Yellowstone National Park, officials confirmed Monday.

The body of John Wallace, 59, was discovered Friday by two hikers along the Mary Mountain Trail, an area of the park that had been closed to hikers, according to park services.

Rangers discovered signs of grizzly bear activity, including tracks and scat, or bear droppings, in a park campground where they believe Wallace pitched a tent on Wednesday, the park said in a news release.

Autopsy results concluded that Wallace, a Michigan resident, died from traumatic injuries he received after being mauled by a bear. It's the second fatal attack in Yellowstone National Park this summer, said Park Superintendent Dan Wenk.

Just last month, a 57-year-old California man was killed by a bear within the same 10-mile area of the park, Wenk said.

Park managers determined that man was killed by a bear protecting its cubs. Despite the close proximity of the latest attack, the officials do not think the same bear is responsible for Wallace's death because no evidence of cubs was found at the scene.

DNA tests on hair samples from the site will be performed to confirm suspicions that a different bear was involved in the second attack, Wenk said.

Over the past 25 years, Yellowstone has averaged 1 or 2 encounters a year that resulted in injuries, Wenk said.

Prior to this summer's attacks, the last fatal bear mauling was in 1986, he said.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/08/29/wyoming.bear.attack/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Torn apart by tiger sharks Fantome Is, Queensland

WHAT started out as a dream getaway with friends has turned to tragedy for a 48-year-old man who was found dead off Fantome Island, near Townsville yesterday.

A Melbourne man, known to his friends as Rooster, was killed after he encountered trouble while trying to retrieve a vessel which broke anchor off the island about 7.30pm on Sunday night, reports the Townsville Bulletin.

The man's body, which had been mauled by tiger sharks, was found near the island about 9.45am yesterday.

It's not clear whether the man had drowned or if he was killed by the sharks.

Fantome, part of the Great Palm Island group, is about 65km north-east of Townsville.

The qualified builder was taking a break from work on Orpheus Island to spend time with three workmates living on Palm Island. Emergency services officers launched a large-scale air and sea search after the man failed to return to shore with the vessel on Sunday night.

Emergency Management Queensland's Allan Jefferson told Yahoo7: "Four of them went swimming out to the boat, three of them made it and the fourth one never got there.

"The person has gone into the water to retrieve the boat last night and has not returned."

Palm Island resident Lynndel Prior was one of the last people to see the man alive after he stopped by to visit her family over the weekend.

Ms Prior said her partner, Anthony, had formed a close bond with the man while working on Orpheus Island.

"They both hit it off straightaway and became really close mates, so the news has obviously hit us pretty hard," she said.

Rooster was just such a loveable bloke who was always willing to put his hand up to help others to put a smile on their face.

"It's hard to imagine how a day that started out so great could end up so tragic."

The man leaves behind a wife and stepson, Jake, who had been working on the island with his father in the wake of Cyclone Yasi.

Read more at the Townsville Bulletin: http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/article/2011/08/30/261881_news.html

http://www.news.com.au/national/holidaymaker-torn-apart-by-tiger-sharks-near-fantome-island/story-e6frfkwr-1226125336123

Lions 'more likely to eat people after a full moon'

Other predators, such as wolves, may also be at their most dangerous when the moon starts to wane.


The discovery, from an African study of 500 lion attacks, could explain the full moon's place in folklore as a harbinger of evil or disaster, and its association with werewolves and vampires.

Scientists studied records of nearly 500 lion attacks on Tanzanian villagers between 1988 and 2009.

In more than two thirds of cases, the victims were killed and eaten. The vast majority of attacks occurred between dusk and 10pm on nights when the moon was waning and providing relatively little light.

Lions hunt most successfully when darkness allows them to surprise their prey, but on bright moonlit nights they might have to go hungry.

The period immediately following a full moon provides a lion with a welcome opportunity to catch up on missed meals.

As the moon wanes, it does not appear until well after dusk, which near the equator occurs early even in summer.

Peak danger times for humans are therefore the active hours after sunset, especially the day after a full moon.

The pattern emerged clearly when the researchers compared attack rates with moon phases. Attacks were a third more frequent during the second half of the cycle, when there was little or no moonlight.

Chief investigator Dr Craig Packer, a lion expert based at the University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences in the US, said: ''People start out at moderate danger during days 0-4, when the moon is only a sliver and sets shortly after sunset.

''Danger then declines as the moon gets brighter each evening, with very few attacks in the nights just before the full moon. Then, wham, danger spikes as those hungry lions can now operate in darkness for the rest of the lunar cycle.

''The post-full-moon spike is restricted to relatively few hours of full darkness before the largish moon rises later in the evening.''

Lion attacks also increased during the rainy season, when the moon was more likely to be obscured by clouds.

The study, published today in the online journal Public Library of Science ONE, involved checking measurements of lion belly size logged regularly since 1978, and records of lion attacks kept by Tanzanian government authorities.

The researchers wrote: ''These findings provide novel insights into human attitudes towards the moon.''

They pointed out that humans have lived close to large nocturnal carnivores for many thousands of years.

Lions were once the most widely distributed mammal in the world, and jaguars, tigers and leopards have co-existed with people in Asia, Africa and tropical America. Human ancestors painted lifelike pictures of lions on cave walls 36,000 years ago.

''Thus we have always been exposed to risks of predation that cycled with the waxing and waning of the moon,'' said the scientists.

Between sunset and sunrise, humans were most active in the evening and at greatest risk from predators.

The researchers added: ''The darkest hours in the early evening are restricted to the weeks following the full moon, and lions are hungriest immediately after the bright evenings of the second quarter.

''Although we are safest from lion attacks during well-lit nights, the full moon accurately indicates that the risks of lion predation will increase dramatically in the coming days. Thus the full moon is not dangerous in itself but is instead a portent of the darkness to come.''

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8650299/Lions-more-likely-to-eat-people-after-a-full-moon.html