Ranthambore gets a big cat surprise
MSN India
While the park officials appeared perplexed over the identity of the big cat, MAIL TODAY has come to know that this male tiger was seen in the park in April 2009. Jaipur: A sambar's alarm call is taken to be the surest sign of a predator's presence in ...
A Cat's Amazing Tale
WDTN
Is this a joke? Someone really found my cat all the way in Ohio? Quite a surprise! I do give all thanks to number one God and number two the microchip." The Allens wanted us to pass along a big "thank you" to Everit Terhune who found Madison.
Greenwich Township couple holding out hope that cat escaped January house fire
The Express Times - LehighValleyLive.com
28, the couple's first thought was of Sweetpea, their 6-year-old calico cat. “I kept thinking we shouldn't have left her alone. I should have brought her to my sisters' house,” Neil Greco said Friday, describing the torrent of if-only thoughts that ...
Possible mountain lion in Westchester New York
Doubtful Newsblog
By idoubtit
MOUNT PLEASANT, N.Y.— Another big predator cat is apparently roaming the northern suburbs. The calls started coming in ... Young saw the spot in Mount Pleasant where the big cat crossed paths with a number of startled suburbanites.
Prowling big cat remains elusive even after a month
The Times of India
A month has finished since the forest officials began efforts to trap the prowling tiger in Kakori.However, no success has come their way yet. The forest
officials ...
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/...cat.../11721472.cms?...
Showing posts with label animal attacks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label animal attacks. Show all posts
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Friday, January 13, 2012
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.
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.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Piranhas Attack Swimmers Off Brazil Beach
Thousands of flesh-eating piranhas have been attacking swimmers off a river beach in western Brazil - with at least 15 people suffering injuries.
The creatures have infested the waters of the Paraguay river off the city of Caceres' Daveron beach, in Mato Grosso state.
Officials say it is the first time they have had a problem with piranhas in the area, where the aggressive fish began schooling about two weeks ago.
Elson de Campos Pinto, 22, was among those attacked.
"I took a dip in the river and when I stood up, I felt pain in my foot," he told Globo TV's G1 website.
"I saw that I had lost the tip of my toe. I took off running out of the river, afraid that I would be further attacked because of the blood. I'm not going back in for a long time."
Firefighter Raul Castro de Oliveira told G1: "People have got to be very careful. If they're bitten, they've got to get out of the water rapidly and not allow the blood to spread."
Read more here ...
Saturday, September 24, 2011
How Todd Bairstow survived a crocodile attack (Via Herp Digest)
Sunday Mail (Adelaide, Australia) 8/20/11 by Emily Watkins
It had come down to one final decision: drown or be eaten alive.
After a full half-hour of clinging to mangroves, fighting against a crocodile for his life, Todd Bairstow was ready to give up. He had even tried to throw his dog at the growling beast in the hope it would eat that instead - but nothing would loosen its grip.
"I was just about to let go - I couldn't do it anymore," he said. "It felt like my arms were just going to snap off. "I was thinking: right, do I drown myself or get eaten alive?"
The Port Pirie mine worker had been fishing alone on the bank of a Weipa river, in Queensland's north, in March. He was reeling in the line after his first cast when the 3.2m estuarine crocodile launched itself out of the water and latched on to his leg.
Growling like a dog, the croc knocked him over and tried to drag him into the water. Now, five months and 13 operations later, Mr Bairstow, 29, has finally returned home.
"My life flashed before my eyes. I was thinking about not having kids and that," he said. "I thought about how upset Mum and Dad would be - it was just flash, flash, flash."
Mr Bairstow said he had managed to grab hold of a mangrove as the crocodile tried to drag him into the river. While he clung to its branches, the croc tried to death roll him three times while it held his legs in its jaws, dislocating both of his knees. He heard them pop as the croc tried to twist him around.
As minute by minute ticked by, Mr Bairstow yelled desperately for help as he tried to poke it in the eyes and hit it on the head. "If I had a knife I might have been able to get it in the eyes," he said. "But none of it made any difference."
In a desperate last ditch effort, Mr Bairstow even tried to feed his dog - a three-month-old puppy that had been yapping the entire time - to the hungry croc. "I went to throw him over my shoulder to the croc, but he took off and left me by myself," he said.
"It was a lonely place to be."
He was just about to let go and be dragged into the murky water when he heard a woman's voice: "Help's coming, love". "It gave me a second wind," he said. The woman had heard him screaming from a pub about 350m up the creek, and within minutes his mate, Kevin Beven, was on the bank, pulling him from the beast's jaws.
"And then these four Aboriginal fellas arrived, hitting the croc with rocks and sticks until it p---ed off back into the water," Mr Bairstow said. His Port Pirie parents, Luke and Cathy, left town as soon as they heard of the attack on March 9, and flew out of Adelaide the next day.
"I thought, 'If he got attacked by a croc, you don't survive'," Luke Bairstow said. "If he survived, he's got to have horrific injuries, but the main thing was that he was still with us." Luke and Cathy spent two months at their son's Cairns hospital bedside, wanting to stay until he could walk with crutches.
He is finally back in the family home while he does physiotherapy every day and attends specialist appointments once a month in Adelaide. Mr Bairstow had been living away from Port Pirie for eight years, working in mines in the Kimberleys, Northern Territory and Cape York.
He said he may need yet another operation on one of his knees, and spent his days cycling, walking and doing weights as physiotherapy. He said he hoped to be back at his Rio Tinto job in north Queensland at the end of this year.
It had come down to one final decision: drown or be eaten alive.
After a full half-hour of clinging to mangroves, fighting against a crocodile for his life, Todd Bairstow was ready to give up. He had even tried to throw his dog at the growling beast in the hope it would eat that instead - but nothing would loosen its grip.
"I was just about to let go - I couldn't do it anymore," he said. "It felt like my arms were just going to snap off. "I was thinking: right, do I drown myself or get eaten alive?"
The Port Pirie mine worker had been fishing alone on the bank of a Weipa river, in Queensland's north, in March. He was reeling in the line after his first cast when the 3.2m estuarine crocodile launched itself out of the water and latched on to his leg.
Growling like a dog, the croc knocked him over and tried to drag him into the water. Now, five months and 13 operations later, Mr Bairstow, 29, has finally returned home.
"My life flashed before my eyes. I was thinking about not having kids and that," he said. "I thought about how upset Mum and Dad would be - it was just flash, flash, flash."
Mr Bairstow said he had managed to grab hold of a mangrove as the crocodile tried to drag him into the river. While he clung to its branches, the croc tried to death roll him three times while it held his legs in its jaws, dislocating both of his knees. He heard them pop as the croc tried to twist him around.
As minute by minute ticked by, Mr Bairstow yelled desperately for help as he tried to poke it in the eyes and hit it on the head. "If I had a knife I might have been able to get it in the eyes," he said. "But none of it made any difference."
In a desperate last ditch effort, Mr Bairstow even tried to feed his dog - a three-month-old puppy that had been yapping the entire time - to the hungry croc. "I went to throw him over my shoulder to the croc, but he took off and left me by myself," he said.
"It was a lonely place to be."
He was just about to let go and be dragged into the murky water when he heard a woman's voice: "Help's coming, love". "It gave me a second wind," he said. The woman had heard him screaming from a pub about 350m up the creek, and within minutes his mate, Kevin Beven, was on the bank, pulling him from the beast's jaws.
"And then these four Aboriginal fellas arrived, hitting the croc with rocks and sticks until it p---ed off back into the water," Mr Bairstow said. His Port Pirie parents, Luke and Cathy, left town as soon as they heard of the attack on March 9, and flew out of Adelaide the next day.
"I thought, 'If he got attacked by a croc, you don't survive'," Luke Bairstow said. "If he survived, he's got to have horrific injuries, but the main thing was that he was still with us." Luke and Cathy spent two months at their son's Cairns hospital bedside, wanting to stay until he could walk with crutches.
He is finally back in the family home while he does physiotherapy every day and attends specialist appointments once a month in Adelaide. Mr Bairstow had been living away from Port Pirie for eight years, working in mines in the Kimberleys, Northern Territory and Cape York.
He said he may need yet another operation on one of his knees, and spent his days cycling, walking and doing weights as physiotherapy. He said he hoped to be back at his Rio Tinto job in north Queensland at the end of this year.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Fears Grow Over Ravenous Coyotes On L.I.
NEW YORK -- A ravenous horde of swimming coyotes is believed to be responsible for the sudden disappearance of nearly 20 cats in a small Long Island community, the New York Post reported Friday.
Shaken pet owners on Fisher's Island, 10 miles (16 kilometers) off of Long Island's North Fork, are no longer letting their felines roam freely after the rash of suspected attacks this past month.
"The community board at our local post office is covered with missing posters for cats," according to Charles Kadushin, whose beloved three-year-old feline, Habibi, vanished in May.
Residents said that the coyotes were making the mile-long swim from Connecticut.
Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/local_news/fears-grow-over-ravenous-coyotes-on-long-island-north-fork-ncx-20110812#ixzz1UuZKJs00
Shaken pet owners on Fisher's Island, 10 miles (16 kilometers) off of Long Island's North Fork, are no longer letting their felines roam freely after the rash of suspected attacks this past month.
"The community board at our local post office is covered with missing posters for cats," according to Charles Kadushin, whose beloved three-year-old feline, Habibi, vanished in May.
Residents said that the coyotes were making the mile-long swim from Connecticut.
Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/local_news/fears-grow-over-ravenous-coyotes-on-long-island-north-fork-ncx-20110812#ixzz1UuZKJs00
Friday, August 5, 2011
Polar bear kills British tourist in Norway attack
A tourist thought to belong to the British Schools Exploring Society has been killed by a polar bear in the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard in Norway. Four others belonging to the same party and believed to be British have been 'severely injured' in the bear attack.
The attack happened this morning and the victims were rushed to Svalbard capital Lonyearbyen, about 25 miles away.
The four survivors were said to be 'severely injured' and were set to be flown in air ambulances to University Hospital in Tromso.
The British Schools Exploring Society, based in Kensington, London, could not comment today but it was believed that a statement may be made later.
The Svalbard Governor issued a warning earlier this year about polar bears after several were seen close to Longyearbyen.
Svalbard-based restaurant manager Sandra Swresser told The Guardian website: 'It's very sad. We have had attacks before. It happened a year ago when a Norwegian man was attacked. As it was early in the morning I can only suppose the bear attacked them because it was looking for food.'
Another Svalbard resident, Liv Rose Flygel, 55, told The Guardian: 'It's not been the first time. Last summer a man was attacked by a polar bear and there have also been attacks on a man from Austria and a girl. Only the man in the attack last summer survived. He was taken in the mouth of the bear and his friend ran after it and shot it.
'The problem is, when the ice goes, the bears lose their way and cannot catch food. People don't really how dangerous they are. One came down to the sea recently and people were running down to take pictures.'
Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/871484-polar-bear-kills-british-tourist-in-norway-attack#ixzz1UA021vAL
The attack happened this morning and the victims were rushed to Svalbard capital Lonyearbyen, about 25 miles away.
The four survivors were said to be 'severely injured' and were set to be flown in air ambulances to University Hospital in Tromso.
The British Schools Exploring Society, based in Kensington, London, could not comment today but it was believed that a statement may be made later.
The Svalbard Governor issued a warning earlier this year about polar bears after several were seen close to Longyearbyen.
Svalbard-based restaurant manager Sandra Swresser told The Guardian website: 'It's very sad. We have had attacks before. It happened a year ago when a Norwegian man was attacked. As it was early in the morning I can only suppose the bear attacked them because it was looking for food.'
Another Svalbard resident, Liv Rose Flygel, 55, told The Guardian: 'It's not been the first time. Last summer a man was attacked by a polar bear and there have also been attacks on a man from Austria and a girl. Only the man in the attack last summer survived. He was taken in the mouth of the bear and his friend ran after it and shot it.
'The problem is, when the ice goes, the bears lose their way and cannot catch food. People don't really how dangerous they are. One came down to the sea recently and people were running down to take pictures.'
Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/871484-polar-bear-kills-british-tourist-in-norway-attack#ixzz1UA021vAL
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
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
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
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Leopard wounds 11 people in village
A leopard that mauled 11 people in a fierce showdown with Indian villagers has died of knife wounds after being captured.
The adult male leopard leapt at locals and forest officials as they tried to drive it into a wildlife sanctuary in West Bengal state.
Forest official Dharma Dev Rai says villagers used knives, stones and batons to beat back the cat.
It injured six villagers, a policeman and four forest guards before being hit with a tranquilliser gun.
The people are recovering from their injuries, mostly swipes from the cat's claws.
Leopards are protected in India though more are straying into villages for food.
http://news.uk.msn.com/world/leopard-wounds-11-people-in-village?ocid=today
Forest official Dharma Dev Rai says villagers used knives, stones and batons to beat back the cat.
It injured six villagers, a policeman and four forest guards before being hit with a tranquilliser gun.
The people are recovering from their injuries, mostly swipes from the cat's claws.
Leopards are protected in India though more are straying into villages for food.
http://news.uk.msn.com/world/leopard-wounds-11-people-in-village?ocid=today
Friday, July 15, 2011
Bear killed B.C. native elder, coroner confirms
Autopsy results have confirmed that a bear attack killed a well-known elder in the Xaxli'p First Nation whose remains were found last week near Lillooet, B.C.
After Bernice Evelyn Adolph had been reported missing, police dogs found her remains on Thursday near her remote property about 175 kilometres northeast of Vancouver.
There was evidence that Adolph, 72, had been partially consumed by bears, but before the autopsy, police were not sure how she died.
"After reviewing the autopsy results, evidence from the scene, and expertise and information provided by conservation officers, the B.C. Coroners Service was able to confirm a bear attack as the cause of her death," spokesman Mark Coleman said in a release on Tuesday.
Coleman said no decision about an inquest had been made.
Tried to enter house
Conservation officers killed four bears Sunday that matched the description of the animal that had fed on the woman.
Samples from the bears were sent to Edmonton for DNA testing to determine which bears were involved in the attack.
Adolph had complained to conservation authorities about bears on her property.
Investigators found evidence that bears had tried to enter her house.
While contact between black bears and humans is common, even in Metro Vancouver, the animals tend to fear humans and fatal attacks are rare.
Two people have died in black bear attacks in B.C. since 2000
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/07/05/bc-woman-bear-autopsy.html
After Bernice Evelyn Adolph had been reported missing, police dogs found her remains on Thursday near her remote property about 175 kilometres northeast of Vancouver.
There was evidence that Adolph, 72, had been partially consumed by bears, but before the autopsy, police were not sure how she died.
"After reviewing the autopsy results, evidence from the scene, and expertise and information provided by conservation officers, the B.C. Coroners Service was able to confirm a bear attack as the cause of her death," spokesman Mark Coleman said in a release on Tuesday.
Coleman said no decision about an inquest had been made.
Tried to enter house
Conservation officers killed four bears Sunday that matched the description of the animal that had fed on the woman.
Samples from the bears were sent to Edmonton for DNA testing to determine which bears were involved in the attack.
Adolph had complained to conservation authorities about bears on her property.
Investigators found evidence that bears had tried to enter her house.
While contact between black bears and humans is common, even in Metro Vancouver, the animals tend to fear humans and fatal attacks are rare.
Two people have died in black bear attacks in B.C. since 2000
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/07/05/bc-woman-bear-autopsy.html
Friday, July 8, 2011
Grizzly Bear Kills Hiker Who Disturbed Cubs
A female grizzly bear has killed a man hiking with his wife in Yellowstone National Park after the couple surprised the animal and her cubs.
The attack happened about a mile and a half from the start of the popular Wapiti Lake trail.
Another group of hikers nearby who heard the victim's wife screaming for help called park rangers.
A National Park Service statement said the couple had inadvertently surprised the mother grizzly and her cubs, and in "an attempt to defend a perceived threat to her cubs, the bear attacked and fatally wounded the man".
Grizzly bears can weigh up to 1,500lb and despite their size, they can run at speeds of up to 35mph, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The bears tend to avoid humans but can be extremely aggressive if they perceive a threat to their young.
There are warning signs about grizzlies throughout the national park and Wednesday's attack took place in an area where bear sightings are common.
The victim's identity has not been released while his family is informed.
Park officials said the animals involved have not been captured and rangers do not have enough information yet to determine what measures they might take.
But park spokeswoman Linda Miller said the mother bear behaved normally in defending her cubs and would not be killed as a result of her actions.
Bears found to have repeated run-ins with park visitors are, however, sometimes relocated.
"If we have an aggressive bear that continually poses a threat to human safety, then we work to remove it from the ecosystem," Yellowstone spokesman Al Nash said.
Attacks by bears are extremely rare and the mauling marks the first fatal bear attack in the park since 1986, the Park Service said.
But a mother grizzly killed one man and injured two other people in an unusual night-time attack on sleeping campers just outside Yellowstone in Montana last July.
The animal involved was later trapped and destroyed because the attacks were considered to be unprovoked and predatory.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/grizzly-bear-kills-hiker-disturbed-cubs-080643772.html
The attack happened about a mile and a half from the start of the popular Wapiti Lake trail.
Another group of hikers nearby who heard the victim's wife screaming for help called park rangers.
A National Park Service statement said the couple had inadvertently surprised the mother grizzly and her cubs, and in "an attempt to defend a perceived threat to her cubs, the bear attacked and fatally wounded the man".
Grizzly bears can weigh up to 1,500lb and despite their size, they can run at speeds of up to 35mph, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The bears tend to avoid humans but can be extremely aggressive if they perceive a threat to their young.
There are warning signs about grizzlies throughout the national park and Wednesday's attack took place in an area where bear sightings are common.
The victim's identity has not been released while his family is informed.
Park officials said the animals involved have not been captured and rangers do not have enough information yet to determine what measures they might take.
But park spokeswoman Linda Miller said the mother bear behaved normally in defending her cubs and would not be killed as a result of her actions.
Bears found to have repeated run-ins with park visitors are, however, sometimes relocated.
"If we have an aggressive bear that continually poses a threat to human safety, then we work to remove it from the ecosystem," Yellowstone spokesman Al Nash said.
Attacks by bears are extremely rare and the mauling marks the first fatal bear attack in the park since 1986, the Park Service said.
But a mother grizzly killed one man and injured two other people in an unusual night-time attack on sleeping campers just outside Yellowstone in Montana last July.
The animal involved was later trapped and destroyed because the attacks were considered to be unprovoked and predatory.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/grizzly-bear-kills-hiker-disturbed-cubs-080643772.html
Friday, June 10, 2011
Wild Beavers Terrorize Philadelphia
 |
Wikimedia Three people were bitten by a rabid beaver last week in Philadelphia before the animal was killed -- and game wardens remain stumped about the "truly bizarre" attacks. |
PHILADELPHIA – Pennsylvania game wardens remained stumped Sunday about a spate of "truly bizarre" rabid beaver attacks in and around Philadelphia.
Three people were bitten by a beaver last week in Pennypack Park in the city's northeastern section before the animal was killed and officials determined it had rabies, according to MyFoxPhilly.
A married couple was fishing on Wednesday when the large beaver bit the woman's leg, then turned on her husband and bit him in both arms and on his chest, the Pennsylvania Game Commission said.
On Thursday, a child was bitten in the same park. A short time later, a park ranger located the beaver nearby. That animal was killed and tested positive for rabies at a Health Department lab. Game wardens are looking through the park for other beavers that could be infected.
Park officials were baffled by the location of the attacks and the fact that the mammal was a beaver -- not a raccoon or skunk.
"It's not that beavers are not susceptible, as all mammals are susceptible, to rabies," said Game Commission spokesman Jerry Feaser. "But a beaver in Philadelphia, that was just truly bizarre."
Another rabid beaver attacked an angler in late April on White Clay Creek in the Chester County suburbs of Philadelphia. Feaser said the attacks are the only such cases he recalls during 12 years with the commission.
"Our furbearer biologist, when he heard about this, he was just literally blown away," Feaser said.
The state Agriculture Department, which investigates rabies cases, fielded no reports of rabid beavers in 2009 or 2010.
Pennsylvania normally has between 350 and 500 confirmed rabies cases annually. Last year slightly more than half the cases were raccoons, followed in frequency by skunks, cats, bats and foxes. The state's most recent rabies fatality for humans occurred in 1984, when a 12-year-old Lycoming County boy died.
As a precaution, Game Commission officials continue to encourage residents to avoid the Pennypack Creek waterfront area between Bustleton Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard in northeast Philadelphia.
Read more on Philadelphia's beaver battle at MyFoxPhilly.com.
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/06/06/wild-beavers-terrorize-philadelphia/
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Mystery beast causing panic in Quang Ngai province
VietNamNet Bridge - Hundreds of households in Binh Dong Commune of Binh Son District in Quang Ngai are living in panic after mysterious footprints were seen on the sand and loud roaring sounds heard in the area.
According to Cao Tan Son, police chief of the Binh Dong Commune, these mysterious incidents have been occurring since May 7 at the foot of Dinh Mountain in Son Tra Commune.
However, no one has seen the strange creature that could have caused such large footprints measuring almost 12-15cm. Over 20 dogs have also been killed in the area and now around 280 households of the commune are living in panic.
Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, a 70-year-old woman was the first to find her dead pet dog on the night of May 7. She said that her dog was found without its head and some body organs.
On the same night, four dogs were also found dead in the same manner, approximately 15-20 kilograms from Ngoc’s neighborhood.
Many households living near the Dinh Mountain said they had heard very loud roaring sounds.
In related news, in the border districts of Si Ma Cai and Muong Khuong in the northwestern province of Lao Cai, people have repeatedly seen strange species of dog like animals.
The strange creatures have bitten about 15 people in Ban Me, Thao Chu Phin, Quang Than San and Si Ma Cai communes in the two districts.
According to local residents, the strange doglike creatures have slender, long bodies, slanting red eyes and their fur coat is marked with white spots, black and white spots or yellow stripes.
They are seen wandering in the villages trying to prey on housedogs or attacking other domestic bred animals like chickens, pigs, goats and horses. They attack any person who tries to drive them away.
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/en/society/8146/mystery-beast-causing-panic-in-quang-ngai-province.html
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Dotty the donkey saves sheep from savage dog
 |
| Stanley, pictured with Dotty |
A donkey who saved a sheep from a dog attack in North Yorkshire is to receive an animal bravery award.
Dotty the donkey stepped in when her stable mate, Stanley the sheep, was attacked by a dog in a paddock at Row Brow Farm, near Scarborough.
Dotty will be presented with her award today, by representatives from pets charity PDSA.
Dotty’s owner, Ann Rogers, 63, said: “Dotty saw her friend in distress and charged down the field to rescue him from the dog’s jaws.”
Dotty then pinned the dog to the ground until it let go of Stanley, who was orphaned as a lamb. As a result of the attack, the sheep lost two teeth and suffered facial paralysis.
Ms Rogers said Stanley has now recovered and is never far from his rescuer.
PDSA vet Elaine Pendlebury said Dotty’s behaviour was outstanding.
She said: “Often when faced with a threat, donkeys will rise up to face their enemy, in this case an aggressive dog. Dotty showed herself to be a true protector of the animals she sees as her family.”
See video at: http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/8954032.Donkey_to_receive_animal_bravery_award/
(Via Colin Meddings)
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
'Super pack' of 400 wolves terrorise remote Russian town after killing 30 horses in just four days
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 11:15 AM on 7th February 2011
A 'super pack' of wolves has been terrifying a town after leaving more than 30 horses dead in just four days.
Four hundred bloodthirsty wolves have been spotted prowling around the edges of Verkhoyansk, in Russia, attacking livestock at will.
Twenty four teams of hunters have been put together to get rid of the wolves, with a bounty of £210 for every wolf skin brought to officials.
Stepan Rozhin, an administration official for the Verkhoyansk district in Russia, said: 'To protect the town we are creating 24 teams of armed hunters, who will patrol the neighbourhood on snowmobiles and set wolf traps.
'But we need more people. Once the daylight increases, the hunters will start shooting predators from helicopters.'
A pack of wolves this size is unheard of, with the animals usually preferring to hunt in smaller groups of just six or seven.
The massive group is believed to be made from hundreds of packs and has left animal experts baffled.
Dr Valerius Geist, a wildlife behaviour expert, said the harsh Siberian winter - where temperatures plummet to minus 49C - had killed off the animal's usual prey.
He said: 'It is unusual for wolves to gather in such numbers of hunt large animal like horses.
'However, the population of their usual prey, rabbits, has decreased this year due to lack of food, so wolves have had to change their habits.
'Wolves are very careful to choose the most nutritious food source easiest obtained without danger - which in this case happens to be horses.
'They will start tackling dangerous prey when they run out of non-dangerous prey.'
Villagers have already managed to snare a number of the animals but the pack is so sizeable that is likely to take some time to deal with.
Verkhoyansk, with a population of just 1,300, is one of the coldest and remotest places in the northern hemisphere and lies within an area known as Stalin's Death Ring, after the former dictator sent political exiles there due to the extreme conditions.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1354445/Super-pack-400-wolves-kill-30-horses-just-days-remote-Russian-village.html
Last updated at 11:15 AM on 7th February 2011
A 'super pack' of wolves has been terrifying a town after leaving more than 30 horses dead in just four days.
Four hundred bloodthirsty wolves have been spotted prowling around the edges of Verkhoyansk, in Russia, attacking livestock at will.
Twenty four teams of hunters have been put together to get rid of the wolves, with a bounty of £210 for every wolf skin brought to officials.
Stepan Rozhin, an administration official for the Verkhoyansk district in Russia, said: 'To protect the town we are creating 24 teams of armed hunters, who will patrol the neighbourhood on snowmobiles and set wolf traps.
'But we need more people. Once the daylight increases, the hunters will start shooting predators from helicopters.'
A pack of wolves this size is unheard of, with the animals usually preferring to hunt in smaller groups of just six or seven.
The massive group is believed to be made from hundreds of packs and has left animal experts baffled.
Dr Valerius Geist, a wildlife behaviour expert, said the harsh Siberian winter - where temperatures plummet to minus 49C - had killed off the animal's usual prey.
He said: 'It is unusual for wolves to gather in such numbers of hunt large animal like horses.
'However, the population of their usual prey, rabbits, has decreased this year due to lack of food, so wolves have had to change their habits.
'Wolves are very careful to choose the most nutritious food source easiest obtained without danger - which in this case happens to be horses.
'They will start tackling dangerous prey when they run out of non-dangerous prey.'
Villagers have already managed to snare a number of the animals but the pack is so sizeable that is likely to take some time to deal with.
Verkhoyansk, with a population of just 1,300, is one of the coldest and remotest places in the northern hemisphere and lies within an area known as Stalin's Death Ring, after the former dictator sent political exiles there due to the extreme conditions.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1354445/Super-pack-400-wolves-kill-30-horses-just-days-remote-Russian-village.html
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Man killed by fighting rooster
 | |
| A fighting rooster found during a former bust in Bakersfield is seen in this November 2010 file photo. |
Story Created: Feb 4, 2011 at 1:24 PM PST
Story Updated: Feb 4, 2011 at 2:39 PM PST
EARLIMART, Calif. — A Lamont man was killed earlier this week by a chicken.
Jose Luis Ochoa, 35, was stabbed by a knife attached to the leg of a fighting rooster, the Kern County coroner's office said Friday.
The accidental stab wound to Ochoa's calf, as determined by the autopsy, happened Sunday in Earlimart in Tulare County. He was taken to Delano Regional Medical Center, where he died about two hours later.
The coroner didn't specify what killed Ochoa, whether it was excessive bleeding, infection or something else.
Even though Kern County handled the autopsy, the Tulare County Sheriff's Department is handling the investigation. It's unknown if a cockfight was underway at the time of the accident.
http://www.bakersfieldnow.com/news/local/115315954.html
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Mad cow drags police officer along country road
Stand-off as animal now penned inside field ...
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
A cow ran down four people, including a police officer, after it escaped from a market and ran wild along a busy road in the Republic of Ireland
The animal had escaped from the market on the Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, and was so dangerously out of control that efforts by a vet to put it down were abandoned for safety reasons.
The cow was eventually herded back to the mart but it failed to calm down. Several farmers later forced the animal in to a nearby field.
Earlier, a garda who had been trying to corral the cow was knocked over and dragged along the road by the animal.
Several members of the public who had also tried to bring the animal under control were also knocked over.
The garda and three others sustained only minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment. Last night the cow remained penned inside the field but concerns that it could escape and cause further chaos remained.
ISPCA animal welfare officer Frankie Coote refused to rule out the possibility that the cow would have to be put down.
Mr Coote, who was also called to the scene, said: "This cow was rogue and was out of control. This was a serious situation and rogue animals like this can be extremely dangerous. Members of the public should never try to approach an agitated animal like this. I was shocked to see the people ignore warnings from the guards to get out of the way.
"People should consider their own safety first, take cover and raise the alarm."
One local woman said: "I have never seen anything like that in my life. I thought it was a bull but it goes to show that a cow can be just as dangerous. I can't believe no one was killed."
Source Irish Independent
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/republic-of-ireland/mad-cow-drags-police-officer-along-country-road-15064542.html
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
A cow ran down four people, including a police officer, after it escaped from a market and ran wild along a busy road in the Republic of Ireland
The animal had escaped from the market on the Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, and was so dangerously out of control that efforts by a vet to put it down were abandoned for safety reasons.
The cow was eventually herded back to the mart but it failed to calm down. Several farmers later forced the animal in to a nearby field.
Earlier, a garda who had been trying to corral the cow was knocked over and dragged along the road by the animal.
Several members of the public who had also tried to bring the animal under control were also knocked over.
The garda and three others sustained only minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment. Last night the cow remained penned inside the field but concerns that it could escape and cause further chaos remained.
ISPCA animal welfare officer Frankie Coote refused to rule out the possibility that the cow would have to be put down.
Mr Coote, who was also called to the scene, said: "This cow was rogue and was out of control. This was a serious situation and rogue animals like this can be extremely dangerous. Members of the public should never try to approach an agitated animal like this. I was shocked to see the people ignore warnings from the guards to get out of the way.
"People should consider their own safety first, take cover and raise the alarm."
One local woman said: "I have never seen anything like that in my life. I thought it was a bull but it goes to show that a cow can be just as dangerous. I can't believe no one was killed."
Source Irish Independent
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/republic-of-ireland/mad-cow-drags-police-officer-along-country-road-15064542.html
Mad cow drags police officer along country road
Stand-off as animal now penned inside field ...
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
A cow ran down four people, including a police officer, after it escaped from a market and ran wild along a busy road in the Republic of Ireland
The animal had escaped from the market on the Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, and was so dangerously out of control that efforts by a vet to put it down were abandoned for safety reasons.
The cow was eventually herded back to the mart but it failed to calm down. Several farmers later forced the animal in to a nearby field.
Earlier, a garda who had been trying to corral the cow was knocked over and dragged along the road by the animal.
Several members of the public who had also tried to bring the animal under control were also knocked over.
The garda and three others sustained only minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment. Last night the cow remained penned inside the field but concerns that it could escape and cause further chaos remained.
ISPCA animal welfare officer Frankie Coote refused to rule out the possibility that the cow would have to be put down.
Mr Coote, who was also called to the scene, said: "This cow was rogue and was out of control. This was a serious situation and rogue animals like this can be extremely dangerous. Members of the public should never try to approach an agitated animal like this. I was shocked to see the people ignore warnings from the guards to get out of the way.
"People should consider their own safety first, take cover and raise the alarm."
One local woman said: "I have never seen anything like that in my life. I thought it was a bull but it goes to show that a cow can be just as dangerous. I can't believe no one was killed."
Source Irish Independent
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/republic-of-ireland/mad-cow-drags-police-officer-along-country-road-15064542.html
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
A cow ran down four people, including a police officer, after it escaped from a market and ran wild along a busy road in the Republic of Ireland
The animal had escaped from the market on the Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, and was so dangerously out of control that efforts by a vet to put it down were abandoned for safety reasons.
The cow was eventually herded back to the mart but it failed to calm down. Several farmers later forced the animal in to a nearby field.
Earlier, a garda who had been trying to corral the cow was knocked over and dragged along the road by the animal.
Several members of the public who had also tried to bring the animal under control were also knocked over.
The garda and three others sustained only minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment. Last night the cow remained penned inside the field but concerns that it could escape and cause further chaos remained.
ISPCA animal welfare officer Frankie Coote refused to rule out the possibility that the cow would have to be put down.
Mr Coote, who was also called to the scene, said: "This cow was rogue and was out of control. This was a serious situation and rogue animals like this can be extremely dangerous. Members of the public should never try to approach an agitated animal like this. I was shocked to see the people ignore warnings from the guards to get out of the way.
"People should consider their own safety first, take cover and raise the alarm."
One local woman said: "I have never seen anything like that in my life. I thought it was a bull but it goes to show that a cow can be just as dangerous. I can't believe no one was killed."
Source Irish Independent
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/republic-of-ireland/mad-cow-drags-police-officer-along-country-road-15064542.html
Friday, January 14, 2011
Monster Cat-Killer Fox Caught in England
Jan 3, 2011 – 4:16 PM
Theunis Bates
Contributor
LONDON -- A supersized fox has been caught and killed in southeast England, raising fears that the red-furred critters could be getting bigger and bolder as they gorge themselves on urban leftovers.
The colossal canine weighed in at 26.5 pounds and measured 4 feet from the end of its nose to the tip of its tail -- twice the size of a normal fox. Veterinarian Keith Talbot caught the creature at his parents' suburban house in Maidstone on Dec. 26, after they told him a fox had gobbled up their 19-year-old pet cat, Amber.
"[Amber] was on the front doormat when [my parents] went to bed and they heard some commotion," he told Sky News. "They saw a fox going up the drive later on that night but didn't think anything of it. Later that morning they came out and there was fur and bits of the cat everywhere."
He set a trap at the property and on Christmas Day caught a regular 14-pound fox. The next night, he snared the bigger beast. Both animals were destroyed.
It was only when Talbot's friend Roy Lupton -- a veteran fox shooter -- turned up and weighed the animal that he realized he might have caught Britain's biggest fox. "I'm not against foxes; I think everything in nature has a place," he said, according to The Daily Mail. "But there is a limit, and when something like that happens and they start eating cats, it probably tells you that the balance of nature has been upset by humans feeding them and that it's time for controls to come in."
It's thought that the animal could have bulked up by dining on tasty scraps of food found in trashcans or left out by fox lovers.
"Foxes have a social system in which the alpha animal gets the food and the rest gets what's left over, so if there was a very big, dominant animal, the rest would get very little," Pat Morris, a zoologist formerly of Royal Holloway, University of London, told the London Times. "It might be that this was a particularly dominant animal which monopolized the food locally."
Some pro-hunting groups have claimed that the number of urban foxes has soared in recent years and that a cull is desperately needed. Their campaign received a boost in June, when a fox is believed to have attacked 9-month-old twin girls in their cots in east London.
Fox experts insist that unfortunate incident was a one off, and that most of the creatures are shy scavengers. And the University of Bristol's Mammal Group says that urban fox numbers are in fact stable at around 33,000. They note that foxes have simply become more visible and confident over the past decade, as the amount of scraps and trash left lying in the streets has increased.
If Brits want to see fewer big bad foxes strutting though their towns and cities, it seems they'll have to start tidying up after themselves.
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/03/monster-cat-killer-fox-caught-in-england/
(Submitted by Richard Freeman)
Theunis Bates
Contributor
LONDON -- A supersized fox has been caught and killed in southeast England, raising fears that the red-furred critters could be getting bigger and bolder as they gorge themselves on urban leftovers.
The colossal canine weighed in at 26.5 pounds and measured 4 feet from the end of its nose to the tip of its tail -- twice the size of a normal fox. Veterinarian Keith Talbot caught the creature at his parents' suburban house in Maidstone on Dec. 26, after they told him a fox had gobbled up their 19-year-old pet cat, Amber.
"[Amber] was on the front doormat when [my parents] went to bed and they heard some commotion," he told Sky News. "They saw a fox going up the drive later on that night but didn't think anything of it. Later that morning they came out and there was fur and bits of the cat everywhere."
He set a trap at the property and on Christmas Day caught a regular 14-pound fox. The next night, he snared the bigger beast. Both animals were destroyed.
It was only when Talbot's friend Roy Lupton -- a veteran fox shooter -- turned up and weighed the animal that he realized he might have caught Britain's biggest fox. "I'm not against foxes; I think everything in nature has a place," he said, according to The Daily Mail. "But there is a limit, and when something like that happens and they start eating cats, it probably tells you that the balance of nature has been upset by humans feeding them and that it's time for controls to come in."
It's thought that the animal could have bulked up by dining on tasty scraps of food found in trashcans or left out by fox lovers.
"Foxes have a social system in which the alpha animal gets the food and the rest gets what's left over, so if there was a very big, dominant animal, the rest would get very little," Pat Morris, a zoologist formerly of Royal Holloway, University of London, told the London Times. "It might be that this was a particularly dominant animal which monopolized the food locally."
Some pro-hunting groups have claimed that the number of urban foxes has soared in recent years and that a cull is desperately needed. Their campaign received a boost in June, when a fox is believed to have attacked 9-month-old twin girls in their cots in east London.
Fox experts insist that unfortunate incident was a one off, and that most of the creatures are shy scavengers. And the University of Bristol's Mammal Group says that urban fox numbers are in fact stable at around 33,000. They note that foxes have simply become more visible and confident over the past decade, as the amount of scraps and trash left lying in the streets has increased.
If Brits want to see fewer big bad foxes strutting though their towns and cities, it seems they'll have to start tidying up after themselves.
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/03/monster-cat-killer-fox-caught-in-england/
(Submitted by Richard Freeman)
Monster Cat-Killer Fox Caught in England
Jan 3, 2011 – 4:16 PM
Theunis Bates
Contributor
LONDON -- A supersized fox has been caught and killed in southeast England, raising fears that the red-furred critters could be getting bigger and bolder as they gorge themselves on urban leftovers.
The colossal canine weighed in at 26.5 pounds and measured 4 feet from the end of its nose to the tip of its tail -- twice the size of a normal fox. Veterinarian Keith Talbot caught the creature at his parents' suburban house in Maidstone on Dec. 26, after they told him a fox had gobbled up their 19-year-old pet cat, Amber.
"[Amber] was on the front doormat when [my parents] went to bed and they heard some commotion," he told Sky News. "They saw a fox going up the drive later on that night but didn't think anything of it. Later that morning they came out and there was fur and bits of the cat everywhere."
He set a trap at the property and on Christmas Day caught a regular 14-pound fox. The next night, he snared the bigger beast. Both animals were destroyed.
It was only when Talbot's friend Roy Lupton -- a veteran fox shooter -- turned up and weighed the animal that he realized he might have caught Britain's biggest fox. "I'm not against foxes; I think everything in nature has a place," he said, according to The Daily Mail. "But there is a limit, and when something like that happens and they start eating cats, it probably tells you that the balance of nature has been upset by humans feeding them and that it's time for controls to come in."
It's thought that the animal could have bulked up by dining on tasty scraps of food found in trashcans or left out by fox lovers.
"Foxes have a social system in which the alpha animal gets the food and the rest gets what's left over, so if there was a very big, dominant animal, the rest would get very little," Pat Morris, a zoologist formerly of Royal Holloway, University of London, told the London Times. "It might be that this was a particularly dominant animal which monopolized the food locally."
Some pro-hunting groups have claimed that the number of urban foxes has soared in recent years and that a cull is desperately needed. Their campaign received a boost in June, when a fox is believed to have attacked 9-month-old twin girls in their cots in east London.
Fox experts insist that unfortunate incident was a one off, and that most of the creatures are shy scavengers. And the University of Bristol's Mammal Group says that urban fox numbers are in fact stable at around 33,000. They note that foxes have simply become more visible and confident over the past decade, as the amount of scraps and trash left lying in the streets has increased.
If Brits want to see fewer big bad foxes strutting though their towns and cities, it seems they'll have to start tidying up after themselves.
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/03/monster-cat-killer-fox-caught-in-england/
(Submitted by Richard Freeman)
Theunis Bates
Contributor
LONDON -- A supersized fox has been caught and killed in southeast England, raising fears that the red-furred critters could be getting bigger and bolder as they gorge themselves on urban leftovers.
The colossal canine weighed in at 26.5 pounds and measured 4 feet from the end of its nose to the tip of its tail -- twice the size of a normal fox. Veterinarian Keith Talbot caught the creature at his parents' suburban house in Maidstone on Dec. 26, after they told him a fox had gobbled up their 19-year-old pet cat, Amber.
"[Amber] was on the front doormat when [my parents] went to bed and they heard some commotion," he told Sky News. "They saw a fox going up the drive later on that night but didn't think anything of it. Later that morning they came out and there was fur and bits of the cat everywhere."
He set a trap at the property and on Christmas Day caught a regular 14-pound fox. The next night, he snared the bigger beast. Both animals were destroyed.
It was only when Talbot's friend Roy Lupton -- a veteran fox shooter -- turned up and weighed the animal that he realized he might have caught Britain's biggest fox. "I'm not against foxes; I think everything in nature has a place," he said, according to The Daily Mail. "But there is a limit, and when something like that happens and they start eating cats, it probably tells you that the balance of nature has been upset by humans feeding them and that it's time for controls to come in."
It's thought that the animal could have bulked up by dining on tasty scraps of food found in trashcans or left out by fox lovers.
"Foxes have a social system in which the alpha animal gets the food and the rest gets what's left over, so if there was a very big, dominant animal, the rest would get very little," Pat Morris, a zoologist formerly of Royal Holloway, University of London, told the London Times. "It might be that this was a particularly dominant animal which monopolized the food locally."
Some pro-hunting groups have claimed that the number of urban foxes has soared in recent years and that a cull is desperately needed. Their campaign received a boost in June, when a fox is believed to have attacked 9-month-old twin girls in their cots in east London.
Fox experts insist that unfortunate incident was a one off, and that most of the creatures are shy scavengers. And the University of Bristol's Mammal Group says that urban fox numbers are in fact stable at around 33,000. They note that foxes have simply become more visible and confident over the past decade, as the amount of scraps and trash left lying in the streets has increased.
If Brits want to see fewer big bad foxes strutting though their towns and cities, it seems they'll have to start tidying up after themselves.
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/03/monster-cat-killer-fox-caught-in-england/
(Submitted by Richard Freeman)
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Isreal blamed for Egypt shark attacks
South Sinai governor backs theory that sharks involved in attacks off Sharm El-Sheik are controlled by Israel via GPS
A Sharm El Sheikh marine biologist slammed the conspiracy theory circulating around the country that last week's shark attacks off the South Sinai resort of Sharm El-Sheikh were part of an Israeli conspiracy, but the South Sinai governor supports it.
Mahmoud Hanafy, a professor of marine biology at the Suez Canal University, told Ahram Online that it is "sad," that Egyptian national TV helped perpetuate the theory that the shark attacks, which resulted in one death and four serious injuries this week, may have been controlled by Israel.
Speaking on the public TV program "Egypt Today" yesterday, a specialist introduced as "Captain Mustafa Ismail, a famous diver in Sharm El Sheikh," said that the sharks involved in the attack are ocean sharks and do not live in Egypt's waters.
When asked by the anchor how the shark entered Sharm El Sheikh waters, he burst out, "no, it's who let them in?"
Urged to elaborate, Ismail said that he recently got a call from an Israeli diver in Eilat telling him that they captured a small shark with a GPS planted in its back, implying that the sharks were monitored to attack in Egypt's waters only.
"Why would these sharks travel 4000 km and not have any accidents until they entered Sinai waters?" asked Ismail.
Earlier today, General Abdel-Fadeel Shosha, the governor of South Sinai, backed Ismail's theory. In a phone call to the TV program, he said that it is possible that Israeli intelligence, Mossad, is behind the incidents and that they are doing it to undermine the Egyptian tourism industry. He added that Egypt needs time to investigate the theory.
Marine biologist Hanafy refuted the allegations, saying that the Oceanic White Tip, blamed for the attacks, does indeed exist in Egypt's waters. He also added that the existence of a GPS inside the shark does not mean there is a conspiracy at play, adding that these "tracking devices" are often used by marine biologists to study sea life.
"Here in Egypt we put these devices on turtles, in danger of becoming extinct, so that we can watch their behavior, see where they live, feed and lay their eggs," explains Hanafy. "It sends signals to the satellite every time the creature appears on the surface of the ocean. It is sad that they made a person whose only knowledge of sharks comes from the movie Jaws go on national TV to propagate this mumbo-jumbo."
This morning, a team of Egyptian and foreign divers and photographers started surveying the popular diving spots of Sharm El-Sheikh, the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and Tiran.
According to General Shosha, the surveillance will be conducted for 72 hours in diving areas and 24 hours in swimming and snorkeling areas.
Shosha added that shark experts from Australia and the US were expected to arrive soon. He also added that several beaches are temporarily closed and tourists are currently redirected to alternative beaches in the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and for the first time the Nabq Protectorate has been opened to accommodate tourists.
Earlier today, Hisham Gabr of the Chamber of Diving and Water Sports said that Sharm El-Sheikh will be open for diving tomorrow, but only for divers with at least 50 logged dives.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/1343/Egypt/Politics-/Experts-shoot-down-theory-that-Israel-is-behind-sh.aspx
A Sharm El Sheikh marine biologist slammed the conspiracy theory circulating around the country that last week's shark attacks off the South Sinai resort of Sharm El-Sheikh were part of an Israeli conspiracy, but the South Sinai governor supports it.
Mahmoud Hanafy, a professor of marine biology at the Suez Canal University, told Ahram Online that it is "sad," that Egyptian national TV helped perpetuate the theory that the shark attacks, which resulted in one death and four serious injuries this week, may have been controlled by Israel.
Speaking on the public TV program "Egypt Today" yesterday, a specialist introduced as "Captain Mustafa Ismail, a famous diver in Sharm El Sheikh," said that the sharks involved in the attack are ocean sharks and do not live in Egypt's waters.
When asked by the anchor how the shark entered Sharm El Sheikh waters, he burst out, "no, it's who let them in?"
Urged to elaborate, Ismail said that he recently got a call from an Israeli diver in Eilat telling him that they captured a small shark with a GPS planted in its back, implying that the sharks were monitored to attack in Egypt's waters only.
"Why would these sharks travel 4000 km and not have any accidents until they entered Sinai waters?" asked Ismail.
Earlier today, General Abdel-Fadeel Shosha, the governor of South Sinai, backed Ismail's theory. In a phone call to the TV program, he said that it is possible that Israeli intelligence, Mossad, is behind the incidents and that they are doing it to undermine the Egyptian tourism industry. He added that Egypt needs time to investigate the theory.
Marine biologist Hanafy refuted the allegations, saying that the Oceanic White Tip, blamed for the attacks, does indeed exist in Egypt's waters. He also added that the existence of a GPS inside the shark does not mean there is a conspiracy at play, adding that these "tracking devices" are often used by marine biologists to study sea life.
"Here in Egypt we put these devices on turtles, in danger of becoming extinct, so that we can watch their behavior, see where they live, feed and lay their eggs," explains Hanafy. "It sends signals to the satellite every time the creature appears on the surface of the ocean. It is sad that they made a person whose only knowledge of sharks comes from the movie Jaws go on national TV to propagate this mumbo-jumbo."
This morning, a team of Egyptian and foreign divers and photographers started surveying the popular diving spots of Sharm El-Sheikh, the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and Tiran.
According to General Shosha, the surveillance will be conducted for 72 hours in diving areas and 24 hours in swimming and snorkeling areas.
Shosha added that shark experts from Australia and the US were expected to arrive soon. He also added that several beaches are temporarily closed and tourists are currently redirected to alternative beaches in the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and for the first time the Nabq Protectorate has been opened to accommodate tourists.
Earlier today, Hisham Gabr of the Chamber of Diving and Water Sports said that Sharm El-Sheikh will be open for diving tomorrow, but only for divers with at least 50 logged dives.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/1343/Egypt/Politics-/Experts-shoot-down-theory-that-Israel-is-behind-sh.aspx
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