Post mortems on dolphins found beached along the Cornish coast in southwest England, failed to establish a concrete reason for their deaths, but environmentalists said Wednesday they may have been "scared ashore."
At least 26 dolphins died or had to be put down after becoming stranded in shallow water in the Percuil River near Falmouth on Monday, the largest number for 25 years in the U.K.
A spokesman for the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said the animals had no food in their stomachs, indicating that they could have panicked and headed for shore. He said that there was no "evidence" they were feeding prior to death.
The Royal Navy has confirmed it was conducting a live firing exercise with submarines and warships several hours before the stranding. The exercise also included shooting practice.
Earth Changes
Fires fed by raging winds raced across parts of Northern California on Tuesday, destroying dozens of homes, threatening hundreds of others and leaving a firefighter severely burned.
The fires were concentrated in areas north and south of the state capital, while separate blazes burned near the coast.
A 2.5-square mile wildfire destroyed 21 homes and about 30 other structures in Palermo, a town of about 5,000 residents, said Joshpae White, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesman. It was about 50 percent contained Tuesday night.
The community about 60 miles north of Sacramento was evacuated temporarily while at least 350 firefighters fought to protect homes. About 50 residents planned to spend the night at an evacuation center.
The fires were concentrated in areas north and south of the state capital, while separate blazes burned near the coast.
A 2.5-square mile wildfire destroyed 21 homes and about 30 other structures in Palermo, a town of about 5,000 residents, said Joshpae White, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesman. It was about 50 percent contained Tuesday night.
The community about 60 miles north of Sacramento was evacuated temporarily while at least 350 firefighters fought to protect homes. About 50 residents planned to spend the night at an evacuation center.
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| ©AP Photo/Steve Yeater |
| A Stockton firefighter pulls a hose around the back of a home destroyed by a fast wind driven fire in Stockton calif., on Tuesday, June 10, 2008. The fire ignited in a corridor along Interstate 5 and destroyed at least 30 homes and slightly injured two firefighters on Tuesday, a city spokeswoman said. |
BEIJING - Heavy rain hit south and east China on Wednesday, threatening reservoirs a day after a dangerous "quake lake" drained to safety in the southwest, state media said.
Water levels in at least five reservoirs in eastern Zhejiang province had risen above warning levels, Xinhua news agency said, after days of rain devastated southern Guangdong province and hit record levels in neighboring Hong Kong.
About 1,880 structures collapsed in Zhejiang and the southern Guangxi autonomous region.
Water levels in at least five reservoirs in eastern Zhejiang province had risen above warning levels, Xinhua news agency said, after days of rain devastated southern Guangdong province and hit record levels in neighboring Hong Kong.
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| ©REUTERS/Stringer |
| Soldiers build a temporary dam against possible flooding at Quhe River in Suining, Sichuan province, June 11, 2008. |
About 1,880 structures collapsed in Zhejiang and the southern Guangxi autonomous region.
Monash University research into heavy metal contaminant levels in dolphins from Port Phillip Bay and the Gippsland Lakes has revealed high mercury levels may be a contributing factor to dolphin deaths.
Researchers from the School of Biological Sciences have confirmed levels of mercury found in the dolphins were within a range considered to cause negative health and mental effects and were higher than mercury levels found in populations around the world.
Researchers from the School of Biological Sciences have confirmed levels of mercury found in the dolphins were within a range considered to cause negative health and mental effects and were higher than mercury levels found in populations around the world.
A torrent of muddy, brown water from a breached quake lake poured through the deserted Chinese town of Beichuan on Tuesday, sealing the fate of the already doomed community's destruction.
Surging rapids from Tangjiashan lake gushed into the centre of Beichuan and spilled down side streets as previously evacuated locals watched from ridges surrounding the town.
"It's really hard for me to take, our city was so good and beautiful but now there's nothing left. My heart aches," said Zhu Yunyou, a 54-year-old farmer who lost his house in the May 12 earthquake.
Surging rapids from Tangjiashan lake gushed into the centre of Beichuan and spilled down side streets as previously evacuated locals watched from ridges surrounding the town.
"It's really hard for me to take, our city was so good and beautiful but now there's nothing left. My heart aches," said Zhu Yunyou, a 54-year-old farmer who lost his house in the May 12 earthquake.
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| ©AFP |
| Flood water flow along Jian Jiang River, after a controlled drainage operation on the Tangjiashan quake lake, in the worst earthquake-hit area of Beichuan county, in China's southwestern province of Sichuan on June 10, 2008. Muddy, brown water from a quake lake in southwest China was pouring into the flattened town of Beichuan June 10, piling new woes on its tormented population. |
Some 55 dolphins have died, after coming ashore on a beach in the northwest of Madagascar, conservationists said on Monday.
The melon-headed whales, a species of dolphin, were first spotted at sea last month, but then became stranded on a beach last week, Herilala Randriamahazo, from the Wildlife Conservation Society, a non-profit organization, told Reuters.
The melon-headed whales, a species of dolphin, were first spotted at sea last month, but then became stranded on a beach last week, Herilala Randriamahazo, from the Wildlife Conservation Society, a non-profit organization, told Reuters.
With rivers continuing to rise and more heavy rain on the way, state officials said Tuesday they are trying to help towns already battered by floodwaters while working to protect others.
The rising Cedar River was causing the most concern in Cedar Falls, where officials were preparing residents and downtown business owners to evacuate as the river threatened to spill over a levee that protects the area.
The rising Cedar River was causing the most concern in Cedar Falls, where officials were preparing residents and downtown business owners to evacuate as the river threatened to spill over a levee that protects the area.
While it seems everyone knows that the planet is warming, few acknowledge what's really going on. How egocentric and narcissistic humans are, to assume that a few generations of human history tells the story of a planet. Decades and even centuries are not enough to determine anything about global climate change. Look at any records of global (planetary) history and you will see that we are in a natural temperature spike which has occurred before (without human help) and will occur again - approximately every 100-150 thousand years apart.
One of the great things about our current state of technology is the nearly instant reporting we can get from remote sensing platforms. Thanks to Dr. Roy Spencer & Dr. Danny Braswell, GHCC at the University of Alabama, Hunsville, we can watch global temperatures of the lower troposphere in near real-time at this page:
As a scientist who has studied the global warming issue extensively, I can say with high certainty that man's influence on global climate is at best minimal. The temperature data of the recent past does not support the theory of anthropogenic global warming.
Comment: As the following article indicates, Naval exercises became an unfortunate reality for the marine life. Many suffer the consequences as loss of orientation, but there are no known cases of dolphins being "scared ashore." So is it possible that this unexplained explosion is the reason for dolphins panic? And if it is so, is it possible that the explosion was caused by a meteorite?