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Fri, 27 Nov 2020
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Cloud Precipitation

At least 36 swans killed, 8 injured during hail and windstorm near Salt Lake City, Utah

McKenzie Stauffer
kutv.com
Thu, 26 Nov 2020 11:26 UTC
A few dozen swans were killed and several were injured in a hail and windstorm earlier this month.
© Paul Child
A few dozen swans were killed and several were injured in a hail and windstorm earlier this month.
A few dozen swans were killed and several were injured in a hail and windstorm earlier this month.

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources confirmed 36 swans died and eight were injured, with more still being called in from residents in Davis and Salt Lake counties.

"Due to the nature of the blunt force injuries and other indicators, it is believed that the storm forced the birds down, resulting in high-speed impacts with the ground or other stationary objects," a statement by DWR read.

Nearly two weeks ago, heavy winds and hailstorms hit the Wasatch Front on Friday night into Saturday morning, causing damages to property and wildlife.

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Info

Ancient blanket made from turkey feathers

Will Ferguson
Washington State University
Wed, 25 Nov 2020 01:17 UTC
Fiber Cord and Turkey Feathers
© WSU Department of Anthropology
A segment of fiber cord that has been wrapped with turkey feathers, along with a single downy feather.
Pullman, Washington — The ancient inhabitants of the American Southwest used around 11,500 feathers to make a turkey feather blanket, according to a new paper in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. The people who made such blankets were ancestors of present-day Pueblo Indians such as the Hopi, Zuni and Rio Grande Pueblos.

A team led by Washington State University archaeologists analyzed an approximately 800-year-old, 99 x 108 cm (about 39 x 42.5 inches) turkey feather blanket from southeastern Utah to get a better idea of how it was made. Their work revealed thousands of downy body feathers were wrapped around 180 meters (nearly 200 yards) of yucca fiber cord to make the blanket, which is currently on display at the Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum in Blanding, Utah.

The researchers also counted body feathers from the pelts of wild turkeys purchased from ethically and legally compliant dealers in Idaho to get an estimate of how many turkeys would have been needed to provide feathers for the blanket. Their efforts show it would have taken feathers from between four to 10 turkeys to make the blanket, depending on the length of feathers selected.

"Blankets or robes made with turkey feathers as the insulating medium were widely used by Ancestral Pueblo people in what is now the Upland Southwest, but little is known about how they were made because so few such textiles have survived due to their perishable nature," said Bill Lipe, emeritus professor of anthropology at WSU and lead author of the paper. "The goal of this study was to shed new light on the production of turkey feather blankets and explore the economic and cultural aspects of raising turkeys to supply the feathers."
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Attention

Himalayan black bear attacks couple, mauls woman to death in Uttarakhand, India


Times Now
Sat, 21 Nov 2020 09:41 UTC
When the residents of Vadhuk village were in the forest, they were attacked by a Himalayan black bear (Representative Image).
© iStock Images
When the residents of Vadhuk village were in the forest, they were attacked by a Himalayan black bear (Representative Image).
When the residents of Vadhuk village were in the forest, they were attacked by a Himalayan black bear. The woman's husband climbed a tree and saved himself from the bear attack. Meanwhile, the woman was mauled to death by the bear.

Ashutosh Singh, divisional forest officer (DFO) Badrinath told Hindustan Times that compensation would be granted to the woman's family after the formalities are completed.

According to the forest official, the woman died on the spot. Singh added, "With the onset of winters, bear attacks increase as bears come down from snowy higher reaches in search of food. This is one of the main causes of the surge in man-bear conflict here in winter months."

Comment: Bear attacks increasing worldwide

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Attention

Over 100 pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins dead after Chatham Islands, New Zealand stranding


RNZ
Wed, 25 Nov 2020 11:24 UTC
An aerial photo of some of the stranded pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins.
© Sam Wild
An aerial photo of some of the stranded pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins.
More than 100 pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins are dead after being stranded on the Chatham Islands, with 26 of them having to be euthanised.

The Department of Conservation was notified of the mass stranding on a remote Chatham Islands beach at midday on Sunday.

Ninety-seven whales and three dolphins died in the stranding, and 26 of the animals were alive but very weak.

DOC biodiversity ranger Jemma Welch said the 26 were euthanised due to rough seas conditions, and the almost certainty of the stranding attracting great white sharks to the area.


Comment: Also recently, dead or stranded whales have been tuning up on the shores of Mexico, Iran, North Carolina, Alabama and the UK.

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Cow

Calves rescued from huge sinkhole in Springfield, Tennessee


Smokey Barn News
Tue, 17 Nov 2020 12:02 UTC
RESCUE
© Robertson County Emergency Management Agency
Two calves were rescued today after they became hopelessly trapped when the pair fell in a newly formed, very large, and deep sinkhole near Springfield.

Crews with North Robertson Fire and Rescue, Robertson County Emergency Management Agency, Robertson County Emergency Medical Services, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Robertson County Sheriff's Department, and Springfield Fire conducted the rescue operation Tuesday. The farm is located on William Woodard Rd. MAP

The calves somehow survived the fall into the 40-foot deep, 30-foot diameter sinkhole. Officials said, like a kid, they are young and likely were able to take getting bumped around a little.
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Doberman

Boy dies after being attacked by stray dogs in Sindh, Pakistan - 2nd such death for the province in 2 weeks


Suchtv.pk
Mon, 23 Nov 2020 10:41 UTC
A Florida man was attacked and killed by a pack of stray dogs that still remain on the loose, say police
© Getty
A Florida man was attacked and killed by a pack of stray dogs that still remain on the loose, say police
A 10-year-old boy died after being savagely attacked by stray dogs in Sindh's Khairpur district, the police said on Monday.

According to the police, the minor victim, identified as Ghulam Murtaza, was assaulted by a pack of dogs in the Kot Diji area and was rushed to a nearby hospital where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment.

The police said a first information report (FIR) of the dog attack that led to the boy's death will be lodged against the Naseer Faqeer Union Council's (UC) secretary. Local residents have confined themselves to their houses due to fear of a possible attack by savage dogs that are freely roaming the streets of the neighborhood.

On November 10, a 12-year-old boy had died after being injured by stray dogs in Hala city of Sindh's Matiari district. A pack of savage dogs attacked the boy, leaving him critically injured, according to his family. Local residents rushed him to the Hala Hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.

Comment: As well as the above incidents, the past few months has seen a notable number of such reports involving groups of dogs killing people:

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Black Cat

50 people killed by animals so far in 2020 across Uttarakhand, India - 24 by leopards


Times of India
Sun, 22 Nov 2020 12:07 UTC
Stock image of leopard
© Getty
The pandemic and the consequent lockdown seem to have had little impact on Uttarakhand's rampant human-wildlife conflict (HWC) menace. Till October 30 this year, 50 people have already been killed (nearly half of them by leopards) and 214 injured in attacks by wild animals in the state. The figures are close to those of 2019, when 58 people lost their lives to such attacks and 181 were injured.

According to data exclusively accessed by TOI from the Uttarakhand forest department, in the first 10 months of the year - from January to October - 24 people have been killed in leopard attacks and 13 by snakebites.

Eight people have died due to attacks by elephants, two each by bear and wild pig attacks and one after being attacked by a crocodile.
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Attention

Man killed in shark attack off Western Australia - 8th such fatality for the country in 2020

Grace Millimaci
The Telegraph (UK)
Sun, 22 Nov 2020 10:53 UTC
Great white shark
A man has been killed in a shark attack on the north-west coast of Western Australia.

The incident happened at Cable Beach in the Kimberley region's popular tourism destination of Broome about 8.45am local time (12.45am GMT).

It is understood that the 55-year-old man had been bodyboarding when he was bitten.

WA Police said the man was recovered from the water and treated by local police officers before St John Ambulance arrived.

"Tragically the man has died as a result of his injuries," a WA Police spokesperson said.


Comment: Great white shark death toll in Australia at highest level in 86 years after dad killed

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Wolf

Hyenas drag man from bed and maul him to death in Zimbabwe

Lianne Kolirin
CNN
Fri, 20 Nov 2020 13:13 UTC
hyena
An elderly man has been killed by a pack of hyenas in Zimbabwe, after they pulled him from his bed while he was sleeping.

The man, who has been identified by the authorities as 87-year-old Tendai Maseka, was dragged about 1,000 feet from his mud and wood hut.

The incident occurred on Monday night in the rural region of Chirumanzu. in central Zimbabwe.

By the time Maseka's body was discovered by villagers, its lower half was missing.

Park rangers are currently hunting for the animals in a bid to "eliminate" them, according to Tinashe Farawo, spokesman for the Zimbabwe Parks & Wildlife Management Authority.
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Doberman

Man killed by pack of wild dogs in Jackson County, Florida

Jeff Burlew
Tallahassee Democrat
Fri, 20 Nov 2020 12:43 UTC
A Florida man was attacked and killed by a pack of stray dogs that still remain on the loose, say police
© Getty
A Florida man was attacked and killed by a pack of stray dogs that still remain on the loose, say police
A man was found dead Wednesday along the side of the road in rural Jackson County, the victim of an apparent dog attack.

The Jackson County Sheriff's Office said it received a report at 7:48 a.m. Wednesday of a man lying next to Kirkland Road, around the Bascom area not far from the Alabama line.

Deputies and troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol responded to the area and confirmed the man was deceased, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release.

He was identified as Donald Ray Allen, 65, of Bascom.

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