Animals
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Attention

Baby dolphins, porpoises and seals wash up dead on Welsh beaches after storms

Andrew Forgrave
Wales on Line
Tue, 22 Feb 2022 14:23 UTC
This young dolphin was removed from Ynyslas beach, north of Borth, Ceredigion, after Storm Dudley
© Marine Environmental MonitoringThis young dolphin was removed from Ynyslas beach, north of Borth, Ceredigion, after Storm Dudley
Large numbers of marine animals have been found washed up on Welsh beaches following the storms that have battered the UK over the past week.

In recent days, 13 dead seals, dolphins and porpoises have been found washed up on west Wales beaches after struggling to cope with strong swells and huge waves.

All the animals were reported to Marine Environmental Monitoring (MEM), a group run by Matt Westfield with veterinary support from London Zoo.

North Wales Live reported that the group has collected common dolphin carcasses from Ynyslas, Ceredigion, and Aberdesach, Gwynedd after visiting a number of sites, from Pembrokeshire to Anglesey.

Post-mortem examinations are due to be carried out on the animals this afternoon (Tues, Feb 22) by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

The two dolphins recovered by MEM showed few signs of injury but had varying degrees of scavenger damage. One dolphin was recovered from Ynyslas beach on Thursday after storm Dudley, while the second was found on Aberdesach beach and was reported to MEM last Friday.
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Question

Nearly 55 American robins found dead at Radford University, Virginia

Alexus Davila
wsls.com
Fri, 18 Feb 2022 13:00 UTC
This flock of birds, more than 50 in total, fell out of the sky, Feb. 18, 2022.
© Karen PowersThis flock of birds, more than 50 in total, fell out of the sky, Feb. 18, 2022.
Radford University students were shocked Thursday afternoon to see a slew of dead birds on the ground.

At least 55 American Robins were found dead or on the verge of taking their last breath on the college campus.

Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center was able to save two birds that are recovering well.

At this time, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is investigating the cause of death by testing five birds.

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Attention

'Go, go, go': Elephant attacks tourist vehicles in Sri Lanka


Stuff
Thu, 17 Feb 2022 16:02 UTC
The elephant repeatedly rammed the vehicle.
© NEWSFLARE/APThe elephant repeatedly rammed the vehicle.
This is the moment a wild elephant attacked two tourist vehicles at a national park in Sri Lanka.

Footage captured by Sanjaya Madushan Wickrasami in Yala National Park earlier this month shows the massive bull elephant, Nandimithra, chasing the guide's jeep.

"Go, go, go!" screams a passenger moments before the elephant catches up to the off-road vehicle and rams it.

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Igloo

Significant changes in Antarctic revealed by 'striking' expansion of flowering plants and reduced presence of seals

David Nield
Science Alert
Sat, 19 Feb 2022 12:00 UTC
Deschampsia
© (Nature/iStock/Getty Images Plus)Deschampsia antarctica is spreading.
Flowering plants in the Antarctic region are rapidly expanding, scientists say, indicating the continuing effects of climate change on the continent. The findings suggest we may have reached a tipping point in this fragile, remote ecosystem.

A new study of this plant expansion looked at the two flowering plants native to Antarctica, Deschampsia antarctica and Colobanthus quitensis. Researchers measured the growth and expansion of these plants on a small subantarctic island called Signy Island from 2009 to 2019.

Both plants grew faster each year as temperatures rose - which the team puts down to warming summer air and a drop in the plant-trampling fur seal population, which could be down to food availability and sea conditions.


Comment: This study actually conflicts with another that showed summer temperatures have been dropping, and to such an extent that the regions moss forests were declining. That said, even if temperatures were anomalously higher in summer, recent winters have seen record ice growth and cold temperatures; last winter in particular was the coldest on record: Global Warming? South Pole just underwent its coldest 'winter' in recorded history

Further, the reduction in the presence seal population - who may have simply moved to other areas that are more accommodating, with more abundant food sources - may be yet another sign of the overall cooling in the region. A study of Antarctica's Adelie penguins found that they were in fact happier in regions with less sea ice, not more: Antarctica's Adélie penguins happier with less sea ice, research shows ice is growing


Comment: There is yet another factor to consider, not acknowledged in the above study, which is undersea volcanic heating: Volcanoes melting West Antarctic glaciers, 3 new studies confirm

See also: And check out SOTT radio's:

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Doberman

Woman killed in dog attack at South Florida animal rescue


FOX 13
Thu, 17 Feb 2022 11:11 UTC
dogs
© WSVN
A woman was mauled to death by a dog at an animal rescue in the Fort Lauderdale area, while another woman was injured.

WSVN reports the attack happened around 11 a.m. Thursday at the rescue, called 100+ Abandoned Dogs of Everglades Florida, located in Oakland Park.

Fire Rescue crews and the Broward Sheriff's Office responded to the scene, telling the news outlet that a 70-year-old woman at the facility was working with the dog when the animal "suddenly snapped" and attacked her. She was rushed to Broward Health Medical Center, where she succumbed to her injuries.

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Attention

British man named as victim of fatal Australia shark attack

Caroline Davies and Nicola Slawson
The Guardian
Thu, 17 Feb 2022 15:11 UTC
Great white shark
A swimmer killed in what is believed to have been the first fatal shark attack off Sydney, Australia, in almost 60 years has been named locally as a British man.

Friends said Simon Nellist, 35, who was engaged to be married, "loved the water" and was an experienced diving instructor. The British expatriate, who it is understood was living in the Wolli Creek area of Sydney, was reportedly training for a charity swim.

New South Wales police said the search for his remains would continue at sunrise on Friday. It is believed to be the first fatal shark attack in Sydney since 1963.

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Binoculars

Rare bird of prey never before seen in the US is spotted in Texas

Mitchell Willets
Star-Advertiser
Wed, 16 Feb 2022 11:52 UTC
Bat Falcon
© AntshrikeBat Falcon
A "beautiful" bird of prey never previously documented in the United States has been spotted in Texas, drawing crowds to a wildlife preserve in the state's southern tip to see it with their own eyes.

The eye-catching bat falcon is likely an entirely unfamiliar sight to anyone outside of its home range of Central America and Mexico, but photos shared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service show the black, white and copper bird perched on a tree at the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, near McAllen.

"Everyone that can catch a glimpse is looking at this bat falcon right now," USFWS said in a Facebook post. "This is the first recorded time that a bat falcon has ever been seen in the U.S.!" "Texas beauty, for sure!" one person commented on the post.

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Attention

Rare pygmy sperm whale dies after stranding on Taiwan's west coast

Phillip Charlier
Taiwan English News
Sun, 13 Feb 2022 13:48 UTC
Coast Guard officers from the Port of Budai attempt to keep a pygmy sperm whale alive after it is stranded on a beach in Chiayi County, February 13, 2022.
© National Coast Guard AdministrationCoast Guard officers from the Port of Budai attempt to keep a pygmy sperm whale alive after it is stranded on a beach in Chiayi County, February 13, 2022.
A rarely seen in Taiwan pygmy sperm whale (Kogia breviceps) died despite rescue efforts after stranding on a beach in Chiayi County this morning, Sunday, February 13.

A fisherman found the pygmy sperm whale stranded on a beach in Budai Township at around 8:00 am. The fisherman reported the stranding to the local branch of the National Coast Guard Administration.

Coast guard officers contacted the National Cheng Kung University Marine Biology and Cetacean Research Center, and attempted to keep the whale alive, but it died during the rescue process.

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Attention

Giant whale shark washes ashore on Thumba beach in Kerala, India


Deccan Herald
Mon, 14 Feb 2022 13:28 UTC
shark
Representative Image.
A giant whale shark died on Thumba beach, where it washed ashore on Sunday afternoon after it was unable to return to sea despite the repeated efforts of the local fishermen.

According to visuals on news channels, a large number of people turned up at the beach to see the whale shark and several of them either clicked selfies close to the huge fish or shot videos of its body flopping around in the waves.

The visuals also showed the local fishermen attempting to push the shark back into the waters from the beach and also trying to pull it into the sea using a rope tied to a boat, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

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Attention

Five-year-old killed in elephant attack in Kerala, India


Deccan Herald
Tue, 08 Feb 2022 12:16 UTC
elephant
A five-year-old girl was killed and two others were injured in a wild elephant attack in a village in this district, police said on Tuesday.

The incident was reported from Athirappally forest region on Monday evening.

The girl, her father and a relative were travelling on a motorbike when the animal attacked them on Chalakudy-Athirappally road around 7 pm on Monday, they said.

The trio tried to run away when it noticed the elephant emerging from an oil-palm estate after stopping the bike. However, the girl fell down and the jumbo allegedly trampled her to death.
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