Animals
S


Fish

Anglers off coast of Virginia reel in massive fish usually found in tropical waters, possibly set record

Michael Hollan
Fox News
Thu, 12 Nov 2020 19:45 UTC
fish
You never know what you're going to catch.

A group of anglers was shocked to reel in a massive fish 80 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. It wasn't just the size of the animal that surprised them, however. When they realized what they caught, they realized they may have made the history books.

Michael MacTaggart, Jon Wetherington and Nick Kemp were out last week near Norfolk Canyon in Virginia hoping to catch swordfish, My Fox 8 reports. According to him, the group was about to give up for the day when they felt a tug on the line.

When they reeled the fish in, they were not expecting to see a giant opah fish on the end of the line. MacTaggart described the moment as "surreal."
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Attention

Giant 'earthquake fish' caught after 2 quakes strike eastern Taiwan

Keoni Everington
Taiwan News
Fri, 06 Nov 2020 12:11 UTC
oarfish
Taiwanese fishermen on Friday (Nov. 6) caught a massive oarfish (Regalecus glesne) nearly 5 meters in length off the coast of eastern Taiwan the same day two earthquakes struck the area.

The oarfish was 490 centimeters long and weighed about 45 kilograms. It was caught off the coast of Dong'ao in Yilan County.

The owner of Fumei Huo Seafood Restaurant (富美活海鮮餐廳) purchased the fish for NT$16,000 (US$560). Chen Kuo-pin (陳國濱) was cited by Liberty Times as saying that it was the longest "earthquake fish" (地震魚) he had ever seen.

Comment: Other such reports in 2020:

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Attention

Dozens of parrots found dead on mobile phone mast in the Philippines


Live Link
Thu, 26 Nov 2020 11:13 UTC
dead parrots
A worker was shocked after finding dozens of dead birds on top of a mobile phone mast in the Philippines.

Rigger technician Edward Tapia climbed the tower in Surigao del Sur province for a maintenance check on November 21.

Edward climbed up the 130ft-tall structure but when he reached the top, there were dozens of birds that had died mysteriously.

The blue-naped parrots, a species found throughout the Philippines, were in different stages of decomposition suggesting that they did not all die at the same time. There were several other types of dead alongside them.

Edward found the creatures stacked up in the platform corner beside a machine installed on the tower, which transmits 3G and 4G network signals.
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Question

Mystery as hundreds of birds kill themselves flying into apartment block in Inner Mongolia, China

Debbie White
The Sun (UK)
Mon, 30 Nov 2020 10:34 UTC
Every day waxwings are found dead or dying in the street in Baotou City
Every day waxwings are found dead or dying in the street in Baotou City
Hundreds of 'kamikaze' birds are being found dead outside a Chinese apartment block every day - baffling boffins.

The battered corpses of cute, but timid, waxwings are piling up in Baotou City, Inner Mongolia, say media reports.

Gruesome video shows the birds lying on the ground, dying or dead, says HK News.

It reports that most of the birds have smashed straight into transparent glass windows before plummeting to their deaths onto concrete at the base of the brick residential building.
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Black Cat

Tiger attacks scores of people in Assam, India


Mirror Now Digital
Wed, 25 Nov 2020 19:24 UTC
Tiger
Royal Bengal tiger strayed into Tezpur town in Assam on Tuesday and attacked scores of people injuring two of them. The video of the incident has gone viral on social media.

The incident that took place on the outskirts of the Tezpur town has caused panic in the area. The tiger is still said to be out in the open.

As the news about the tiger attack broke out, forest officials rushed to the spot to control the situation. Officials suspect the big cat may have strayed out of the Kaziranga National Park or Nameri National Park and Forest Reserve.

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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 ChildA 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 AnthropologyA 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 ImagesWhen 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 WildAn 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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