Animals
S


Black Cat

Girl killed by leopard as she slept next to her parents in India

Leopards now attacking humans in their houses
Leopards now attacking humans in their houses
A 12-year-old girl has been killed by a leopard after it dragged her away while she slept next to her parents.

The child's mutilated body was found covered in mud in the backyard of the family home in a village near Udaipur, in India.

Local media named the girl as Ravina and said she was sleeping with her father Ranjit Singh and mother on the terrace of their house on Wednesday, when a leopard grabbed the child by her neck around midnight.

The girl's mother did not realise she was missing until around 4am, when they launched a frantic search, the Udaipur Kurin reports.

Teethmarks were found on the girl's body and villagers are reportedly angry that authorities have not done more to stop leopard attacks.

It is the second terrifying incident this month and police and forest authorities have been called in to search for the animal.

Leopards are frequently sighted in the area and pugmarks were found on the ground.

A large search party turned out to find the girl but they discovered her body in the family's backgarden
A large search party turned out to find the girl but they discovered her body in the family's backgarden

Comment: See also this selection of reports from India for the last 2 years of what seems to be increasingly bold, atypical behaviour by this big cat: Leopard attacks rise in Nashik region India: 12 people killed in five years

Leopard kills boy after entering house in Junnar, India: 'Very abnormal activity'

Leopard kills three-and-half-yr-old girl in Rampur, India

Leopard attacks boy and father in Dhar, India

50-yr-old woman killed by leopard in Junnar, India

Leopard changing its spots? Big cat attack on human, scooter and 4 by 4 vehicle in India

Hunt on for man-eater leopard after 2 killed in Alirajpur, India

Eight separate leopard attacks on humans across India within 2 months: Leopard attacks 5 people, beaten to death in Assam, India

Man-eating leopard preys on drunk villagers in the Didihat region, Himalayas

Leopard on the loose in Indian city sparks terror as it runs wild in a hospital, cinema and apartment block


Black Cat

Two hurt in bobcat attack in New Scotland, New York

Dead Bobcat
"Never heard of it! I've lived here all my life and I'm not telling you how old I am!" said Eleanor Devellis, a New Scotland resident.

Longtime residents on Rock Hill road have never heard anything like it. Albany County Sheriff says a couple was visiting this home to pick up tables for a garage sale - when they were attacked.

"Wife was sitting outside on a few rocks playing with the family dog, heard a hissing noise and turned around and there was a bobcat," said Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple.

Apple says the animal bit the woman a few times and then the dog attacked the bobcat. Her husband then tried to get the animal way and was also bitten.

"The homeowner and the husband pinned the bobcat down while the homeowner gets a gun and shoots the bobcat," he explained.

Health

Shark takes a chunk out of surfer's leg; fourth attack off Brevard, Florida coastline in 2016

Shark attacks
A man was bit by a shark while he was wading in the waters of Pelican Beach Park in Satellite Beach in Florida.

The unidentified man, who was surfing, had 'wounds indicative of a small shark bite or similar toothed sea creature,' according to Florida Today, quoting Brevard County Fire Rescue's spokesperson.

Despite the deep and gory marks shown in photos taken on the beach, the surfer declined to go to the hospital. He was reportedly bitten on the calf, according to TrackingSharks.com.

Lifeguards first responded to the man around 2:55pm and said he was in the water when the injury occurred.

Images from the scene show paramedics treating the man's leg injuries, including the bloody bite mark on the unlucky swimmer's calf.

The waters in the area are populated with bull, lemon and other shark species. They generally latch on quickly, thinking a human leg is fish food, and then swim away.


Bizarro Earth

Contagious cancer is spreading among marine life

Cancers shellfish
© 1. Annette F. Muttray; 2. and 3. David Iglesias Left to right:1. Mussels (Mytilus trossulus) at Copper Beach in West Vancouver, Canada 2. Cockles (Cerastoderma edule) collected in the ria of Arousa in Galicia, Spain3. Golden carpet shell clams (Polititapes aureus) collected in the ria of Arousa in Galicia, Spain
The oceans are home to innumerable and diverse species of marine life. A new paper, published in Nature, suggests that the watery medium that nourishes and protects this life may also promote the spread of certain cancers, both within and across species.

The study, performed by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center, with collaborators in Canada and Spain, examined a variety of mollusks harboring a form of cancer known as disseminated neoplasia, a leukemia-like disease that affects populations of bivalves in many parts of the world. The team has discovered that in several species, cancer cells themselves were spreading from animal to animal as a contagious clonal cell line.

"Our results suggest that direct transmission of cancer among marine animals may be much more common than once thought," said senior author, Stephen Goff, PhD, the Higgins Professor of Biochemistry in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Bbiophysics and the Deparment of Microbiology & Immunology at Columbia University Medical Center.

Eye 2

Man attacked by alligator in Bushnell, Florida

Alligator
© Sumter County Sheriff's OfficeAlligator
An alligator attacked a man in Florida Tuesday evening -- about an hour away from where a boy was killed by a gator outside a Disney resort, according to the local sheriff's office.

The attack in Bushnell, Florida, happened around 6:30 p.m. and left the 58-year-old man with injuries to his right leg, the Sumter County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post.

The man's condition was not immediately known, but he was airlifted to Ocala Regional Hospital.

Police said that the gator was 8 1/2 to 9 feet long.


Arrow Down

Sick society: Sea turtle seriously injured after being dragged from water for selfies

selfies turtle lebanon


A trip to the beach turned into a nightmare for this turtle, who found himself involved with the wrong crowd of people.

Last Thursday afternoon, a loggerhead turtle was allegedly pulled out from the ocean at Havana Beach in Beirut, Lebanon. He was not only only used for selfies, but also allegedly attacked.

Reportedly, witnesses at the beach saw a beachgoer pull the turtle out from the sea. Then the turtle was thrown onto shore, beaten and stepped on, according to Green Area, which obtained photos of the upsetting scene.

The images show beachgoers posing with the turtle for photos, as well as one beachgoer apparently placing a standing child on top of the turtle. Jason Mier, executive director of Animals Lebanon, told The Dodo that he spoke with a person who claimed to have observed the turtle being hit with a stick on the beach.

Comment: Are we more narcissistic than ever before? The answer is yes!



Cloud Lightning

Another lightning bolt kills sheep in Kyrgyzstan; 55 struck in second recent incident

Lightning
At least 55 sheep were killed by lightning in Kyrgyzstan. Press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situation reported.

According to it, on June 20 a resident of Almaluu-Bulak, Suzak district, Jalal-Abad region Mederbek Kaamytov drove sheep to Kurobos pasture at about 3.00 a.m.

A lightning stroke into a herd of sheep, killing them, the shepherd has managed to slaughter only 20 of them, so that they would be suitable for consumption.

Comment: See also: 120 sheep killed by lightning bolt in Kyrgyzstan


Attention

Sloth bear mauls farmer to death in Telangana, India

The bear lying down next to the body after making the kill at Guntanpally village in Mahbubnagar on Monday
The bear lying down next to the body after making the kill at Guntanpally village in Mahbubnagar on Monday
In yet another instance of man-animal conflict, a bear mauled a farmer to death when he went to his agricultural field on Monday. The incident occurred at Guntanpally village in Achampeta mandal.

Tokya Naik, the farmer, went to his farmland on the outskirts of the village on Monday morning to check his crops, when the bear pounced on him.

According to sources, the local farmers had sown seeds for Kharif season after rains, but bears were straying from the nearby forest and destroying the crops. Farmers had put up nets around the fields to prevent bears from entering the fields.

It is said that the bear got stuck in the net and when Naik went to the fields, it pounced on him and mauled him to death.

After killing the farmer, the bear slept besides the body for a couple of hours. Villagers, who went to the field, found the bear and informed the forest officials.

Cloud Lightning

Duck down! Lightning bolt likely kills 6 flying mallards in Regina, Canada

After a flash of lightning, three ducks fell from the sky and landed on this roof in south Regina on Saturday night. Three more dead ducks were found in nearby yards.
© Rick Spaeth/CBCAfter a flash of lightning, three ducks fell from the sky and landed on this roof in south Regina on Saturday night. Three more dead ducks were found in nearby yards.
No visible sign of injury to 6 mallards in Regina neighbourhood

A huge crack of lightning was followed by multiple "thumps" on a Regina roof Saturday night — and when the sun came up, there were dead ducks all around.

It happened around 9:30 p.m. CST on the 3400 block of Portnall Ave. in the south end of the city.

A storm was underway and for several minutes there was intense thunder and lightning.

After one particularly brilliant flash of lightning, the ducks dropped from the sky, neighbours said.

Three landed on a roof and three more ended up in yards in the area.


Neighbours said there was no obvious sign of injury to the mallards, so it's still not clear what killed them.

Cloud Lightning

120 sheep killed by lightning bolt in Kyrgyzstan

120 sheep killed by a lightning strike
120 sheep killed by a lightning strike
120 sheep have been killed by a sudden lightning strike on June 16, 2016.

The animals were killed at once, while the shepherd and his helpers managed to survive.

The terrifying event occurred between 9 and 10 pm on a pasture in the village of Suuk Tobo in the Aksy district, Kyrgyzstan.

The shepherd named Umar with two helpers were taking care of a herd of about 600 sheep and goats.

As the pasture in Suuk Tobo is difficult to reach at night and under rain, the shepherds decided to wait the morning to reach it.