Animals
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Health

Curious koala bear walks into hospital

Kara O'Neill
Daily Mirror, UK
Tue, 05 May 2015 16:21 UTC
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© Facebook / Western District Health ServiceStrolling in: The cheeky koala let himself in through the automatic doors
Stunned medical staff couldn't believe their eyes as they watched a wild koala bear stroll in through hospital doors and make himself at home.

The furry animal was caught by the security cameras of a hospital in western Victoria, Australia as he made his way into the reception area of the building.

He then was spotted wandering around the corridors for a few minutes as he investigated his new surroundings.

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Bug

Huge swarms of locust "black out the sky" in Queensland, Australia

Matthew Killoran
The Sunday Mail (Australia)
Sun, 03 May 2015 11:07 UTC
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Magnified spectrum image of locust taken through an electron microscope by the CSIRO.
Plagues of locusts have been devouring their way through the state's central west compounding the hardships suffered by drought-affected farmers.

More than 150 swarms have been reported to Biosecurity Queensland so far this year, with some reported to be more than 40ha in size and thick enough to "black out the sky".

While their activity has been dying down as winter approaches, there are fears eggs are lying dormant waiting to return in favourable weather conditions.

There were only 15 swarms reported throughout the state from 2011 and 2013.

But Biosecurity Queensland figures show there were 40 swarms reported in January, 59 in February, 43 in March and 16 in April and conducted aerial sprays over 20,000ha of central Queensland to tackle them.

Locust activity has been reported mostly in the central west including Blackall-Tambo, Emerald, Longreach, Barcaldine, Banana, Boulia, Cloncurry and Diamantina.
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Bizarro Earth

Dead zones: Places where no animal can survive found in Atlantic Ocean


RT.com
Sun, 03 May 2015 15:02 UTC
Dead Zones
© NASA Earth ObservatoryExample of an ocean eddy (not from the study) as seen from space.
A team of German and Canadian marine biologists have for the first time ever witnessed so-called 'dead zones' in the Atlantic Ocean - places where no life can thrive, owing to there being almost no dissolved oxygen in the water.

Zones depleted of oxygen do exist in nature and have previously been discovered along populated coastal areas off the eastern and southern coasts of the United States and the Baltic Sea. But this is the first time such a place has been observed in the open ocean.

In a paper published in the journal Biogeosciences, researchers outline the existence of pockets of low-oxygenated patches of water in the Atlantic Ocean.

They are vast - sometimes 100 square miles in size. They travel constantly and are also seasonal. One of the biggest ever discovered forms each year in the Gulf of Mexico.

What makes these things tick is a hodge-podge of nutrients and microbes delivered from elsewhere. It's a cyclical process: the nutrients are food for algae blooms, which in turn get devoured by microorganism. This creates waste, which is then eaten by other microbes. This process uses up a lot of oxygen, creating oxygen-free pockets.
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Attention

Elephant tramples villager to death in Raigarh, India: 4th casualty in a week


The Times of India
Sun, 03 May 2015 18:21 UTC
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Elephant on a charge.
A man was trampled to death by a herd of elephants in Chaal forest of Dharamjaigarh region in Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, fourth casualty in a week. This is the 12th death recorded from Korba, Surguja, Jashpur and Bilaspur regions of the state this since January.

On an average, 25 people fall prey to tuskers in the state annually.

Foresters said 61-year-old villager from Sharasmal village went to forests to collect forest produce when a herd of elephants attacked and trampled him to death. His maimed body was recovered by officials.

Despite large number of deaths caused by elephants, state government has not been able to come up with an effective strategy to deal with the problem and experts attribute laxity on government's part due to presence of rich mineral resources in forests resulting in mining activities. Large part of forest divisions with elephant presence (accounting to more than 30% of human deaths and crop damage) has been identified as sites for mining.
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Wolf

Coyote carries off dog in Randolph, New Jersey

Kieran Corcoran
Daily Mail, UK
Sun, 03 May 2015 16:12 UTC
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This photograph shows a coyote stalking the Upper West Side of Manhattan on April 22. The animals are said to be most aggressive around this time of year
A vicious coyote attacked a pet dog and dragged it into the forest in a New Jersey town - the latest in a string of incidents which have seen the wolf-like animals encroach on towns and cities.

The beast grabbed the beloved pet, a Yorkshire terrier, in the backyard of his owner's home in the township of Randolph, around an hour west of New York City.

The Yorkie, named Bo, was seen being carried away by the coyote around 10pm Tuesday, police said.

NJ.com reported that Bo's owner had let him out briefly when the coyote struck and watched the abduction without being able to help.

Police and wildlife officials combed the nearby woods in the hope of tracking down either Bo or the coyote, but turned up no trace of either.

Comment: See also this sample of recent reports of coyote attacks on dogs:

Coyote fights 2 large dogs in back yard in Pinellas, Florida

Coyotes seen attacking large dogs in Stamford, Connecticut

More 'rare' urban coyote attacks on Indiana dogs

Spike in coyote attacks on animal pets in Claremont, California

Coyotes killing pets in Seal Beach, California

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Black Cat

Cougar attacks dog near Powell River, British Columbia


cbc.ca
Fri, 01 May 2015 18:11 UTC
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© Ron Smid/FacebookBruce, a 4-year-old pit bull, has a drainage tube running from his forehead to the side of his cheek to help him recover from a cougar attack.
A four-year-old pit bull is recovering after being attacked by a cougar near Powell River, B.C., last week.

Bruce, who lives with his owner Ron Smid in a secluded area, disappeared into the woods last Thursday, April 23, returning a few minutes later — bleeding.

"He must have caught a scent and he didn't want to be called back," said Smid.

It wasn't until Bruce was examined by the vet and his body shaved, that the full extent of his injuries could be seen.

There were puncture wounds all over the dog's body and lacerations across his head.

"The largest wound that is apparent is a large tooth-like fang that went through the middle of his skull and it actually penetrated right to the bone," said Smid.
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Attention

Man trampled to death by elephant in Nilgiris, India


The Hindu
Sat, 02 May 2015 17:21 UTC
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Elephant kicking up some dust.
K. Balan (47) of Bokkapuram was killed by an elephant late on Thursday, when he along with a few other people were collecting firewood in the nearby forest of The Nilgiris North division.

The group was chased by the elephant.

While the rest managed to flee to safety, Balan went missing. On Friday, Balan's body was found at Nelson estate near Bokkapuram. On behalf of the State Government,

Forest Department officials gave away the first instalment solatium of Rs. 25,000 to his family.

The body was sent to Gudalur Government Hospital for post-mortem examination.
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Info

Global decline of large herbivores could lead to an 'empty landscape'


sciencedaily.com
Fri, 01 May 2015 13:17 UTC
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© Halska HrabarThis is a mountain zebra, Equus zebra.
The decline of the world's large herbivores, especially in Africa and parts of Asia, is raising the specter of an "empty landscape" in some of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, according to a newly published study.

Many populations of animals such as rhinoceroses, zebras, camels, elephants and tapirs are diminishing or threatened with extinction in grasslands, savannahs, deserts and forests, scientists say.

An international team of wildlife ecologists led by William Ripple, Oregon State University distinguished professor in the College of Forestry, conducted a comprehensive analysis of data on the world's largest herbivores (more than 100 kilograms, or 220 pounds, on average), including endangerment status, key threats and ecological consequences of population decline. They published their observations in Science Advances, the open-access online journal of Science magazine.
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Attention

More than 20 whales beach in Murdeira, Cape Verde


Ocean Press
Thu, 30 Apr 2015 12:31 UTC
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Beached whale at Murdeira, Cape Verde
Teams of biologists, environmentalists are already on Jorge Fonseca beach where they seek at all costs to save the life of the sea mammals and bring them back to the open sea.

Some vessels also already in place to support the rescue.

Experts on site frantically go forward because the main concern is to minimize the environmental tragedy and try to save the whales. At least twenty-three cases have been counted already. It is not yet possible to advance the causes but we know that we are in the time of year that this phenomenon tends to happen.

Ocean Press is already on the site and will continue to monitor on location this news, updating it soon with more information

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Attention

Dog infects four humans with the plague: Researchers fear outbreak could involve human-to-human transmission

Heather Saul
The Independent
Fri, 01 May 2015 18:01 UTC
pneumonic plague

A dog has spread the plague to four people in Colorado, in an outbreak officials say could involve the first person-to-person transmission of the infection in the US in 90 years.

A study published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found the infection was spread when a pitbull terrier was taken ill and eventually put down by vets. The two vets who treated the animal, his owner and a friend of the owner developed similar symptoms as the dog shortly afterwards and tested positive for Yersinia pestis, which causes the plague.

All four were treated with antibiotics and made a full recovery, NBC reports.

Dr John Douglas, director of Colorado's Tri-County Health Department, said there are eight cases of the plague in humans each year on average. "Plague is virtually always confined in this day and age to rural regions in the West," he told the network. "That is because the vector of plague is typically the prairie dog although there are other rodents that can transmit as well."
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