Animals
S


Hardhat

Barred owl attacks 6 people, terrorizes others in Jacksonville Beach, Florida

David Williams
firstcoastnews.com
Mon, 10 Nov 2014 15:12 UTC
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© David Williams, First Coast NewsFirst Coast News reporter, David Williams, spotted the owl neighbors say is attacking people
It is majestic, but it's terrifying. Neighbors in Jacksonville Beach say something is terrorizing the neighborhood from the sky and even attacking people. First Coast News reporter, David Williams, and photographer, Jimmy Marlow, saw the owl first hand.

Jack Weyer, of Jacksonville Beach, said the owl attacked him recently.

"Out of the blue, it just came right down on the back of my head," He said. 'I just felt like, two talons right on the back of my head, grab and kid of pull away."

Eight- year-old, Sophia Forte, said she had an owl ordeal of her own 2 weeks ago.

"It flew down and hit my inside my eye and inside my hair and on my forehead," She said, as she described what she says happened to her.

Her father told us he wound up in the emergency room, but she is OK now. So far neighbors told First Coast News the bird has hurt 5 kids plus Weyer. The bird of prey has people on their toes and it has them freaked out.
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Wolf

A dog gets it right and howls at Louis Armstrong song, "What a Wonderful World"


inside.com
Sun, 09 Nov 2014 19:59 UTC

A dog howls along with a toy that sings Louis Armstrong songs. The dog, which appears to be a husky, attempts to sing along to Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" while being filmed. The song is played by a dancing toy that plays music and resembles a dog.
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Attention

Dolphin attacking swimmers in Slidell, Louisiana

Meg Gatto
worldnow.com
Tue, 17 Jun 2014 18:56 UTC
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© FOX 8Dolphin swimming in canal
A wild dolphin is attacking swimmers and boaters in a canal behind Lakeshore Estates in Slidell.

The dolphin has actually been in the canal since 2005, but has just now become aggressive.

It's a calm and peaceful scene. The water behind Lakeshore Estates is un-usually quiet on this Friday, until suddenly up pops a fin.

Lakeshore Estates resident Greg Walters says the male dolphin has lived behind his home since just after Katrina. Walters explains, "The dolphin was raised back here and then all of a sudden I think the mother disappeared and the dolphin just stayed here."

But in recent months, the dolphin has taken to biting people.

Last week, a teen was bit as he was washing off his hands in the water, while standing in his boat.

Walters knows two people who've been attacked in the past few months saying, "Dolphin grabbed my niece by the hand. She pulled her hand out of the mouth, and in doing so ripped the tendons out of her hand and had to go to the emergency room."

Comment: See also: Dolphin 'attacks' five swimmers in Galway Bay, Ireland

Aggressive dolphin tried to push swimmer underwater off the coast of Ireland

Dolphin attacks swimmers in Doolin Harbor, Ireland

Rise of the killer dolphins: 'Alarming' rise in fatal attacks on porpoises leaves experts puzzled in Wales

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Magnify

Mysterious fungal disease proves deadly in wild snakes

Laura Geggel
LiveScience
Wed, 12 Nov 2014 13:15 UTC
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© Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease StudyThis Georgian mud snake died from snake fungal disease.
The female mud snake found May 28 in Georgia had cloudy eyes and patches of white, thickened scales. A strange, dark-gray material covered the inside of her mouth, and the skin on the front of her face had peeled away, leaving behind an angry red mess.

In fact, the deadly fungus that caused this snake's injuries is killing snakes across the Midwest and Eastern United States, said Matthew Allender, a clinical assistant professor of zoo and wildlife medicine at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Little is known about the condition, which is called snake fungal disease, but researchers are now investigating how snakes catch it, fight it and can eventually die from it.

Within the next year, researchers may know more about antifungal medications, as well as what temperatures might impede the fungi's growth, Allender said.
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Fish

Fed up with clapping for fish? Sea World trainer attacked by sea lion, Australia


The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
Wed, 12 Nov 2014 16:44 UTC
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A sea lion who didn't take kindly to being weighed has attacked an animal trainer at Sea World on the Gold Coast.

The 28-year-old suffered a minor cut to his arm, Sea World said in a statement.

The theme park said the man was trying to carry out a routine weight check on the animal when the incident happened.

"An ambulance was called to attend to the trainer. Following the incident, both the sea lion and trainer are in a good condition," Sea World said.

The sea lions are coming into their breeding season which can lead to them being in an excited state, the park said.

Source: AAP
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Wolf

Brampton woman attacked by coyote, Canada

Graeme Frisque
Brampton Guardian
Sun, 09 Nov 2014 16:19 UTC
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© Graeme FrisqueThe City of Brampton has put up sign warning residents and placed traps in the area following a suspected coyote attack after a woman was bitten in her driveway on Thursday night.
A Brampton woman is undergoing rabies treatment after reporting that she had been bitten by a coyote in front of her home on Mountain Ridge Rd. on Thursday night.

Jasmine Bajaj and her family had just arrived home at around 9 p.m. when she realized that she forgot something in her car.

When she went back out to the driveway, she said a large coyote snuck up behind her and bit her in the leg, leaving two large puncture wounds on her calf.
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Bizarro Earth

Dead fish in Rio Olympic bay baffle scientists

Claire de Oliveira Neto
Yahoo News
Sat, 08 Nov 2014 19:00 UTC
Dead fishes
© AFP Photo/Yasuyoshi ChibaThousands of dead fish have begun mysteriously washing up in the polluted Rio bay that will host sailing events at the 2016 Olympics -- and experts are at a loss to explain why.
Thousands of dead fish have begun mysteriously washing up in the polluted Rio bay that will host sailing events at the 2016 Olympics -- and experts are at a loss to explain why. Guanabara Bay has already been the subject of concern amongst sailors who are to compete in Rio because of the human sewage that gets pumped into its waters.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has expressed confidence that Guanabara will be fit for purpose by the time of the games. But the recent appearance of thousands of dead fish, and the foul stench of their rotting carcasses, has attracted further scrutiny with the Olympics less than two years away.

Scientists are baffled by the phenomenon but say there is no evidence so far to suggest pollution is the cause. The foul odor first took over the usually peaceful Paqueta Island, where cars are banned and the population of 4,500 people travels on horseback or bicycle among the only baobab trees in Brazil.
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Attention

12th report in 2 months of dead cetaceans Down Under: Carcass of humpback whale found drifting off Perth coast, Australia

Steve Holland
watoday.com.au
Mon, 10 Nov 2014 13:49 UTC
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The whale carcass drifting off Perth coast.
A humpback whale carcass is being towed away from the Perth coast after attracting several sharks.

Department of Fisheries spokesman Phil Shaw said sharks were feeding from the dead humpback whale, measuring more than 10 metres in length.

It was first spotted by the crew of a vessel returning from Rottnest just before 10am on Monday when it was five nautical miles off the coast.


Comment: There have been now 12 reports of dead whales and dolphins emanating from Australasia over the last 2 months, see also -

Humpback whale carcass found on Gold Coast beach, Australia

36 stranded pilot whales die in New Zealand

Rare beaked whale found dead on Sunshine Coast, Queensland

Rare, record-sized pygmy whale found dead on Victorian beach, Australia

Eight-metre dead whale washes onto rocks in Batemans Bay, Australia

Dead humpback whale found on Kapiti Coast, New Zealand

Rare deep sea dwelling beaked whale washes up on beach near Newcastle, Australia

Denizen of deep water, cuviers beaked whale found dead on Titahi Bay beach, New Zealand

Humpback whale washes up dead at Kalbarri beach, Western Australia

Dead fin whale found on beach in Warrnambool, Australia

Two dead humpback whales wash up on NSW beaches, Australia

Creatures from the deep signal major Earth Changes: Is anyone paying attention?

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Attention

Humpback whale carcass found on Gold Coast beach, Australia

Marissa Calligeros
Brisbane Times
Sun, 09 Nov 2014 12:49 UTC
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© Seven News, via Twitter.The whale carcass which washed up at The Spit on the Gold Coast.
Council workers are in the process of removing a whale carcass that washed up on a Gold Coast beach overnight.

The whale's remains were spotted on The Spit early on Sunday morning, near Philip Park.

Lifeguard Anthony Lunney said the dead whale appeared to be a juvenile humpback, which measured about 20 metres in length.
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Attention

Dead whale found on beach at Saintes-Marie-de-la-Mer, France

Simone Flückiger
thelocal.fr
Mon, 10 Nov 2014 12:36 UTC
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© France 3This whale washed up on a beach in France could explode.
Officials in France are racking their brains about how to deal with a dead whale washed up on a beach on the south coast of France. The decaying carcass is a ticking time bomb, with the possibility it could explode.

The whale washed up on the beach at Saintes-Marie-de-la-Mer, near Montpellier on the Mediterranean coast, in early November in an already decayed state. It now needs to be moved quickly as gases inside the carcass could cause it to explode.

"Because of the heat, gases form inside the cadaver - hence, the bulging appearance of the whale - and accumulate until they explode," Anaïs Cheiron, project manager of the national reserve of Camargue, told daily newspaper Midi Libre.

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