Animals
S


Question

Huge increase in rescued owl orphans baffles wildlife rescuers in Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom

Paul Donnelley
Daily Mail, UK
Sun, 25 May 2014 10:47 UTC
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Owl stretching time: These baby tawny owls will be spending the Whitsun bank holiday at Tiggywinkles wildlife hospital in Buckinghamshire after being rescued by the workers there
* Staff at wildlife hospital in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire, have rescued 31 owls compared with just two last year

* Owner fears last year's storms causing trees to fall may be reason

* Orphans are aged between four days and two weeks

Britain's owl population is still suffering the consequences of last winter's wet and windy weather months later.

Staff at Tiggywinkles wildlife hospital in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire, have rescued 31 owls which had fallen from trees, compared with just two of the young birds of prey last year.

Les Stocker, Tiggywinkles founder, said: 'I am worried as last year we had just two owls in and this year we now have 31. Perhaps the storms taking out old trees might have something to do with it.
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Attention

Perth beach closed after rotting whale head washes up on Australian shore

Emily Crane
Daily Mail, UK
Mon, 26 May 2014 10:32 UTC
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Washed up: A decomposed whale head was found at Perth's Sorrento Beach on Monday morning
* Three metre whale head has washed up on Perth's Sorrento Beach

* Wildlife authorities believe the head belongs to a mature sperm whale

* Sorrento Beach remains closed amid fears sharks could be drawn in

A three metre decomposed whale head has washed up on a Perth beach, forcing authorities to close the area amid fears the carcass could attract sharks.

The head, believed to belong to a sperm whale, was found at Sorrento Beach on Monday morning.

The carcass is three metres long and 1.5m wide.


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

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Bizarro Earth

Unusual moose behaviour in Canada raises questions


VOCM.com
Fri, 23 May 2014 17:08 UTC
Moose
© Screen Capture/YouTube
An experienced woodsman on the west coast is raising concerns after witnessing some unusual and alarming behaviour in a moose. Jack Besaw was out on his ATV near Black Duck Siding last weekend when he noticed the animal walking around in circles and banging into trees. He says he's never seen anything like it before.

He says the animal, which appeared otherwise healthy, was walking in tight circles like a dog chasing its tail. It eventually left the railbed, and lay down in the woods. The Department of Environment says circling behaviour is generally associated with brain worm infection or other neurological trauma, but without a more detailed investigation, officials say it's difficult to say for certain.


Brain worm infections are typically associated with caribou, but confirmed cases have been seen in moose.

Comment: This has also been happening in Minnesota, USA.

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Binoculars

Rare Bermuda seabird spotted off Kerry coast, Ireland

Linda McGrory
Irish Examiner
Thu, 22 May 2014 16:11 UTC
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One of the world's rarest birds - once thought extinct for over 300 years - has been spotted off the Kerry coast.

The Bermuda petrel, better known as the Cahow, was observed by crew members of the Celtic Voyager - the Irish Marine Institute's research vessel.

The "astonishing" sighting of the endangered seabird took place off Kerry on Monday. Within hours, the Bermuda Audubon Society confirmed the report through data emitted by the bird's electronic geolocator.

The medium-sized Cahow is the national bird of Bermuda.

It is currently being "laboriously brought back from the brink" by conservationists with only about 180 of the species known to exist.

A slow-breeding ground-nester, the bird was wiped out during the 1600s when colonisation of the North Atlantic island introduced species such as boars, cats, dogs and rats.

It was rediscovered on the island in 1951.
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Question

Giant jellyfish invasion seen off the coast of Cornwall, UK

Sarah Ann Harris
Daily Express, UK
Thu, 22 May 2014 15:21 UTC
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© GETTY/SWNSBen Dunstan spotted thousands of barrel jellyfish making their way to the shore
Amazing video shows the moment a paraglider spotted an invasion of giant jellyfish heading straight for Britain's beaches.

Ben Dunstan was using a GoPro camera attached to his helmet to film a friend's boat as he glided overhead.

But as the 32-year-old travelled along above the clear waters off Gerrans Bay, Cornwall, he was distracted by a menacing sight.

Mr Dunstan spotted a horde of hundreds of tropical Barrel jellyfish drifting towards the shore.

Barrel jellyfish are usually found in warmer water, but several have been sighted in British seas recently.

Although their sting is minor, the bizarre-looking creatures look especially creepy because of their shocking 3ft length.

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Attention

Campbeltown fishing boat hauls in dead minke whale in Scottish waters


Campbeltown Courier
Tue, 20 May 2014 04:12 UTC
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The whale is believed to have been dead before it was caught
A Campbeltown fishing boat made a surprise catch on Tuesday, May 20 - substantially larger than its usual target of prawns.

The crew of The Crest discovered a 26ft-long,three-ton minke whale snared in their equipment at Kilbrannon Sound off Peninver. They believe it was already dead when caught.
Crowds gathered to look at the giant of the sea after it was landed at Campbeltown New Quay around midday.

Read the full story in the Campbeltown Courier,May 23 2014,also at www.campbeltowncourier.co.uk/digital from the same date.
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Attention

Dead sperm whale latest beaching incident in Bali, Indonesia

Desy Nurhayati
The Jakarta Post
Sat, 17 May 2014 14:44 UTC
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© Tim Cole, NMFS (NOAA)Aerial view of sperm whale.
A beached whale died on Mengiat Beach in front of the Ayodya Resort in Nusa Dua earlier this month, adding to the number of whales and dolphins that have suffered a similar fate in Bali.

Found in a state of decay by a lifeguard, the dead sperm whale was 10.2 meters long and weighed 3 tons.

According to the Nusa Dua Reef Foundation (NDRF), Nusa Dua was no stranger to incidents of beached marine mammals because the southern coast of the island sat along a migratory route for several species.

"This is the sixth case of beached whales or dolphins in Nusa Dua since 2003," said Pariama Hutasoit, founder of NDRF.

She said that the first of those cases was a Gervais' beaked whale beached in front of the Grand Hyatt resort in 2003. In 2010, there were three separate incidents of beached Pigmy killer whales. The next case occurred in 2012, when a rough-toothed dolphin was found in front of The Laguna Resort and Spa.

The recent beached sperm whale is the fourth to have died on Bali's shore in the last 10 years. According to data from the Bali Network of Stranded Sea Mammals, the first occurred in Nusa Penida in 2005, and was followed by similar cases in Batubelig in North Kuta in 2009 and on Gilimanuk Beach in 2010.
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Attention

Dead humpback whale found in Half Moon Bay - second dead whale within a week off the California coast

Evan Sernoffsky
blog.sfgate.com
Thu, 22 May 2014 10:44 UTC
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A small dead Humpback whale washed up in Pillar Point Harbor in Half Moon Bay Wednesday afternoon.

The whale is now beached at Surfers Beach near an RV park, according to a deputy at the harbor.

Large crowds gathered Wednesday evening to marvel at the massive dead marine mammal that was reported to be around 30 feet long.

Marine biologists will investigate what caused the whale to die while authorities decide how to get rid of the dead animal.

Twitter user @carolsuestories snapped a picture of the bloated carcass shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday.
A dead whale is floating in ocean in front of our RV in Pillar Point Half Moon Bay, CA http://t.co/yBBZAk7Vdo pic.twitter.com/lBqTHL4w6e

- CarolSueStories (@carolsuestories) May 22, 2014

Comment: See also: Dead beached whale found at Point Loma Cove, California

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Attention

Dead beached whale found at Point Loma Cove, California

Monica Garske and Andie Adams
nbcsandiego.com
Thu, 22 May 2014 09:00 UTC
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The carcass was first spotted near the San Diego Bay's mouth Saturday

The carcass of a 40-foot whale that washed up at San Diego's Point Loma Cove earlier this week is set to be hauled away from the rocky shoreline by authorities Wednesday and disposed of in the ocean.

According to Lee Swanson of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, the towing attempt is expected to begin around 4 p.m. and will be spearheaded by The Marine Conservation Science Institute (MCSI) and San Diego lifeguards.

Swanson said the plan will involve lifeguards towing the whale about a half-mile offshore, and then transferring the tow to a MCSI boat waiting to take the reins. The boat will then take the carcass out to sea to properly dispose of the whale, a process that could take several days. It is unclear if MCSI members will sink the whale or leave it to float at sea.

The MCSI has a permit to remove and dispose of marine mammals, Swanson said.

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Sheeple

Thousands of Australian sheep die after eating usually rare poisonous plant

Adam Withnall
The Independent, UK
Sun, 18 May 2014 10:31 UTC
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Vets describe situation ‘like dealing with a thousand heroin addicts’
Thousands of sheep in Australia are believed to have died after eating a poisonous plant that makes them "bash their heads on posts and rocks until they crack open".

The usually-rare toxic plant, misleadingly named the "Darling pea", has spread rapidly in the aftermath of bushfires in New South Wales - which themselves caused devastation for sheep farmers in the area.

Now vets have said that many of the animals which survived the fires face a new and highly addictive threat.

North West Local Land Services regional veterinarian Bob McKinnon told the Sydney Morning Herald that once sheep started eating the plant they exhibit behaviour "similar to that of a drunk".

"They lose weight to start with and then get staggery, the progression gets worse, they get unco-ordinated and depressed, they don't know where their feet are."

He said that "staring eyes", "head pressing" and "muscle tremors" were other symptoms, until eventually the animals "just go to a post and bang their head on it till they crack their heads open".

The task of bringing in herds that would normally take six hours instead takes "days", Mr McKinnon said. "It's like dealing with a thousand heroin addicts."
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