Animals
S


Igloo

Turkey vulture freezes, falls from sky, lands on Sioux Falls, South Dakota deck

Beth Wischmeyer
ArgusLeader.com
Wed, 10 Apr 2013 18:24 UTC
Frozen Vulture
© Adam WeberA large turkey vulture dropped out of the sky on the deck of the home of Adam Weber, taking shelter under the table.
On top of the rain, sleet and snow that fell from the sky yesterday, birds are also dropping, as one Sioux Falls resident found out.

A large turkey vulture dropped out of the sky on the deck of the home of Adam Weber, taking shelter under the table.

"My wife was making breakfast, and she suddenly yelled, 'Adam! A large bird just fell out of the sky!'," said Weber, who lives two blocks north of McKennan Park.

"That was the last thing I expected to see when I looked out on the deck yesterday."

Weber, who is a pastor at Embrace Church, said the bird was completely iced over and sat straight upright under the table on the deck. The bird moved around a bit, letting Weber know it was still alive, and allowed him to get close to it to take a photo.

The turkey vulture spent all day under the table, Weber said, and left at some point during the night, as he looked all around the house and didn't see it.
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Question

Peru: 10 Dolphins found dead in northern beaches

Manuel Vigo
peruthisweek.com
Fri, 12 Apr 2013 16:19 UTC
Dead dolphins continue to wash up on Peru's northern shores, Peru21 reported on Thursday.

According to the daily, over 10 dolphins have been found dead on various beaches in the Lambayeque region, over the past 15 days.

Francisco Niquen, head of Lambayeque's Fishermen's Association, said the group had reported the incident to Peru's Sea Institute (Imarpe), but said the agency had not been to the site.
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© Peru21/Reference
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Evil Rays

Vicious beaver attacks and kills man in Belarus

Charlie Campbell
Time
Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:05 UTC
Image
© PATRIK STOLLARZ / AFP / GETTY IMAGESA beaver swims in a pool at a zoo in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
A man in Eastern Europe has reportedly died after being attacked by a beaver he was attempting to photograph.

The 60-year-old former serviceman was on a fishing trip at Lake Shestakov, Belarus, with two companions when the group stopped to snap the animal by the side of the road, according to the Daily Telegraph. But the incensed rodent viciously pounced on the victim and bit his thigh.

"It was early morning and already light when they saw a beaver by the road, which was unusual because beavers are nocturnal," Sergei Shtyk, deputy head of the local wildlife inspectorate, told the British newspaper. "One of them went up to be photographed with it, and the animal attacked him and bit him twice, cutting an artery in his thigh, before running away."
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Question

150 Black vultures mysteriously die in Chaguaramas, Trinidad

Camille Clarke
Trinidad Guardian Newspaper
Tue, 09 Apr 2013 16:04 UTC
The Environmental Management Authority (EMA) believes approximately 150 dead and sick corbeaux found at the Heliport in Chaguaramas may have been feeding on the carcass of an animal which was poisoned. The Veterinary Public Health Unit of the Ministry of Health, the Poultry Surveillance Unit (PSU) of the Ministry of Food Production, the EMA and Forestry Division went to the heliport yesterday to try to determine the cause of the birds' death.

In a telephone interview yesterday, CEO of the EMA Joth Singh said the authority had received reports about the dead and dying birds and had launched an investigation. "We can't identify an environmental cause as such that they were exposed to," he reported. "There were 150 birds, we estimated. There was nothing else in the vicinity. We have been liaising with the Poultry Surveillance Unit, which is part of the National Disease Centre, to see if it was a case of the avian flu."

Singh said preliminary tests had shown avian flu had not killed the birds. "That was not the cause and there is speculation that they may have been poisoned, that they were poisoned by an animal or carcass that they ate. We are trying to eliminate the causes and we have not found any chemical spills or seen any anywhere," he said.
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© Abraham DiazA Ministry of Health official wears protective gear as he carries a dying corbeaux past several others that are dead or dying at the Chaguaramas heliport yesterday. The birds began literally falling from the skies in mysterious circumstances.
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Bizarro Earth

2013 California sea lion unusual mortality event in California


National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Wed, 27 Mar 2013 05:06 UTC
Overview

Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (as amended), an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) has been declared for California sea lions in California from January 2013 through the present.

Beginning in January 2013, elevated strandings of California sea lion pups have been observed in Southern California (Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties). The area with the highest reported stranding rates is currently Los Angeles County, followed by Orange County, and strandings are increasing in San Diego County.

The increase of sea lion strandings continues and has intensified over the last few weeks. Live sea lion strandings are nearly three times higher than the historical average.

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Live California sea lion historical stranding rates for 2008-2012 (admits to rehabilitation facilities from Jan 1-March 31).
Data for 2013 is as of March 24, 2013.
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Snow Globe

Rare birds killed off after migration north sees them face freezing temperatures back in UK

Charlotte Philby
The Independent, UK
Wed, 10 Apr 2013 14:20 UTC
Remains of 8 malnourished stone curlews recently back from Africa and Spain found in Norfolk, Suffolk and Wiltshire
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The stone curlew is one of the UK's most threatened birds and has recently returned from their wintering grounds in Africa and Spain
Rare birds have fallen victim to Britain's prolonged cold weather with the bodies of several breeds found dead across the country.

The remains of eight malnourished stone curlews - one of the UK's most threatened birds, recently returned from their wintering grounds in Africa and Spain - were discovered in fields in Norfolk, Suffolk and Wiltshire in the past few days, the RSPB has reported.

The malnourished creatures, which weighed around 300g each compared to a healthy weight of 450g, are believed to have died after struggling to find enough food to survive following their annual migration to the UK.

A number of puffins and other seabirds including razorbills and guillemots were found dead off the coast of Scotland and North East England two weeks ago as a result of continuous freezing conditions and stormy seas making it hard to find food.

There have also been reports of short-eared owls and barn owls found dead after cold weather hindered their ability to hunt.
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Snow Globe

Over 8,000 dead sheep removed from Northern Ireland farms following record Spring snowfall


BBC
Tue, 09 Apr 2013 13:33 UTC
The carcasses of more than 8,000 sheep that died in snow blizzards last month have been collected from NI farms.
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The Department of Agriculture has agreed an aid packaged for farmers
Agriculture Minister Michelle O'Neill told the assembly of the consequences of the weather on farmers.

She said farmers' losses were "greater than anticipated", adding that 8,153 dead sheep and 240 cattle had been collected from 440 farms.

The executive has agreed a £5m aid package to help those who lost livestock.

Mrs O'Neill said the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development would pay for the collection and disposal of animals that had died in the snow.
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Cow Skull

Mass death of multiple sea creatures along east coast of UK

Alex Wood
Yorkshire Post, UK
Mon, 08 Apr 2013 09:55 UTC
Image
A dead puffin washed up on the east coast of England
Environmentalists have raised concerns for marine life on the East Coast after extreme weather claimed tens of thousands of animals.

The "mass mortality" has been put at an estimated 150,000 velvet swimming crabs, 10,500 edible crabs, 2,000 common lobsters and a staggering 635,000 mussels in just one 10-mile stretch from Barmston to Bridlington along the Holderness Coast - in all around 800,000 individuals.

Cuttlefish bones have been recorded along the length of the East Coast, as well as increased numbers of dead harbour porpoises on Lincolnshire beaches.

The death of hundreds of seabirds, found washed up on beaches from Aberdeenshire to North Yorkshire, has also been blamed on the weather, with over 200 dead or dying puffins recorded on Yorkshire beaches alone between Scarborough and Withernsea.
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Ice Cube

'Tonnes' of dead fish found on Swedish lake


TheLocal.se
Mon, 08 Apr 2013 10:47 UTC
The Dannemore lake, near Östhammar in the east of Sweden, was discovered to be covered with floating fish this weekend as the ice began to melt. Among the dead fish were pike, perch, roach, and bream. "It was not a pleasant sight, there were tonnes on fish on the lake," Timo Hakulinen, who made the discovery, told the Aftonbladet newspaper.

"It was my friend who tipped me off about it. He'd seen a bunch of sea eagles out on the ice and I went to look closer." Hakulinen guessed that the fish had suffocated after a particularly long winter had left ice on top of the lake for longer than usual. "It's been cold and no water has come. The lake was frozen to the bottom and the fish were trapped," he added.

In nearby Uppsala, experts agree that the sub-zero temperatures are likely the cause of the occurrence. "I've not heard anything yet, but these things quite often are about lack of oxygen. The ice stays on top and the water doesn't get oxygenated," Lennart Nordvarg, head of the Uppsala County Board's Nature and Environment Department, told the paper.

"But you can never rule something else out."
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Snowflake Cold

3,000 dead farm animals found after Northern Ireland Blizzard


Belfast Telegraph
Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:06 UTC
Sheep
© UnknownMore than 3,000 farm animals died when a blizzard engulfed Northern Ireland
The carcasses of more than 3,000 farm animals which died when a blizzard engulfed Northern Ireland have so far been collected in a state funded disposal scheme.

The Stormont Executive agreed to pay for the recovery operation as part of a multimillion-pound aid package for the farmers worst hit by last month's snow storm.

While 3,120 dead livestock have been disposed of thus far, officials expect many more collections will be needed. The animals, mostly sheep, were entombed when snowdrifts up to 20 feet high blanketed many high-lying fields.
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