Animals
S


Bizarro Earth

10th Dead Sea Turtle for Delaware; Recovered in Dewey

Alan Henney
WGMD.COM
Mon, 18 Jun 2012 11:56 UTC
dead turtle

Shortly after reporting to duty on Sunday, Dewey Beach lifeguards spotted a large object floating in the surf about 100 yards from shore, surrounded by seagulls. It turned out to be a severely decomposed leatherback which the guards brought on the beach at Cullen Street.

The remains were so heavy, lifeguards asked the police for an SUV to help drag it across the sand toward the dunes where they planned to bury it after experts from the Marine Education, Research and Rehabilitation Institute examine it.

Suzanne Thurman, MERR executive director, says this was the only leatherback reported so far this year. It was roughly five-feet long and 500 pounds in weight. She says leatherbacks can reach 1000 pounds. The leatherback is the largest of all living sea turtles and is critically endangered.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

30-foot young diseased humpback whale beaches near Vancouver and dies


United Press International
Fri, 15 Jun 2012 11:33 UTC
The midday tide rolls in as police move crowds of people back as they view an eight to ten meter long juvenile humpback whale which died shortly after washing up on the beach in White Rock near Vancouver, British Columbia, early morning June 12, 2012, despite the efforts of local people who tried to save it. The whale was scarred, covered in lice and open sores and appeared malnourished, likely too weak to fight the early morning incoming tides.
Image
© UPI / Heinz Ruckemann
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Unusual Dolphin Strandings on Texas Coast Prompt Inquiry

Ramit Plushnick-Masti
Associated Press
Tue, 12 Jun 2012 23:40 UTC
Texas Dolphins
© AP Photo/Alex BrandonA pod of Bottle Nose dolphins swim under the oily water Chandeleur Sound, La., Thursday, May 6, 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico.

Houston -- The deaths of more than 120 dolphins on the Texas coast have prompted a federal agency to declare the event "unusual" and launch an investigation into whether they were related to a drought-related algae bloom or a more widespread mortality event that has plagued the northern Gulf of Mexico for two years.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has called the stranding of 123 dolphins on Texas shores from November through March an "unusual mortality event," an official federal listing that allows the agency to access additional funds and set up a team of researchers.

All but four of the dolphins that washed up in Texas were dead, and those that turned up alive died a short time later, said Blair Mase, the southeast marine mammal stranding network coordinator for NOAA Fisheries.

What alarmed scientists, though, was the age of the bottle-nosed dolphins that washed up -- juveniles rather than the very young or elderly that typically would be found -- and the fact that Texas had a year's worth of dead dolphins turn up over five months.
Read More...
Alarm Clock

Bird With Two Heads Garners Compassion From Bird Watchers

Anthony Bond
Dailymail.co.uk
Thu, 31 May 2012 13:26 UTC
For most of us, having a small bird making a racket in the garden is nothing new.

But when April Britt heard a commotion in her backyard, she decided to investigate.

And what she found left her completely taken aback.
Image
© WGGBBizarre: April Britt found this baby female Cardinal with two heads and three beaks perched on a branch in her backyard.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

'Starving' Crown-of-Thorns Starfish in Mass Stranding in Japan

Ella Davies
BBC
Mon, 04 Jun 2012 11:34 UTC
starfish
© BBC

Hundreds of crown-of-thorns starfish found on a beach in southern Japan in January stranded themselves because they were starving, say researchers.

More than 800 were discovered on a 300m stretch of sand on Ishigaki island.

The starfish population "outbreak" was first identified in 2009, when masses of juveniles were seen feeding on the island's outer coral reef.

The coral-eating starfish then took three years to move onto the beach where they perished.

The reason for the starfish population boom is not clear, but the strange behaviour has shown marine scientists what can happen when these slow-moving creatures completely deplete their food source.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Officials Investigate Fish Deaths at Blue Springs Lake


Fox4KC
Wed, 06 Jun 2012 12:00 UTC
Missouri - Officials are investigating a smelly problem at Blue Springs Lake, where thousands of fish have died in recent weeks, causing problems for swimmers and boaters.

According to officials with the Missouri Department of Conservation, which oversees the fish population at the lake, thousands of common carp have died in recent weeks. Officials say that the issue, which first appeared shortly before Memorial Day, appears to be a disease problem affecting only carp, and not an overall water quality issue.

Biologists with the Department of Conservation are working to determine if the disease is bacterial or viral in nature - adding that the disease does not effect humans, so that there is no threat to the public.

Carp are not native to the lake, officials said, and the mass fish kill isn't necessarily bad for the overall health of the fish population.


However, officials did say that the thousands of dead fish could present an obvious, and smelly, problem for swimmers and others using the lake, which is owned by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and managed by the Jackson County Parks and Recreation Department.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Tons of Dead Sardines Washed Up at Port Ohara, Japan

Kay
RocketNews24
Tue, 05 Jun 2012 23:27 UTC
Dead Sardines
© RocketNews24
Somethingterribly fishy is going on at the fishing port of Ohara (pronounced Oh-hara) in Isumi City of Chiba Prefecture, and it has nothing to do with espionage or political corruption. There are tons and tons of dead sardines washing up on the shore, and not only is the sight disturbing, but the huge amount of dead fish is literally smelling up the entire surrounding area.

According to the news, the dead fish started washing up around noon of June 3rd, and as of early afternoon on June 4th, the situation still remained pretty much out of control. The amount of dead sardines that has washed up is thought to total several dozen metrics tons, so you can imagine how bad the smell of rotting fish must be.

We've seen the pictures uploaded onto Twitter, and the port looks completely filled with fish - it almost looks like a carpet of sardines. It doesn't seem likely that any fishing boats will be setting sail from this port soon.

There are also, of course, the usual posts and comments on the internet on how this could be an omen, a sign of a coming great natural disaster.

When we inquired with a local inn, we were told that the port was scheduled to be closed from June 1st to 5th, but given the emergency, local fishermen are currently out in full force trying to resolve the situation. Already more than 2 full days into the bizarre occurrence, the smell has to be almost unbearable, but the people of Ohara still have no idea when they will be able to get rid of all the sardines. We sincerely hope they will be able to solve the problem quickly.
Read More...
Info

Shark Feasts on Giant Squid


News.com.au
Tue, 05 Jun 2012 16:53 UTC



The Daily Telegraph fishing columnist Al McGlashan discovered the remains of the ocean titan - so fresh it still carried its ruby red colouring - about 50km off Jervis Bay.

The carcass of the giant measured about 3m long, even though most of its tentacles had been bitten off, possibly in a fight to the death with its only known predator, a sperm whale, hundreds of metres below the surface.

"It must have died not that long before we found it because it didn't smell at all and its colours were still strong - most giant squid remains are smelly and rotten and just off-white by the time someone finds them," Mr McGlashan said.
Read More...
Attention

Black Sea ecologists alarmed by rising number of dolphin deaths


The Extinction Protocol
Tue, 05 Jun 2012 08:58 UTC
Image
© Unknown

Hardly a day goes by in Sochi, Russia's picturesque Black Sea resort, without a dead dolphin washing up on the beach. With the tourist season just kicking off, the unexplained deaths have yet to draw much scrutiny. But environmentalists are increasingly alarmed. The dolphin carcasses are also turning into a real holiday spoiler for vacationers drawn to the region's scenic beaches and pristine vistas. Russian tourist Aida Kobzh was shocked to discover a group of dead dolphins last week at her local beach in Sochi.

"Everyone stood there and stared at the dead little dolphins lying belly up. Poor creatures!" Kobzh says. "There were some on the beach but also in the water, they were floating there, dead." The dolphins started washing up along Russia's Black Sea coast several weeks ago. They have also been spotted on Ukrainian shores. Environmentalists are now talking about the biggest dolphin die-off to date in the region, with an estimated 300 animals dead so far. Local authorities have made no serious attempt to investigate the deaths, saying the animals are too decayed by the time they reach the shore for laboratory tests to be conducted.
Read More...
Question

What Do GMO Seeds Have to Do With Bee Die-Offs in the Corn Belt?

Heather Pilatic
Occupy Monsanto
Tue, 22 May 2012 16:53 UTC
Image
© panna.org
In the last few weeks beekeepers have reported staggering losses in Minnesota, Nebraska and Ohio after their hives foraged on pesticide-treated corn fields. Indiana too, two years ago. What's going on in the Corn Belt?

No farmer in their right mind wants to poison pollinators. When I spoke with one Iowa corn farmer in January and told him about the upcoming release of a Purdue study confirming corn as a major pesticide exposure route for bees, his face dropped with worn exasperation. He looked down for a moment, sighed and said,
"You know, I held out for years on buying them GE [genetically modified or engineered] seeds, but now I can't get conventional seeds anymore. They just don't carry 'em."
This leaves us with two questions: 1) What do GE seeds have to do with neonicotinoids and bees? and 2) How can an Iowa corn farmer find himself feeling unable to farm without poisoning pollinators? In other words, where did U.S. corn cultivation go wrong?

The short answer to both questions starts with a slow motion train wreck that began in the mid-1990s: Corn integrated pest management (IPM) fell apart at the seams. Rather, it was intentionally unraveled by Bayer and Monsanto.

Comment: To learn more about the serious negative impact of pesticide use among bee populations and the growing issue of 'colony collapse disorder' read the following articles:

Silent Hives: Colony Collapse Disorder and Pesticides
More Evidence Rises Of Role Pesticides Play In Bee Colony Collapse
Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder Finally Explained: Too Many Chemicals
A Last (Chemical) Gasp for Bees?
Bayer in the Dock Over Pesticide Linked to Colony Collapse Disorder
If Bees Disappear, We'll All Be Stung

Read More...