Animals
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Bizarro Earth

Australia: Mysterious Big Fish Kill in Cape York River


ABC News
Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:37 UTC
fish kill
© n/a
Queensland's Department of Environment and Resource Management says it cannot explain why large schools of fish are dying in a Cape York river.

The department says it received reports of about 1,000 dead fish floating in parts of the Normanby River, at the Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park, last week.

Most of the dead fish were barramundi and jewfish.

The department has been testing the river's water quality but says acidity, salinity and dissolved oxygen levels are all normal, and there is no evidence of contamination.

A spokesman says fish deaths can occur naturally in water courses with rapid changes to water temperature.

He says there is no evidence the fish pose a risk to public health.

Samples of the fish have been tested and results are expected next week.
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Fish

US: Maryland - Chessie the 'Sea Monster"' spotted again

Jess Blumberg
BaltimoreMagazine.net
Tue, 19 Jul 2011 14:49 UTC
Chessie, Maryland's very own "sea monster" that first made an appearance in the bay 17 years ago, was spotted by boaters on Friday.
Image
© USGSUsing a photo-identification catalog, USGS scientists were able to confirm the manatee was Chessie based on scar patterns

U.S. Geological Survey biologist Cathy Beck verified that the manatee, found by Calvert County boaters, was indeed the same creature that surfaced in 1994. The boaters sent Chessie's photo to the National Aquarium, which forwarded it to the USGS, where Beck verified the manatee's markings, including a long, gray scar on his left side.

"It was a huge surprise," Beck told The Washington Post. "I get a lot of questions every year - 'Have you seen Chessie? Have you seen Chessie?' The answer for 10 years has been, ''No, sorry.'"

Biologists predict that, once the waters cool down, Chessie and his manatee friends will migrate back down to Florida, then future sightings will be uncertain again.
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Fish

US: Gulf 'Dead Zone' May Triple in Size


United Press International
Tue, 19 Jul 2011 13:29 UTC
Dead Zone
© NOAAThe Missisippi River dead zone is overloaded with nutrients from upstream sources. This photo shows the color change between the hypoxic (brown) and oxygen-rich (blue) waters.
Researchers measuring the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico say it is currently about 3,300 square miles but some scientists say it could become much larger.

The so-called "dead zone," caused by nitrogen levels in the gulf related to human activities such as agricultural runoff, occurs when oxygen levels in seawater drop to dangerously low levels, causing severe hypoxia that can potentially result in fish kills and harm marine life.

Researchers from Texas A&M University say the size of the dead zone off coastal Louisiana has been routinely monitored for about 25 years while nitrogen levels in the gulf resulting from human activities have tripled over the past 50 years.

Some researchers predict the dead zone could exceed 9,400 square miles this year, which would make it one of the largest ever recorded.
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Binoculars

Five-Year-Old Boy Mauled by Tiger Cub in South Africa

Aislinn Laing
The Telegraph, UK
Tue, 19 Jul 2011 04:21 UTC
Image
© Xinhua
A five year-old boy is recovering in hospital after he was mauled by an apparently tame tiger cub at a holiday resort in South Africa.

Finlay Holden was stroking the six-month old Bengali tiger's back when it turned around and grabbed his head between its paws.

The little boy was only saved after other holidaymakers and resort staff throttled the growling animal and hit it over the head repeatedly with a walkie-talkie.

His mother, Claire Holden, told how Finlay had screamed hysterically "Mum, make it stop! Make it stop!" as they fought to save him.

"The whole thing was just awful," she said. "There were all these people pulling at the tiger and it wouldn't let go. All I could do was wrap my arms around Finlay and try to keep him calm."
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Attention

Great Barrier Reef, Australia: Dying sea animals concern experts

David Sparkes
The Observer
Mon, 18 Jul 2011 06:21 UTC
Image
© Bianca BoxThis turtle was found on July 17 at Second Beach, Tannum Sands.
Experts on the Great Barrier Reef are calling for increased efforts to protect dugongs and green turtles.

The campaign by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority was launched yesterday as news emerged of another dead turtle found at Tannum Sands on the weekend.

GBRMPA is stepping up its efforts to promote smart boating and fishing practices to protect the animals, as record numbers of deaths are being recorded along the coast.

"The evidence is pretty strong that it's a loss of seagrass and loss of condition (that is the main factor in the deaths)," GBRMPA chairman Dr Russell Reichelt said.

"Essentially these animals are actually starving."
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Question

India: Scientists at sea over 'missing' jellyfish

Simit Bhagat
The Times of India
Sun, 17 Jul 2011 04:19 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Marine biologists are concerned about the "missing" jellyfish that are washed ashore on Mumbai's beaches during the monsoon.

Experts feel it could be due to lack of strong southwest monsoon winds that blow during this time. "This is an unusual phenomenon. The number of jellyfish that gets washed ashore annually is high. However, this year, their numbers seem to have depleted," said Dr Vinay Deshmukh, principal scientist with the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI).

According to the fisherfolk, the arrival of jellyfish on the shores is an indication of the monsoon. "But southwest monsoon winds that start usually from mid-May onwards have not been strong enough this year resulting in the unusual trend," said Dr Deshmukh. According to meteorological data, monitored by the CMFRI, the wind force this year has been between 21 to 27 kmph during May and June. On the other hand, the wind force recorded on July 12 was around 81 kmph.

Comment: Interestingly enough, other parts of the world, and particularly nuclear power plants, experienced jellyfish "invasion".

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Bizarro Earth

New Zealand: Storms create 'seabird wreck'

Leighton Keith
Taranaki Daily News
Fri, 15 Jul 2011 07:49 UTC
prion
© Robert CharlesCountless thousands of prions have died in a phenomenon the Department of Conservation is calling a "seabird wreck."

DOC is caring for more than a hundred weak and weary seabirds at its New Plymouth headquarters but thousands more were found washed up dead on Taranaki beaches.

Marine supervisor Bryan Williams said DOC was inundated with the disoriented and distressed birds, which are being kept in cardboard boxes, on Wednesday.

Mr Williams said DOC staff scoured beaches at low tide yesterday and found more than 3500 dead birds.

The majority of the birds are broad-billed prions with some Antarctic prions, thin-billed prions and the odd diving petrel.
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Black Cat

India: Mysterious Disease Continues to Claim Cattle in Senapati Village


The Morung Express
Sun, 17 Jul 2011 12:00 UTC
Five more cattle have been claimed by the 'mysterious disease' that spread in and around the Makhan village of Manipur's Senapati district even as state Veterinary Department is still has no clue about the disease.

On July 11, Newmai News Network had reported that over 50 cows and buffaloes had been killed by the mysterious disease. A team of officials of the state veterinary department led by its joint director had visited Makhan village and took stock of the situation on Wednesday (July 13).

While collecting samples require for determining the disease, the team also provided medicines apart. They also administered injection to the cattle infected by the disease as a step towards contentment of the disease.

Since the day, the number of cattle claim by the disease has been reduced but as steps to control the disease was yet to be taken up. There were still apprehensions of killing for cattle in the mind of the villagers, said Athuiliu, a villager over phone.

He also lamented that officials of the veterinary department had failed to revisit the village. "We are unhappy with attitude of the officials when they remain silent without informing us about the disease till date," he said.
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Binoculars

Largest Population of Endangered Gibbon Found in Vietnam


The Associated Press
Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:57 UTC
Image
© AP Photo/Terry WhittakerAn adult female northern white-cheeked crested gibbon, right, carries its baby as an adult male sits nearby at Pu Mat National Park, Nghe An province in Vietnam.
Conservationists listening to a critically endangered primate's morning calls in central Vietnam's mountains heard a surprising response. About 455 animals were counted there based on their calls, making it the largest known population of northern white-cheeked crested gibbons.

Wildlife group Conservation International conducted the census in 2010 by recording the loud song-like vocalizations the gibbons use to mark territory and attract and keep mates.

The primates were in 130 different groups living in thick jungle of the mountains near the Laos border, the group said in a statement Monday. Earlier surveys elsewhere in Vietnam had not documented any populations larger than a dozen groups.

The primate was known to exist in China, Vietnam and Laos. It is considered functionally extinct in China, but its numbers are unclear in Laos because little research has been conducted there.
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Bug

US: Bee Swarms Plague California Neighbourhood, Killing Family Dog


The Daily Mail, UK
Fri, 15 Jul 2011 20:05 UTC
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© Don Mason/CorbisThreat: Ms Bammes said the bees have built large nests on her home and an exterminator has already killed 6,000 to 8,000 of the insects
Aggressive swarms of bees tormenting a Southern California neighbourhood have killed a family dog.

Kim Bammes' chocolate Labrador mix, Reggie, died after being stung so many times in the yard of her Wildomar home the veterinarian lost count.

Residents in the southwest Riverside County community say they can hear bees buzzing during certain times of day, and are now timing their comings and goings to the insects' schedule.

The Riverside Press-Enterprise says Bammes tried but failed to get help from the county or city, and that Wildomar's code enforcement officer, Keith Ross, told her the city could not afford to exterminate the insects.

Deputy Director Keith Jones said the job would cost about $300.

County officials say there's little they can do because the hive is on a neighbour's private property.
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