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Thu, 16 Sep 2021
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Animals

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Bees invade Texas woman's home

There is a potentially painful problem at a home in Katy. Hundreds of thousands of bees were living inside the walls of a woman's house and no one could get rid of them until today.

Claude Griffin with Gotcha Pest Control tried to talk himself through the enormous job of removing 500,000 bees that had taken up residence.


Bizarro Earth

Common Deer Virus Found in Southern Ohio Cattle Populations

Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) officials today confirmed the discovery of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) -- a common white-tailed deer virus -- in two Pike County cattle farms. This marks the state's first-ever case of the virus in cattle, but officials stress that it poses no threat to human health or to the safety of meat consumption.

Question

White-tail deer dying in eleven Kentucky counties

The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources is investigating disease deaths of white-tailed deer in western Kentucky.

The worst outbreak of what is suspected to be hemorrhagic disease is in McLean County, but is also reported in 10 other counties. Wildlife Biologist Danny Watson says the disease is carried through the bite of gnats. He says more than 20 dead deer have been reported in McLean County and he says weak and emaciated deer are being found in or near water.

Bizarro Earth

Disease hits Tennessee deer populations

Stricken whitetails reported in Fayette and across Tenn.

A disease that causes whitetail deer to develop high fever, drink water incessantly and bleed gruesomely has been noted all over Tennessee, leading wildlife officials to fear that one of the state's worst outbreaks is imminent.


Red Flag

Dead Sharks Wash Ashore on Ore. Beaches

NEWPORT, Ore. - A number of young sharks are washing up dead on Oregon's beaches this summer, but researchers are unsure why.

The dead sharks reports started in mid-August, said Bill Hanshumaker, public marine education specialist at the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Info

Fewer copperheads at mountaintop meet

The mysterious nighttime meetings of snakes on an Ozark hilltop have taken a puzzling new turn.

For the past two summers, dozens of Southern copperhead snakes have appeared beneath a cedar tree at Chuck Miller's rugged mountaintop home in Marion County. Like clockwork, the snakes arrived suddenly around 8 p. m., stayed for an hour or so, and then disappeared.

But things are different this summer. Instead of making their first appearance in mid-July, as they did in 2005 and 2006, the snakes began showing up in August. And their numbers are down significantly.

Info

Sudden oak death spreading in California

The number of trees infected with sudden oak death in California is increasing, and the disease has reached epidemic levels along the coast, researchers say.

The oak-killing pathogen is firmly established in 14 counties - including Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo and Alameda - and the number of infected trees in these counties is escalating, University of California researchers reported Friday.

Info

Coming Next Week: Colony Collapse Disorder Breakthrough

The first break in the CCD mystery is about to be released.

Researchers at Penn State, the USDA and Columbia University have had a research paper accepted by Science magazine that outlines the first published information on a possible cause of Colony Collapse Disorder ... commonly known as CCD. But Science and for the most part the researchers are being tight-lipped about what's in that paper. The secrecy surrounding this research has been extraordinary and some of the activities of the researchers has left us scratching our heads.

Info

Virus threatens Mediterranean dolphins

Dozens of dead dolphins washing up along the Mediterranean coast have alerted environmentalists to a virus they fear will become an epidemic, El Mundo newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The region's striped dolphins, a protected species, are being infected with a virus which has not been identified and has so far killed several dozen animals along the coast and may spread, the report said, quoting environmental experts.

Bizarro Earth

Coastal reef being destroyed by algae off Costa Rica

A tropical algae thriving on fertilisers from hotel golf courses and badly treated sewage is killing one of Costa Rica's most important coastal reefs, scientists say.

The green, feather-like algae is spreading along the reefs of Culebra Bay in Costa Rica's north-western Gulf of Papagayo, a popular scuba diving spot and home to a rare species of coral. The algae blocks the sunlight and suffocates the reefs.