Animals
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Black Cat 2

Mountain lion strolls through shopping mall in Salt Lake City

Richard Hartley-Parkinson
Daily Mirror, UK
Sat, 28 Jun 2014 13:07 UTC
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Mountain lion casually walks through shopping mall
The cougar wandered through the centre, in Salt Lake City, before settling down in the doorway of a steak restaurant

This isn't something you expect to see on a normal shopping trip - a mountain lion having a browse.

Shoppers were stunned when they spotted the wild animal, also known as a cougar, puma or panther, relaxing outside a doorway before taking a stroll through the mall.

The big cat was caught on camera wandering through the Jordan Commons Centre, in Sandy, Salt Lake City, in Utah, at about 8am yesterday.

Leesha Francis, who works in an office in the mall, said she was scared when she saw the animal sitting in the doorway of a steakhouse in the mall.

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Attention

Stranded humpback whale dies in Mooloolaba marina, Australia


The Queensland Times
Sun, 29 Jun 2014 12:06 UTC
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SAD TRIP: Water Police towed the dead humpback whale out to sea after it washed up in Mooloolaba River.
A sick humpback whale that touched the hearts of people along the Sunshine Coast has finally died.

The 6.5m mammal was first seen off the Gold Coast a week ago and slowly swam north, reaching the Mudjimba area by Thursday.

On Friday it returned south and attracted a large crowd as it rubbed against the rock wall at the mouth of the Mooloolah River.

But as darkness fell on Friday night, the young whale swam quietly into the river and passed away overnight.

A spokesman for the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection said the whale stranded itself within the Mooloolaba marina, where it died under a pontoon.

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Cloud Lightning

Monster storms bring rare seabird visitors to New Zealand

John Weekes
The New Zealand Herald
Sun, 29 Jun 2014 10:57 UTC
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© Renee Henderson-VousdenOne of the giant petrels which have been rescued by New Zealand Bird Rescue over recent weeks.
Conservationists are puzzled at a freaky phenomenon blamed on this winter's monster storms.

A bird rescue centre is caring for six giant petrels after concerned members of the public found the birds in distress.

New Zealand Bird Rescue's Lyn MacDonald said in 27 years working at the shelter, she'd never had more than one giant petrel at a time. In fact, she rarely saw more than one a year. Each of the six birds now at the shelter arrived separately over the past few weeks.

The latest, found near Muriwai, arrived yesterday.

MacDonald believed the most rational explanation lay with wild storms of the last few weeks causing the birds to be blown off course. Yet there were plenty of similar storms over the last quarter-century, and no subsequent increase in wounded petrel sightings.
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Ice Cube

Wrong time, wrong place: Rare Arctic Beluga whale seen in Massachusetts

Lucy Nalpathanchil & Heather Brandon
wnpr.org
Thu, 26 Jun 2014 10:31 UTC
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© A. Lyskin IFAWA Beluga whale sighted in the Taunton River.
In Connecticut, we're used to seeing Beluga whales at Mystic Aquarium, but residents in Fall River, Massachusetts are getting an unusual sight in an unusual place. A Beluga whale was spotted in the Taunton River over the past several days.

"It's very rare to see a Beluga by itself this far south," Dr. Tracy Romano of Mystic Aquarium told WNPR. "It was last sighted here a week ago, on the 18th."

Romano, Mystic Aquarium's Executive Vice President of Research and Zoological Operations, is leading the team while it looks for the whale in the Taunton River. She said Belugas prefer Arctic and sub-arctic waters, and travel in pods. "This unusual sighting in our own back yard is anomalous behavior for a Beluga," she said, "and we would like to find out why."
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Health

Black bear attacks Morgantown area woman, West Virginia


pittsburgh.cbslocal.com
Sat, 28 Jun 2014 17:08 UTC
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© Mt. Lebanon Police dash cam
A Morgantown area woman is recovering after being attacked by a black bear.

Kelly Dale tells The Dominion Post that she walked into a dangerous situation Wednesday night, when she found herself between a mother bear and its cub. The enraged bear swatted at her head and straddled her after knocking her down.

The attack lasted only about five seconds but left Dale with a lacerated scalp, bruised ribs and a sprained ankle.

Dale says that as a mother herself, she really can't blame the bear. In her words: "She was just doing what she was supposed to do."

Earlier this month, officials were investigating a bear sighting in Mt. Lebanon.

A black bear was seen leaving Mt. Lebanon and Castle Shannon, headed into Bethel Park. A Mt. Lebanon Police dash cam captured the bear running across the road.
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Black Cat

Tiger jumps onto boat, snatches man and leaps back into Sunderbans jungle, India

Monotosh Chakraborty
The Times of India
Fri, 27 Jun 2014 11:52 UTC
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© PTI photoThis is the fourth time that a human was killed by a tiger in the Sunderbans this year.
The danger of venturing into the prohibited areas of Sunderbans was revealed again on Thursday morning when a tiger jumped from the bank of a creek and leapt back with a man in its jaws. This is the fourth time that a human was killed by a tiger in the Sunderbans this year.

The victim, 62-year-old Sushil Majhi, lived in Lahiripur near Datta river, less than kilometre from a creek that runs deep into the forest. Along with his son Jyotish, 40, and adopted daughter Molina, Majhi would often row up the creek to catch crabs.

On Thursday, at the crack of dawn, the three set out on a boat to the forests of Kholakhali, an area where fishing is banned.
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Attention

Dead sperm whale found beached at El Condor, Argentina


latino.foxnews.com
Wed, 25 Jun 2014 09:17 UTC
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A 16-meter (52-foot) sperm whale weighing between 30 and 40 tons was found dead on a beach in El Condor, a city in the Patagonian province of Rio Negro, Argentine environmental officials told Efe.

The huge marine mammal was spotted last Friday by a fisherman, who notified marine biologists working in the area, Rio Negro Environment and Sustainable Development Secretariat spokesman Lucas Albornoz said.

The whale beached itself on a stretch of coast surrounded by cliffs some five kilometers (3.1 miles) from a nearby lighthouse, Albornoz said.
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Info

Great apes threatened by shrinking habitats caused by extractive industries


The Guardian
Wed, 25 Jun 2014 13:42 UTC
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© Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty ImagesIn Asia, Sumatran orangutans are believed to have declined by 50% since 1992.
Greater exploitation of natural resources has become a major threat to apes in Africa and Asia, UN conference hears

The accelerated and unsustainable exploitation of the Earth's primary natural resources has become a major threat to apes in Africa and Asia, a major United Nations environment conference heard Wednesday.

Speaking on the sidelines of the UN environment assembly, conservationists said infrastructure development and extraction of natural resources - including timber, minerals, oil and gas - have devastated the prime habitat of apes and pushed chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans and gibbons closer to extinction.

"There's absolutely no doubt that extractive industries are severely impacting on apes and their habitats," said Helga Rainer, conservation director of the Great Apes programme at the Arcus Foundation, the world's largest private funder of ape conservation.

"Only five out of 27 ape (habitats) do not have a mining project within their range ... and there is also an indirect impact associated with infrastructure development such as roads and railways," she added.
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Butterfly

Liberia caterpillar plague results in mass evacuation and crop destruction

David Smith
The Guardian
Wed, 25 Jun 2014 13:27 UTC
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© Ahmed Jallanzo/EPAOne of millions of caterpillars moves through crops iin farms in Gbarpolu county, Liberia.
Thousand flee homes in at least 25 towns and villages in Lofa and Gbarpolu, the second such invasion in five years

A plague of caterpillars has forced thousands of people to flee their homes in northern Liberia, as well destroying crops, contaminating water and forcing schools to close.

Residents of at least 25 villages and towns in Lofa and Gbarpolu counties have joined a mass exodus so far this month to escape the trail of caterpillar excrement, according to the Voice of America (VOA).

It is the second such invasion in five years. A state of emergency was declared in 2009 after tens of millions of caterpillars swept through at least 80 towns and villages in the centre and north of the country.

Dr Sizi Subah, deputy agriculture minister for technical services, told Liberia's The Inquirer that the caterpillars, which travel in huge numbers, have the capacity to destroy large areas since they feed on the leaves of cash crops such as coffee, cocoa and vegetables during the larva stage before developing into butterflies.
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Attention

Dead humpback whale found off Ulladulla, Australia


Milton Ulladulla Times
Wed, 25 Jun 2014 07:57 UTC
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© Lisa Hardwick.GRISLY FIND: The upturned dead whale located in the ocean off Ulladulla on Tuesday afternoon after earlier reports of an upturned vessel.
A dead humpback whale was found floating off Ulladulla's North Head on Tuesday afternoon.

The Ulladulla Marine Rescue crew was called at 1.30pm out after an object, thought to be an upturned boat, was reported east of the headland.

It was earlier spotted off Mollymook Beach.

The crew battled rough seas and strong winds and finally located the whale.

Commander Ken Lambert said a member of the public described the object as an upturned vessel. "The duty Skipper and crew were called to locate the reported object," he said.

"The object was located approximately 1 nautical mile east of the North Headland and Marine Rescue confirmed the reported object to be a dead whale."
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