Category Archives: Animals

Lioness believed to be on loose in Berlin

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People urged to stay inside as officials track down ‘dangerous animal’ in south-west of capital

Residents on the south-western outskirts of Berlin are being urged to stay indoors after overnight sightings of a “loose, dangerous animal”, suspected to be an escaped lioness.

Brandenburg police advised people living in the districts of Kleinmachnow, Stahnsdorf and Teltow on the borders of the German capital to refrain from walking in the woods and to keep pets or farm animals indoors on Thursday. Nurseries were allowed to open but they were urged to avoid letting children play outdoors.

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Florida neighborhood hopping with lionhead rabbit invasion

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Estimated 60 to 100 rabbits are descendants of a group a backyard breeder illegally let loose when she moved away

Dozens of feral rabbits are driving some residents of a Florida neighborhood hopping mad after the furry creatures that were let loose are taking over the streets and are multiplying like – rabbits.

In the suburbs of Fort Lauderdale, there’s a new “invasive species” to contend with in a state all too familiar with the destructive habits of non-native animals. These include Burmese pythons and the iguanas that can voraciously consume their way to local wildlife dominance, as well as lionfish and giant African snails.

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K’gari dingo attack: woman who fled into ocean to escape pack airlifted to Queensland hospital

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Victim was reportedly running on Orchid Beach, on what used to be called Fraser Island, when four dingoes inflicted wounds

A woman has been left with injuries to her lower body after being bitten by a pack of dingoes on Queensland’s K’gari.

She was flown to Hervey Bay hospital in a stable condition with wounds to her limbs and torso after suffering “multiple bite wounds” about 9am on Monday, the Queensland Ambulance Service said.

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Mystery of at least 10 horse deaths in Victoria sparks urgent investigation

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Agriculture Victoria says it is ‘working with local veterinarians and experts to investigate the cause of multiple sudden horse deaths at three properties’

The mystery deaths of at least 10 horses on three separate properties in Victoria has prompted an urgent investigation by state authorities.

Agriculture Victoria on Sunday confirmed 10 horses had died suddenly on properties on the Mornington Peninsula, in south-east Melbourne and south-west Victoria since 4 July.

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Invasive snake wrestled into submission by hunters is Florida’s longest

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Video of capture of Burmese python measured at 19ft – as long as an adult giraffe is tall – was posted on Instagram

A snake believed to be the longest invasive Burmese python ever recorded was captured by two Florida hunters after a mighty struggle.

Stephen Gauta and Jake Waleri caught the humungous reptile in Big Cypress national preserve near the Everglades in southern Florida earlier this week after it lunged at Waleri, 22, who then wrestled it back to the ground.

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Court grants reprieve to brown bear that killed Italian jogger

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Animal fatally attacked Andrea Papi, 26, who was first person to be killed in Italy by a bear in modern times

An Italian court has suspended a ruling that a brown bear should be put down for mauling to death a jogger in the Alps.

The animal, a 17-year-old female identified as JJ4, was captured after the fatal attack on Andrea Papi, 26, near his village of Caldes on 5 April. He was the first person in Italy to be killed in a bear attack in modern times.

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An ‘aggressive’ sea otter is snatching surfers’ boards. Experts are puzzled

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There is no clear explanation for the sea mammal’s behavior, say authorities, who has been seen riding and gnawing surfboards

A California otter is making headlines for her unique, and worrying, interactions with surfers.

In recent weeks, Mark Woodward, a photographer who goes by Native Santa Cruz on Twitter and Instagram has been sharing photos and videos of southern sea otters riding on surfboards they’ve commandeered. Authorities are particularly concerned about one sea otter, known as 841, who was involved in multiple incidents and can be seen in a video relentlessly gnawing on a board that the aquatic mammal scared a rider off of.

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Crows and magpies using anti-bird spikes to build nests, researchers find

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Dutch study identifies several examples of corvids’ ‘amazing’ ability to adapt to the urban environment

Birds have never shied away from turning human rubbish into nesting materials, but even experts in the field have raised an eyebrow at the latest handiwork to emerge from urban crows and magpies.

Nests recovered from trees in Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Antwerp in Belgium were found to be constructed almost entirely from strips of long metal spikes that are often attached to buildings to deter birds from setting up home on the structures.

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Rare and ‘seriously, seriously cute’ chubby-cheeked rat discovered near Melbourne

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Shy broad-toothed rat found after a detection dog tracked down its bright green poo

A detection dog has unexpectedly discovered a new population of rare native rodents in Melbourne’s outer east.

The previously unrecorded broad-toothed rat population was found by a four-year-old labrador called Moss who was searching the Coranderrk bushland near Healesville sanctuary.

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New York steps up patrols off local beaches after slew of shark attacks

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Drones and personal watercraft among measures to protect beachgoers but expert calls for perspective over shark attack data

New York lifeguards are being trained to use drones and personal watercraft after recent shark bites off local beaches – but one shark expert believes such solutions lack specialist input.

Officials in New York’s Long Island say they are upgrading training after five people were reportedly bitten by sharks since Monday, including two minors.

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Driven out by decades of conflict, native giraffes make a return to Angola

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In a ‘message of hope’ the animals have been brought in from Namibia to establish a group in their historical homeland

After an epic 36-hour journey, the first native giraffes to be returned to an Angolan national park arrived from Namibia this week, in what many hope to be the first of multiple translocations to return the animals to their historical homeland.

The giraffes, seven males and seven females, travelled more than 800 miles (1,300km) from a private game farm near Otjiwarongo in the Otjozondjupa region of central Namibia to Iona national park in the south-west corner of Angola.

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‘We’re all afraid of bears’: judge fines Canadian man for shooting animal

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The judge rejected Serge Paincahud’s ‘scared’ defense to fire at a black bear while illegally carrying a shotgun on a trail

A Canadian man, who had pleaded guilty to shooting a black bear in a national park, will pay a fine of C$7,500 after the judge rejected his “fear” of the predator as justification for bringing a loaded firearm on a popular hiking trail.

Serge Painchaud, 42, was this week fined for violating a hunting restriction under the National Parks Act.

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Paddleboarders in close brush with hammerhead shark off Florida coast

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Gabriel Barajas and Malea Tribble thought ‘it was all over for us’ – but marine expert suggests shark was merely being ‘inquisitive’

A pair of paddleboarders raising money for charity had a frightening encounter with a hammerhead shark that circled them near Florida’s coast – and the entire incident was caught on video.

Gabriel Barajas and Malea Tribble were paddling from Florida to the Bahamas, an 80-mile journey, to raise money for cystic fibrosis awareness, WJZY reported.

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Grey whales seen seeking human help to remove parasites

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Captain of tourist boat from Baja California, Mexico, says grey whales return repeatedly for ‘grooming’

Grey whales have learned to approach whale-watching boats to have parasites removed by human beings, it has been claimed.

Video footage documenting the behaviour in the Ojo de Liebre lagoon, off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, shows a grey whale having whale lice picked off its head by the captain of a small boat. “I have done it repeatedly with the same whale and others,” Paco Jimenez Franco told a US news site. “It is very exciting for me.”

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RAF proposal to move Dambusters dog’s grave rejected

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West Lindsey council votes down proposal to relocate dog, named after a racial slur, to Norfolk airbase

Councillors have rejected proposals to exhume and relocate a dog buried at the former base of the Dambusters put forward amid concerns about the suitability of the grave’s location once the site is repurposed as accommodation for asylum seekers.

During an extraordinary planning meeting on Wednesday evening, West Lindsey district councillors unanimously voted down an application by RAF Heritage to relocate the dog to an airbase in Norfolk.

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South Carolina woman dies after being attacked by alligator

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The 69-year-old was found dead on Hilton Head Island with the reptile appearing to guard her body and hampering rescue efforts

A South Carolina woman died on Tuesday after she was attacked by an alligator while walking her dog near a golf course, authorities said.

The 69-year-old woman, who has not been named, was found dead in the Spanish Wells community of Hilton Head Island, the Beaufort county sheriff’s office said in a news release.

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Scooter, a Chinese crested, is crowned world’s ugliest dog

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The annual contest celebrates pets’ imperfections, such as Scooter’s backwards-facing hind legs and sparse hair

Linda Elmquist, of Tucson, Arizona, smiled broadly as she held her little dog aloft. Finally, Scooter was being recognized for his best qualities on Friday as he was given the title of the world’s ugliest dog.

The competition, held as part of the Sonoma-Marin fair in Petaluma, California, for the past 50 years, is a world-renowned event that promotes dog adoption and showcases extraordinary canines that have defied adversity – and celebrates their imperfections.

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US honeybees suffer second deadliest season on record

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Nearly 50% of US bee colonies died off last year, although efforts have helped the overall bee population remain ‘relatively stable’

The US’s honeybee hives just staggered through the second highest death rate on record, with beekeepers losing nearly half of their managed colonies, an annual bee survey found.

But by using costly and herculean measures to create new colonies, beekeepers are somehow keeping afloat. Thursday’s University of Maryland and Auburn University survey found that even though 48% of colonies were lost in the year that ended 1 April, the number of US honeybee colonies “remained relatively stable”.

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MPs vote down Labour attempt to revive animal welfare bill

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Motion to bring back legislation on puppy smuggling and live exports that was part of Tory manifesto rejected in Commons

MPs have voted down an attempt by Labour to revive the government’s animal welfare bill.

Last month ministers announced they were dropping the kept animals bill, which was part of the Tories’ 2019 manifesto. The legislation aimed to clamp down on puppy smuggling and dog theft, as well as banning the live exports of farm animals.

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Tory MPs expected to back Labour plans to reintroduce animal welfare bill

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Conservative backbenchers plan to speak in favour of opposition motion to force government’s hand

Rishi Sunak is facing a potential headache as backbench Conservative MPs prepare to support a Labour plan to bring back ditched animal welfare policies.

Last month, ministers announced they were dropping the kept animals bill, which was part of the Tories’ 2019 manifesto. The legislation was intended to ban live exports of farm animals as well as clamp down on puppy smuggling and dog theft.

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