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Day Of The Animals: Tales Of Man Vs Beast (And Man Suffers)

Quake42 said:
A police spokesman said: "The tail of an animal was poking out from a building and the child has apparently grabbed it. The animal turned round and bit the child and ran off."
Interestingly the later reports are now spinning the story to say that the child was "reaching for a toy" rather than pulling the fox's tail. Presumably so that the fox looks like a vicious killer, rather than an animal reacting in exactly the way any other creature would under the circumstances.

What is especially ludicrous is that the fact that the playgroup has closed because of the "danger". FFS.
I saw a fox the other night on the way home. Worryingly, though, the counselling service haven't answered my calls. I hardly dare leave the house, and am shaking as I type the word "fox".

Oh no - hang on. I've just remembered that I live in the real world.
 
Farmers abandon rice fields, aftermath of hippo attack

Rice farmers at the Moriba rice fields in Janjangbureh South have abandoned
their rice fields, and may not return there until there is a definitive action
to combat the issue of attacks on the fields by hippopotamus.
Hippopotamus recently destroyed over fifty plots of paddy rice fields at the
rice fields. The plots which were transplanted were on their maturity stages.
This serious damages caused by the hippos has caused farmers a big loss.
Speaking to journalists after a conducted tour of the damaged rice fields, Mr. Muhammed Fatty ( :lol:), president of Moriba lay rice field explained that the rice farms use the irrigation system and they have spent over three hundred litres of diesel and even applied fertilizer to all the hundred and twenty plots. However, the hippos have come again, causing havoc on their products whenever they transplant or make nursery beds.
He then appealed to the Department of Wildlife and Conservation to ensure that something is done to nip the incessant attacks of hippos in the bud.

Source: http://today.gm/hi/news/2316.html
 
farming accident? I wonder. Manx farmers cut off cats tails to get tailage payments from the EU.

Paws for thought: Oscar the bionic cat
http://www.physorg.com/news196687941.html
June 25, 2010 The prosthetic legs were developed by a team from University College London led by Professor Gordon Blunn

Enlarge

A cat whose back legs were chopped off in a farming accident has been given a new bionic pair, in a ground-breaking feline first in Britain.

A cat whose back legs were chopped off in a farming accident has been given a new bionic pair, in a ground-breaking feline first in Britain.

Two-and-a-half year old Oscar lost at least one of his nine lives when he was run over by a combine harvester last October -- but eight months later he has regained a spring in his step.

The prosthetic paws were fitted by neuro-orthopaedic surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick, in a three-hour operation involving grafting the replacement legs onto the stumps of Oscar's remaining bones.

"The real revolution with Oscar is because we have put a piece of metal and flange into which skin grows into an extremely tight bone," said Fitzpatrick, who carried out the surgery last November.

"Oscar can now run and jump about as cats should do."

His owner Kate Nolan said: "We had to do a lot of soul-searching and our main concern has always been whether this operation would be in Oscar's best interests and would give him a better quality of life."
 
Fox attack twin girls likely permanently scarred
Page last updated at 23:35 GMT, Wednesday, 30 June 2010 00:35 UK

Baby twin girls who were attacked by a fox as they slept in their cots in the family's east London home are likely to be permanently scarred.

Parents Pauline and Nick Koupparis have told the BBC that both Lola and Isabella are recovering well from the 5 June attack.

But, they added, Isabella will require future surgeries on her injured arm.

Mrs Koupparis said initially she feared Lola, who was bitten on her face, would lose her eye.

The family spoke in detail for the first time to Sophie Raworth, recounting the horror of hearing their nine-month-old daughters' screams, only to find both babies bleeding and a brazen fox in the bedroom.

"I sort of lunged at it and it didn't even move. And I was just screaming and the girls were crying and Nick lunged a few times and the fox was sort of moving a foot at a time," Mrs Koupparis said of the attack on a warm evening as the twins' parents and four-year-old brother watched television downstairs.

At first glance, Lola looked to have been more seriously injured but after Mr Koupparis picked up Isabella, he said he realised she was badly hurt.

"I could feel the blood was all seeping through her babygro and I threw whatever came to hand at the fox. It then scarpered down the stairs," he said.

Consultant reconstructive surgeon Raj Ragoowansi said despite seeing hundreds of dog bites in his career and one other fox bite, Isabella's injuries were the most severe animal bites he had ever seen: "The bite was a very strong bite because as far as the upper arm was concerned the wound was down to the bone."

As she grows, doctors say she will require future surgeries into her teenage years.

The Koupparises say they are grateful to have both girls home and on the mend, especially after the initial extent of their injuries and Isabella's breathing troubles that saw her transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital's intensive care unit.

"Obviously, Lola came home first and it was incredible," said Mrs Koupparis.

"But at the same time I was thinking, well I just want them both and I was sort of thinking to myself what would I do if there was only one twin that came home and how could I ever deal with that as a mother."

The family said they chose to speak to Panorama, in a film made by the independent production company that Mr Koupparis works for, in an effort to deal with some of the aftermath of the publicity surrounding the fox attack, including having the horror of what happened to their daughters questioned by wildlife experts and animal rights activists.

At one stage, a social media network page questioning the family's story and the girls' injuries was created and the Koupparises were given temporary police protection.

"We had a police guard on the front door 24/7 for about three or four days and a panic alarm installed in the house because there were lots of things on websites... and they were just concerned that it could potentially be animal activists."

They stressed that they have not had a family pet since their eldest child was born and while they had seen foxes in their back garden and their neighbourhood, they had never fed or encouraged the animals.

Wildlife expert John Bryant said that while rare, the attack on the Koupparis twins should serve as a warning to the general public "that making pets of foxes, feeding foxes, getting them too used to people and certainly going into houses is not a good idea".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10468276.stm
 
Seagull that 'thinks' it's a cat
By Chris Bennett
BBC Sussex

He's a seagull. Or maybe he's a cat.

Or maybe, given his nickname, he's actually a bear.

Whatever he 'thinks' he is, Pooh the seagull is a family pet.

He has been part of the Grimwood family from Shoreham-by-Sea ever since he arrived unexpectedly as a baby.

Pooh didn't even arrive conventionally by exiting an egg.

In fact the Grimwoods found him in their fireplace one day.

"We heard a rustle in the lounge when we were watching telly and we suddenly thought 'Ooh - what's that?. " said June Grimwood.

"We reached into the chimney and pulled out this young chick.".

He was just a baby gull at the time, albeit an ash-covered baby after falling down the chimney.

"We put him back on the roof, but it was a bit of a windy day and he fell back off.".

Instead of getting into a flap, June and Steve Grimwood calmly nursed him and fed him cat food.

He ate it alongside some unlikely companions - the family cats.

"He slept in the cats' basket, mingled in amongst the cats and was happy as Larry,"

Then, one day, Pooh flew the nest.

But he still returns for six months every year. In fact , in a sense , he's still at home with Mum and Dad, because he and his partner nests on their roof.

Pooh comes in for meals three times a day, with the cats Mitzi, Gus and Henry.

"He feeds out of the cat bowls, he comes indoors and takes the cats biscuits out of their feeder. I think he does believe that he is actually a cat," said Mrs Grimwood.

"I wouldn't say he's mixed up. He's just very clever. he knows where a good B&B is by the seaside every year,".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/sussex/hi/p ... 802201.stm

We've had a baby gull wandering around our garden for some weeks now. I've never seen an adult with it, but it seems to be thriving. I was suprised that one of the local cats hasn't had a go at it, but after reading the above tale it seems that cats and gulls are in league with each other...
 
There's probably a book or a film to be made here...

Rabbits disrupt project to map the universe
A million pound project that hopes to map the history of the universe is being disrupted by rabbits which are chewing though vital cables.
Published: 6:45AM BST 14 Jul 2010

Scientists at the University of Portsmouth planted 96 low-band radio antennas in a field the size of two football pitches in order to collect radio signals emminating from space.

But rabbits are gnawing through the supports of the structures to grind their teeth down, forcing maintenance teams to visit repeatedly to stop the 4ft 6in antennas from toppling over.

A metre-high fence, embedded in the ground is now being built around the site in Winchester, Hants, to stop the animals getting in or burrowing underneath.

The complex Low Frequency Array, or Lofar, project involves a super-computer in the Netherlands as well as antenna stations across Europe.

Professor Bob Nichol, from the university's Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation, helped build the Winchester Lofar site.

He said: "These rabbits are doing what furry little creatures naturally do and that's gnaw stuff to keep their teeth down.

"The cables are like cords you buy for camping so they're not particularly valuable but without them the antennas could topple over and we're trying to keep maintenance costs low.

"It is something we did predict and all the Lofar sites across Europe have their own wildlife problems, such as sheep knocking over the antennas. 8)

"We're all animal lovers and the rabbits have a big area to explore.

"Hopefully the fence will encourage them to go elsewhere."

The fence will also be a defence for 95 new high-band antennas which are more expensive and complex.

Prof Nichol said: "The high-band antennas are polystyrene crates full of antennas with a black plastic cover.

"They'd make a cosy little place for a rabbit."

Computer equipment will be placed on site in August, which will allow antenna signals to be processed and sent to the Dutch super-computer.

The super-computer will make images of the entire radio sky, shedding light on how infant stars developed.

The Lofar project is set to last for 15 years.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/spac ... verse.html
 
'Crocodile Dumb-dee' says he wanted to play with croc

SYDNEY — An Australian man dubbed "Crocodile Dumb-dee" for trying to ride a huge crocodile after a drinking spree described Wednesday how he just wanted to play with the animal.

Michal Newman, 36, said he climbed into the enclosure of "Fatso", a five-metre (yard) saltwater croc who lives at a northern wildlife park, to pat him and sit on his back.

"I thought to myself, 'Well, I will jump the fence and go from behind its tail and pat it and sit on its back'," Newman told public broadcaster ABC.

"And within like one split second before I even slightly touched its back, it already had me by the leg," he said.

Media reports said Newman tried to drip beer into the mouths of two female crocodiles before moving onto the giant Fatso.

He said he shouted at Fatso to let him go before escaping from the pen and returning to a nearby pub with severe leg injuries, where he drank a beer while waiting for an ambulance.

But Newman, who has been recovering in hospital after undergoing surgery for his bite wounds, vowed never to approach a crocodile again.

Broome Crocodile Park owner Malcolm Douglas has credited Newman's escape to relatively cold conditions, with the temperature falling to 22 degrees C (71 F) overnight.

"They're cold-blooded animals, so their reflexes slow down," he said.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/ar ... gTQ3ZSqOzw
 
I've been to Broome, isolated town on the North-West coast. You either fly in or its a long long long drive. Used to be a pearl diving centre but now mostly survives on tourism. I was drunk in Broome but didn't get up to any croc riding.
 
This just made me smile


'He's going to need a bigger bowl': Schoolboy angler amazed after he hooks a monster 5lb GOLDFISH



Even if you're known for having a three second memory, it's an unforgettable catch.

And Nick Richards was bowled over when he reeled in this 5lbs goldfish.

The 16-year-old angler was amazed to have caught the massive orange specimen while fishing at a local lake.
It is likely the 16 inch fish was released into the water after outgrowing its tank - and has apparently thrived in its new environment.
Catch of the day: Nick Richards with a 5lb, 16ins goldfish he reeled in while fishing at a lake in Poole, Dorset
Schoolboy Nick was fishing for common carp when he noticed a flash of colour under the surface of the water and pointed his rod in its direction.
Moments later he had the goldfish, which is a type of carp usually found in fairgrounds and garden ponds, hooked on the end of the line.

FISH FACTS
The goldfish, known in Latin as Carassius auratus auratus is a small member of the carp family
It was first domesticated in China more than 1,000 years ago and is commonly kept as a pet
Goldfish typically grow to between two and 18 inches
They have been known to live for 40 years
Previously, the biggest goldfish in Britain measured 15.7ins and weighed 2lbs

It is thought Nick's catch, which he placed back in the water after taking this photograph, is the biggest in the UK.
Recalling the one that didn't get away, he said of the lake in Poole, Dorset: 'I'd heard rumours there might be some big carp there and thought I'd see for myself.
'I was there for two days running and caught some big common carp.
'Then suddenly I saw this big orange fish cruising along the top of the lake.'
Nick, who is from Camberley, Surrey, and was on holiday in Dorset when he caught the goldfish, continued: 'It wasn't too much trouble to reel it in.
'At first I thought it must be a really fat Koi carp, but when I saw it properly I realised it was a common goldfish - just like one you might keep as a pet.
'The only difference was that it was massive. It weighed 5lbs when I put it on the scales.
'I can only think that it had got too big for someone's tank or pond and the owner had dumped it in the lake.
'It looked like it was healthy and in good condition. The lake is sheltered with plenty of food, so it's doing pretty well.'
Ruth Lockwood, from the English Carp Heritage Organisation, said: 'It's difficult to confirm that it is the biggest ever caught in the UK, because it is an ornamental fish and the record won't be recognised by the British Records Fish Committee.
'It seems most likely that it was released into the lake by someone after it outgrew a tank or pond.'
She added that pet owners 'must be reminded that it is illegal to release pet fish into the wild'.

'It has a massive impact on the environment and our native species and must not be encouraged'.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0thB5V4AO
 
And another, amusing behaviour :twisted:


Put... me... DOWN! The elephant who took a fancy to a very unfortunate lizard


Swinging mid-air like a rag doll, this monitor lizard was in for a rough time when a playful elephant took a fancy to it.
The unlucky creature had been swept off the ground and was carried around for a number of days by Madhuri, an Indian elephant.
With tail firmly clamped in the animal's trunk the lizard was swung around and occasionally put back on the floor.
This is not the beginning of a beautiful friendship: Madhuri, an Indian elephant, swings a monitor lizard about by its tail at a park in India
It might have been a bumpy ride for the tiny creature - but Madhuri certainly looked delighted with her new 'toy'.
These extraordinary shots were taken by Jagdeep Rajput during a trip to Corbett National Park, in India.
The 49-year-old, from Delhi, has been taking photographs for 20 years but admitted he had never before seen such a bizarre spectacle.
He said: 'I had heard about this elephant before and looked out for her.
In a spin: Madhuri was enjoying her lunch, although the lizard may have been feeling a bit nauseous
'She's known to be quite aggressive so when I did eventually find her I approached her carefully.
'The park has a good population of lizards and Madhuri is known as an expert in catching them - she has a particular fancy for monitor lizards.
'She caught the lizard alive and carried it all the time for few days - tossing it up and even dropping it.
'Her behaviour was extraordinary and I've never seen or heard about anything so bizarre before.'
The lizard makes a break for it after several days of being carried around as Madhuri's new toy
The Indian elephant is a subspecies of the Asian elephant.
This particular species can weigh up to five tons and measure an incredible 11 feet from feet to shoulder.
Its trunk lacks bone and cartilage but does contain 100,000 muscle units, which gives the elephant an incredible dexterity and allows it to pick up very small objects.
The species is endowed with a very large brain, which allows them to record memories and experiences.
Some experts even believe the animal possesses an intuition that allows them to imagine what other elephants are feeling.
There are thought to be below 30,000 Asian elephants in existence, around half of which are found in India.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldne ... z0thCPLCYX
 
Remarkably, someone managed to photograph this incident:

Forty-ton whale lands on yacht during Cape Town sailing trip
A couple who took a yacht for a quiet sailing trip were stunned when a 40-ton whale crash-landed on their boat off Cape Town.
Published: 11:58PM BST 20 Jul 2010

The pair were enjoying calm seas off the South African coast owhen the animal flipped into the air and smashed into their mast. :shock:

Ralph Mothes, 59, and Paloma Werner, 50, were helpless as the beast thrashed around on their 33ft vessel before slipping back into the water.

Miss Werner said: "It really was quite incredible but very scary. The whale was about the same size as the boat.

"We'd spotted it about 100 metres away and thought that was the end of it. Then suddenly it was right up beside us.

"I assumed it would go underneath the boat but instead it sprang out of the sea. We were very lucky to get through it, as the sheer weight of the thing was huge.

"There were bits of skin and blubber left behind, and the mast was wrecked. It brought down the rigging too.

"Thank goodness the hull was made of steel and not fibreglass or we could have been ruined."

Moments before the animal leapt it had pounded its tail on the surface of the water in a 'lob-tailing' ritual to communicate with other whales.

The shaken couple, who are experienced seafarers with the Cape Town Sailing Academy, used their engine to get back to shore in Table Bay.

Whales are a common sight in the Atlantic Ocean off the Western Cape coast at this time of year as they come near the shore to breed.

Thousands of tourists flock to the region's seaside resorts every year to spot the mammals during the South African winter from June to November.

Hermanus, a popular destination around 80 miles east of Cape Town, employs a 'whale crier' to walk through the town announcing where whales have been seen.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstop ... -trip.html
 
The cuddly killer: Urban otters caught sneaking into gardens to wipe out family fish ponds
By Andrew Levy
Last updated at 12:53 AM on 22nd July 2010

Don't be fooled by the fluffy whiskers and cute appearance. Beneath the cuddly exterior lurks a fearsome predator – if you have a garden pond.

Otters are abandoning their natural hunting grounds of rivers and lakes to prey on fish in domestic gardens.

In some cases, they have wiped out prized stocks of koi carp, which can be worth up to £25,000 each.

Nature experts said work to increase otters’ dwindling numbers in the 1990s has led to a population explosion today, driving them into urban areas to forage for food.

Kevin Mann, 48, lost his entire stock of 17 koi carp in just three weeks after otters raided his garden in Barford, near Norwich, Norfolk.

Mr Mann, a curtain fitter, said: ‘I’d hand-reared these fish, some of which were 23 years old. I’m heartbroken.

‘I never thought otters could be capable of such destruction and people have to realise that they aren’t the cuddly, lovable creatures many think they are.’

His wife Gillian, 45, a supermarket duty manager, said: ‘Some of the koi carp were so large that otters couldn’t drag them all the way back to wherever they had come from.

‘I found the carcasses of two on the verge just down the street from our garden. The poor things had been dragged down the road.

‘It was heartbreaking to see them in such a state because they were part of our family and we loved them.’

The couple added that they knew of three other victims in their area – and the Angling Trust warned that the pattern is being repeated across the UK.

etc...

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0uP5kQfqK
 
SameOldVardoger said:
Here's a video of the whale incident:
Whale video - norwegian newspaper
Suddenly, Moby Dick and other sailors' tales seem more believable!

I've seen whales at sea, but not quite so up close and personal!

It was lucky there were no injuries - just a mast coming down through rigging failure can be dangerous enough, without a 40T whale thrashing about on deck! :shock:
 
Wiley ol' Reynard is chewing on people again...

Girl, 13, attacked by fox which ripped open her tent while she camped with friends in garden
By Dan Newling
Last updated at 11:09 PM on 29th July 2010

A schoolgirl has told how she was attacked by a fox as she camped with two friends in her parents' suburban garden.

Bethany Blackburn, 13, was rushed to hospital after the animal slashed a hole in the canvas and bit her foot.

Before it struck it had spent more than two hours clawing at the sides of the tent but Bethany and her friends had treated its attention as a bit of fun.

Their amusement turned to terror, however, when it lashed out.

Bethany screamed and blood started to gush from her left foot but the fox remained in the tent.

It sat, snarling, in the porch area, only turning tail when Bethany's mother, who the desperate schoolgirl had alerted on her mobile phone, switched on the kitchen light and came out to investigate.

The shocking incident happened on Sunday night in a suburban garden in Long Ditton, Surrey.

It comes after nine-month-old twins Isabella and Lola Koupparis were left with 'life-changing' injuries after a fox attacked them in their cots in East London last month.

Bethany's mother Melanie said yesterday that her daughter and friends had previously spent up to a week camping outside, and had never had any problems with foxes.

She said: 'Foxes have been coming into the garden for the past year, but normally they run away as soon as you see them.

'To be honest, we never really thought of them as dangerous. That's all changed now, though. I've got a four-year-old boy and now I keep the back door shut all the time. And no-one will spend the night in the tent again.'

Bethany and her two friends, Amie Clark, 14, and Sherice Perry, 13, had eaten supper indoors and did not take any food out to the tent with them. The only drink they had was a bottle of water.

Nonetheless, the fox was fascinated by the girls' presence, and from around 10pm started to sniff around the tent. At that stage the girls were unworried but later, as Bethany was dozing off, she heard it rustling again.

'The next thing I felt was something biting my foot. It clamped its jaws down and bit through my sock into my heel and the top of my foot.

'It was so painful, I was shaking with fear. There was blood everywhere. We didn't know what to do.'

...

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0v9UHOlcg
 
I notice there's been a spate of fox attacks in the news lately.
It's because people have stopped hunting them in this country - they are no longer afraid of humans, and the fox population has grown.
 
Mythopoeika said:
I notice there's been a spate of fox attacks in the news lately.
It's because people have stopped hunting them in this country - they are no longer afraid of humans, and the fox population has grown.
But...

The recent fox attacks have happened in urban areas, where they've never been hunted anyway.

And any foxes that have been hunted would have been more aware of the hounds as their enemy - any foxes that encountered humans in a hunting context would have shortly become ex-foxes, and therefore unable to pass on their experience.... :(
 
In rural Beds & Cambs we have had a number of attacks on dogs & cats in the last few years.

There's probably not an increase in these attacks, it's just that I tend to remember the more recent ones.

There was one at Hilton, Cambs. a couple of years ago, where the dog was killed in front of the owner, the dog was one side of a chain link fence, the owner was the other side!!!!

The bunny huggers blamed it on changes in the fox behaviour due to global warming!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Every one else considered it to be normal fox behaviour.
 
And the villain for today is - oh! - another fox...

Fox prime suspect in mystery of judge’s chewed shoe
A former judge is on the tail of an intruder who sneaked into his home in the dead of night to eat his shoes – an urban fox.
By Paul Stokes
Published: 9:21PM BST 01 Aug 2010

Dudley Thomas was “flabbergasted” when he awoke to discover a favourite brown leather loafer with its back chewed out.

He believes all the evidence points to an audacious raid by an urban fox and is warning neighbours to be on their guard.

The culprit struck as Mr Thomas and his wife Sue, a retired family doctor, slept at their large house in Cotham, Bristol.

When he got up he noticed just one of his shoes where he had left then, but the other had been hauled onto a balcony and partially devoured.

Mr Thomas, 64, a retired district judge, said: “I could smell a fox smell, I knew it must be a fox.

“I didn’t think a rat or cat could have done it and there were no dogs in the house. I also don’t think it was an angry person I had dealt with in court.”

He thinks it must have slipped into the house after walking along a garden wall and scaling the balcony.

It then got through a partially-open sash window, 30ft above the ground, and into the first floor living room before searching around.


“I’m flabbergasted it was so bold,” added Mr Thomas, who heard nothing during the night of the raid.

Dr Thomas, 62, said: “I think that people should be aware that a fox could get in through a window like that.

“I can think of no other explanation, no doors were left open, just the window. There was a very strong smell of fox in our study, it really stinks, and we see foxes around where we live all the time.

“We don’t have any small children in the house, but after recent events people might want to be careful about leaving windows open if they do.”

There are an estimated 27 foxes per square mile living in close proximity to humans in urban areas of England.

The disease mange virtually wiped out urban foxes in Bristol in the early 1990s, but there are an estimated 1,000 breeding adults in the city.

Its suburban estates full of semi-detached house, large gardens and open spaces iprovides an ideal habitat for the animals.

etc...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... -shoe.html
 
Beaver hospitalises fisherman in frenzied riverside attack

6th August, 2010
Beaver hospitalises fisherman in frenzied riverside attack
A hefty 3-stone beaver has hospitalised a fisherman following a frenzied attack.
The beaver had not been provoked, according to Russ McTindal

The incensed animal swam across the river and launched itself at 55-year-old Russ McTindal.

The American said he tried to fight off the beaver by hitting it with his rod as the animal gnawed at his arm.

'It was attacking me,' McTindal told Channel 2 Action News. 'He was actually attacking me. I hadn't provoked him or anything.'

'This was one of the biggest beavers I've ever seen.'

Mr McTindal, who was rushed to a Georgia hospital, added “It hurt like hell”.

http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/837342-bea ... ide-attack

'This was one of the biggest beavers I've ever seen.'
:oops:
 
The fox cub caught lounging around on swimming pool lilo
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 10:21 AM on 10th August 2010

When the weather gets too hot to cope with, where better to spend the day than lying on an air bed in a pool?
That was evidently the thinking of a tiny fox cub, pictured in a couple's back garden inflatable tub.
The cub was seen in the 12ft-wide pool by John and Ann Barnes, who caught it on camera before attempting to remove him.

Speaking at their home in Croydon, South London, Mrs Barnes, 51, said: 'We put the pool up for the grandkids six weeks ago and they have loved swimming around in it.

'But when we saw this fox sitting on the lilo it was such a surprise. He looked right at home sitting there on the water and didn't seem too keen to get off.
'He wasn't happy when John tried to get him off the lilo - he became all vicious like he wanted to stay where he was.

'John eventually managed to get the cub out of the pool, but it ended up falling into the water a couple of times before eventually jumping off and scampering into the bushes at the end of our garden.'

The couple have now installed steps in their pool in case any other animals fancy a dip and need to get out quickly.

Mrs Barnes, a learning and development consultant at Croydon Council, added: 'We get a lot of wild animals here, foxes and badgers and we once had a deer with its fawn in our back garden.
'My colleagues at work joke we'll open our window one day and see a herd of wildebeest there.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0wCJZDOg5
 
Mutant lobster found off St Mawes
4:12pm Wednesday 11th August 2010
By Emma Goodfellow »

Marine experts at Newquay’s Blue Reef Aquarium are taking extra safety precautions following the arrival of a mutant lobster.

The bizarre-looking crustacean has two cutting claws; usually there would be one cutting claw and a crushing claw. The lobster was donated to the Cornish wildlife attraction by Mylor-based fisherman Ned Bailey, who caught it off the coast of St Mawes.

It is only the third lobster with two cutting claws that Mr Bailey has come across in more than 28 years of fishing.

The lobster has been nicknamed Edward Scissorhands, in reference to the character played by Johnny Depp in the film of the same name, who had scissors instead of hands.

Edward is also fast and extremely aggressive, with curator Matt Slater already falling victim to the lobster’s lightning reactions.

“I was doing a rockpool talk in front of lots of visitors and Edward made a sudden grab for me and caught me round the wrist,” said Mr Slater. “It was rather painful but I managed to carry on talking and disengage his claw at the same time.”

Lobsters are among the planet’s oldest inhabitants with fossil remains found dating back more than 100 million years. They are also extremely long-lived, with some more than 60 years old.

http://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/83 ... es/?ref=mr
 
I came across this in a monograph writen about 1914, entitled: “Wimpole as I knew it” by Alexander Campbell Yorke, Rector of Fowlmere in Cambridgeshire, who was the 5th son of Henry Reginald Yorke 1802-1871, Rector of Wimpole and brother of the 4th Earl of Hardwicke. The events he describes must be about 1835.

“......talking of wild beasts, here is a memory of something not seen now. The first night that my father slept in the rectory no less than thirty-six rats were caught on the front landing. He has told me how he once saw an army of rats, a solid moving phalanx, emigrating from the Home Farm. He used to impress upon me the danger of finding myself surrounded by such; and used to point his story by telling me of a Wimpole farmer, who, on his way home from Cambridge market, found himself and his horse surrounded by an army of the vermin somewhere at the foot of Orwell hill. They attacked him and his horse, and with difficulty and a hunting crop he fought his way through. It does suggest that at the Market Ordinary this agriculturalist….. But perish the thought! Had he not kept his saddle for eight miles.”
 
More naughty foxes:


Prince of Wales's hens 'killed by foxes' at Highgrove

The birds are kept at Highgrove in Gloucestershire to provide eggs for the prince's Veg Shed farm shop in Tetbury.

But about 40 have been killed in the past few weeks after foxes jumped a 4ft (1.2m) high electric fence.

A spokeswoman said the birds were not part of Prince Charles's personal collection, which is used to supply eggs to the Royal Household.

The hens were part of a flock of about 170 kept in an orchard at Highgrove.

Clarence House said the electric fence was moved every few months to give the hens fresh grazing and to keep the electric current strong.

But despite those efforts, a number of foxes had been able to break into the orchard during the past four or five weeks, it added.

The Veg Shed sells produce from the Duchy Home Farm, owned by the prince.

"There has been a shortage of eggs, but there are still a number of hens laying," a spokeswoman added.

Prince Charles owns a "Veg Shed" farm shop?
 
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