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

otters attack British man in Singapore park

Graham George Spencer, a British citizen living in Singapore, said he was chased, pinned down and bitten “26 times in 10 seconds” by a family of otters while out for an early morning walk in the botanic gardens.
Spencer told The Straits Times he was approaching the gardens’ entrance on 30 November when he spotted about 20 otters crossing a path in front of him.

The animals were moving quietly but “went crazy” after another man ran towards them, Spencer told the paper. The runner was able to avoid the animals but Spencer was not as lucky.

He said they lunged at him, biting his ankles, legs and buttocks and causing him to fall over.

“I actually thought I was going to die – they were going to kill me,” he added.

Spencer’s friend, who was about “15 paces” away from him, ran up screaming in a bid to scare away the otters.
“I was bitten 26 times in 10 seconds. If it wasn’t for my friend, I don’t think I’d still be here. I’d be dead,” he told local outlet Today.
 
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I can't help but think of the September 1956 Man's Life cover art that was Frank Zappa's inspiration for the cover and title of his album Weasels Ripped My Flesh.
 

otters attack British man in Singapore park

Graham George Spencer, a British citizen living in Singapore, said he was chased, pinned down and bitten “26 times in 10 seconds” by a family of otters while out for an early morning walk in the botanic gardens.

There are a couple of well known families of otters that live in and around the Marina Bay/Kallang River area of Singapore. They are exceptionally cute, however the Government do have signs like this in areas where they known to frequent:

otters.jpg
 
Yep. The Alaskan otter attacks were happening (more than once) prior to the Singapore one. I wonder if people aren't being a bit too casual around them in light of their internet cuteness reputation. People don't seem to realize they will collectively attack if you get too close.
British naturalist Terry Nutkins had two fingers bitten off by one. The Asian small clawed otter i kept as a zookeeper could bite through wellies.
 
Strewth! Vid at link.

Huntsman spider interrupts Australian Covid press briefing

An Australian state's health minister was giving a Covid update when a journalist pointed out she had a huntsman spider crawling on her.
Yvette D'ath remained calm but was keen to get help.

Huntsmans are large spiders with a leg span of up to 15cm (six inches). Despite possessing venom, they are reluctant to bite and are not considered dangerous.

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-australia-59693271
 
Dog found unharmed after fatal collision owner on A58

The dog that went missing after a fatal accident on the A58 has been found unharmed. The animal went missing when its owner, a 39-year-old German, was hit on the highway.

Passers-by saw the dog walking around near the scene of the accident this morning, a police spokesman told Omroep Brabant. A road was then temporarily closed to safely catch the dog.

The collision happened around 6:45 p.m. near a gas station. The victim's car was parked there when the dog escaped. The man ran after his pet and was hit by at least one car. He died on the spot.

After the collision, the highway between Breda and Eindhoven was temporarily closed. Traffic was diverted. For people who witnessed the accident, victim support has been called in.

https://nos.nl/artikel/2410763-hond-ongedeerd-gevonden-na-dodelijke-aanrijding-baasje-op-a58
 
Crocodiles turn on humans amid Iran water crisis

The attacks have come at a time when Iran has been suffering acute water shortages and, consequentially, fast-shrinking natural habitats have seen the gandos' food supplies dry up. The starving animals treat humans approaching their territory either as prey or a menace to their evaporating resources.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-59571711
 
A tenacious coconut (aka 'robber') crab took over a golfer's clubs on Christmas Island. When golfers attempted to wrest a club from the crab's claws it snipped through the club's shaft. Check the video ...
Thieving coconut crab snips through golfer's club on Christmas Island

A member of a golfing party on Australia's Christmas Island captured video when a massive coconut crab attempted to steal a golf club -- and ended up chopping through the shaft with its claws.

Paul Buhner said he was out for a Friday golf outing with friends, but he wasn't playing ...

Buhner captured video when a large coconut crab -- also known as a "robber crab" due to the species' penchant for thievery -- climbed onto a friend's bag and took hold of a club. ...

The men attempted to wrest the club free from the crab's grip, but the crustacean ended up using its claws to cut right through the club's shaft. The crab left the broken club behind, but scuttled off with a club cover ...
FULL STORY (With Video): https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...aks-golf-club-Christmas-Island/9951641246137/
 
An Indian deer given as a gift to the Paraguayan presidential palace killed a soldier on duty in the palace grounds and gardens.
Paraguayan soldier killed by deer at presidential palace

A Paraguayan soldier has died after he was attacked by a deer in the gardens of the country's presidential palace.

Sergeant Victor Isasi, 42, died as a result of piercing injuries caused by its antlers, the military said.
The non-native deer was a gift to the presidential residence near the capital, Asunción.

An infantry spokesman said it was usually kept in a separate area with other wild animals which were not meant to come into contact with people.

CCTV captured the moment when the soldier approached the deer before being attacked. He was later pronounced dead in a military hospital. ...
FULL STORY: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-59871945
 
Beavers sink their teeth into centuries-old trees at Amerongen Castle
Beavers have discovered the centuries-old beech trees on the estate of Amerongen Castle. Twelve trees have already been affected and the beavers have even managed to gnaw one tree all the way through. At the castle they are very worried. "It is horrible and because of the protected status of the beavers, we can't do anything about it," garden boss Ruud Elbertse told RTV Utrecht. "They keep chewing on and all the trees are going to go."

The beavers discovered the terrain about two years ago. It seemed innocent at first, with willows on which gnawing marks appeared, but since a few months the centuries-old beech trees also have to believe in it.

"They somehow have a huge preference for beech bark. That was actually new to us," says Waronne Elbers, head of public affairs at Amerongen Castle. And that preference now leaves its mark. "Several beech trees have been gnawed all around, interrupting the sap flow. Then no more sap can come from the ground at the top of the tree and the tree will eventually die."

How many beavers there are at the castle is not clear. Elbers has spotted them a few times. "At least we know there are two. If the beavers also have young, there are probably about six of them. That would explain the amount of trees that have been affected.

Electric fence
Solving the problem is complicated, because beavers are a protected species. Therefore, they should not be chased away, let alone hunted.

To make the trees less attractive, electric fences will soon be placed around the castle. "We try to do that as quickly as possible, but it's quite a large surface area. There was not even 2 kilometers of electric fence in stock." The hope is that the beavers will then find another place to settle and that the old beech trees can be saved.

https://nos.nl/artikel/2412794-bevers-zetten-hun-tanden-in-eeuwenoude-bomen-bij-kasteel-amerongen
 
Beavers sink their teeth into centuries-old trees at Amerongen Castle
Beavers have discovered the centuries-old beech trees on the estate of Amerongen Castle. Twelve trees have already been affected and the beavers have even managed to gnaw one tree all the way through. At the castle they are very worried. "It is horrible and because of the protected status of the beavers, we can't do anything about it," garden boss Ruud Elbertse told RTV Utrecht. "They keep chewing on and all the trees are going to go."

The beavers discovered the terrain about two years ago. It seemed innocent at first, with willows on which gnawing marks appeared, but since a few months the centuries-old beech trees also have to believe in it.

"They somehow have a huge preference for beech bark. That was actually new to us," says Waronne Elbers, head of public affairs at Amerongen Castle. And that preference now leaves its mark. "Several beech trees have been gnawed all around, interrupting the sap flow. Then no more sap can come from the ground at the top of the tree and the tree will eventually die."

How many beavers there are at the castle is not clear. Elbers has spotted them a few times. "At least we know there are two. If the beavers also have young, there are probably about six of them. That would explain the amount of trees that have been affected.

Electric fence
Solving the problem is complicated, because beavers are a protected species. Therefore, they should not be chased away, let alone hunted.

To make the trees less attractive, electric fences will soon be placed around the castle. "We try to do that as quickly as possible, but it's quite a large surface area. There was not even 2 kilometers of electric fence in stock." The hope is that the beavers will then find another place to settle and that the old beech trees can be saved.

https://nos.nl/artikel/2412794-bevers-zetten-hun-tanden-in-eeuwenoude-bomen-bij-kasteel-amerongen

“Beavers…were initially brought in to increase biodiversity.

The beaver-breeding programme began in 1988, and since then the beaver population has grown exponentially.

Triumphant mating habits combined with the beavers' ability to breed so successfully in the Dutch countryside mean they have been moving beyond the southern province of Limburg and entering towns and cities that may not be prepared for the influx.

The Netherlands' famous dykes protect the land from being flooded: without these sea defences huge swathes of the country would be underwater. In areas where the dykes are directly connected to the water, the beavers are starting to burrow through the ground.

With the Dutch beaver population expected to hit around 7,000 by 2032, the experts are conscious of the need to take pre-emptive action.”

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20315417

:rofl:

maximus otter
 
A swan's "sit-in" disrupted traffic on the London Underground.
London Underground trains delayed by stubborn swan on the tracks

Numerous London Underground trains experienced delays and cancellations when a swan planted itself on the tracks and refused to move for more than an hour.

Commuters at the South Acton station captured photos and videos Monday evening of the stubborn swan. ...

The London Underground said trains were unable to travel between Willesden Junction and Richmond during the swan's sit-in. Fourteen trains had their routes canceled or redirected while workers attempted to coax the bird off the tracks. ...

"The bird was so disorientated it simply did not know what to do. When we measured him, he was underweight, so it's likely that he simply did not have the strength to fly away. He was very lucky not to have any injuries though and avoid the electrified rails," London Wildlife Protection said in a statement provided to MyLondon.

The swan was kept overnight and released back into a flock Tuesday morning.
SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/01/25/London-Underground/4371643145224/
 
Teachers arrived at a west London school to find a fox napping on their staff room sofa.

FoxOnSchoolCouch-2201.jpeg
Teachers find wild fox sleeping on couch inside London school

Teachers at a London school arrived at the building to find a wild fox had made itself comfortable and was taking a nap on a staff room sofa.

A biology teacher at St. Richard Reynolds Catholic College, in the Twickenham area of West London, posted a photo to Twitter showing the fox sleeping on a couch in the biology department staff room Thursday morning. ...

The teacher said RSPCA rescuers arrived quickly and took the fox away to be examined by veterinarians.
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...don-school-St-Richard-Reynolds/8571643397428/
 
I was told by the owner of a shop specializing in scaly beasts and their care that one of his clients had a full-sized adult iguana that he had had since it's infancy. The iguana slept on the bed like a dog and ran to welcome its owner when he came into the house. The house had a picture window on a small rise overlooking a beach. One night a burglar broke in, the iguana came into the living room to say hello, and the burglar caught it in his flashlight and went right through the window. The owner came into the shop with photos and for advice on special treats for the iguana.
 
Teachers arrived at a west London school to find a fox napping on their staff room sofa.


FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...don-school-St-Richard-Reynolds/8571643397428/

I was listening to Radio 2 at teatime and the presenter Rylan Clark Neal told the story of how he was mugged by a fox. He was walking home through the countryside and saw a fox up ahead, they eyed each other for a few seconds and the fox advanced. Somehow Rylan managed to drop his wallet during this, the fox picked it up and ran away, never to be seen again. So he was mugged by a fox.
 
Elephant taking the piss?

A tourist was trampled to death by an elephant in a national park in Uganda after he got out of the car he was travelling in.

The deceased, a Saudi national, was passing through the Murchison Falls National Park to Arua city with colleagues when they stopped to relieve themselves.

A herd of elephants charged at them and the deceased, who had moved further away from the vehicle, was unable to return.

The incident happened on Tuesday night but was widely reported on Wednesday.

The park authorities confirmed the incident and said investigations were ongoing.

https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-africa-59931660
 
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