Sunday, November 26, 2023

Canada: Why bears are feeling more at home near people


Take a look at why bears are feeling more at home near people in Canada.

CBC News: The National on Youtube has the story.

CBC/Radio-Canada is a Canadian public broadcast service.

Hundreds of black bears have been destroyed in B.C. this year after wandering into populated areas in search of food. CBC’

Bears are looking for food to eat every day. They are certainly dangerous animals.

Fatal bear attacks in North America have occurred in a variety of different settings. There have been several in wilderness habitats of bears involving hikers, hunters, and campers. Brown bear (Ursus arctos, a subspecies of which is known as the grizzly bear, Ursus arctos horribilis) incidents have occurred in its native range spanning Alaska, Northern Canada, and Western Canada, and portions of the Rocky Mountains in the United States. The locations of black bear wilderness fatal attacks reflect its wider range.

Bears held captive by animal trainers, in zoos or carnivals, or kept as pets, have been responsible for several attacks. There have also been really unusual cases in which a person entered a bear's cage and was then mauled.

Bear attacks are rare in North America. These attacks are for predatory, territorial, or protective reasons. Most wilderness attacks have occurred when there were only one or two people in the vicinity.

The three most frequent species of bear attacks are: the brown bear, the black bear (Ursus americanus), and the polar bear (Ursus maritimus).

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

Alaska: "Like a hurricane": Moose fight destroys women's yard


"Like a hurricane": Moose fight destroys women's yard

CTV News on Youtube has the story.

Two moose wrought havoc at a home in Homer, Alaska, getting into a bloody fight that caused significant damage to a woman’s yard and car.

The so-called animal: "moose" or "elk" is the only species in the genus Alces. The moose is the tallest and second-largest land mammal in North America, only falling short of the American buffalo in terms of mass. It is the largest and heaviest extant species of deer. Most adult male moose have distinctive broad, palmate ("open-hand shaped") antlers; most other members of the deer family have antlers with a dendritic ("twig-like") configuration. Moose typically inhabit boreal forests and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests of the Northern Hemisphere in temperate to subarctic climates. Hunting and other human activities have caused a reduction in the size of the moose's range over time. It has been reintroduced to some of its former habitats. Currently, most moose occur in Canada, Alaska, New England (with Maine having the most of the contiguous United States), New York State, Fennoscandia, the Baltic states, Poland, Kazakhstan, and Russia.

The moose food diet consists of both terrestrial and aquatic vegetation. Predators of moose include wolves, bears, humans, wolverines (rarely), and (while swimming in the ocean) orcas. Unlike most other deer species, moose do not form herds and are solitary animals, aside from calves who remain with their mother until the cow begins estrus (typically at 18 months after birth of the calf), at which point the cow chases them away. Although generally slow-moving and sedentary, moose can become aggressive, and move quickly if angered or startled. Their mating season in the autumn indeed features energetic fights between males competing for a female.

What are extant animals:

Extant describes species that DO exist. Virtually every creature you hear about on Something Wild is extant. Extinct and extant are opposites, leaving extirpation somewhere in the middle. Biologists use extirpated to describe species that no longer exist in a specific region.

Saturday, September 30, 2023

Mexico: Eggs Found In 'Alien Bodies' Displayed


CNN-News18 Channel on Youtube has the story.

Alien Bodies Mexico

Eggs Found In 'Alien Bodies' Displayed In Mexico - Mexico Alien Corpse - N18V

Mexican doctors conducted extensive laboratory studies on the two alleged "non-human" alien corpses revealed last week. The tests were done by Jose de Jesus Zalce Benitez, a forensic doctor with the navy at the Noor Clinic on Monday. Dr Benitez said "no evidence of any assembly or manipulation of the skulls" were found.

The doctors said that the so-called bodies belonged to a single skeleton. Jaime Maussan, a Mexican journalist and longtime UFO enthusiast, presented two tiny mummified bodies with elongated heads and three fingers on each hand. One was described as female, with eggs inside.

The specimens were about 1,000 years old, according to carbon testing carried out by researchers at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Mr Maussan claimed they were not related to any species on Earth.

Tuesday, September 26, 2023

Mexico: 'Alien bodies' put through X-ray machines and CT scans


The Telegraph Channel on Youtube has the story.

Mexican doctors have carried out several laboratory studies on the remains of alleged non-human beings, which were presented in recent days to Mexico's congress.

According to Jose de Jesus Zalce Benitez, director of the Health Sciences Research Institute of the Secretary of the Navy, the studies showed that the alleged bodies belonged to a single skeleton and were not assembled.

Zalce Benitez also said that the laboratory tests have shown that "there is no evidence of any assembly or manipulation of the skulls."

Mexican journalist Jaime Maussan recently showed two tiny mummified bodies he said were "non-human" beings to congress, sparking a controversy between the scientific community and the Peruvian government, who claim that the remains are pre-Hispanic objects.

Monday, September 25, 2023

Dozens of crocodiles escape in flooded southern China


South China Morning Post Channel on Youtube has the story.

Really indeed more than 70 crocodiles escaped a breeding farm in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong on September 12, 2023, when rainfall brought on by Typhoon Haikui caused a lake to overflow, according to authorities. An emergency team has been dispatched but dozens of crocodiles are still missing, as floodwaters pose a challenge to the operation.

Chinese:

YouTube 上的《南华早报》频道有这个故事。

据当局称,2023 年 9 月 12 日,台风海葵带来的降雨导致湖泊泛滥,70 多只鳄鱼逃离了中国南部广东省的一个养殖场。 应急小组已经派出,但由于洪水对行动构成挑战,数十只鳄鱼仍然失踪。

许多 Dozens
鳄鱼 Crocodile
逃脱 Escape
中国南方被洪水淹没 Flooded Southern China
淹 Drown

Tuesday, August 15, 2023

Bear claimed to be "human in disguise" waves at zoo-goers


The Telegraph on Youtube has the story.

A bear that became a social media celebrity after visitors claimed it looked like a “human in disguise” has been filmed appearing to wave at zoo-goers. 

Some 20,000 visitors are heading to Hangzhou Zoo in eastern China every day - an increase of almost a third - since the sun bear, known as Angela, went viral.

Footage has now emerged of the bear standing on its hind legs waving its right paw to the people gathered around its enclosure.

The so-called sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is a species in the family Ursidae (the only species in the genus Helarctos) occurring in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It is the smallest bear, standing nearly 70 cm (28 in) at the shoulder and weighing 25–65 kg (55–143 lb). It is stockily built, with large paws, strongly curved claws, small, rounded ears and a short snout. The fur is generally jet black, but can vary from grey to red. The sun bear really gets its cool name from its characteristic colorful orange to cream-coloured chest patch. Its unique morphology—inward-turned front feet, flattened chest, powerful forelimbs with large claws—suggests adaptations for effective climbing.

The most arboreal (tree-living) of all bears, the sun bear is an excellent climber and sunbathes or sleeps in trees 2 to 7 m (7 to 23 ft) above the ground. It is mainly active during the day, though nocturnality might be more common in areas frequented by humans. Sun bears tend to remain solitary, but sometimes occur in twos (such as a mother and her cub). They do not seem to hibernate, possibly because food resources are available the whole year throughout the range. Being omnivores, sun bears' diet includes ants, bees, beetles, honey, termites, and plant material such as seeds and several kinds of fruits; vertebrates such as certain birds and deer are also eaten occasionally. They breed throughout the year; individuals become sexually mature at two to four years of age. Litters really comprise one or two cubs that remain with their mother for around three years.

The range of the sun bear is bounded by northeastern India to the north then south to southeast through Bangladesh, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam in mainland Asia to Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia to the south. These bears are threatened by heavy deforestation and illegal hunting for food and the wildlife trade; they are also harmed in conflicts with various humans when they enter farmlands, plantations, and orchards. The global population is estimated to have declined by 35% since the 1990s. The IUCN has listed this interesting special species as vulnerable.

Monday, July 31, 2023

Orangutan understands 72 words! Extraordinary Animals on Earth!


BBC Earth on Youtube shows: Azy the Orangutan communicates with his tutor via symbols and can even use verbs!

The world is an amazing place full of stories, beauty and natural wonder. At BBC EARTH, you will find 50 years worth of astounding, entertaining, thought-provoking and educational natural history content.

So-called "Orangutans" are really great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China. Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans were originally considered to be one species. From 1996, they were divided into two species: the Bornean orangutan (P. pygmaeus, with three subspecies) and the Sumatran orangutan (P. abelii). A third species, the Tapanuli orangutan (P. tapanuliensis), was identified definitively in 2017. The orangutans are the only surviving species of the subfamily Ponginae, which diverged genetically from the other hominids (gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans) between 19.3 and 15.7 million years ago.

The most arboreal of the great apes, orangutans spend most of their time in trees. They have proportionally long arms and short legs, and have reddish-brown hair covering their bodies. Adult males weigh about 75 kg (165 lb), while females reach about 37 kg (82 lb). Dominant adult males develop distinctive cheek pads or flanges and make long calls that attract females and intimidate rivals; younger subordinate males do not and more resemble adult females. Orangutans are the most solitary of the great apes: social bonds occur primarily between mothers and their dependent offspring. Fruit is the most important component of an orangutan's diet; but they will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and bird eggs. They can live over 30 years, both in the wild and in captivity.

Orangutans are certainly among the most intelligent primates. They use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage. The apes' learning abilities have been studied extensively. There may be distinctive cultures within populations. Orangutans have been featured in literature and art since at least the 18th century, particularly in works that comment on human society. Field studies of the apes were pioneered by primatologist Birutė Galdikas and they have been kept in captive facilities around the world since at least the early 19th century.

Which is smartest of the apes? Deemed some of the smartest apes on the planet, orangutans are exceptional creatures with expressive faces. Overall, the species considered most intelligent among the ape species, apart from humans, are orangutans. A few methods and ideas build this foundational thought on which species are the smartest.

More facts:

Which is smarter: gorilla or chimp? Though the chimpanzees are smaller in size they have bigger brains than the mountain gorillas hence making them more intelligent than the gorillas. This makes the chimpanzees more clever and tricky animals than the mountain gorillas.

Difference between apes and monkeys? The easiest way to distinguish between a monkey or an ape is to see if it has a tail. Almost all monkeys have tails, while apes do not. Also take note of the primate's body shape, size, and other physical attributes. Apes are generally larger with wider chests and almost naked faces.

Apes are generally more intelligent than monkeys, and most species of apes exhibit some use of tools. While both monkeys and apes can use sounds and gestures to communicate, apes have demonstrated higher ability with language, and some individual apes have been trained to learn human sign languages.

African Gray Parrots are thought to be one of the most intelligent species on the planet, rivaling even apes. Some researchers have suggested that these parrots have a reasoning ability akin to a three- or four-year-old human child.

What is the friendliest primate to humans? Bonobo apes are kind to strangers. According to the study, bonobos will go out of their way to help strangers - even when there is no guarantee of any payback.

Gorillas are the largest apes (not monkeys!) and the strongest primate, known for their impressive strength. These powerful animals weigh up to 200 kg, and can lift almost 2,000 kg - 10 times their body weight.

Which animal has the lowest IQ? Ostriches. The bird species dominate the list of animals with low intelligence, including the ostrich, despite being the largest bird. Ostriches have small brains that weigh only 26.34 grams, making up about 0.015% of their body weight.

Which animal has 32 brains? Leech: Leech is an annelid. Leech's external and internal segmentation do not correspond to each other. If the internal body is examined, it can be seen that the body is divided into 32 parts or segments which have their own corresponding brain.

Who would win in a fight: orangutan vs gorilla? Gorillas are far better fighters and far more capable of inflicting fatal trauma on enemies. An orangutan might escape a gorilla by climbing trees, but that is not going to defeat the gorilla.

Humans have bodies that are genetically and structurally very similar to those of the Great Apes and so we are classified in the Great Apes sub-group which is also known as the hominids (Family Hominidae).

Pound for pound, humans are definitely the weakest apes. Muscle fibers come in two varieties, fast-twitch and slow-twitch. The fast twitch muscles act faster (obviously) and exert more force in less time.

Which rarest great ape on earth could soon go extinct? Tapanuli orangutans. Less than 800 Tapanuli orangutans remain confined to the small mountainous region of Batang Toru in North Sumatra, Indonesia.

An unarmed human could not beat a chimpanzee in a fight. This may work for the biggest, strongest humans, but certainly not the average ones.

Who wins in a fight: a baboon or a chimpanzee? A chimpanzee is much stronger than a baboon given that a chimpanzee is much larger, sometimes even twice as large, since only a handful of baboons weigh more than about 50 pounds, while a chimpanzee weighs about 70 to 100 pounds.

Interestingly, the fascinating name "orangutan" (also written orang-utan, orang utan, orangutang, and ourang-outang) is derived from the Malay words orang, meaning "person", and hutan, meaning "forest". The locals originally used the name to refer to actual forest-dwelling human beings, but the word underwent a semantic extension to include apes of the Pongo genus at an early stage in the history of Malay.