Peter Fimrite, Chronicle Staff Writer
Sunday, January 10, 2010
(01-10) 04:00 PST Incline Village, Nev. --
A gigantic, bullet-scarred black bear with a hankering for human food and a knack for breaking and entering has been terrorizing homeowners on the north shore of Lake Tahoe and deftly outmaneuvering gun-toting rangers, bear dogs and traps.
The burly bruin - a male that weighs an estimated 700 pounds, roughly twice the poundage of the average adult black bear - has broken into and ransacked dozens of homes in Incline Village since last summer, causing tens of thousands of dollars in damage and more than a few sleepless nights.
Wildlife officials have tried everything, but the food junkie apparently knows a bear trap when he sees one, shakes off bullets like they were mosquito bites, and keeps coming back for more.
"He's busted into probably 40 or 50 homes," said Carl Lackey, a bear biologist for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. "I've never seen anything like that before."
Trappers plan to kill the bear if they ever catch him, prompting some animal lovers to rally to the muscular mammal's defense.
Save or kill?
"We offered to capture him and put him in a wildlife sanctuary where he'd have about 100 acres to roam free, but the Nevada Department of Wildlife said they don't want to do that," said Ann Bryant, executive director of the BEAR (Bear Education Aversion Response) League. "They'd rather capture and kill him."
A bear habituated to humans is dangerous because it is more likely to attack when cornered, Lackey explained. This bear, he said, has been shot on two occasions while breaking into homes. One of the bullets reportedly bounced off his head.
"Relocation doesn't work. They come right back no matter how far away you take them," Lackey said. "If they do stay where you put them, a bear that has been breaking into homes is going to continue to do it. How would you feel if we relocated a bear like this near your home?"
The ursine prowler, which some have taken to calling Bubba, has learned how to smash out panels on garage doors and rummage through garbage and garage refrigerators. He has a tendency to barge in long after supper time.
Bubba at the fridge
Marianne Lyons, 68, of Nevada City, was alone in a back bedroom at her son's Incline Village house last summer when a "huge bear" busted into the garage, popped open the fridge and began feasting on frozen meat and other goodies. The behemoth sauntered nonchalantly away when animal control officers came, Lyons said, but returned after they left.
"This happened every hour on the hour until 4 a.m. He would come in, get what he wanted and leave. I was ready to jump out the window," Lyons said. "I just had this feeling he was going to come barreling into the house any minute. I have never been more scared."
Lackey said one resident reported shooting the bear right between the eyes with a .44 Magnum after the hungry giant lifted a sliding-glass door off the tracks and started toward him. The bullet glanced off and sent the bear whirling around the kitchen, and a second shot prompted him to scramble out the back door, according to local newspaper accounts.
'Scars on its face'
A Diamond Peak, Nev., resident said he shot the bear in the back with a .30-30 rifle when the animal charged him just after Thanksgiving.
"I've seen bears before, but this was the biggest bear I've ever seen," said the man, who did not want to be identified out of fear that animal lovers would harass him. "I can tell you this thing was nasty looking, with scars on its face and a gash on its neck."
Lackey said the bear is unusually smart. He has eluded the Karelian Bear Dogs that were put on his trail and waltzes right by bear traps. He even knows the garbage pickup dates in certain neighborhoods and routinely shows up to feast when cans are full, Lackey said.
The bear often leaves a humongous, smelly deposit as a kind of calling card.
Three break-ins
"He actually broke into my garage three different times," said Bill Philpott, whose garage on Pelton Lane in the Mill Creek subdivision was first punched open for an apparent look-see at the end of October and then smashed completely three days later.
"I have a refrigerator in the garage. He opened it up, drank a gallon of orange juice, opened the freezer above and munched two frozen pizzas and snacked on frozen chicken," Philpott said. "He broke all the shelves and racks out of the refrigerator, bit into some fruit punch and squirted it all over everywhere, then dragged the trash can outside and took a crap the size of a basketball on the front lawn."
Philpott replaced the garage door in November, only to have the bear tear it down again.
Plenty of bears
Problem bears are not unusual in the Lake Tahoe area, where 350 or so bruins compete for food. Black bears are rarely dangerous to people - no one has been killed by one in California in the past 100 years - but problems can develop when the carnivores learn to associate an easy food supply with humans, according to experts. Such bears rarely hibernate and tend to be more aggressive.
Bubba hasn't been seen in about three weeks, the longest respite since summer, but Lackey is confident the big bruin is still around, readying himself for another raid.
"Bears like this continue to feed year-round," Lackey said. "That's how you get these 600- to 700-pound bears when they are normally 350 to 400 pounds. At this point there is no point in putting out traps. We'll wait until we get a call saying he is in the area and we'll try to catch him."
E-mail Peter Fimrite at pfimrite@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page C - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/10/BAL71BDC28.DTL
Showing posts with label animals attack. Show all posts
Showing posts with label animals attack. Show all posts
Sunday, 10 January 2010
Man-Eater Shark Spines 'To Be Severed'
7:03am UK, Sunday January 10, 2010
Huw Borland, Sky News Online
Sharks that attack swimmers will be hunted down, shot in the head and sawed apart until their spines are severed, according to reports.
Perth's Sunday Times revealed the gruesome methods for dealing with man-eaters approved by the Government of Western Australia.
A shark that attacked a swimmer would be slaughtered if it continued to pose a threat to beachgoers, WA Department of Fisheries's Tina Thorne was quoted by the paper as saying.
But the kill order would only be given in "extreme circumstances", as a last resort where there was an immediate danger to the public.
Ms Thorne said fisheries officers would first use a baited drumline and put "attractant" in the water to try to hook the shark.
The creature would then be hauled aboard a boat where officers would "have to use a large firearm to dispatch the animal".
"That is not an easy task, as sharks have very small brains," she said.
Once shot through the head, officers would ensure the creature was dead by "severing the spinal cord and bleeding it out".
"Even if you hook it, you can't just fly over in a chopper and shoot it because of refraction (of the bullets) in the water," Ms Thorne said.
But great whites - the species responsible for most fatal attacks - are protected and a special exemption from the law is required to kill one.
Six people have been killed by sharks in Western Australia in the past 20 years, the paper added.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Sharks-Man-Eaters-To-Be-Shot-And-Sawed-Apart-Until-Spines-Are-Severed-Australian-Reports-Claim/Article/201001215518144?f=rss
Huw Borland, Sky News Online
Sharks that attack swimmers will be hunted down, shot in the head and sawed apart until their spines are severed, according to reports.
Perth's Sunday Times revealed the gruesome methods for dealing with man-eaters approved by the Government of Western Australia.
A shark that attacked a swimmer would be slaughtered if it continued to pose a threat to beachgoers, WA Department of Fisheries's Tina Thorne was quoted by the paper as saying.
But the kill order would only be given in "extreme circumstances", as a last resort where there was an immediate danger to the public.
Ms Thorne said fisheries officers would first use a baited drumline and put "attractant" in the water to try to hook the shark.
The creature would then be hauled aboard a boat where officers would "have to use a large firearm to dispatch the animal".
"That is not an easy task, as sharks have very small brains," she said.
Once shot through the head, officers would ensure the creature was dead by "severing the spinal cord and bleeding it out".
"Even if you hook it, you can't just fly over in a chopper and shoot it because of refraction (of the bullets) in the water," Ms Thorne said.
But great whites - the species responsible for most fatal attacks - are protected and a special exemption from the law is required to kill one.
Six people have been killed by sharks in Western Australia in the past 20 years, the paper added.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Sharks-Man-Eaters-To-Be-Shot-And-Sawed-Apart-Until-Spines-Are-Severed-Australian-Reports-Claim/Article/201001215518144?f=rss
Thursday, 7 January 2010
'The bat swooped down and bit each of the men'
DANIEL HURST
January 6, 2010
There are fears for three men bitten by a bat infected with the potentially deadly lyssavirus in central Queensland on Tuesday.
The animal has tested positive to the Australian bat lyssavirus, which can cause serious illness in humans and has killed two people since it was identified in 1996.
The men were all attacked by the 'little red flying fox' while walking separately along a track at Joseph Banks Conservation Park near the Township of 1770, south of Gladstone.
Australian bat lyssavirus is one of seven types of lyssavirus which are found around the world, according to a Queensland Health fact file.
Another type of lyssavirus is the potentially fatal rabies.
The men - two of whom were visitors to the area - have returned to their homes in Ipswich, Hervey Bay and Agnes Water while a course of post-exposure prophylactic treatment and counselling are arranged.
''The bat swooped down and bit each of the men on the head or ears,'' acting chief health officer Christine Selvey told reporters.
"There is a risk the virus can be transmitted to humans, however we have a very highly effective treatment regime.
"If it's not correctly treated then the virus can spread along the nerves to the brain which causes an infection of the brain which would be fatal.''
The bat was killed by the third victim and then taken to Queensland Health's Coopers Plains lab for testing.
Biosecurity Queensland's principal veterinary scientist Janine Barrett said the Australian bat lyssavirus was carried by less than one per cent of the bat population, and passed on from animal to animal by scratching or biting.
Queensland Health figures show five bats tested positive to Australian bat lyssavirus last year.
Dr Selvey said the only two known cases of Australian bat lyssavirus in humans were in the 1990s.
Both were fatal.
''Since then we have introduced routine prophylaxis for bat bites and scratches and there have been no further cases,'' she said.
Anyone attacked by a bat is urged to contact medical authorities.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/the-bat-swooped-down-and-bit-each-of-the-men-20100106-lu3f.html
(Submitted by Matt Cardier)
January 6, 2010
There are fears for three men bitten by a bat infected with the potentially deadly lyssavirus in central Queensland on Tuesday.
The animal has tested positive to the Australian bat lyssavirus, which can cause serious illness in humans and has killed two people since it was identified in 1996.
The men were all attacked by the 'little red flying fox' while walking separately along a track at Joseph Banks Conservation Park near the Township of 1770, south of Gladstone.
Australian bat lyssavirus is one of seven types of lyssavirus which are found around the world, according to a Queensland Health fact file.
Another type of lyssavirus is the potentially fatal rabies.
The men - two of whom were visitors to the area - have returned to their homes in Ipswich, Hervey Bay and Agnes Water while a course of post-exposure prophylactic treatment and counselling are arranged.
''The bat swooped down and bit each of the men on the head or ears,'' acting chief health officer Christine Selvey told reporters.
"There is a risk the virus can be transmitted to humans, however we have a very highly effective treatment regime.
"If it's not correctly treated then the virus can spread along the nerves to the brain which causes an infection of the brain which would be fatal.''
The bat was killed by the third victim and then taken to Queensland Health's Coopers Plains lab for testing.
Biosecurity Queensland's principal veterinary scientist Janine Barrett said the Australian bat lyssavirus was carried by less than one per cent of the bat population, and passed on from animal to animal by scratching or biting.
Queensland Health figures show five bats tested positive to Australian bat lyssavirus last year.
Dr Selvey said the only two known cases of Australian bat lyssavirus in humans were in the 1990s.
Both were fatal.
''Since then we have introduced routine prophylaxis for bat bites and scratches and there have been no further cases,'' she said.
Anyone attacked by a bat is urged to contact medical authorities.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/the-bat-swooped-down-and-bit-each-of-the-men-20100106-lu3f.html
(Submitted by Matt Cardier)
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Canadian family's dog saves 11-year-old boy from cougar
A Canadian family's golden retriever saved its 11-year-old owner's life on Saturday when the boy was charged by a cougar in British Columbia.
Published: 11:52PM GMT 04 Jan 2010
Austin Forman was in his family's garden in Boston Bar with Angela, the family's 18-month-old pet dog, when he was charged by the wild cat.
Angel positioned herself between her young master and the cougar, sustaining puncture wounds.
"I was really scared. At first, I didn't know it was a cougar. I thought it was another dog," Austin told the Canadian news website CTV News on Sunday. "As soon as it went underneath the light, I saw that it was a cougar. I knew at that moment, I had to go inside."
The boy fled into his home, yelling: "A cougar is eating Angel!"
Sherri Forman, Austin's mother, called police, and a nearby constable from the RCMP sped to the scene, where the wild cat was attacking the dog.
The cougar had dragged Angel under the porch, where it continued to savage the dog's neck and face despite the officer firing two rounds into its hind quarters.
When the officer finally shot and killed the wild cat, its jaws remained closed on the dog's face.
When the cat was finally killed, the dog was silent for a few moments, then took a big gasp of air and got to her feet.
The dog, which has a swollen eye, was expected to recover with the help of a local vet.
Mrs Forman praised the family pet.
"She must've known something was up," she said. "Now, she's our guardian angel."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/canada/6933888/Canadian-familys-dog-saves-11-year-old-boy-from-cougar.html
See also: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100104/bc_cougar_100104/20100104?hub=Canada (inlcudes video)
(Submitted by Kelly McGillis)
Published: 11:52PM GMT 04 Jan 2010
Austin Forman was in his family's garden in Boston Bar with Angela, the family's 18-month-old pet dog, when he was charged by the wild cat.
Angel positioned herself between her young master and the cougar, sustaining puncture wounds.
"I was really scared. At first, I didn't know it was a cougar. I thought it was another dog," Austin told the Canadian news website CTV News on Sunday. "As soon as it went underneath the light, I saw that it was a cougar. I knew at that moment, I had to go inside."
The boy fled into his home, yelling: "A cougar is eating Angel!"
Sherri Forman, Austin's mother, called police, and a nearby constable from the RCMP sped to the scene, where the wild cat was attacking the dog.
The cougar had dragged Angel under the porch, where it continued to savage the dog's neck and face despite the officer firing two rounds into its hind quarters.
When the officer finally shot and killed the wild cat, its jaws remained closed on the dog's face.
When the cat was finally killed, the dog was silent for a few moments, then took a big gasp of air and got to her feet.
The dog, which has a swollen eye, was expected to recover with the help of a local vet.
Mrs Forman praised the family pet.
"She must've known something was up," she said. "Now, she's our guardian angel."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/canada/6933888/Canadian-familys-dog-saves-11-year-old-boy-from-cougar.html
See also: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100104/bc_cougar_100104/20100104?hub=Canada (inlcudes video)
(Submitted by Kelly McGillis)
Monday, 4 January 2010
Frito the llama escapes getting munched, back at home in Wyo. after 2nd llama killed by cougar
Associated Press
Last update: December 31, 2009 - 1:50 PM
ALTA, Wyo. - Frito the llama defied his name and didn't get eaten.
Lou Centrella seemed sure that was Frito's fate after a mountain lion killed another of his llamas on Sunday. Frito was nowhere to be found after the attack on the other llama, named Grayson.
On Monday, the cougar returned to the Centrellas' yard in western Wyoming to feed on the llama it had killed. Concerned the big cat may have acquired a taste for llama, Centrella shot it.
Wildlife officials say he was within his rights, but Centrella says he felt bad about killing the mountain lion.
Centrella and his daughters Lane and Mila went looking for Frito on Wednesday. They found him four miles away, across the state line in Driggs, Idaho.
They put a rope on the errant llama and led him home through the snow.
___
Information from: Jackson Hole News And Guide, http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/
http://www.startribune.com/nation/80430382.html?elr=KArks:DCiU1OiP:DiiUiacyKU7DYaGEP7vDEh7P:DiUX
(Submitted by D.R. Shoop)
Last update: December 31, 2009 - 1:50 PM
ALTA, Wyo. - Frito the llama defied his name and didn't get eaten.
Lou Centrella seemed sure that was Frito's fate after a mountain lion killed another of his llamas on Sunday. Frito was nowhere to be found after the attack on the other llama, named Grayson.
On Monday, the cougar returned to the Centrellas' yard in western Wyoming to feed on the llama it had killed. Concerned the big cat may have acquired a taste for llama, Centrella shot it.
Wildlife officials say he was within his rights, but Centrella says he felt bad about killing the mountain lion.
Centrella and his daughters Lane and Mila went looking for Frito on Wednesday. They found him four miles away, across the state line in Driggs, Idaho.
They put a rope on the errant llama and led him home through the snow.
___
Information from: Jackson Hole News And Guide, http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/
http://www.startribune.com/nation/80430382.html?elr=KArks:DCiU1OiP:DiiUiacyKU7DYaGEP7vDEh7P:DiUX
(Submitted by D.R. Shoop)
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Tarantula Owner Sees Red After Hairy Moment
3:58pm UK, Friday January 01, 2010
Lulu Sinclair, Sky News Online
Tarantula lovers are being warned to avoid getting up close and personal with their pet - or else do it from the other side of an aquarium pane.
That is a lesson that a 29-year-old man from Leeds in Britain learned the hard way, according to the medical journal, The Lancet.
In February of last year, the man turned up at St James's University Hospital in Leeds after three weeks of stinging pain in one eye, which had become red, watery and light-sensitive.
Doctors prescribed antibiotics, assuming he was afflicted with a particularly stubborn case of conjunctivitis, but the treatment did not help the symptoms.
When they re-examined the patient with high-magnification lenses, doctors spotted ultra-thin, hair-like projections sticking into the cornea.
They were so small that even microforceps could not remove them.
That is when the man recalled a close encounter with his pet spider shortly before his eye first became irritated.
While cleaning a stubborn stain on the glass tank that was home to his Chilean Rose tarantula, he turned his head to find the fist-sized arachnid very near by.
The spider released a "mist of hairs" which hit his eye and face, according the journal.
Treatment with topical steroids largely cleared his symptoms, but as late as August he continued to complain of mild discomfort.
"As a defence mechanism against potential predators, the tarantula will rub its hind legs against its abdomen to dislodge special hairs from the back of its body," the study explained.
"Multiple barbs allow the hairs to migrate through ocular tissue as well as other surfaces."
Moral of the story? "We suggest that tarantula keepers be advised to wear eye protection routinely when handling these animals," it concluded.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Strange-News/Spiders-Tarantula-Lovers-Warned-To-Keep-Out-Of-Eye-Range-Of-Eight-Legged-Friends/Article/201001115512759?f=rss
Lulu Sinclair, Sky News Online
Tarantula lovers are being warned to avoid getting up close and personal with their pet - or else do it from the other side of an aquarium pane.
That is a lesson that a 29-year-old man from Leeds in Britain learned the hard way, according to the medical journal, The Lancet.
In February of last year, the man turned up at St James's University Hospital in Leeds after three weeks of stinging pain in one eye, which had become red, watery and light-sensitive.
Doctors prescribed antibiotics, assuming he was afflicted with a particularly stubborn case of conjunctivitis, but the treatment did not help the symptoms.
When they re-examined the patient with high-magnification lenses, doctors spotted ultra-thin, hair-like projections sticking into the cornea.
They were so small that even microforceps could not remove them.
That is when the man recalled a close encounter with his pet spider shortly before his eye first became irritated.
While cleaning a stubborn stain on the glass tank that was home to his Chilean Rose tarantula, he turned his head to find the fist-sized arachnid very near by.
The spider released a "mist of hairs" which hit his eye and face, according the journal.
Treatment with topical steroids largely cleared his symptoms, but as late as August he continued to complain of mild discomfort.
"As a defence mechanism against potential predators, the tarantula will rub its hind legs against its abdomen to dislodge special hairs from the back of its body," the study explained.
"Multiple barbs allow the hairs to migrate through ocular tissue as well as other surfaces."
Moral of the story? "We suggest that tarantula keepers be advised to wear eye protection routinely when handling these animals," it concluded.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Strange-News/Spiders-Tarantula-Lovers-Warned-To-Keep-Out-Of-Eye-Range-Of-Eight-Legged-Friends/Article/201001115512759?f=rss
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