Yellowstone National Park says it has killed a newborn bison in the US state of Wyoming after a visitor intentionally touched the animal. The visitor was trying to help the calf rejoin its herd after it got separated from its mother, according to the park. The herd rejected the calf despite repeated attempts by park rangers to reunite the young bison. Yellowstone is now investigating the incident. The calf had to be killed because it was abandoned by the herd and was approaching cars and people on the roadway, “causing a hazardous situation”, the park said on Tuesday. “An unidentified … Continue reading Yellowstone kills baby bison after park visitor touches the animal

A female cheetah has died in Kuno National Park in India’s Madhya Pradesh state, taking the number of the big cats found dead to three since March. The female was found injured on Tuesday morning and treated by vets but died at noon, the park said in a statement. Preliminary reports showed she died from injuries sustained during mating with two male cheetahs, it added. All three were sent from South Africa earlier this year as part of efforts to reintroduce cheetahs to India. The female cheetah that died on Tuesday was named Daksha. She was housed in an enclosure … Continue reading Female cheetah dies from mating injuries in India

A cheetah has died in India’s Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh state, the second in less than a month. Forest officials said the cause of the six-year-old male animal’s death was not immediately known. It was one of 12 big cats that were brought to India from South Africa in February. India reintroduced cheetahs last year, more than 70 years after the animal was declared officially extinct in the country. On 27 March, a female cheetah who was part of the first batch of animals brought from Namibia had died of a suspected kidney ailment. The reintroduction of cheetahs in India … Continue reading #NotAgain: Second cheetah brought to India from Africa dies

Approximately 18,000 cows were killed in a blast at a Texas dairy farm earlier this week, according to local authorities. The explosion, at South Fork Dairy near the town of Dimmitt, also left one person in critical condition. Authorities believe that machinery in the facility may have ignited methane gas. Nearly three million farm animals died in fires across the US between 2018 and 2021. Castro County Sheriff’s Office said they had received a report of a fire at the farm at about 19:21 local time. Photos posted by the Sheriff’s Office show a huge plume of black smoke rising … Continue reading Explosion at US dairy farm kills 18,000 cows

A race is under way to find two people accused of kidnapping a wild platypus in Brisbane, Australia. Surveillance cameras captured the pair boarding a train on Tuesday, holding the animal wrapped in a towel. Police believe they took the platypus from its natural habitat, an offence that can attract a fine of up to A$430,000 ($288,500). They have grave concerns for the mammal’s health and are urging the duo to turn it in. The platypus is at risk of becoming sick or dying the longer it is out of its habitat, police say. But they are also concerned about … Continue reading Water animal taken on train sparks Australia police hunt

Boxes of dead turtles, frog legs and raw meat have been seized by Australian authorities in one of the country’s biggest biosecurity operations. Some 116 different kinds of illegally imported products – together weighing 38 tonnes – were confiscated during a raid on a warehouse in Sydney. Australia has some of the strictest biosecurity rules in the world. Penalties for breaching them include jail time and fines of up to A$6.8 million ($4.5m). Authorities searched the warehouse after border officials noticed a suspicious package in February. Describing the scale of find as “shocking”, Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said it had … Continue reading Massive Biosecurity raid in Australia turns up dead turtles in boxes

Badgers burrowing below railway tracks have wreaked havoc on train services in the Netherlands, causing cancellations and line closures. Trains in the north and south of the country have been affected, with some services halted for at least a week. The line between Den Bosch and Boxtel in the south was closed on Tuesday after the mammals dug under the tracks. Officials said it was not clear how long the problem would continue as badgers were a protected species. John Voppen, CEO of ProRail – the company that maintains the Dutch rail network – said it was the second time … Continue reading Wow: Badger tunnels halt traffic on Dutch railways

A major clean-up operation is under way in Australia after millions of fish died in a river in New South Wales state (NSW). The recovered carcasses are likely to end up in landfill. An emergency hub has been set up at Menindee in the state’s far west to co-ordinate the clean-up and monitor water quality. The deaths are thought to have been caused by an unseasonal heatwave. Temperatures in the area reached 40C (104F) at the weekend. Authorities said there was “no need for community concern” over water quality in the river, which supplies many local residents. “There is ongoing … Continue reading Massive clean-up begins as Australia witness mass fish death amid heat wave

An alligator believed to have been stolen from a Texas zoo 20 years ago was recently returned after it was discovered at a nearby home. The 8-ft (2.5m) gator named Tewa was probably stolen by a person who was volunteering at the Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo, officials say. It was found near Austin by the Texas Game Warden on Friday and returned to the zoo in New Braunfels on Monday. “Alligators don’t make good pets, y’all,” the agency said. The animal is thought to have been taken when it was an egg or a hatchling, according to the … Continue reading Alligator stolen 20 years ago from Texas zoo returned

A 4ft alligator has been captured from a lake in a New York park. The reptile, which has reportedly been nicknamed Godzilla – was spotted on Sunday morning by staff in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. They contacted the park’s authorities, who then captured the gator in the park’s lake. It was later taken to the Bronx Zoo. Alligators are native to the south-east of the US, in warm-climate states such as Florida and Louisiana. On Sunday, temperatures in New York reached highs of 9C (48.2F). NYC Parks, the authority in charge of the metropolis’ green spaces, said the animal was in … Continue reading New York alligator captured in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park

The number of endangered rhinos poached in Namibia last year was the highest on record and almost twice as many as the year before, officials say. A total of 87 rhinos were killed compared with 45 in 2021, official government data show. Most were poached in Etosha, Namibia’s biggest national park, officials say. Rhino numbers in Africa have dropped significantly in recent decades to feed demand for rhino horn in China and Vietnam. Poachers killed 61 black and 26 white rhinos mainly in Etosha, where 46 rhinos were found dead, Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said. … Continue reading Namibia reports record level of rhino poaching

A cane toad so giant wildlife officers thought it was fake has been found in a north Australian rainforest. The “monster” specimen is six times bigger than the average toad, weighs 2.7kg, and could break a world record. Dubbed “Toadzilla”, the animal was quickly placed in a container and removed from the wild. Toads – which were first introduced to Australia in 1935 – are one of the country’s most damaging pests and are now estimated to number over 2 billion. When park ranger Kylee Gray first spotted the massive amphibian while out on patrol in Queensland, she couldn’t believe … Continue reading Big Daddy: The world’s biggest toad has been found in Australia