Animal News
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Wednesday August 10 2005 09:55 GMT
New lemur species found in Africa
Two new species of lemur have been discovered on the island of Madagascar.
The first new breed is a giant mouse lemur the size of a grey squirrel with a bushy tale, called a Mirza zaza.
The second is a giant mouse lemur called Microcebus lehilahytsara. It's small enough to fit in your hand, with round ears and a stripe on its nose.
Microcebus lehilahytsara is little bigger than a mouse. (Photo: Robert Zingg)
Lemurs are only found in the wild on Madagascar. The island broke off from mainland Africa 165 million years ago and is home to many rare animals.
Separate species
Experts used to think only one type of giant mouse lemur existed, living in different areas on the north and west of island.
But scientific evidence found by German and Malagasy scientists now proves they evolved into separate species two million years ago.
The findings, by scientists at the German Primate Centre and the University of Göttingen, mean there are now 49 known Lemur species in the world.
LEMUR FACTS
- Lemurs are the closest living relation to our ancient primate ancestors who lived about 55 million years ago
- They are primates, which means they have hands and feet
- A third of lemurs are extinct
- They are threatened from hunting and habitat destruction -
Wednesday August 10 2005 15:16 GMT
Giant panda gives birth to twins
Xue Xue the giant panda gave birth to twins at an animal rescue centre in northwest China on Saturday.
The 18-year-old bear gave birth to a girl who weighed in at 151g, and a boy who weighed just 122g.
Staff have at the centre have named the girl Da Xin, meaning joy, and called the boy Xiao Xing, meaning prosperity.
Although Xue Xue is looking after the baby girl very well, staff are now caring for the boy as she was struggling to look after both cubs.
In the wild pandas would usually look after just one cub at a time, and staff are hoping that Xiao Xing will build up strength in the rescue centre's nursery.
They have asked experts from the Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base in a nearby province for help with rearing the baby.
Still endangered
The new arrivals bring the total number of cubs born at the centre to six.
That's good news for the rare bears, as there are thought to be only 1,600 of the animals left in the wild.
Pandas can only get pregnant on a few days between March and May each year, and give birth between 83 and 181 days afterwards. -
Thursday August 11 2005 10:08 GMT
Turtles get help after killings
Turtles in Mexico are to get special protection after about 80 of the creatures were found dead on a beach.
It's thought they were killed for their eggs, which are sold for lots of money.
The dead Olive Ridley turtles were found on Escobilla beach, which is one of the most important nesting grounds for the protected creatures.
The government has slammed the attacks as "an act of vandalism" and is working with the navy to help the turtles and prevent further killings.
The government has already sent two navy boats to patrol the beach and look out for anyone who might want to hurt the turtles.
The Olive Ridley sea turtle is the smallest sea turtle in the world.
They've been protected under Mexican law since 1990. There's a penalty of up to nine years in jail for anyone caught killing them. -
Friday August 12 2005 12:39 GMT
Goats helping starvation in Niger
Aid is now arriving in the famine struck African country of Niger, but one agency is sending something a bit unusual - goats!
A bad drought this year, and a swarm of locusts the year before, destroyed crops, leaving a severe food shortage.
Unicef has sent out over 12,000 goats, which families use to make milk and cheese to eat and sell.
They can keep the goats as long as they give the first male and female baby goat born to another family in need.
Goats have about three kids two times a year, so the herds are steadily increasing.
That means the project will keep itself going, and help more people get the vital food and medicine they need. -
Friday August 12 2005 14:52 GMT
Greedy squirrel trapped by nuts
A squirrel learned not to overeat when he was caught in a bird feeder after scoffing too many nuts.
The bushy-tailed thief had managed to squeeze his way into the wire cage, but after a huge feed his belly had grown so much that he couldn't escape.
Things soon got worse, as the feeder fell off its pole and rolled towards a stream, in Bideford, North Devon.
Luckily he was spotted before reaching the water. The RSPCA cut him loose and set the nut-napper free!
It was touch and go as the furry criminal was obviously upset at being caught red-pawed.
A vet had to knock the beastie out with anaesthetic gas before cutting him loose.
He was found to be in good shape, and is now happily scampering around the garden he burgled - even if he's avoiding any bird feeders now! -
Saturday August 13 2005 10:01 GMT
Farmers admit to gassing badgers
Some farmers in UK are illegally gassing badger sets because they think the animals spread disease.
Badgers are a protected species, so it's against the law to kill them or tamper with their homes, called sets.
But the National Farmers Union (NFU) says badgers are being killed all the time, and wants to make it legal.
Many farmers think badgers spread a disease called tuberculosis (TB) to their cows, but environmental groups say there is no proof of this.
Farmers say the spread of TB is out of control, and think it's been caused by making it illegal to kill badgers.
But environmental groups say the disease is more closely linked to cattle movements than to badgers.
The Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it would look at the issue again in the autumn. -
Tuesday August 16 2005 15:53 GMT
Small cars confuse park's lions
Confused lions have been chasing small cars at a safari park in Merseyside in UK - because they think they're prey and need to be hunted.
Now staff at Knowsley Safari Park are keeping a close eye on small vehicles which go into the lions' enclosure.
The park manager said lionesses chased after a Smart car after being confused by how small it was.
Two ladies were in the car, but the manager said staff were always nearby
"With Smart cars and sometimes Mini Coopers, the lions definitely raise an eyebrow. It sparks their interest because of their size," the park manager added. -
Tuesday August 16 2005 08:15 GMT
Net trade threatens rare animals
The world's most endangered species are being driven to the brink of extinction because people are selling them on the internet - even though it's illegal.
A three-month inquiry showed that in just one week more than 9,000 animals were advertised for sale on the web.
At least 70% of these were from species protected by law. They included a gorilla being sold in London.
The inquiry was restricted to five categories of animals so it's thought the problem is actually much bigger.
The study was carried out by the International Fund For Animal Welfare.
It says that every day thousands of wild animals and animal parts - such as ivory tusks - are being traded in cyberspace.
A spokesman for the organisation said: "This situation must be tackled immediately by governments and website owners before it is too late.
"Our message to shoppers is simple - buying wildlife online is as damaging as killing it yourself." -
Wednesday August 17 2005 12:48 GMT
Millions of insects on the move
Millions of insects are on the move in London - but there's no need to panic - these wandering bugs are part of the Natural History Museum's refurbishment.
Around 28 million dead spiders and insects are being temporarily moved while their present home is demolished, to make way for their new dwelling.
The bugs move into a environmentally controlled building in 2008, to keep them safe against the effects of time.
The new Darwin Centre will also house 120 scientists researching insects.
Global collection
The bugs in the collection have been gathered for 300 years, and feature creepy-crawlies from around the world.
The insects range in size from the barely visible fairy fly, with a wingspan of 0.02cm to the world's largest moth, Thysania agrippina, with a wingspan of 30cm.
The largest specimen to move will be a 105 x 42cm hornet's nest from China.
The bugs will be housed in different parts of the museum or in a special warehouse in south London during the building work. -
Thursday August 25 2005 15:44 GMT
Pets saved from Gaza settlements
Animal charities have moved into the Gaza Strip in a bid to rescue pets which were left behind following last week's evacuations of Israeli settlers.
Dogs, cats, chickens, goats, geese, ducks, turtles and an iguana are thought to be among up to 200 creatures which remain in the former settlements.
Rescuers have already recovered around 100 animals and those wearing tags will be reunited with their owners.
There is a race to get the pets out before the buildings are bulldozed.
"Time is running out because after the bulldozers ruin the houses, it is impossible to bring anything out," said an animal charity spokesman.
Around 8,500 Israeli settlers have been moved out of the Gaza Strip in a bid to bring about peace in the region. Some 1.4m Palestinians remain living there. -
Friday August 26 2005 15:06 GMT
More home alone pets get stressed
More cats and dogs are getting stressed out because their owners are leaving them home alone, according to research.
Eight in 10 vets said they have seen pets with problems caused by their owners leaving them on their own for long periods of time.
The survey of 350 vets and 1,700 animal owners found that more than a quarter of pets were affected by the problem.
Other reasons for pets feeling upset included the arrival of a new baby or the loss of a family member.
Experts say that ideally dogs should not be left alone for longer than four or five hours, while cats are likely to up and leave if they don't get enough attention.
Vets said signs of stress in dogs included "destructive behaviour and excessive barking and yowling". -
Monday August 29 2005 12:27 GMT
Injured elephant gets false foot
An elephant is learning to walk on all four legs again after a landmine accident left her with one leg shorter than the others.
Motala, a 44-year-old Thai elephant, has been fitted with a false foot designed to strengthen her bad leg.
The foot, which looks a bit like a punch bag, is made from green canvas filled with sawdust and cushions.
She will practice walking with it for up to seven hours a day for the next six to eight months.
By then it is hoped her leg will be strong enough to have a permanent foot fitted.
Vets are pleased with her progress and relieved she has not rejected the foot.
Motala was hauling logs when she trod on a mine six years ago.
Since then she has been recovering at an elephant hospital in Thailand.
Soraida Salwala from the hospital said: "She has been very cooperative and I think when we put more weight on it, then she could finally stretch out the muscles and the tendons and we hope she will finally put the weight on it." -
Thursday September 01 2005 18:38 GMT
Cat puke on TV sparks house fire
The owner of a cat that set the family home on fire by being sick on the television has said she is not cross with her poorly puss.
Julie Morris had a lucky escape when Felix started the blaze in the early hours of Wednesday morning, in the living room of her Derbyshire home.
The downstairs of the house was badly damaged, but Mrs Morris doesn't blame Felix for his bad aim.
"He doesn't know what's going on," she told the Derby Evening Telegraph.
"It was so lucky I was downstairs, it could have been a lot worse."
Mrs Morris adopted stray cat Felix two years ago.
The cat also escaped the blaze unhurt. -
Thursday September 01 2005 15:33 GMT
Giant poisonous bug found in UK
A giant poisonous centipede has made a surprise appearance in a house in the UK, thousands of miles from its home.
The 22.86cm long creature - also called an arthropod - was heard scuttling around by Aaron Balick under some paper behind his television.
He trapped it and the next day took it to the Natural History Museum, who told him he shouldn't have gone near it!
Bug expert Stuart Hine said Mr Balick was "incredibly brave" to have trapped the centipede himself.
It's thought the creepy-crawly came to the UK hidden in a box of fruit or even of electrical goods.
Mr Hine said it's not unusual for big bugs to be transported alongside goods, but added that something this big and ferocious is normally spotted much earlier.
There are reports of one such creature growing to twice the size of this one in Venezuela in South America.
Their sting, which is given through the front claws, can result in a blistering rash, nausea and fever.
No antidote to the venom exists, but the sting is very rarely life-threatening. -
Friday September 02 2005 17:46 GMT
Family living with colony of bats
A family in Aberdeenshire is sharing its home with a colony of 2,000 bats.
The pipistrelles live in the loft of the Bestwick family home in Rothiemay, Scotland. Because they're a protected species, they can't be moved.
The Bestwicks said that although the smell could get bad, and they had to sweep up bat droppings, they'd learned to live with their furry guests.
Five-year-old Rebecca said she liked the way the bats squeaked and could fly through small holes.
The bats were in the house when the family moved in seven years ago.
Mr Bestwick says he has no problem with bats being protected, but wished the law was a bit more in favour of people in their position.
Mrs Bestwick said: "One day we discovered there were 23 bats in our water tank, which was why the water wasn't tasting very nice." -
Wednesday August 31 2005 17:14 GMT
Thousands of cormorants face cull
Up to 3,000 sea-birds could be culled this winter, to keep them away from fish in lakes and rivers in Britain.
Cormorants feast on fish, and for the second year running the government has said fishermen can shoot them because they're coming too far inland.
The RSBP accepts the birds are a big problem, but said the cull threatens overall UK cormorant numbers.
But National Federation of Anglers said plans include bird-scaring and fish shelters, not just shooting cormorants.
Recently the sea-birds have moved away from the coast and started eating fish from rivers, lakes and canals.
This move has made them unpopular with anglers, who see the birds as unwelcome competition.
And fish farms say the birds are pinching fish they want to catch or have reared to sell.
Cull puts population 'at risk'
A spokesperson for the RSPB said there are other ways of treating the cormorant problem.
"Fish and cormorants have evolved together for millennia - if you put a fish refuge in, the fish can hide and the problem can be reduced."
He added that if the full 3,000 quota of birds were killed, the cormorant population across England could be put at risk of decline.
The RSPB also say the government may be breaking European rules on protecting wild birds.
Last year 1,200 cormorants were killed in the cull. -
Wednesday September 07 2005 15:33 GMT
Baby chimps laugh and smile young
Baby chimps learn to laugh, smile and play games at a really young age - just like human infants.
Scientists found that during their first weeks, little chimps smiled at their human carers to show happiness, and showed angry faces when cross.
They also said greetings and imitated their carers, just like baby humans.
Scientists also found very young chimps that had a cloth put over their face got upset, but within a few weeks learned to play the game "peek-a-boo".
Tickled
And by a few weeks old they even laughed out loud when they were tickled by their human carers.
The study was done by Yerkes Primate Research Centre in the US, and scientists say it shows humans and chimps developing in a similar way.
Scientists said they could tell the difference between the happy smile and an unhappy grimace, as the grimace was re-enforced with a nip if the chimp wasn't in the mood to be tickled. -
Thursday September 08 2005 13:38 GMT
Flood city's animals being saved
As hopes of finding human survivors of Hurricane Katrina fade, some rescuers are focusing their attention on saving the animals which got left behind.
New Orleans zoo is on higher ground and escaped the worst of the flooding, meaning most of the creatures there are in good shape.
Two otters died in the storm and an alligator is still missing, but the rest of the animals have survived.
Meanwhile, volunteers are scouring the streets to rescue much-loved pets.
Charities are working from a 138-page list of addresses from survivors worried about the animals they were not allowed to take with them when they fled the city.
Stranded dogs
Thousands of dogs have been stranded on rooftops and rescuers are painstakingly dragging boats filled with cages through the flooded areas to take the creatures to safety.
At the zoo, staff remained with the animals throughout the hurricane.
They had been prepared for such an emergency for a long time and made sure they had enough food to keep the animals going.
But some of the creatures cannot stay at the zoo.
The water is now too contaminated for the sea lions, so they are being taken in a refrigerated lorry to another zoo in Texas. -
Saturday September 10 2005 10:36 GMT
Great apes to get more protection
Gorillas, chimpanzees and orang-utans are to get more protection after a group of countries, including the UK, agreed to work to keep them safe.
The first Declaration on Great Apes was put together in Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday.
The meeting had looked at things like getting the support of local people and doing more to fight poaching to protect the endangered animals.
A recent report said unless action was taken, apes would soon be extinct.
Jim Knight, the UK's representative at the meeting, said it was really important to get people who live near the apes to realise how important they are.
He said they could earn cash from the creatures through things like tourism. -
Reuters - Mon Sep 26, 6:06 AM ET
Leopards play in their enclosure in a New Delhi zoo September 26, 2005. Leopards are found throughout the Indian subcontinent with the exception of desert and densely populated areas. REUTERS/Kamal Kishore -
Reuters - Mon Sep 26, 6:33 AM ET
A white tiger rests in a water pond in his enclosure in a New Delhi zoo September 26, 2005. REUTERS/Kamal Kishore -
Reuters - Mon Sep 26, 6:35 AM ET
Leopards look out from their enclosure in a New Delhi zoo September 26, 2005. Leopards are found throughout the Indian subcontinent with the exception of desert and densely populated areas. REUTERS/Kamal Kishore -
AP - Mon Sep 26, 6:38 AM ET
A worker sprinkles disinfectant powder inside an eagle cage at a zoo in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, Monday, Sept. 26, 2005. Indonesia's death toll from bird flu has risen to six and the government has ordered more than a half-million tablets of anti-viral medicine to fight the disease, the Health Ministry announced Monday. (AP Photo/Trisnadi) -
AP - Mon Sep 26, 9:37 AM ET
A mother holds her toddler petting a 10-year-old, 4-meter (13-foot) -long python snake at the Dusit Zoo, on Monday, Sept. 26, 2005. The zoo displayed the snake as part promotional activities to encourage children to visit there next month during school vacation.(AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit) -
Reuters - Tue Sep 27, 7:30 AM ET
A one month-old baby macaque plays with its brother during a warm day at the Sofia city Zoo in Bulgaria September 27, 2005. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov