Is this a salad-mander? Electrician finds six-inch lizard crawling in supermarket bag of leaves as he prepares sandwich

By CHRIS BROOKE

Incredible: This lizard was lurking in the pack of 'wild' Italian rocket which Ian and Jane Lock bought from Morrisons

It was labelled ‘wild’ rocket salad from Italy.
But Ian Lock, 55, couldn’t believe his eyes when a live six-inch long lizard appeared amongst the leaves, crawling around inside.
The electrician said the sight of the creature in the bag he was about to use to make a sandwich made his ‘stomach turn over.’
He explained: ‘I shouted for my wife Jane to come and have a look. It was unbelievable. I had taken it out the fridge to make the sandwich and the lizard started moving around when it began to warm up in the kitchen.

Whoops: Morrisons apologised about the lizard incident and have offered a refund to the disgruntled shoppers

‘It was lucky that I never opened the packet. I was really shocked at the time and I still can’t quite believe it.’
Mrs Lock, 54, a school caterer, had bought the £1 twin pack of rocket salad from their local Morrisons supermarket at Killamarsh, Derbyshire, on Monday last week.
The family went through the first pack during the week and took out the second one containing the lizard on Saturday for the first time.
It had been on the side for several minutes when the lizard’s movement caught Mr Lock’s eye as he prepared the sandwich.
The packet stated the contents came from Italy and Mr Lock, a father-of-two, said customer services were also shocked when he phoned to tell them.

source: dailymail

Read more!

Is it a bird? Is it a hamster? Meet the sugar gliders flying around a suburban living room

By LUCY BUCKLAND

Flying high: Kayleigh Price playing with her pet sugar glider Gizmo, Ms Price said the creatures don't so much fly as 'fall with grace'

Soaring through the air these creatures are often mistaken for flying hamsters or bats with tails.

But far from being an oddity, these friendly furry marsupials are in fact a type of possum known as a sugar glider.

In the wild these tiny creatures fling themselves from tree to tree but at the Animal Experience in Cambridge the sugar gliders are usually seen flying around the living room.

Owner Kayleigh Price, who cares for five of the furry marsupials with her parents Mitch and Hazel, said the adorable creatures are popular with visitors to the animal centre.


Gliding: Gizmo can fly up to 200m, in the wild he would go from tree to tree but at The Animal Experience he is often seen soaring around the living room

Ms Price said: 'Next to the big lizards, the sugar gliders are my favourite animals. They are very tame and good natured so they make very good pets.

'They can glide up to 200m and in the wild they would take off from tree tops. They don't so much fly as fall with grace.'


Adorable: Kayleigh Price, who runs Animal Experience, says the sugar gliders are a favourite with visitors

The 18-year-old studied animal management before taking a full-time role looking after her parents giant menagerie which houses more than 120 animals.

The Prices care for blind sugar glider, Stevie Wonder, who recently underwent an operation to fix his cataracts, and energetic Gizmo.


Catch me if you can: Kayleigh Price with Gizmo in her living room, she says the aim of the zoo is to educate people about rare types of animals


Where will he land? Gizmo take a soaring glide across Kayleigh Price's living room


Furry friends: Gizmo and Stevie Wonder relax after flying around

source: dailymail

Read more!

Lizard love: Male warms heart of female with a bunch of flowers

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Say it with flowers: The male lizard appears to be wooing his potential mate with a bunch of flowers


These amazing pictures prove that a bunch of flowers can go a long way - even in the animal kingdom.

A male sand lizard, perched on top of a plant, catches the eye of a female with a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

After she carefully climbs up the plant to reach him, she accepts his gift and the pair form an almost perfect heart shape.

But to prove the coarse of true love never did run smooth, the female then dramatically slips and falls off the plant - only for her doting new partner to dive to her rescue and help her down.

The romantic drama was captured by keen photographer Alexey Tymoshenko.

'I took these pictures in the back of my parents house in Ukraine. I've been visiting there ever since I left home,' Alexey, 19, said.

'When I was a child one of my favourite things I used to do was play in the garden and watch the lizards.

'For many years I've learnt their behaviour - if you're friendly with them they are friendly with you because they get used to you and your hands very soon.


My hero: The female loses her balance and falls, only for her suitor to reach out and gently carry her to safety


'Usually 30 minutes is enough for them to understand you won't do them any harm and now I can photograph them without them being afraid of me.

'But I never thought they could be so passionate and helpful to each other. It was amazing watching one drop and the male dive to catch her.

'And I was especially surprised by the scene with the flower - I'm not a specialist and don't know what it means but it really looked like one lizard is proposing.'


The bride and groom: The happy couple are all smiles as they pose for photographer Alexey Tymoshenko


Alexey, from Ukraine, is studying engineering at university and takes photos as a hobby.

He added: 'I like to photograph nature, especially animals as they don't pose so you can photograph them as they are.'

Sand lizards spend a lot of time buried just below the surface of the sand, although they also enjoy basking in sunshine.

source: dailymail

Read more!

New 'secretive' lizard discovered in Philippines.... and at 6ft6in, it's as big as a full-grown man

By Daily Mail Reporter

Relative: Tests have revealed the lizard is of a different species from a closely-related monitor lizard on the island


A new giant species of monitor lizard has been discovered in the forests of the Northern Philippines, scientists have revealed.

The 6ft 6in-long (2m) brightly-coloured lizard is a secretive, fruit-eating species which was found in the forests of the heavily populated and largely deforested Luzon Island.

The discovery of the monitor lizard was described as an 'unprecedented surprise' by scientists documenting the find in the Royal Society Biology Letters journal.

It has become rare to discover previously unknown species of larger animals, they said.

The species (Varanus bitatawa) is restricted to the forests of the central and northern Sierra Madre range, where biologists have conducted relatively few surveys of reptiles and amphibians

Genetic tests revealed it was a different species from a closely-related monitor lizard, from which it is geographically separated by three non-forested river valleys on the island.


Shy: Varanus bitatawa has been found in the forests of the heavily populated and largely deforested Luzon Island

The researchers suggested it was a highly secretive species which never left forests to cross open areas.

The scientists said the monitor lizards, which highlighted the 'unexplored nature of the Philippines', could become a flagship species for conservation efforts to preserve the remaining forests of the region.


source: dailymail

Read more!