Two Japanese men arrested for trying to smuggle live TURTLES into the U.S. in cereal boxes

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Turtle tourists: A U.S attorney's office photo shows turtles that were confiscated Los Angeles International Airport after a foiled smuggling attempt


More than 50 endangered creatures caught in 'Operation Flying Turtle'

Two Japanese men have been arrested at Los Angeles International Airport after attempting to smuggling more than 50 live turtles into the U.S.

The men, both from Osaka, were arrested on Friday at LAX as part of a investigation into live animal smuggling known as 'Operation Flying Turtle'.

The pair had hidden turtles and tortoises in snack food boxes inside a suitcase and could face up to 21 years in prison if convicted.

Atsushi Yamagami, 39, and Norihide Ushirozako, 49, both Japanese citizens, are charged in a two-count criminal complaint that alleges one count of illegally importing wildlife into the United States, a smuggling offense that carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

The men are also charged with one count of violating the Endangered Species Act, a misdemeanour that carries a statutory maximum penalty of one year in prison.

The pair were part of a smuggling ring that officers working with Operation Flying Turtle had infiltrated in recent months.


Snack-based smuggling: The turtles were concealed in small sacks hidden inside biscuit and cracker boxes


The U.S. Postal Service, U.S. Customs and Borders Protection and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement department's Homeland Security Investigations were all involved in Operation Flying Turtle, which began last year after U.S. Fish and Wildlife agents learned of a live animal smuggling ring.

'In August 2010, Hiroki Uetsuki, an associate of Yamagami and Ushirozako, traveled from Osaka, Japan, and arrived at Honolulu International Airport,' where turtles were discovered in his suitcase, prosecutors said.

'After U.S. Fish and Wildlife agents arrested Uetsuki, he informed the agents that Yamagami paid him approximately 100,000 yen ($1,200) and his travel expenses to smuggle turtles and tortoises into the United States,' officials added.


Tiny visitors: A U.S. Attorney's Office photo confirms the diminutive size of the smuggled turtles


Claude Arnold, special agent in charge for ICE's Homeland Security Investigations in Los Angeles, added: 'The plundering and smuggling of rare plants and animals to satisfy the desires of hobbyists is not only shameful, in some circumstances it can pose a threat to public safety and the environment.'

Yamagami and Ushirozako's smuggling attempt, which saw Chinese big-headed turtles and Indian star tortoises, among other variants, packed inside cookie and cracker boxes, was one a number of bizarre attempts at concealment at LAX in recent years.

A man was charged with smuggling in 2002 at the airport after attempting to sneak birds of paradise, orchids and pygmy monkeys - the latter inside his underwear - into LAX, while another attempted smuggler was charged last year with trying to get through the airport with 15 live lizards attached to his chest.


source: dailymail

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Giant panda Tian Tian, Yangguang

This is an undated image of the giant panda Tian Tian in the Wulong Panda Research Unit in Sichuan Province, made available by Edinburgh Zoo Scotland Monday Jan. 10, 2011. China is sending a pair of giant pandas to the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland as the Asian nation's deputy leader visits the U.K. to boost relations. Vice Premier Li Keqiang, in London for trade talks with senior British officials, led the signing of the agreement Monday to send the animals to Edinburgh.



This is an undated image of the giant panda Yangguang in the Wulong Panda Research Unit in Sichuan Province, made available by Edinburgh Zoo Scotland Monday Jan. 10, 2011. China is sending a pair of giant pandas to the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland as the Asian nation's deputy leader visits the U.K. to boost relations. Vice Premier Li Keqiang, in London for trade talks with senior British officials, led the signing of the agreement Monday to send the animals to Edinburgh.

source: daylife
photo: AP photo

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Surfboarding dog takes to the waves with his owner... and finds the sea can be 'ruff'

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

All aboard: Oli the Jack Russell goes surfing for the first time with owner Mike Naish off Sidmouth Beach


As a first-time surfer, he struggled at the start to find his four sea legs.

But Oli the Jack Russell soon found himself taking to the board like a duck to water.

Ears flapping in the breeze, the four-year-old pet wagged his tail throughout as he shared his owner Michael Naish’s surfboard on the beach at Sidmouth, Devon.


Hang twenty: Oli climbs on to owner Mike Naish's shoulders as they come ashore in Devon


The 22-year-old said he swam out with the four-year-old terrier as an 'experiment' - but the game little muttt seemed to take an instant shine to the waves.

Wagging his tail throughout, Oli seemed to be enjoying himself during his first ever surf, despite not having the benefit of Michael's wetsuit.

However as the chill worked its way through to the little pooch's marrow, he climbed up his master's body to get away from the freezing foam.

Michael, who is studying quantity surveying at Reading University, said: 'It was the first time I had ever taken Oli out surfing with me.

'It was a bit of an experiment really, but Oli loved it.

'He adores the water and wasn't scared at all. I think he got cold towards the end and he started climbing on me.'

Michael is now keen to transform Oli into a fully fledged surf hound.

He said: 'Jack Russells are meant to be the best breed for training and one day I would like to be a surf instructor so I thouht I might as well start by teaching Oli.'

source: dailymail

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Farms shut as cancer poisons are now found in chickens

By ALLAN HALL IN BERLIN

Who's chicken? Around 5,000 farms were shut across Germany and thousands of chickens culled after feed from a chemical company near Hamburg was tainted


Germany's poisoned eggs scare has spread to chickens after investigators reported raised levels of cancer-causing dioxin in meat.

Three chickens out of 15 samples of chicken, turkey and pork sent to the European Commission showed a dioxin concentration twice as high as legal levels.

Eating the meat ‘would not have been harmful in the short term since the contamination levels were so low,’ an agriculture ministry spokesman in Germany said yesterday.

The tested chickens had not been sold in shops, but it is possible that other infected meat has entered the food chain in Germany.

However, it is not thought that any infected poultry from Germany has been sold in Britain.

The meat scare follows last week’s admission that tainted eggs from chickens which ate feed contaminated with dioxin entered the UK food chain.

Around 5,000 farms were shut across Germany and thousands of chickens culled after feed from a chemical company near Hamburg was tainted.


Thorough egg-samination: A German scientist conducts tests after thousands of tainted eggs entered the UK food chain last week


The feed from the Harles & Jentzsch firm went to 25 distributors in Germany and from there to thousands of farms.

Liquid egg processed from 130,000 suspect eggs moved from Holland into British supermarkets in products such as mayonnaise and pastries.

The agriculture ministry in Schleswig-Holstein, which monitors Harles & Jentzsch, said it had proof the company had been producing tainted food for nine months. Some feed had 77 per cent more dioxin than EU safe levels.

German prosecutors will attempt to determine this week how many infected eggs reached the food chain in Britain from poisoned feed.

With one in five consumers in Germany avoiding all eggs, EU food safety chiefs want to know how many millions have been sold since the problem was first identified in March last year.
The European Commission has said there were no grounds for a ban on exports of German meat or other products.

There were calls in Germany yesterday for tough legal action against those responsible for contaminating food with dioxin.

Agriculture minister Ilse Aigner called the conduct that led to excessive levels of the highly toxic chemical entering animal feed a ‘criminal act’, adding that German farmers had been ‘innocently dragged into this situation by the sick machinations of a few people’.

Around 3,000 of the closed farms were reopened yesterday.


source: dailymail

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Bugging the bugs: Scientists use tiny microphones to record the 'rasping' of stag beetle larvae

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Bugged: Scientists are using tiny microphones to record stag beetle larvae


Scientists involved in a conservation project have been bugging the homes of stag beetle larvae.

Tiny microphones are being used to eavesdrop on the white grubs which live in buried rotting wood.

The larvae make rasping sounds known as 'stridulation' which experts believe are used as a form of communication.

Listening to the larvae is one new technique being tried out to get a better idea of stag beetle numbers.

The stag beetle, Lucanus cervus, can reach a length of several centimetres. Well known for the dramatic 'antlers' sported by males, it was once common but is now classified as 'nationally scarce' in the UK.

Stag beetles are still found in southern England but rare or extinct in the midlands and north.

Attempts to conserve the insect have been hampered by the lack of reliable population monitoring.

Scientists are also experimenting with ginger to lure flying beetles into aerial traps so they can be counted.

They discovered that adult stag beetles find ginger irresistible. It contains large amounts of alpha copaene, a chemical known to attract insects that live in dead and decaying wood.


Study: Microphones help track larvae without damaging their underground habitats while sensors which detect chemicals emitted by the grubs


The mini-microphones provide a means of detecting and tracking larvae without damaging their underground habitats.

They are being used alongside sensors which detect chemicals emitted by the grubs.
The team found that stag beetle larvae stridulation patterns are very different from those of other insect species, such as the rose chafer.

'Stridulation is likely to be a form of communication between larvae,' said study leader Dr Deborah Harvey, from Royal Holloway, University of London.

'It increases if larvae are handled or placed in solitary confinement.'

The new technique could be used to help conserve other rare species, she said.

'Acoustic detection of insects as a sampling method is very underused, but we believe it could have great potential in detecting larvae in the field,' said Dr Harvey.

The research, published in the journal Insect Conservation and Diversity, was funded by the British Ecological Society, the Forestry Commission, the People's Trust for Endangered Species, and the Suffolk Naturalists' Society.


source: dailymail

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BAMBOOZLED!... or how I dressed in a giant fluffy panda suit to convince the world's most pampered infant that I was one of the family

By SIMON PARRY

Bear necessity: Reporter Simon Parry with his panda disguise


Maybe it was his animal instinct telling him those weird-looking pandas were coming to grab him again.

Or maybe he had an unusually well-developed sense of humour and thought it amusing to keep six of us standing around in panda suits on an icy Chinese mountainside.

Either way, the baby giant panda seemed intent on making mischief.

Before we had even set foot in his enclosure, he gave his mother the slip and scrambled 30ft up into the branches of a tree. There he sat, perched defiantly, with no intention of coming back down to earth.


Hanging around: The young panda sits in a tree, where he remained for more than four hours before one of the scientists (right) was able to grab hold of him


In a hidden cabin nearby with a wall of TV monitors positioned to capture every move of the baby panda and his mother Cao Cao, I was left scratching and fidgeting with a vet and a team of keepers, all unconvincingly disguised as adult pandas – the type that happen to walk on two legs and carry clipboards, medical bags and cameras – on standby to give the surly infant a medical check-up.

It was clearly going to be a long and uncomfortable wait.

Like millions of others, I had been captivated by the photographs published around the world last month of keepers in comical panda suits cradling the baby giant panda to prepare him for the wild by rearing him without him ever seeing a human.

For the record: A scientist checks the little panda's medical notes before his next examination


The shots – taken by one of the centre’s own photographers – showed the panda, then four months old, being carried and weighed by staff in panda suits specially made to try to ensure that the infant does not grow accustomed to the sight and touch of people. One day, it could save him from poachers.

Now, on a snowy January morning in the mountains of South-West China, I had been offered the chance to be the first foreigner – and outsider – to put on a panda suit and take part in the monthly health check.


Open wide: The panda has his teeth checked


But the patient was clearly determined to break his appointment.

‘How long do baby pandas stay up trees before coming down?’ I asked lamely, after half an hour of watching a TV monitor showing the youngster rocking nonchalantly back and forth on his branch.

The answer, I discovered, was as long as he damn well pleases – which in our case turned out to be some four hours and 30 minutes.


The panda is put in a box to be weighed


Finally, with the weak afternoon winter sun glistening on sticks of bamboo strewn enticingly on the ground below, the baby panda – who for a combination of superstitious and sponsorship reasons will not be named until shortly before he is released into the wild – deigned to shimmy his way down to the ground.

This wilful, boisterous toddler could afford to make us wait. After all, he is no ordinary, run-of-the-mill giant panda. In scientific terms, he is pure panda royalty.

Born to a mother bred in captivity but kept in a 2,400 square yard outdoor enclosure since her pregnancy, he is the first captive giant panda to be raised in a natural setting with no sight of humans.

When he reaches six months old next month, he will move to a much larger 40,000 square yard enclosure with chickens, goats and pigs.


Bare-faced: The Chinese scientists with our man Simon Parry and, right, research centre boss Huang Yan


Then, when he is two, he will take his first steps into the wild and the expectations of a nation will be resting on his young haunches.

The hope is that this giant panda – an unwitting pioneer among one of the world’s most endangered species, with only an estimated 1,600 remaining in the wild and 300 in captivity – will be the first captive panda to survive being released into the wild.

source: dailymail

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One man and his big cats: The lion and tiger cubs that herd sheep

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Wary: Lion cub Mohlatsi and tiger cub Tigger have taken to herding the flock of sheep at the Ranch Hotel, in the Limpopo Province in South Africa


These adorable lion and tiger cubs appear to have confused their future roles of Kings of the Jungle to that of a pair of sheepdogs instead.

The cute cubs have taken to chasing after the sheep on their ranch and rounding them up in a style akin to One Man and his Dog.

The cheeky pair even crouch down in the long grass and pounce towards the herd to control them.

But comically, their owners say the cubs are just as scared of the sheep as the herd are of them - which doesn't bode well for their futures at the top of the food chain.


Kings of the jungle: However, the two young big cats are as scared of the sheep as the sheep are of them


The white lion, a four-month-old named Mohlatsi, lives at the Ranch Hotel, in the Limpopo Province in South Africa.

His tiger companion, affectionately nicknamed Tigger, is spending six weeks at the location in transit from a breeding programme to another conservancy.

Mohlatsi, whose name means 'the lucky one', is already known for entertaining guests at the hotel by frolicking on the golf course. He even has his own Facebook page and Twitter feed dedicated to his antics.

But despite looking like a harmless pet, Mohlatsi is still a wild animal and spends most of his days safely tucked up in his large enclosure with the adult lions.

He is one of more than 30 lions housed in a conservancy as part of a breeding programme.


The cute cubs have taken to chasing after the sheep on their ranch and rounding them up in a style akin to One Man and his Dog


Mohlatsi's life is being documented by Marc Dryden-Schofield, a 31-year-old photographer from Johannesburg.

He said: 'He's a very cute little guy. He's very playful, which cubs are at that age, and is a real favourite around the ranch.

'He's been joined for six weeks by a little tiger cub, who is moving between a breeding programme and another conservancy.

'They're very inquisitive and like to chase the sheep, which are understandably very wary of them so they do make a good pair of sheepdogs!


The white lion, a four-month-old named Mohlatsi, lives at the Ranch Hotel, in the Limpopo Province in South Africa


Comically, their owners say the cubs are just as scared of the sheep as the herd are of them - which doesn't bode well for their futures at the top of the food chain


'Strangely enough though, the cubs are also a little wary of the sheep, and are quite afraid of them at the moment.

'At this age they can be very playful but still have very sharp claws, so they can get a little dangerous when too excited.

'Mohlatsi has about another five months of running around like this before it gets a little dangerous for the guests.

'He'll grow up to be a wild animal - nothing pet like at all. He will be used to people and interaction but will still be able to hunt if required.

'I can imagine at some stage, a few of those sheep will become dinner.'


source: dailymail

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He's been tangoed: Orange alligator shows off extraordinary citrus hue

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Orangey: The curiously-coloured alligator was spotted sunbathing on a cement pier in Sorrento Woods, near Venice, in Florida


Florida is famous for its orange groves - less so for its orange alligators.

But that's just what turned up near the home of grandmother Sylvia Methen, in Sorrento Woods, near Venice.

Mrs Methen, 74, said: 'When I was coming back from work I passed by, and I thought I saw what I thought I saw, but I had to back up and come and look again.

'I could barely believe my eyes. It was indeed an orange alligator.'
And Mrs Methen wasn't the only one who saw it.

'He was just sun basking right here on this cement pier minding his own business,' said resident Phillip Crosby.

Most people would be afraid to go anywhere near the huge beast, but not Mrs Methen.

She said: 'I thought this is great, and I am going to snap a picture and send it to my grandkids so they think I'm one of the coolest grandmas in Florida.'

She added: 'I got quite close and he was orange. So if it was mud, he did a good job of covering himself - he got every nook and cranny.'

Mrs Methen says she contacted a biologist, who gave her an explanation for the alligator's extraordinary colouring.

She said: 'His findings were that it's probably almost an albino, kind of in between. It's an albino, only a little more colour, so he wasn't a full-fledged albino.'

And Mr Crosby added: 'I could see him as I was passing by in my car, and he was definitely orange. His whole body was orange.'

Ms Methen added that the biologist believes the animal is so rare, even he hasn't seen one.

But Gary Morse with the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission says the alligator is not actually an albino, but believes it probably submerged in something like rust-coloured water.


source: dailymail

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Strewth, this weather's totally batty! It's not only the humans who have lost their homes in the Australian floods

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Baby bats at the Bat Clinic in Advancetown, which has helped at least 130 baby bats after the wet weather


Torrential rain has brought chaos to Australia, and not just to the humans who live there.

Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Centre director Trish Wimberley and her carers have helped save 130 orphaned bats on the Gold Coast in past weeks.

They saved 350 young bats during the 2008 storm season but this year think there's more going on than just wild weather.


Worker Wendy Wimberley lovingly tends to baby bats at the Bat Clinic, where patient numbers are up this year


Carers have visited several bat 'camps' on the coast in recent weeks to find four-week-old babies on the ground covered in maggots and fly eggs.

Trish said: 'They're coming down to feed on the ground. That makes them vulnerable. It's not a natural occurrence and shows there is trouble in the environment.

'Bats are a barometer to what is going on in the environment. They're our canaries down the coal mine'.

The surviving youngsters will be bottle fed and kept either hanging on clothes lines or in special intensive care units until they are ready to fly again in about four weeks.


The winged mammals are bottle fed, wrapped up and hung on clotheslines until they are well enough to be released


source: dailymail

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And the medal for turtle-jumping goes to... the fluffy ring-tailed lemur

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Shell shock: The lemurs assess the situation as the turtle blocks the bridge


What do you get when you cross a lemur with a turtle? A leap-frog.

These hungry jokers faced something of a dilemma when they encountered the slow-moving turtle blocking the bridge leading to their feeding den.

Each of the fluffy ring-tailed lemurs tentatively approached the turtle before turning back - unsure how to negotiate the obstacle.


High-tailing it: One of the lemurs gets up close as the turtle makes a U-turn to scare him away


Then, after gathering in a huddle to discuss their options, the one with the most courage broke away from the group and made a flying leap.

Following his brave lead, the others all followed - with the bemused turtle turning its neck to watch.

Local photographer Cindy Bendush, 52, snapped the 'mission' at Indianapolis Zoo in Indiana, United States.

She said: 'The lemur exhibit contains about a dozen lemurs, a variety of birds and a few turtles. It is one of the most entertaining exhibits at the zoo.


Over the top: The lemur shows his courage and decides to make the jump


'The turtle was blocking the bridge that leads to the lemurs' indoor habitat. I started taking shots and within minutes one of the lemurs strolled about half way out towards the turtle, stopped and turned around.

'Upon returning to the island, a group of five or six began to gather. They seemed to be having a debate about how to handle the turtle and whether or not to cross the bridge.


High flyer: That wasn't so bad after all as the lemur prepares to land


'Singly or in a small group they ventured out and back several times before one of them decided to jump. Once one started jumping, several others joined in.

'The lemurs certainly did not want to touch the turtle and not one harassed it in the least.

'They were wary but possibly making a game of it. I doubt this was the first time the turtles and lemurs have squared-off.



In fact he quite enjoyed it... and jumped back the other way


'They were still jumping back and forth when we left - Mr Turtle stood his ground.'

Cindy added: 'It was entertaining - even comical - to watch them problem solve and go about working up the courage to start jumping as a means to cross the bridge.

'It was almost as if they were daring each other to make the first jump.'


source: dailymail

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