May 4, 2019 03:12 AM
3-Eyed Snake Found in Australia Surprises Rangers (animal hobbies)
https://www.livescience.com/65382-three-eyed-snake.html
EXCERPT: . . . The nonvenomous carpet python, which is native to Australia and New Guinea, can grow up to 9 feet (3 meters) long, but this snake was small — just about 16 inches (40 centimeters) long, indicating that it was a juvenile, the NTPWC said in a Facebook post ... (May 1).
Intrigued, the rangers had the snake X-rayed. The resulting images showed that the snake didn't have two separate heads forged together, as the rangers had suspected. "Rather, it appeared to be one skull with an additional eye socket and three functioning eyes," the NTPWC wrote in the post.
This deformity likely happened early on during the snake's embryonic development, they said, adding that it was likely a "natural occurrence, as malformed reptiles are relatively common" and not due to environmental factors, such as pollution. It's impressive this snake even saw the light of day. Sometimes, mother snakes eat "bad" eggs called "slugs" after laying them, [David] Penning said. Moreover, snakes born with deformities, such as spinal problems, typically die after a few days, he said.
Even more surprising is that the eye appeared to work... (MORE - details)
'Russian spy' whale has defected to Norway, locals claim (animal hobbies)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/m...cals-claim
EXCERPT: A beluga whale that may – or may not – have been trained to spy for Russia appears to have defected to Norway, refusing to stray more than a few miles from the small northern harbour where it was found on Monday and entertaining locals with tricks. [...] locals had been able to pet the whale, which was found at sea ... wearing a harness fitted with a mount – apparently for a camera or weapon – and stamped with the words: “Equipment St Petersburg.”
[...] The beluga performs twirls and leaps and happily retrieves plastic rings, [Linn Sæther] said, before swimming up to the dockside with its mouth open, as if looking for a fish in reward. “It is a fantastic experience, but also a tragedy,” she said. “It’s clearly used to being given tasks and having something to do ... It reacts when you call it or splash your hands in the water. You can see it’s been trained to fetch and bring back whatever is thrown for it.”
Initial speculation was that the whale had escaped from a Russian military facility. [...] The Russian defence ministry has denied running a sea mammal special operations programme and Norway’s special police security agency (PST), which is examining the harness, has not yet concluded its investigation into where the whale came from. ... Wherever the whale came from, experts are now concerned about how it will survive. (MORE - details)
https://www.livescience.com/65382-three-eyed-snake.html
EXCERPT: . . . The nonvenomous carpet python, which is native to Australia and New Guinea, can grow up to 9 feet (3 meters) long, but this snake was small — just about 16 inches (40 centimeters) long, indicating that it was a juvenile, the NTPWC said in a Facebook post ... (May 1).
Intrigued, the rangers had the snake X-rayed. The resulting images showed that the snake didn't have two separate heads forged together, as the rangers had suspected. "Rather, it appeared to be one skull with an additional eye socket and three functioning eyes," the NTPWC wrote in the post.
This deformity likely happened early on during the snake's embryonic development, they said, adding that it was likely a "natural occurrence, as malformed reptiles are relatively common" and not due to environmental factors, such as pollution. It's impressive this snake even saw the light of day. Sometimes, mother snakes eat "bad" eggs called "slugs" after laying them, [David] Penning said. Moreover, snakes born with deformities, such as spinal problems, typically die after a few days, he said.
Even more surprising is that the eye appeared to work... (MORE - details)
'Russian spy' whale has defected to Norway, locals claim (animal hobbies)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/m...cals-claim
EXCERPT: A beluga whale that may – or may not – have been trained to spy for Russia appears to have defected to Norway, refusing to stray more than a few miles from the small northern harbour where it was found on Monday and entertaining locals with tricks. [...] locals had been able to pet the whale, which was found at sea ... wearing a harness fitted with a mount – apparently for a camera or weapon – and stamped with the words: “Equipment St Petersburg.”
[...] The beluga performs twirls and leaps and happily retrieves plastic rings, [Linn Sæther] said, before swimming up to the dockside with its mouth open, as if looking for a fish in reward. “It is a fantastic experience, but also a tragedy,” she said. “It’s clearly used to being given tasks and having something to do ... It reacts when you call it or splash your hands in the water. You can see it’s been trained to fetch and bring back whatever is thrown for it.”
Initial speculation was that the whale had escaped from a Russian military facility. [...] The Russian defence ministry has denied running a sea mammal special operations programme and Norway’s special police security agency (PST), which is examining the harness, has not yet concluded its investigation into where the whale came from. ... Wherever the whale came from, experts are now concerned about how it will survive. (MORE - details)