Free Republic

Dr. Vint Virga likes to arrive at a zoo several hours before it opens, when the sun is still in the trees and the lanes are quiet and the trash cans empty. Many of the animals haven’t yet slipped into their afternoon ma­laise, when they retreat, appearing to wait out the heat and the visitors and not do much of anything. Virga likes to creep to the edge of their enclosures and watch. He chooses a spot and tries not to vary it, he says, “to give the animals a sense of control.” Sometimes he watches an animal for hours,...

From a devilish-looking bat to a frog that sings like a bird, scientists have identified 126 new species in the Greater Mekong area, the WWF said in a new report detailing discoveries in 2011. But threats to the region's biodiversity mean many of the new species are already struggling to survive, the conservation group warned. "The good news is new discoveries. The bad news is that it is getting harder and harder in the world of conservation and environmental sustainability," Nick Cox, manager of WWF-Greater Mekong's Species Programme, said.

There is growing evidence that birds flying in the vicinity of a solar thermal power project in California’s Mojave Desert are being injured and even killed either by the solar heat that’s focused with mirrors on its three energy-collecting towers, or by colliding with the mirrors themselves. Yet a task force set up to investigate the problem at the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System (ISEGS) has brushed aside several recommendations by the forensics laboratory of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), according to the minutes of a meeting on the subject obtained by the Los Angeles public television station...

A sheep was sold for SR750,000 (Dh750,000) in Saudi Arabia and dealers said it was one of the rarest rams in the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi businessman Fahd Al Widinani bought the sheep after more than a week of negotiations with its owner in the western Saudi town of Makkah. “The sheep is called Hadad and its one of the rarest breeds in the region,” the Arabic language daily Sabq said.

FULL TITLE: Incredible sight of the elephant that cried: Raju was held in chains, beaten and abused for fifty years and on the day he was released tears rolled down his face Raju was held in chains for more than 50 years after being poached in India The animal bled from spiked shackles and lived on hand-outs from tourists Team from North London charity Wildlife SOS travelled to India to free animal Raju cried tears of joy after being freed from suffering on American Independence Day Five-and-a-half tonne animal driven 350 miles away to safe conservation area These incredible pictures...

FONTANA (CBSLA.com) — A 4-year-old boy is recovering Tuesday after being mauled by his family pit bull Monday afternoon, officials said. According to Fontana Police, around 3:30 p.m. Monday, officers were sent to the 7600 block of Honeysuckle Street for reports of shots fired, and a dog had been shot after attacking a child. Around the same time, police reported two off-duty Los Angeles Police Department officers who live in the area responded to the home to assist the mother. One officer shot and killed the dog as it was biting the child’s head and face, police said. Fontana officers...

A fossil found in South Carolina has revealed a gigantic bird that apparently snatched fish while soaring over the ocean some 25 million to 28 million years ago. Its estimated wingspan of around 21 feet is bigger than the height of a giraffe. …

An 18-month-old Saudi boy who was playing in the back garden of his house in the Gulf kingdom went back in carrying a snake which he wanted to show to his mother. The boy looked delighted by what he thought a toy he had found before his mother hit him on the hand, sending the snake crawling away. “The mother chased the snake with a stick and killed it. She said her son thought it was a toy and he was very happy with it,” Sabq Arabic language daily said in a report from the southern Dhamad town.

A year after learning of Raju’s plight, Wildlife S.O.S. last week led a team of 10 veterinarians and wildlife officials, 20 forestry department officers and six policemen, and seized the abused elephant from the Uttar Pradesh area of India, after receiving a court order. “The team [was] astounded to see tears roll down his face during the rescue,” Pooja Binepal, a spokesman for Wildlife S.O.S., told the MailOnline. “It was so incredibly emotional for all of us. We knew in our hearts he realized he was being freed. “Elephants are not only majestic, but they are highly intelligent animals, who...

KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- A bear was hit and killed Monday by a vehicle in Kanawha County, according to Kanawha County Sheriff's dispatchers. There was no word exactly where it happened or if the bear was possibly one of the two black bears spotted earlier in the South Charleston area. Those two bears made their first appearance Monday morning along Interstate 64 near the Montrose exit. South Charleston Police, who investigated the case of the bear hit and killed, confirmed it happened but had no immediate information where or when.

A walkabout elk wandered into a family house in southern Sweden, but after making itself at home the animal had to be put down due to grisly injuries sustained during the break-in. The elk was spotted walking around in a residential area of Helsingborg on Monday morning. It then proceeded to jump through a window and smash its way into a house, setting of an alarm in the process. Luckily nobody was home, as the family was away on holiday. Police were quickly on the scene and encountered the elk exploring the living room. A hunter was then dispatched as...

It's rich and fatty and not the least bit offensive in flavor, at least according to taste tests by managers at the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer. Last week, cows started to wean their babies, and for the first time in two decades managers decided to try milking the musk oxen.

Few scientists have ever seen the rare tufted ground squirrel (Rheithrosciurus macrotis), which hides in the hilly forests of Borneo, but it is an odd beast. It’s twice the size of most tree squirrels, and it reputedly has a taste for blood. Now, motion-controlled cameras have revealed another curious fact. The 35-centimeter-long rodent has the bushiest tail of any mammal compared with its body size. "The species is really quite bizarre," says Erik Meijaard, a conservation scientist with People and Nature Consulting International in Jakarta. Meijaard and his wife, Rona Dennis, an independent remote sensing scientist, gathered a collection of...

A rash of animal shootings by police officers nationwide has law-enforcement agencies running for cover amid growing public outrage that could force state legislatures to require greater accountability from men and women in uniform. Police in Utah shot a family’s dog while searching for a lost boy, prompting hundreds of pet owners to protest June 28 in front of the Salt Lake City Police Department headquarters. They carried signs demanding “justice for Geist,” a 110-pound Weimaraner shot by a city cop within the dog’s fenced-in back yard. The “missing” boy was later found sleeping in his home. State police in...

Bibi the lovebird decides she needs some new tail feathers and goes about expertly shredding paper to add them to her rump. Actually, this is typical nesting behavior and she's saving those pieces for a potential nest. Either way, it's fun to watch.

How did this cat travel 200 miles away from home by himself?A cat that had been missing for nine weeks has been found more than 200 miles away from his home. The brilliantly named Obi Wan Catobi was found by builders in a unfinished hotel near Euston train station on Thursday. After the RSPCA caught the wayward moggie they discovered his microchip, which revealed he had travelled all the way from Leeds. When they got in touch with owner Adam Williams, 32, he told them that Obi went missing in April after he moved house within the Leeds area. Speaking...

Little Carter has what everyone wishes they had as a kid: a real-life teddy bear in the form of an extremely affectionate and loving pup. Toby, a rescue dog, is sweet and affectionate to the toddler. The pair are undoubtedly best friends and have been pretty much inseparable since before they ever even met.

A Florida man was arrested after allegedly attacking his girlfriend's pet rabbit following an argument about women's rights. According to a Boyton Beach Police report, James Wertz became enraged when his girlfriend told him that she wanted to end their relationship after he refused to stop arguing and screaming. The 28-year-old suspect then allegedly began "punching and squeezing" the woman's pet rabbit, according to Boynton Beach Police media representative Stephanie Slater. The woman intervened and Wertz apologized, but when she tried to call 911, Wertz physically threw the woman across the room, according to the Palm Beach Post. The rabbit...

A 60-year-old Boca Raton man is facing federal charges of helping to pack, mark and ship Florida spiny lobster illegally to Hong Kong, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Eric Burman pleaded not guilty last week to the charges. If convicted, he faces a sentence of up to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release, as well as a criminal fine of up to $250,000. Through a Pompano Beach business he owns, Burman “was engaged in the wholesale commercial seafood industry, including the export of live Florida spiny lobster to the seafood market in China,” the U.S....

So just what do you get for the cat who has everything? Well, how about one of these – an actual inflatable unicorn horn designed specifically for the feline in your life. The item – yours for a mere £6.40 on Amazon – will not only look very fetching on your kitty but may also help you realise your dream of turning your pet into a mythical, magical creature. Alternatively, it may just make them look like a cat with a large inflatable object strapped to their head. But nonetheless we are assured from the box that ‘cats love it’...