Another giant crocodile at large in the Philippines...bit off girl's head
A gigantic crocodile — as big as the 20.1-foot long crocodile captured recently in Agusan del Sur — remains at large in the Agusan Marsh as authorities still have no permit to capture the second wayward crocodile.
Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center (PWRCC) official Ronnie Sumiller said the local folk have to discontinue their search for another male crocodile spotted in Agusan Marsh because they still have to seek a new “permit to trap” from the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB).
“The permit we have was only for the first crocodile that we had caught,” Sumiller said in a phone interview.
Sumiller was part of the composite team of wildlife experts and local officials who caught an enormous saltwater crocodile (scientific name: Crocodylus porosus) in Agusan del Sur last Sept. 3.
The crocodile was named “Lolong,” after one of its captors, Ernesto “Lolong” Conate, a Palawan-based crocodile hunter who was part of the team that helped in capturing the gigantic crocodile, died from a heart attack during their mission.
According to PAWB Director Dr. Theresa Mundita Lim, catching crocodile from the wild is prohibited, because saltwater crocodiles are considered “critically-endangered.”
The Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary, which served as Lolong’s natural habitat until its capture, was also established as a protected area by virtue of Proclamation No. 913 issued on Oct. 31, 1996.
However, a crocodile hunt in the Agusan Marsh started in 2009 after it was reported that a 12-year-old girl’s head was bitten off.
Last May, Lim said, the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) of Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary gave its go-signal for the Bunawan municipal government to capture the nuisance crocodile.
After “Lolong” was captured last September 3, Sumiller said they found identification markings of another male crocodile, which is possibly bigger or similar in size to “Lolong.” - MB
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Boxer searches for the Yeti
Former world heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev is to lead a hunt for a mysterious creature known as the 'Russian Yeti'.
The 38-year-old fighter - who lost his WBA title to David Haye in 2009 - is currently on a career break as he recovers from bone and joint problems.
But his health issues won't stop him from leading a two-day mission to Siberia to hunt down the animal also known as the Kuzbass Bigfoot, a strange, humanoid creature thought to live in or around the Shoriya Mountains.
The beast has been spotted dozens of times in the Kuzbass region of southern Siberia and has become something of a tourist attraction in the local area, with hotels and restaurants naming themselves after it. The mystery creature even has its own Twitter account, presumably set up by some bright spark at the local tourist board.
Valuev - who is, ironically, famous for his inhumanly large frame - has become so intrigued by the stories of the eight-foot, hair-covered monster that he is determined to find it.
"I would like to see firsthand what is going on," said the boxer, who has had all manner of injections and vaccinations ahead of his expedition to the remote region. "I'll draw my own conclusions once I've been there."
The first known traces of the Russian Yeti date back to 2005, when hunters found and photographed giant footprints in the snow.
Since then, the local council has been inundated with messages from hunters and hill walkers claiming to have spotted the beast.
And no doubt those imagined sightings will only increase when the 7ft, 23-stone Valuev is in the area.
Yet some remain sceptical of the boxer's chances of successly witnessing the creature. As one local put it, "Valuev might be about the same size as our Yeti, but I don't think it is going to come and see him because of that." - Yahoo
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Nigeria's Zamfara Sharia court orders amputation
An Islamic court in northern Nigeria's Zamfara state has sentenced two youths to amputation of their right hands for stealing a bull.
The court ruled that the wrists of Auwalu Abubaka, 23, and Lawalli Musa, 22, should be amputated in public.
Amputations under Islamic law are rare in Nigeria and the court said the men could appeal against their sentences.
Nigeria's government recognises aspects of Islamic law in its 12 mainly Muslim northern states.
Judge Muhammadu Abubakar, hearing the case in the village of Nassarawan Mailayi, said Abubaka and Musa had pleaded guilty to stealing the bull from a local resident.
'Market day amputation'
"Based on the admission of guilt by the two of you of trespassing into the house... and stealing a bull whose worth is well above the minimum value to warrant amputation, I hereby order that each of you should have his right wrist amputated," Judge Muhammadu Abubakar told the convicts.
The bull was valued at $867 (£544), reports say.
The sentence would take place on "market day [8 October] for members of the public to witness", Judge Abubakar said.
The judge, however, gave Abubaka and Musa the right to appeal against the sentence.
Zamfara was the first northern state to introduce Islamic law after Nigeria returned to democratic rule in 1999.
In 2000, Buba Jangebe made history as the first Nigerian to have an amputation carried out after the re-introduction of Islamic law after being found guilty of stealing a cow.
There was widespread international condemnation of the amputation and only a few such sentences have been carried out. - BBC
NOTE: they need to carry out the same sentence to those Nigerian email scammers as well...Lon
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Strange Lights Witnessed of Budd Lake, NJ
While driving home early in the evening, we pulled into the parking lot of a shopping center when I immediately spotted four bright orange objects in the sky that were out of place in the area. The sky was slightly overcast with a crescent moon visible. Once we pulled into a parking space, I got out of my vehicle for a better look and observed four very bright objects (more luminous than any planet or star in the night sky but not as bright as the moon) moving across the sky from west to east. They appeared from behind trees along the western horizon and moved at a relative speed comparable to a high altitude commercial jetliner. Each light glowed with an orange tinge and, while in close proximity to each other, moved independently, with no observable structure linking them together. There was no direction change and as they appeared directly overhead, they all "fizzled" out at different times. Another witness in a darker area than us stated she could see individual structures around each light which she would compare to helicopters, but absolutely no noise was heard by anybody. I observed after their disappearance ambient glowing from each object for another several minutes before they totally disappeared.
This case is under investigation by Ken Pfeifer MUFON New Jersey
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Grayson County, Texas Case - LITS / Spirit Rescue International
Sunny's investigative report and other observations can be found at her blog - Lights in the Texas Sky. As this case evolves, other updates will be posted at Astral Perceptions. I will post the results of the RV prior to the on-site investigation sometime this week...Lon