Animals
Middle East Animal Wars
Hamas ‘seizes Israeli spy dolphin’ off Gaza
Hamas claims to have captured a dolphin being used as an Israeli spy off the coast of Gaza, local media report.
The militant Palestinian Islamist group, which dominates Gaza, says the mammal was equipped with spying devices, including cameras, according to the newspaper Al-Quds (in Arabic).
It was apparently discovered by a naval unit of Hamas’s military wing and brought ashore. Al-Quds said that the newest recruit was “stripped of its will” and turned into “a murderer” by the Israeli security services.
It shows the extent of Israel’s “anger” and “indignation” at the formation of Hamas’s naval combat unit, the paper reports.
Israeli authorities have not commented on the media reports.
This photo was possibly released by Russian intelligence, apparently taken from a Russian mini-sub.
The dolphin appears to have some type of massive camera harnessed to its back
It is not the first time that Israel has been accused of using animals – and birds – for spying purposes.
In 2010 Israel dismissed Egyptian claims that a series of shark attacks in the Red Sea could have been the result of a Mossad plot.
A few weeks later a vulture found in Saudi Arabia with a GPS transmitter was accused of being an unwitting Mossad operative.
And in 2012, villagers in Turkey feared a small migratory bird found dead with a ring on its leg had been an Israeli spy. Their fear proved unfounded.
Israel controls most of Gaza’s borders, coastline and airspace
More animal wars:
A huge vulture detained in Lebanon on suspicion of spying for Israel has been returned home after UN peacekeepers intervened, Israeli officials said.
The bird, which has a 1.9m (6ft 5in) wing span, flew over the border from an Israeli game reserve and was caught by Lebanese villagers on Tuesday.
They became suspicious as the griffon vulture had a tracking device attached to its tail.
It is part of a conservation project to reintroduce raptors to the Middle East.
Wildlife officials say the vulture was brought from Spain last year and set free about a month ago in the Gamla Nature Reserve in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Tel Aviv University is involved in tracking the bird, and as well as a GPS transmitter, it had tags on its wings and an engraved metal ring on its leg saying: “Tel Aviv Univ Israel”.
Yet another male celebrity accused of sexual impropriety
The accusations are seeping out of the woodwork fast and furious. From Harvey Weinstein to Kevin Spacey to Louis C.K., sexual misconduct reports have become a non-stop cascade in the last couple weeks. And now another bombshell.
A well known pitchman for cat food is now under the microscope. Morris the Cat is accused of improper sexual advances towards Hollywood female felines.
Morris the Cat is the advertising mascot for 9Lives brand cat food, appearing on its packaging and in many of its television commercials.
Morris has appeared in other media over the years. He debuted in the Robert Altman film The Long Goodbye with Elliott Gould, and starred in the movie Shamus with Burt Reynolds and Dyan Cannon in 1973.
Morris also appears as a “spokescat” promoting responsible pet ownership, pet health and pet adoptions through animal shelters. To this end, he has “authored” three books: The Morris Approach, The Morris Method and The Morris Prescription. He was quoted at the 1993 “end of year” edition of People magazine which noted deaths of 1993 to which he quoted a simple “Meow” in honor of the death of his friend, fellow advertising mascot, the dog Spuds MacKenzie.
In 2006, Morris was depicted as adopting a kitten, Li’l Mo, from a Los Angeles animal shelter, representing the first adoptee in a campaign known as Morris’s Million Cat Rescue.
Six pussies have come forward with court dipositions alleging that Morris performed groping and unwanted sexual advances towards them in his Hollywood cat-house. Morris had lured the pussy cats to his house on the pretext of unlimited moist cat food, namely 9Lives.
Morris with one of his more recent lady friends
A few of the accusers. They have signed a tell all contract with Buzzfeed media.
Caty Purry alleges that Morris kept pawing her behind even after she hissed continuously at him.
Cindy Clawford put out a statement alleging Morris bit her ears while she was reading a script at his Tijuana villa.
Lickers Wigglebutt has put forward court documents accusing Morris of unwanted pouncing and groping with his claws that left her an emotional basket case.
Morris meowed no comment as his lawyer Bengal Tom said the accusations are sour grapes and that no such bad behavior ever happened. “Morris is an upstanding citizen and highly recognized professional actor” Tom put forward in a statement to reporters. “He could have had all the pussy he wanted”, no need for excessive advances on Morris’s part”.
The Diving Horses of Atlantic City
Amusingplanet.com
For nearly half a century, Atlantic City, in New Jersey, United States, was home to an attraction almost too fantastical to believe—an apparently fearless horse with a young woman on its back would leap off a tower some 40 feet high into a pool of water below. The stunt took place at Atlantic City’s popular venue Steel Pier, where trained horses took the plunge up to four times a day and seven days a week.
The idea of the diving horse was invented in Texas by ”Doctor” William Frank Carver, a 19th century sharpshooter who toured the wild west organizing shows with trained animals and shooting exhibitions. The story goes that in 1881, Carver was crossing a wooden bridge over Platte River in Nebraska when the bridge gave away, plunging him and his horse into the river. The diving horse franchise grew out this mishap, and over time it became Carver’s most favorite act on his traveling animal shows. His son, Al, helped train and take care of the horses, while his daughter, Lorena, is said to have been the first rider. By the time his future daughter-in-law, Sonora Webster, joined the show in 1923, Carver had two diving teams on the road, each performing in a different city.
The diving horse at the Hanlan’s Point Amusement Park, Toronto, Canada.
Carver died in 1927 due to poor health aggravated by the drowning of his favorite horse. Following Carver’s death, the diving horse show continued with Al Carver at the helm. In 1928 the diving horse show came to Atlantic City and became a permanent fixture at Steel Pier for the next several decades.
Allegedly, in all the years the show ran, there was not one reported incident of injury to any of the high diving horses. However, the same cannot be said for the riders. On average there were two injuries a year, usually a broken bone or a bruise. The most serious injury in the show’s history happened to Sonora Webster, who was the best-known of the horse divers. She joined Carver’s show in 1923 and made her first dive when she was just 15.
In 1931, during a dive, her horse dove into the tank off-balance, causing her to hit the water face first. Sonora failed to close her eyes quickly enough, resulting in detached retinas that left her sightless. Despite being blinded, Sonora continued with the act for eleven more years. Her story became the subject of the 1991 Disney film Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken.
Later in an interview to the New York Times, Sonora’s younger sister, Arnette Webster, remarked:
The movie made a big deal about having the courage to go on riding after she lost her sight. But, the truth was, riding the horse was the most fun you could have and we just loved it so. We didn’t want to give it up. Once you were on the horse, there really wasn’t much to do but hold on. The horse was in charge.
Horse-diving continued until 1978, when pressure from animal rights groups forced organizers to shutter the show. In 1994, Donald Trump’s organization, which owns Steel Pier now, attempted to bring back the act by featuring diving mules and miniature horses, but public protests once again brought the act to an end.
Sonora Webster, in 1904.
Horse diving into the water at Atlantic City.
Diving horse at Atlantic City Steel Pier, 1959.
Dimah, the world famous diving horse, Atlantic City NJ.
The Maine Coon
The Maine Coon is one of the largest domesticated breeds of cat. It has a distinctive physical appearance and valuable hunting skills. It is one of the oldest natural breeds in North America, specifically “native” to the state of Maine (though the feline was simply introduced there), where it is the official state cat.
No records of the Maine Coon’s exact origins and date of introduction to the United States exist, so several competing hypotheses have been suggested. The breed was popular in cat shows in the late 19th century, but its existence became threatened when long-haired breeds from overseas were introduced in the early 20th century. The Maine Coon has since made a comeback and is now one of the more popular cat breeds in the world.
The Maine Coon is a large and sociable cat, hence its nickname, “the gentle giant.” It is characterized by a prominent ruff along its chest, robust bone structure, triangular body shape, an uneven two layered coat with longer guard hairs with a silky satin under layer undercoat, and a long, bushy tail. The breed’s colors vary widely, with only lilac and chocolate disallowed for pedigree. Reputed for its intelligence and playful, gentle personality, the Maine Coon is often cited as having “dog-like” characteristics.
Cocky Skunk makes a Cougar Hightail it to the Hills
A man driving near a conservation area in Canada captured a remarkable encounter between a cougar and a rather feisty skunk.
Greg Shyba spotted the strange exchange as he passed through the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area in Alberta.
In the awesome video, shot from the safety of Shyba’s car, a solitary skunk can be seen trotting down a dirt road as a hungry-looking mountain lion suddenly darts out from the nearby brush.
The two creatures appear to run alongside each other for a brief stretch, likely sizing the other animal up, before the skunk pulls off a surprising move by charging at the cougar!
No doubt taken aback by the aggressive maneuver and possibly by a scent-based attack by the surly skunk, the startled cougar dashes back into the tall grass seemingly content with now just watching Shyba’s car.
However, the skunk was apparently not finished with the big cat as the diminutive, black and white creature appears out of nowhere to give the cougar one more scare and send it running away from the area.
The MarkoZen Blog 