Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water ... giant jellyfish! Actually, to be more specific, they're named "Nomura's jellyfish" and this season, ocean currents are pushing them from Chinese waters into the Sea of Japan, where they prove fatal for expensive fishing nets.

Although the creatures can be up to 6' long and weigh up to 450 pounds (of jelly?), they aren't the malicious, stinging sort. No, they're simply the ruining-a-Japanese-town's-livelihood sort, which is what occurs when the beasts rip through pricey nets and ruin major catches, sending villages that rely on the fishing trade into an economical depression.

Past invasions of the Nomura's jellyfish have occurred in 2005 and 2007, so it looks like it's becoming a regular thing, especially since researchers posit that "overfishing, pollution or rising ocean temperatures may have depleted the kinds of fish that prey on Nomura's jellyfish in the polyp stage." So, who wants to do some scuba diving in the Sea of Japan with us?

Related Stories:
· Japanese fishermen brace for giant jellyfish [CNN]
· Killer Beaches: Jellyfish Hung Out To Dry, For Now [Jaunted]
· Killer Beaches Coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: AFP/Getty]]]> JetSetCD 2009-07-20T11:14:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/4/17/85638/7345

Safari lovers take note: the Northern Territory in Australia might be your next big destination. The local government has approved a proposal to allow safari hunters to kill some of the biggest salt-water crocs around Darwin.

The growing population of crocs have made a huge mistake by snacking more often on people, so there's not too much opposition to the plan. Plus the revenue raised by the safari fees is meant to benefit local Aboriginal groups, so it's got some feel-good value too.

But don't book your trip just yet. First, the plan is open for comment and must then be approved at a national level too. Second, the suggestion is for just 25 crocs to be killed on safari over the next five years. That's not a low of beady eyes to go round.

Related Stories:
· Trophy Hunters Invited to Kill Crocodiles [The Age]
· Pub Travel: Sharing A Bar With A Crocodile [Jaunted]
· Crocs Interrupt Tourist Plans in Oz [Jaunted]

[Photo: wouter!] ]]> amandak 2009-04-17T14:33:04-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/12/131018/072

Despite the fact that Florida has way more shark encounters in a given year, it's Australia that's on high alert now, after three non-fatal attacks in the past 48 hours. Those come just weeks after a man disappeared near Perth, on December 27, in what authorities say was a deadly attack by a white pointer, which is another name for a great white.

The three latest incidents are scattered elsewhere around the giant continent. The first happened near Fingal Head in northern New South Wales on Sunday, when a surfer was bitten on the thigh. That same day, in Binalong Bay in Tasmania, a 13-year-old girl was attacked and rescued by her cousin while a shark circled below.

A third assault was also in NSW, in the tidal Lake Illawarra. A swimmer fended off what's believed to be a bull shark by punching it in the nose. (Eye gouging, you'll recall, is also a good way to fight off fish.)

Luckily, the fear of shark attacks is much, much bigger than the actual chances you'll fall victim to one. (Thanks, Spielberg.) The Florida Museum of Natural History, which obsessively tracks such things, says just 71 "unprovoked attacks" occurred worldwide in 2007, 32 of which happened in Florida. How reassuring!

Related Stories:
· Shark Rampage in Australia [Time]
· Anderson Cooper, Shark Tourist [Jaunted]
· From May 2008: Australia's Latest Shark Attack [Jaunted]
· Killer Beaches 2008 Map [Jaunted]

[Photo: ruminatrix]]]> pbb 2009-01-12T13:30:47-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/22/1684/0808

Berlin's zoo keepers may not be up for planning him a birthday party, but they will keep Knut from devouring anyone who jumps into his polar bear pen.

Knut had just been led into his outdoor enclosure by zoo keepers when a 37-year-old German leapt over a fence into a water-filled ditch to get a closer look. Before the polar bear could chomp his face off, workers whipped out a leg of beef and lured Knut back into his cage. (Zoos apparently have legs of beef just lying around!)

Why did the zoo-goer think a 440-pound bear would want to snuggle?

Police said that, before being let go, the man told them that he felt lonely and the bear appeared lonely, too.

Related Stories:
· Lonely Man Jumps Into Polar Bear's Cage [NYT]
· Berlin To Bear: Plan Your Own Birthday Party [Jaunted]
· Polar Bears With Personality Disorders [Jaunted]

[Photo of Knut in kinder days: Scoobay]]]> pbb 2008-12-22T16:30:35-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/16/113227/10

Not content to be known for terrifying and lovable bears, Germany is now in the midst of a boar-induced panic. The two-tusked pigs are running wild through Berlin, where they've lately gone from occasional oddity to backyard menace, with as many as 7,000 now roaming the city.

Berlin has appointed some Stadtjäger, or "urban hunters," to control the boar population, says The Wall Street Journal, but locals who've taken to the city's newest mascot don't appreciate them shooting down animals in the streets:

Part of Berlin's human population is siding with the boars against those who shoot them. Urban hunters have been beaten with sticks, called "murderers" and had their tires slashed. [One] had to call for police protection when a crowd of young partygoers, enraged after he shot a boar that had been wounded by a car, threatened to beat him up.

Some locals are even feeding the animals, thus luring even more into the city, where they're more difficult to hunt than they would be in the countryside around Berlin. Even with some success, says one urban hunter who figures at least 500 animals have been culled so far this year, the boars may never be eradicated:

There is no way that hunting can get rid of them all. Ultimately we must learn to share the city with the swine.

Related Stories:
· In Berlin's Boar War, Some Side with the Hogs [WSJ]
· When Animals Attack coverage [Jaunted]]]> pbb 2008-12-16T12:00:31-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/9/45746/3975

While you might think that the Qinling Wildlife Park in Xian being the biggest wildlife park in northwestern China is good enough reason to visit, we weren't intrigued until they decided to throw humans into the wolf cages.

Oh yeah, now we're talking. Three local men (one who apparently speaks fluent English) have been picked to spend 72 hours living in a treehouse in the wolf enclosure at the park.

The men will win around $700 if they write three diary entries, make six video clips and take eight photographs during their stay. And if they survive. Wait, what?!

Living amongst 36 "very wild" wolves in a flimsy wooden hut is not our idea of fun, but perhaps our sense of adventure travel is on vacation. What we really wish is that the English-speaking guy was a blogger so we could get some live feed out of the wolf zone. Then again, live feed is probably what the wolves are after, too.

Related Stories:
· Three Men Selected to Live Among Wolves [China Daily]
· China Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: wolf1963foto]]]> amandak 2008-12-09T09:00:27-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/10/10/51610/373

Media mentions of Germany's famous Bruno the Bear--tragically shot back in 2006--seem to be increasing again, and we're thinking that Germany is starting a new angle on tourism: When beer is no longer enough to bring the tourists in, try bears instead.

The latest news is that a half-brother of Bruno has been sighted in Austria, near the German border. Unlike the late Bruno, this guy's not destroying sheep or strolling into villages to sit on the doorstep of the police station, but authorities are worried that locals and tourists will again freak out at the sight of him.

There's now a government-sponsored exhibition touring Bavaria on the subject of living with brown bears and authorities are hoping that this return of brown bears will become a peaceful coexistence. Or, we suspect, a great tourist-attracting money-spinner.

Related Stories:
· Bruno's Half-Brother Spotted Close to German Border [Spiegel]
· A 750 Mile Taxi Ride for a Beer [Jaunted]
· Bruno the Bear coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Stephen Dyrgas]]]> amandak 2008-10-10T09:30:42-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/