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Bear Travel: Spotting Brown Bears in Germany

October 10, 2008 at 9:30 AM | 0 Comments

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]

Killer Beaches 2008: New Smyrna Still a Shark Paradise

August 28, 2008 at 11:30 AM | 2 Comments

One of our Killer Beaches for two years running, New Smyrna Beach, Florida just counted its 18th shark victim of the year. The 26-year-old surfer was bitten twice on the left leg while sitting on his board, but escaped with "only" a dozen or so gashes that needed stitches.

Earlier this week, a shark nibbled on a swimmer off the coast of New Smyrna, though he too escaped with minor injuries. Still, the beach town is on track to match its annual record of 22 incidents, set in 2001--or what locals call "The Year of the Shark."

Four months to go!

Related Stories:
· Edgewater Surfer Bitten by Shark [Dayton Beach News-Journal]
· Dangerous Travel: Killer Beaches 2008 [Jaunted]
· Killer Beaches 2007 Map [Jaunted]
· Sharks coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: ruminatrix]

Adventures of Link: Summer of Animal Terror Continues in Texas

August 12, 2008 at 5:30 PM | 0 Comments

The Montauk Monster is so over! An eight-year veteran of a sheriff's department in Texas says he recently spotted a chupacabra on the run in DeWitt County:

I've been patrolling these back roads for a long time, and I've never run across anything like this.

The deputy even had the sense to tape the mystery animal with his dash camera as it ran down a dirt path. It would be the second chupacabra in as many years for the county--though one captured in 2007 actually just turned out to be a coyote. At least it wasn't a viral marketing gimmick!

Related Stories:
· Chupacabra Caught on Tape? [KENS]
· Raw Video: Is This a Chupacabra? [KHOU]
· Texas Deputies Add to Chupacabra Legend [KSAT]
· When Animals Attack coverage [Jaunted]

Killer Beaches: Jellyfish Hung out to Dry... For Now!

August 11, 2008 at 4:00 PM | 0 Comments

The incidence of jellyfish events this past week has dropped ever so slightly, heightening our paranoia that the jellies are amassing before a final virulent strike in the last weeks of summer.

While there were no out-and-out invasions this week, two smaller incidents deserve note: A fisherman died of cardiac arrest after being stung in Barangay Tiling, Philippines while out swimming with his brother. And on Hilbre Island off the coast of England near Liverpool, a 12-year-old and a 10-year-old girl were rushed to the hospital after incidental stings when one of them went into anaphylactic shock.

But! Just weeks after suffering more than 60 jellyfish stings, a Canadian long-distance swimmer is back in the water to swim the distance from Nova Scotia to New Brunswick today. The seriously brave lady, Jen Alexander, is completing the 22-hour swim to raise awareness for type 1 diabetes, which she has had for 20 years--she'll even test her blood sugar en route. Go, Jen, go! Before they strike again!

Our Jellyfish Invasion Map helps you track this summer's trendiest menace.

Related Stories:
· Jellyfish stings girls near Hilbre Island [Wirral Globe]
· Fisherman Dies from Jellyfish Sting [Inquirer]
· Marathon swimmer makes second attempt [Metronews.ca]
· Jellyfish Panic Continues Worldwide! [Jaunted]
· Bikini Travel: Bar Refaeli Braves Killer Jellyfish in France [Jaunted]

[Photo: marialynn]

Daily Animal Terror Travel: This Time, It's Snakehead Fish!

August 7, 2008 at 4:07 PM | 0 Comments


The super-scary, walks-on-land, razor-toothed snakehead fish--that's so frightening that even a dead one threw Lincolnshire, England into a panic in February--has once again washed up on American shores. And it's coming to get you, bedroom communities of Upstate New York!

In Wawayanda, just south of Catskill Park, officials have ordered that any snakeheads must be shot or otherwise killed on sight to keep them from infesting the Hudson downstream. (Once the ferocious fish invade an ecosystem, it's next to impossible to clear 'em out.) The state Department of Environmental Conservation is using designer pesticides to poison the baddies in local waters while residents are poaching them with .22s from golf carts. Seriously.

While the killing may seem like swatting flies with a cruise missile, you don't mess around with these terrors. To wit:

Gale A. Norton, United States secretary of the interior when snakeheads were discovered in Maryland in 2002, called them "something from a bad horror movie" before ordering a federal ban. Since then the fish have spawned not one but two bad horror movies, "Snakehead Terror" and "Frankenfish."

Related Stories:
· A Potion to Beat Back "Frankenfish" [NYT]
· Snakehead Fish Caught In Lincolnshire [Jaunted]

Killer Beaches: Jellyfish Panic Continues Worldwide!

August 4, 2008 at 1:50 PM | 2 Comments

Our fear of killer jellyfish has not abated since last week! The New York Times even got in on the trend with a Spanish scientist suggesting jellies are trying to send us the message "Look how badly you are treating me," making them sound like a M. Night Shyamalan menace.

After the jump, this week's updates on the insidious spread of what David Beard of the Boston Globe called "the cockroach of the ocean."

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Global Beach Panic: Jellyfish Will Kill Us All!

July 29, 2008 at 3:15 PM | 3 Comments

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, a new marine threat has surfaced to rival sharks as the most dangerous to waterborne humans: Beaches around the world have seen an uptick in jellyfish attacks, with swarms of the gelatinous creatures swamping swimmers from Tampa to Thailand.

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Bear Bites Camper at Yellowstone

July 18, 2008 at 11:15 AM | 3 Comments

Stephen Colbert was right! Two campgrounds near Yellowstone National Park have been closed at the height of tourist season after a bear attacked a camper Thursday morning.

The bear, believed to be a grizzly, entered a tent at the Soda Butte campground at the park's northeastern end and bit and scratched a man. It is not known whether he was camping alone or how old he was, but it appeared his food was stored correctly (a common draw to hungry animals in and near the park).

The National Park Service said the bear returned to the scene of the crime later on Thursday, proving that bears are not actually that smart.

Related Stories:
· Grizzly Crawls into Bed with Montana Camper [Great Falls Tribune]
· Scary Alaska Travel: Bear Mauls Teenage Girl [Jaunted]
· When Animals Attack coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: tut99]

Definitely No Smiling at Crocosaurus Cove

July 17, 2008 at 9:30 AM | 0 Comments

It's one thing to share a bar with a tiny crocodile but soon tourists visiting the northern Australian city of Darwin will be able to share a swimming pool with a crocodile too.

At the opening-soon Crocosaurus Cove theme park, there'll be seven crocodile enclosures with underwater viewing areas, and one with a swimming pool next to a viewing window so you'll be able to feel a bit like you're swimming with the crocs (like you'd want to?).

But scariest of all is the Cage of Death--a clear acrylic box that tourists can climb into and experience a huge crocodile snapping at you. We think this sounds a bit cruel for the poor croc, but perhaps they toss him a human every now and again to keep him happy. Hope it's not us!

Related Stories:
· Crocosaurus Cove [Official Site]
· Cage of Death Puts Tourists in Croc's Lair [news.com.au]
· Sharing the Bar with a Crocodile [Jaunted]

[Photo: news.com.au]

Pub Travel: Sharing the Bar with a Crocodile

June 26, 2008 at 9:35 AM | 2 Comments

Tourists are often worried about crossing paths with a crocodile when they're visiting Australia's Northern Territory, but all you really need to know is you shouldn't smile at one--even if it sidles up to you at the bar.

That's what happened this week at the Noonamah pub on the outskirts of Darwin, and when the croc appeared, some local drinkers acted fast to tape its mouth up and put it in a box. Despite a few spectacular headlines, it wasn't a scary croc--the thirsty visitor was just two feet long.

But we still recommend watching where you put your beer down if you're in an Aussie pub. The next crocodile to walk in could be bigger.

Related Stories:
· A Croc Walks Into A Bar ... [Northern Territory News]
· Crocs Interrupt Tourist Plans in Oz [Jaunted]

[Photo: digitalreflections]

Bear-Aware in Romania

September 21, 2007 at 9:15 AM | 0 Comments

Hanging around in near Romanian county of Brasov has become a bit creepy not only because Dracula's Castle is there. Now there are insane bears roaming hospital corridors, too.

As if we weren't already considering striking Europe off our list after the whole Bruno the Bear saga in Germany, now we've got to watch out in Romania. Reports say that a hungry bear who'd got his head stuck in a large tin broke into a psychiatric sanatorium in Brasov county and went wild. It had to be tranquilized, hunters used some slippery grease to get the can off its head, and released it back into the wild. For now.

Related Stories:
· New York Is Selling Dracula's Castle [Jaunted]
· Bear Breaks Into Hosptial [Ananova]
· Beware of Bruno's Brothers [Jaunted]

[Photo: Carly&Art]

Bear Attack In Romania

June 25, 2007 at 8:50 AM | 0 Comments

These Romanian brown bears might look cute, but we've got a bad news story today and they star in it. A group of American hikers wandering through the Carpathian Mountains north of Bucharest over the weekend were attacked by a brown bear who eventually killed one of them, a 31-year-old woman.

We know Europe's nervous about roaming bears--just see the hysteria created in Germany over Bruno the Bear. It's an uneasy truce between dense populations and the few remaining bears. About half of Europe's brown bears make their home in Romania, and although attacks on people are really rare, they obviously do happen; if you're stressed about it, check some tips on surviving bear encounters.

Related Stories:
· Bear Mauls US Tourists [CNN]
· Bruno the Bear Remembered [Jaunted]
· How To Survive An Encounter With A Bear [e-how]

[Photo: tim ellis]