Gordon Grice's Blog, page 44

After the Flood Receded

Photography by Dee Puett

Crocodile Bites Off Man's Hand

Crocodile bites hand off of homeless man in Cancun | Fox News: "CANCUN, MEXICO –  Mexican authorities say a crocodile attacked a homeless man and bit off his right hand near a lagoon in the resort city of Cancun.



Cancun tourist police say in a Tuesday statement that Alejandro Lopez was wandering near an area of mangroves when he was attacked.



Police found the 27-year-old man lying on the shore of the Nichupte lagoon Monday and took him to a hospital."



Pictured above is an American crocodile, a species found in the Yucatan (among other places) and known to occasionally take people. It's possible, however, that the attacker in this case was a Morelet's crocodile. This species has not traditionally been regarded as a man-eater, but Croconut tells me they have attacked several people in recent years, including an intoxicated man who encountered several of them--fatally--at a lake near Tampico. 

Son Mistaken for Monkey, Shot Dead

Honza Soukup/Creative Commons



Bizarre news item from Nepal. 



Man mistakes son for monkey, shoots him dead - Yahoo! News: 



"Chitra Bahadur Pulami had been climbing a tree to chase away macaques that had become a nuisance to the family but his father Gupta Bahadur, 55, spotted the boy and opened fire, wrongly believing him to be one of the animals."



I don't know which species of monkey the farmer has been having trouble with. Nepal's gray langur, pictured above, can grow to five feet tall.  



Thanks to Dee and Croconut for the link. 

New eBook! Nature Gothic Debuts

I'm proud to announce my new eBook:





Nature Gothic: Best Wildlife Stories of Gordon Grice










Nature Gothic is my personal top five: the best of all my wildlife stories. Some have appeared here on the blog before, others only in magazines or books, but never before have they been gathered into one handy little package. (If you've read my other books, you've only seen about  one-fifth of the material in this one.) At 9600 words, this is just about the size of my well-received National Geographic eBook, Shark Attacks (which was #3 in yesterday's "Fish and Sharks" category on Amazon). This one's even more affordable--just 99 cents. 

Man Faces Diarrhea and Crocodile Attack

Gregg Yan/Creative Commons



Man surives crocodile attack during bathroom break - New York Daily News: 

"Pai was at work on a new bridge when he ran to the river to relieve himself after a stomach ache struck.

"A two-meter-long crocodile suddenly pounced out of the water and bit me in the waist,” Pai told The Star newspaper."

Although it's seldom mentioned in polite newspapers, people often fall victim to predators while relieving themselves. Big cats and crocodiles sometimes learn human routines and take advantage of them. 



The crocodile in question is presumably of the saltwater species (pictured here eating a pig). 



(Thanks to Croconut for the news tip.)

Northern Water Snake (2 of 2)

"The little water snake was doing some hunting along a little marshy area beside the dam. He had his head behind some grass clumps and I could not see it, and since copperheads can be marked very similarly I felt it would be a wiser choice to see his head. So I used my walking stick to gently prod him and let me tell you, he was completely unimpressed! He coiled immediately and of all things, he shook his tail the same way a Rattler would do, and started making short lunging head thrusts at the stick. He never once took his eyes off me as I walked around him, and with every step I took, he would lunge his head at me as a warning. I am pretty sure that the hikers who passed by thought I was rather nuts because I was laughing at his actions."

--Dee Puett, Photographer

Northern Water Snake (1 of 2)

"The fellow on the log is a Northern Water Snake. He was probably about 4 ft long or so. I recently read up on these guys, since I encounter them on a rather frequent basis. According to what I have read, they are not classified as venomous, but they do inject a small amount of anti-coagulant venom when they bite. They are also quite aggressive in defending themselves if they feel threatened. I have another set of photos that support that theory coming next."

--Dee Puett, Photographer



(That other set is coming up tomorrow.)

Man Attacks Porbeagle Shark

The porbeagle (Lamna nasus) is, like the great white shark, a member of the mackerel family. It is believed to have injured people in a few other cases, but its small size (under 300 pounds) means it can't really be considered a predator or people. 



BBC News - Fisherman escapes shark attack off Islay: 



"The 7ft porbeagle took hold of Hamish Currie's steel toe-capped boot after the skipper hauled it on to the deck of his vessel.



Mr Currie, 53, from Saltcoats, Ayrshire, targeted the shark after hearing reports of it attacking seals.



He was left shaken after the shark clamped its jaws around his foot and bit a hole in his boat."



Mr. Currie's claim that his victim was "a bad, bad shark" is my giggle for the day. Surely one is allowed to bite in self-defense?

Giant Jackass Kills Mayor

The mayor of a Texas town was killed by his own donkey. I don't hear of many donkey attacks; the ones I do hear about are usually a matter of territorial defense, as donkeys don't like strangers in their pens. For that reason, some farmers use them as guards for llamas and other livestock. 



Territorial defense doesn't seem to be the case here, however. Authorities explained it thus:



Texas mayor killed by huge pet donkey — RT: 



"“They can become very aggressive, very mean, sometimes triggered by a female in heat,” said Atoscosa County Chief Deputy David Soward. “We’ll probably never know what triggered it, but it was evident that this particular donkey was involved, based on the evidence at the scene and what we saw on this donkey.”"



I've often been told that donkeys are more intelligent and less temperamental than horses. 

African Elephant Kills Woman

Thomas Breuer/Creative Commons



From Botswana:



ELEPHANT ATTACKS, KILLS WOMAN | The Voice: 



"The deceased tried to run but the animal gave chase. When it caught up with her, it lifted her up and threw her some distance away leading to her instant death.



Regional Wildlife Officer Bolt Othomile said that they are still looking for the elephant which killed the deceased. “An animal changes behaviour after killing a person and our officers will manage to locate it even if it’s amongst others,” said Othomile."



That's an . . . interesting. . . claim about the behavior of killer elephants.