Wild whooping crane will live his days in a zoo after growing too fond of humans

SPRING HILL — The whooping crane known as 710 symbolizes what goes wrong when people feed wildlife.

The rare crane spent the winter in Spring Hill. But instead of foraging for food in the wild, he was nourished on bird feeders kept by nearby residents.

When 710 returned to Wisconsin in early spring, the bird again turned to humans.

He began to visit the ethanol plant five miles away from the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, where truckloads of corn are delivered daily.

Wildlife officials tried to discourage him, but nothing worked.

When 710 boldly began pecking at the front door for food, they knew it was time. For the first time in Operation Migration's nine-year history, they pulled a whooping crane from the flock.

Too tame to live in the live in the wild, the crane was returned to Florida this week, to live his life among humans, as an educational exhibit at Lowry Park Zoo.

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Read the rest of the story at Tampabay.com.

Green parrots + large nest = power outage

The small South America Quaker, or Monk parrot is attractive to the eye -- mostly bright green, with gray around its face.  It is also a communal bird.  These parrots work together to build very large nests, in which they live and breed.  Sometimes, they don't pick the best places to build -- such as the ones who chose to settle in at the Tampa Electric (TECO) substation serving downtown Plant City.

The end result?  According to TBO.com, a power outage that left 3,000 customers with no electricity for about an hour Thursday afternoon.  "There was a big nest right on top of a pretty critical part of the substation," a TECO spokesman told the newspaper.  When it became soaked with rain, he said, it caused the equipment to ground out.

Mockingbirds are more observant than you, say UF scientists

People are sometimes surprised to learn that the mockingbird is the state bird of Florida.  After all, these mundane-looking gray and white birds are found all over the place and hardly appear unique.

But appearances can be deceiving.  We already know that mockingbirds are superb mimics who can imitate other birds as well as environmental sounds like cell phones and car alarms. Indeed, their Latin name is mimus polyglotus, meaning "many-throated mimic."

What we did not know, until tipped off by University of Florida biologists, is that these birds are capable of differentiating between human beings.  They can quickly identify and remember people whom they perceive as a threat.

“We tend to view all mockingbirds as equal, but the feeling is not mutual,” said biology professor Doug Levey.  “Mockingbirds certainly do not view all humans as equal.”

Levey and another professor, Aaron Hoover, conducted an experiment in which a few students on the UF campus walked up to mockingbird nests and touched them.  After two days of this, the mockingbirds became upset when these same students began to approach their nests, uttering alarm calls and swooping at their heads.  However, when different students grew close to the nests, the birds did not freak out.

"Mockingbirds can recognize a human after only 60 seconds of contact," professor Levey told the Gainesville Sun.  "I would challenge most humans to do the same."

On patrol with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Assorted odd incidents around the state, as reported in the FWC Law Enforcement Division weekly report for May 8-14 (PDF):

+ On May 13 at 2:00 A.M., an officer responded to a complaint from a resident in the Holley area north of Navarre. The landowner called FWC Communications and advised he had shot and killed a large bear that had killed his goats. The officer located the deceased bear inside a goat pen with two freshly killed goats. The landowner had previously complained of problems with a bear when five of his goats had been killed over a period of weeks and had been cooperating with wildlife technicians in their attempts to live trap the bear. The investigating officer determined that no charges are warranted against the landowner.

+ Officers Pete Rockwell and Ryan Nelson responded to a domestic dispute on a vessel in Santa Rosa Sound near the Fort Walton Beach Brook’s Bridge. The complaint indicated a subject had beaten his wife and pushed her overboard. Officers Rockwell and Nelson located the vessel and occupants involved and turned them over to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department.

+ Lieutenant Jay Chesser and Officer Mike Nobles were on water patrol in the Econfina Wildlife Management Area when they pulled up to a fisher who had a cloud of cannabis smoke around him. When this was pointed out, the individual produced a cannabis cigarette which resulted in him being issued a citation for possession. The individual was cited last year for night hunting after he shot the decoy deer and the year before was cited for numerous marine fisheries violations that resulted in a fine totaling around $1,300.00.

+ Officers Harold Barry and Leslie Sharp were conducting inspections on Alligator Lake. As a vessel approached the ramp, they observed two occupants. The vessel took a long time to get to the ramp after seeing the officers. The inspections revealed a heavy rod spooled with heavy line and a large two pronged hook. In addition, a large knife, hammer, duct tape and a container of raw chicken was found. After an interview, the duo admitted to catching an alligator with the rod and chicken and taping its’ mouth and feet. They dumped the gator after seeing the officers on the bank. The two were charged with attempting to take alligator out of season. The next day, Officer Barry returned and attempted to locate the dumped gator. All that was found was the bundle of duct tape that had come off of the gator’s mouth.

+ Investigator Jim Manson conducted an investigation into the escape of a 10-foot Burmese python in Pinellas Park. After contacting the owner, it was determined the reptile had escaped almost two months earlier. A further investigation revealed numerous captive wildlife violations. Charges are being direct filed through the State Attorney’s Office, in addition to several written warnings that were also issued to the individual.

Ginormous, pugnacious woodpecker wreaks havoc in south Tampa...

....kinda, sorta.

According to WFTS.com, a large woodpecker with a tell-tale red crest is floating around a South Tampa neighborhood near MacDill Air Force Base breaking car mirrors.

Why?

Because it sees a reflection of itself, prompting aggressive behavior.  So far, according to the TV station, the feathered fiend has shattered half a dozen vehicle mirrors.  Residents have taken to putting plastic bags over their mirrors in self-defense.

Meanwhile, there is no end in sight.  One resident reports seeing baby woodpeckers flying around the neighborhood, which means the large, destructive bird is probably a parent...and will remain in the area until nesting season is over.  (Photo:  U.S. Geological Survey)

Hungry sharks curtail swimming off Riviera Beach

Unless you have a death wish, you may not want to venture into the ocean off Riviera Beach right now.  The sharks are feeding.

"Sharks were jumping yesterday completely out of the water. Mouths open and eyes closed," beach attendant Bob Bezdziecki told the Palm Beach Post. "There were hundreds of 'em. Some were only 10 feet off shore."

Frank Souder, the city's aquatics superintendent, said the beach is closed to swimmers every year at this time, when the winter migration of smaller fish offshore draws sharks to the shallow sand bars offshore.  Because the water is clear, the sharks -- nurse, black tip, spinner, bull -- are quite visible.

Souder discourages even those who would just like to wade close to shore.  "We're telling lifeguards to keep people out, even up to their ankles. Sharks can grab you in very shallow water," he said.

"Our beach is still a nice place to be. You just can't swim."  (Image:  NOAA photo library)

2 Fla. men kill attacking bobcat with hammer

STUART, Fla. (AP) -- Wildlife officials say two men putting up a fence in Martin County on Florida's east coast fended off and killed a 30-pound bobcat with a hammer.

The two men were working on a ranch when the bobcat attacked. One of the men hit the bobcat with a hammer and was able to get it off the other. Florida Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Gabriella Ferraro says one of the men was treated at a hospital for scratches to his chest and bite marks to his shoulder. The other man was not injured.

Ferraro says authorities will test the bobcat for rabies because normally bobcats do not attack without being provoked.

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Information from: The Palm Beach Post, http://www.pbpost.com

© 2009 The Associated Press.  All rights reserved.  This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Montana to Brooksville: No more mail-order frogs!

BROOKSVILLE -- A company has stopped selling mail-order frogs to people in Montana after state officials said the species was banned there, company and government officials say.

The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks said the Grow-a-Frog kits include tadpoles that become African clawed frogs, left, a species prohibited in Montana. Officials say African clawed frogs are not native to the state, and if released, they could harm Montana's natural environment.

But the owner of the firm that breeds the tadpoles for educational purposes scoffed at the regulations, which were quietly implemented in 2005.

"It hurts me," said Paul Rudwick, president of Three Rivers Mail Order Corp., who has applied for a waiver to the ban. "No way that this frog is a hazard in Montana. There's no way it can survive at seven degrees below zero."

Rudwick said the strain of the pipidae frog he sells has transparent skin, allowing elementary school students to inspect the tiny tadpoles' anatomy without harming it.

"They can keep it and love it as a little pet," said Rudwick.

The Montana agency sent a letter to 65 Grow-a-Frog customers, asking them to euthanize their frogs or send them back to the supplier. The department says cooperation has been good.

Rudwick said the company only sells the $19.99 kits to schools or school suppliers, and has been in the business for 30 years. For now, Rudnick said he will simply begin using a different strain of the pipidae frog.

A handful of states have regulations against the strain, Rudwick said.

"It's perfectly allowed in Florida," he added.

Gary Morse, a spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, did not immedialy know if the animal was restricted here, but noted that in general Florida has looser restrictions on exotic animals than most other states.

"We do things here in Florida that a lot of other states don't," he said.

Luis Perez, Times staff writer -- information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

A Florida manatee in Massachusetts

According to Boston.com, a Florida manatee has swum its way to Cape Cod. That makes it the northernmost manatee ever reported, according to an official at the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Various agencies are concerned, however, because not only are waters getting colder this time of year, but the manatee has a damaged flipper and perhaps even a missing eye.  A rescue attempt to bring the wayward animal back to Florida is being discussed.

A rumor that the sea cow was heading to Fenway to see the Rays play the Red Sox could not be confirmed.

Collecting dolphin DNA with dart and crossbow

Miamiherald.com reports that a Florida International University doctorate student collected dolphin DNA samples in the Florida Keys this summer by shooting darts launched from a crossbow. Jennifer Lewis, the FIU student, has been photographing and studying the mammals for nine years.

When this method works to perfection, a carefully-aimed dart briefly pierces the targeted animal, snags a flesh sample, then bounces off blubber and floats up for retrieval.  But critics fear the sampling method could harm the mammals.

Keith Mullen of the Southeast Fisheries Science Center in St. Petersburg has a federal permit to oversee Lewis' work.  Mullen says the risk of fatality or injury is "very minimal" with training.