Tigers Work the Night Shift in Nepal

In the forests of Nepal, daytime belongs to humans, but the night is the time of the tigers, a new study finds. The results may reveal how people and predatory cats manage to coexist.

A two-year study of video from more than 70 motion-activated cameras near Chitwan National Park in south-central Nepal finds that endangered tigers aren't necessarily driven from their forest habitats when humans share the same space. Instead, the tigers restrict their usual round-the-clock activity to nighttime.

'This has highly important implications,' said study researcher Jianguo Liu, a sustainability researcher at Michigan State University. 'In the past, people were always thinking we needed to have tigers and people separate across space. This study indicates they can share the same space.'

Chitwan National Park is home to the greatest number of Nepal's tigers, though the big cats are rare: A 2010 survey by the Nepalese government and conservation organizations National Trust for Nature Conservation and WWF-Nepal found that about 125 tigers live in Chitwan and its surrounding areas. Tiger attacks on humans are rare, though a 17-year-old was killed by a tiger in Chitwan in April after going into the park to cut grass.

Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are likely fewer than 2,000 of these tigers in the wild.

For the most part, Liu said, tigers steer far clear of humans. The camera footage revealed that inside the park, 80 percent of tigers caught on film were roaming at night. Outside the park, that number was 95 percent.

'In other areas, tigers actually have more activity during the day, so that means these tigers are forced to be more active at night due to human activity,' Liu told LiveScience.

Liu and his colleagues report their findings Monday (Sept. 3) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The researchers aren't yet sure whether being forced into a night-owl existence is bad for the tigers. They plan to research that question further, Liu said.

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5 beached whales doing better at Florida center

MIAMI (AP) - Veterinarians fed fish drinks to five rescued pilot whales Sunday and kept a close eye on them, trying to nurse the mammals back to health so they can one day return to the ocean.

The five whales were among a group of 22 whales beached in South Florida on Saturday. The rest died of natural causes or had to be euthanized.

The two calves and three juveniles were brought to Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Institute for rehabilitation. Experts said the animals were worn out, but mostly doing well.

'They've all been through a pretty stressful ordeal. We've seen each of them, at one point or another, have a little bit of trouble and need a little bit of help,' said Dr. Michelle Davis, senior veterinarian for SeaWorld Orlando.

Some of the whales have been breathing faster than usual at times, causing them to float away from the group and become less active, she said.

Several organizations were working together to care for the whales. About 10 people monitored them around the clock and one person was assigned to each whale to watch it constantly. The whales are being fed fish smoothies through a feeding tube every four hours.

Wildlife experts believe the youngest whale - a female under the age of 2 - was still nursing. Her mother did not survive.

'The baby is swimming around the group, calling and whistling for the mother, so we're working to become the mom,' said Stephen McCulloch, Harbor Branch program manager.

Experts are teaching her to drink formula from a bottle.

Davis said it was not clear why the whale pod stranded at Avalon Beach State Park in St. Lucie County.

Allison Garrett, a spokeswoman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries service, said it's possible one of the animals became sick and the rest of the pod followed it onshore.

'They won't leave (a sick whale). They'll stay together,' she said.

The five survivors have only minor injuries and scrapes. The goal was to get the five whales strong enough to survive a roughly two-hour trip to their new home at SeaWorld, which could take about a week.

Davis said she did not know how long it would be before the whales could be released back to the ocean. Until they get better, the whales will rehabilitate together in a pool.

'Even now in the pool, most of them are staying together and swimming around together all the time. That's definitely a way to decrease their stress level,' she said.

Hundreds of residents came to the beach to help Saturday, flipping the animals upright so they could breathe better. Volunteers covered the whales with moist towels and poured water over them.

By evening, it was clear that most of the whales would not make it. Necropsies will be performed on them.

___

Associated Press writer Norman Gomlak in Atlanta contributed to this report.



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Humpback whales rebounding on Brazil's coast

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - An institute that tracks the population of Humpback whales that reproduce along Brazil's coast says the number of the once-threatened mammals has tripled over the last 10 years.

The Humpback Whale Institute says in a news release there are now almost 10,000 humpbacks off the Brazilian coast. In 2002, the institute counted approximately 3,000 whales.

Institute chief Milton Marcondes says the whales' fat once was used as fuel for public lighting and in construction. Hunting was banned in 1966, when only about 1,000 whales were left.

Marcondes says restoration efforts have helped the species recover in spite of global warming, accidents with boats and fishing nets.



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Endangered Rhino Born at Texas Zoo

The Fort Worth Zoo is asking for the public's help in naming a newborn female greater one-horned rhinoceros.

The calf, which was born Aug. 16, is an endangered species, making the birth all the more special, said Michael Fouraker, executive director of the zoo.

A list of five names were chosen to reflect the calf's 'heritage and personality.' A poll will be open on the zoo's Facebook page until Sept. 30.

Among the most popular names so far: Asha, meaning 'hope' and Kumari, meaning 'princess.'

The greater one-horned rhino is named for a single horn atop its head, measuring between eight and 24 inches. The species has two distinct skin folds on its body, giving the appearance it is wearing armor.

The calf is the fifth successful offspring for Shanti, a 25-year-old rhino on loan from the San Francisco Zoo.

Arun, a 22-year-old rhino, however, was made a father for the 27th time.

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Pod of pilot whales comes ashore on Florida beach

FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) - More than 20 pilot whales came ashore on a South Florida beach on Saturday, triggering a daylong effort by state and national officials, nearby residents and others to save them.

By evening, five pilot whales - two calves and three juveniles - had been transported to Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Institute for rehabilitation. The rest had died of natural causes or had to be humanely euthanized, said Allison Garrett, a spokeswoman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries service.

'It was not possible to rehabilitate them,' she told the Associated Press.

The pod of 22 whales came ashore Saturday morning at Avalon Beach State Park in St. Lucie County. They ranged from calves and juveniles to adult whales.

Garrett said it was unclear why the whales became stranded.

'Pilot whales are very social animals,' she added. 'One scenario could be one of the animals was sick. They won't leave (a sick whale). They'll stay together.'

For this reason, it's useless to push pilot whales back into the ocean, Blair Mase, stranding coordinator for NOAA's Southeast Region, told TCPalm.com (http://bit.ly/TJA0D2 ).

'If you push them into the water, they'll just keep coming back and stranding themselves again,' said Mase, who was surfing in the area when he noticed people running toward the beached whales.

TCPalm.com reports that hundreds of residents came to the beach to assist with the rescue, helping the animals turn upright so they could breathe better. Volunteers covered the whales with moist towels and poured water over them. Red Cross volunteers helped ensure that volunteers stayed hydrated in the hot sun.

'I think that people want to help animals,' said Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisth, a Harbor Branch volunteer who worked with others to tend to juveniles in a shaded inflatable pool. 'Especially whales and dolphins, because they are our counterparts in the seas. They're mammals, they're intelligent, they're social. They're a lot like us.'

Still, there was a sad undercurrent to the efforts, with rescuers aware that most of the whales were dying.

Garrett said there was no obvious sign of trauma or injury to the whales, but that necropsies would be performed on them. She said officials and volunteers spent the day assessing the health of the whales to see which could be rehabilitated, and then making the others comfortable.

She said the last such beaching in the area came in May 2011, on the Florida Keys.

___

Associated Press writers Kelli Kennedy in Miami and Norman Gomlak in Atlanta contributed to this report.



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Pilot whales come ashore in Florida, 17 dead

MIAMI (Reuters) - Twenty-two short-finned pilot whales beached themselves along Florida's Atlantic coast on Saturday, and 17 died despite a day-long effort to save them, authorities said.

Five calves and juveniles were rescued and taken to a nearby rehabilitation center, according to Carli Segelson of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

She said the others, males and females, died of natural causes or were euthanized.

The creatures, which are the biggest in the dolphin family after killer whales, came ashore near Fort Pierce, on Florida's south-central Atlantic coast.

The U.S. National Park Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration participated in the rescue effort.

Segelson said pilot whales, which are considered highly intelligent, are a species that commonly strand themselves on beaches around the globe.

Such incidents often have been blamed on infestations of parasites that affect the whales' brains and their ability to stay on course. They normally stick to deep waters, where they feed on a diet that includes squid and octopus.

The cause of Saturday's beaching was not immediately clear. Allison Garrett of NOAA said necropsies might help explain what drove the mammals ashore.

'These are very social animals,' Garrett said. 'If one of them is sick and goes and strands, the others will stay with it, they won't leave.'

Male pilot whales, which are normally dark black and larger than their female counterparts, can grow to about 20 feet and tip the scales at as much as three tons.

(Reporting By Tom Brown; Editing by Xavier Briand)



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Whales come ashore in Florida, at least two dead

MIAMI (Reuters) - Twenty-one short-finned pilot whales beached themselves along Florida's Atlantic coast on Saturday, prompting rescue efforts and questions about what drove the creatures out of the water.

'There's 21 whales in total, two have died already of natural causes,' said Carli Segelson of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

She spoke from Fort Pierce, Florida, on the state's south-central Atlantic coast, where the whales, including at least two calves, were discovered at about 9 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT).

Officials from the U.S. National Park Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were checking the whales and trying to determine whether they could be coaxed back out to sea, Segelson said.

She said pilot whales, which are considered highly intelligent, are a species that commonly strand themselves on beaches around the globe.

Such incidents have often been blamed on infestations of parasites that affect the whales' brains and their ability to stay on course. They normally stick to deep waters, where they feed on a diet that includes squid and octopus.

'Right now the cause isn't clear,' said Segelson.

Male pilot whales, which are normally dark black and larger than their female counterparts, can grow to about 20 feet and tip the scales at as much as three tons.

(Reporting By Tom Brown; Editing by Xavier Briand)



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