– – It may alarm some to hear that hundreds of blob-like squid are invading California; on the other hand, some might think that this was inevitable, or that they might just be assimilated to become Californians. The squid are big suckers known as Humboldt squid, who can reach up to six feet and weigh as much as 100 pounds. They normally live at depths of 660 to 2,300 feet in the eastern Pacific.
Humboldts have been known to attack humans and are nicknamed “red devils” for their rust-red coloring and mean streak, and can hunt in schools of up to 1,200 individuals. First washing up dead on the beaches off San Diego, California, the squid have been emerging from the depths recently, roughing up unsuspecting divers, some of whom report tentacles enveloping their masks and yanking at their cameras and gear…that’s right, squid thugs! As the animals taste with their tentacles, they may be touching divers and their wet suits to determine if they are edible.
Humboldts are cannibalistic, and in addition to eating lanternfish, shrimp, and mollusks have been known to eat other Humboldt squid that have been captured in nets. Over 800 of the jumbo squid were hooked in the Pacific Ocean off Orange County in Southern California in just 45 minutes last Saturday. Gradual warming of the ocean, pollution, and over-fishing of large predators are felt to be contributing to the territorial expansion of the squid…
– – A cat being used as a “mule” for contraband was detained on the grounds of a Brazilian prison on New Year’s day as it crossed the main gate! Strapped to the cat’s body with tape were drill bits, a saw, files, and a mobile phone with charger and memory chip, all intended for use by prisoners. 
– – If Batman and Catwoman had a child, the offspring might look something like this magnificent creature whose image originally came from Reddit and was popularized by the Huffington Post before spreading like wildfire throughout the Internet. Thought by a number of commentators to be a Maine Coon cat, this Batcat might not have a Robin, but could probably bring you one…Meow!
– – As if the ants at picnics weren’t enough, a family from Arkansas out for a picnic in the Everglades National Park in Florida was rudely interrupted by a 17-foot Burmese python slithering into their picnic area! That could ruin your whole day, or at least your appetite. The family caught the massive snake on camera, and a park ranger killed it.
– – While engaged in a conservation project to determine how to help turtles cross the road safely, a Clemson University student inadvertently discovered a disturbing fact: some drivers deliberately swerve on the road, not to miss turtles, but to intentionally hit them. 
– – We’ve had the movie, Snakes on a Plane, and now we have Maxwell the Pig in a commercial set on a plane, where two flight attendants are after him to turn off what they think is his “little word game.”- -Well, it turns out that Maxwell is actually using his Geico application to pay his bill, detailing a host of other potential functions which the flight attendants can’t quite swallow, one remarking that she’ll believe the accounting of the app’s functionality “when pigs fly.” 
– – Well, you’ll probably be relieved to hear that the life-sized crystal skulls claimed to have been passed down by the ancient Maya have spoken, and the world is not going to end…it’s the beginning of the new world, kinda like reality 2.0.
– – Even when you are out in the woods in the darkness of night, you can apparently find attached to a tree a convenient brightly-illuminated medicine cabinet, filled with a wise, zen-like squirrel who will counsel the gastric-afflicted that “many hot dogs are within you,” and provide pepto bismol to go, in a convenient use-anywhere vial! 
– – Have you ever seen anything look this sad and cute at the same time?–Don’t you just want to take it home with you?–Well, you may not want to, because it’s a venomous primate, a type of slow loris species called Nycticebus kayan newly discovered in Borneo.
– – In Minnesota, a dwindling moose population has prompted the state’s Department of Natural Resources to recommend that the moose be labeled a “species of special concern” under the state’s endangered species protections. This designation could clear the way for the Minnesota moose to eventually be listed as threatened or endangered should the population fall further.
FOXSYLVANIA 
You must be logged in to post a comment.