An oceanic white tip shark badly mauled four Russian tourists swimming close to their beach hotels in two separate attacks at an Egyptian Red Sea resort, a local conservation official said on Wednesday.

Director of Sinai Conservation Mohammed Salem said the shark attacked two Russians swimming in the Ras Nasrani area near the famed Sharm el-Sheikh resort in the Sinai Peninsula and bit their arms off.

Shark (Illustration)

Photo by: AP

The same shark may also have been involved in an attack on another pair of Russians on Tuesday swimming close to the resort beach, he added.

The shark badly injured a middle-aged woman’s legs and back and bit off her hand. She had a heart attack and had to be resuscitated at the hospital.

The second victim, a 70-year-old woman was found with her right hand and left leg torn off.

Diving instructor Hassan Salem (no related to Mohammed Salem) said he was on a dive at the same time of the attack and was circled by the same shark before it went after the couple.

I was able to scare the shark away by blowing bubbles in its face, but then saw it swim to a woman and bite her legs, he told The Associated Press.

Salem said the water turned red with the blood from the attack, and he rushed to take the diver he was training out of the water.

All four victims were flown to Cairo for medical treatment and were in critical condition.

A spokesman for the Russian embassy in Cairo confirmed that two Russians were attacked Tuesday, but he was only aware of a single Ukranian involved in a shark attack the following day. The discrepancy could not be immediately explained.

Mohammed Salem said coast guard authorities were hunting for the shark and have issued a warning for swimmers to stay out of the water in Sharm el-Sheikh, a famed scuba diving destination.

He said Egypt sees one to two fatal shark attacks a year and they increase as the number of tourists and swimmers in the water rises.

via Tourists maimed in Red Sea shark attack – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

A man who survived a shark attack in Samoa is fighting for his life at the Tupua Tamasese Meaole Hospital.The 47-year-old from Poutasi Falealili is suffering from serious chest wounds.The Director of Clinical Services at National Health, Lemalu Dr Penehuro Tapelu, has told the Samoa Observer the man was fishing last week when he was mauled.It could not be ascertained if he was fishing within the lagoon.The doctor says the man is lucky to be alive.He was evacuated from Poutasi District Hospital to the National Hospital at Moto’otua because of severe injuries on his chest.

via Samoa man survives shark mauling.

11/17/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, US // Sandra Quinlan // Sandra Quinlan

Phenix City, AL—A child died after as many as a dozen dogs attacked him in East Alabama Monday afternoon, November 15, 2010. According to information provided by WTVM, the 5-year-old boy suffered fatal injuries after being mauled by the pack of dogs, which are not believed to be wild, at a Phenix City home after 1 p.m.

Russell County Coroner Arthur Sumbry said he believed the group of 12 dogs might have escaped from a fenced-in area prior to the brutal attack. Cason Bryant, 5, reportedly suffered numerous bite marks when the pack of aggressive dogs approached him at a home on McElvey Road.

The young child was rushed to an area hospital, though his severe wounds proved fatal shortly after. Bryant was sadly pronounced dead around 2:30 p.m.

Sarah Baxter, a friend of the victim’s family, said the boy’s mother, Jennifer Bryant is heartbroken by her loss. “She says she just want to wake up and just be a dream. The father is beyond grief right now,” Baxter contended.

Sumbry stressed the importance of keeping a watchful eye on children, particularly in households where pets are present. “I have a child myself, 6-years-old, and I have dogs… It just makes you be more aware of your child or children around pets,” Sumbry said.

“They’re pets, but never should any pet be left unsupervised anytime. My heart goes out to that family,” the county’s coroner added.

The dogs were all captured and taken to Auburn University, where they were expected to be used for research and then euthanized.

Additionally, the Cason Bryant Memorial Fund was set up in commemoration of the young boy. Donations are accepted and appreciated at any Wells Fargo or Columbus Bank and Trust.

Investigations into the fatal dog attack continue.

via Phenix City AL Animal Attack: Boy, 5, Dies After Being Mauled by Pack of Dogs | Justice News Flash | JusticeNewsFlash Release.

11/17/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, US // Sandra Quinlan // Sandra Quinlan

Phenix City, AL—A child died after as many as a dozen dogs attacked him in East Alabama Monday afternoon, November 15, 2010. According to information provided by WTVM, the 5-year-old boy suffered fatal injuries after being mauled by the pack of dogs, which are not believed to be wild, at a Phenix City home after 1 p.m.

Russell County Coroner Arthur Sumbry said he believed the group of 12 dogs might have escaped from a fenced-in area prior to the brutal attack. Cason Bryant, 5, reportedly suffered numerous bite marks when the pack of aggressive dogs approached him at a home on McElvey Road.

The young child was rushed to an area hospital, though his severe wounds proved fatal shortly after. Bryant was sadly pronounced dead around 2:30 p.m.

Sarah Baxter, a friend of the victim’s family, said the boy’s mother, Jennifer Bryant is heartbroken by her loss. “She says she just want to wake up and just be a dream. The father is beyond grief right now,” Baxter contended.

Sumbry stressed the importance of keeping a watchful eye on children, particularly in households where pets are present. “I have a child myself, 6-years-old, and I have dogs… It just makes you be more aware of your child or children around pets,” Sumbry said.

“They’re pets, but never should any pet be left unsupervised anytime. My heart goes out to that family,” the county’s coroner added.

The dogs were all captured and taken to Auburn University, where they were expected to be used for research and then euthanized.

Additionally, the Cason Bryant Memorial Fund was set up in commemoration of the young boy. Donations are accepted and appreciated at any Wells Fargo or Columbus Bank and Trust.

Investigations into the fatal dog attack continue.

via Phenix City AL Animal Attack: Boy, 5, Dies After Being Mauled by Pack of Dogs | Justice News Flash | JusticeNewsFlash Release.

A 67-year-old woman whose husband died after they were attacked by a bull in a Nottinghamshire field is “critical but stable” in hospital.

Roger Freeman, 63, and his wife, Lucy Glenis Freeman – known to family and friends as Glenis – were attacked by the animal as they walked along a public footpath through a livestock field in Stanford-on-Soar, Nottinghamshire, on Friday.

Mr Freeman was pronounced dead at the scene, in Leake Road, and a post mortem carried out on Tuesday found he died of multiple injuries, a spokesman for Nottinghamshire Police said.

His wife managed to get to the nearby road, where she flagged down a passing woman motorist who contacted emergency services.

She was taken to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, where she remains in a critical but stable condition, the force spokesman added.

The couple, from Glen Parva, Leicestershire, had been married for 42 years and were keen walkers who were “always careful around livestock”, a family statement released by police said.

They had visited Nottingham the evening before the incident to go to the theatre and were walking from a hotel in the city, where they stayed overnight, to Loughborough when the bull attacked. A statement released by their family paid tribute to the couple and added: “Roger and Glenis’ sons, Roger’s mother, father and brother, and the rest of the family are absolutely devastated.

“Roger and Glenis were on a public footpath at the time of the incident and were always careful around livestock.

“We welcome the Health and Safety Executive investigation into the incident and hope for recommendations that prevent an incident like this occurring again.”

The family said the couple celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary by completing an 84-mile walk of Hadrian’s Wall. It is not clear why the bull attacked the couple. After being contained in a shed just after the attack, the animal was put down. A joint investigation by Nottinghamshire Police and the Health and Safety Executive is under way into the circumstances surrounding the attack.

via Woman ‘critical’ after bull attack kills husband – News – Goole Courier.

The family of a man killed by a bull tonight said they were ‘absolutely devastated’ by the attack, which also left his wife critically injured.

Roger Freeman, 63, and his wife Lucy Glenis Freeman – known to family and friends as Glenis – were attacked by the animal as they walked along a public footpath through a livestock field in Stanton-on-Soar, Nottinghamshire, on Friday.

Mr Freeman was pronounced dead at the scene, in Leake Road.

Bulls are known to attack if their territory is crossed by humans

His 67-year-old wife managed to get to the nearby road, where she flagged down a passing woman motorist who contacted emergency services.

She was taken to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, where she remained in a critical but stable condition tonight, a Nottinghamshire Police spokesman said.

The couple, from Glen Parva, Leicestershire, were keen walkers who were ‘always careful around livestock’ a family statement released by police said.

They had visited Nottingham the evening before the incident to go to the theatre and were walking from a hotel in the city, where they had stayed overnight, to Loughborough when the bull attacked.

The family statement read: ‘Roger and Glenis’ sons, Roger’s mother, father and brother, and the rest of the family are absolutely devastated.

‘Roger and Glenis were on a public footpath at the time of the incident and were always careful around livestock.

‘We welcome the Health and Safety Executive investigation into the incident and hope for recommendations that prevent an incident like this occurring again.

‘The family, without exception, would like to be left alone now to mourn the loss of Roger and give all possible support to the recovery of Glenis.’

Viaduct at Stanford-on-Soar: A rural scene near where Roger Freeman was killed and his wife Glenis was seriously injured by a bull while out walking

Mr and Mrs Freeman celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary by completing an 84-mile walk of Hadrian’s wall, the family said.

Divisional Commander Chief Superintendent Dave Wakelin said: ‘My thoughts are with Roger and Glenis’ family and friends at this difficult time.

‘This was a truly tragic incident, which has rocked the close-knit community of Stanford-on-Soar.

‘I would like to thank the local community for their continued co-operation with the police while we carry out our enquiries.’

Police said Nottingham coroner, Dr Nigel Chapman, had been informed of Mr Freeman’s death and would open an inquest later this week.

The owner of the bull released a statement through police in which he spoke of his shock and distress over the incident.

Farmer Paul Waterfall, of Underhill Farm, said: ‘My family and I are deeply upset by what has happened.

‘We are in shock and trying to come to terms with what I can only describe as a devastating and tragic incident. Our thoughts are with the couple’s family at this time.’

It is not clear why the bull attacked the couple and, after being contained in a shed just after the attack, the animal was put down.

A joint investigation by Nottinghamshire Police and the Health and Safety Executive is under way into the circumstances surrounding the attack.

via Family of man killed by rampaging bull ‘absolutely devastated’ by attack | Mail Online.

EUREKA – It appears that a mountain lion attacked a Mazda car in or near Eureka in northwest Montana several days ago.

Montana’s News Station received an e-mail from a viewer named Joe, with the following pictures and this brief explanation:

“This happened Monday night in Eureka. The car was attacked by a mountain lion during the night. They think their cat was hiding underneath the car or in the motor. Some incredible pictures.”

The speculation about a mountain lion is likely due to the type of damage, and the paw-prints on the windshield and on the ground.

We are attempting to locate the owner of the car in order to find out more about what happened.

via Mountain lion suspected in Eureka attack on Mazda | KPAX.com | Missoula, Montana.

PORT ALBERNI, B.C. — A 13-year-old Vancouver Island boy escaped with scratches but no serious injuries after he was attacked by a young bear on Wednesday.

The RCMP says the boy was jogging on a paved walking path through a wooded area of Port Alberni when he encountered the bear.

Corporal Colin Banks says the bear — likely a two-year-old cub — got a hold of he boy with his paws and scratched him on the torso area.

Banks says the boy pushed him away with his right hand and may have poked the bear with a pocket knife he carried.

Conservation officers are now trying to catch the bear, and once they do, will determine whether the bear should be moved or destroyed.

via Teen boy survives bear attack in Port Alberni, B.C. – CTV News.

PORT ALBERNI, B.C. — A 13-year-old Vancouver Island boy escaped with scratches but no serious injuries after he was attacked by a young bear on Wednesday.

The RCMP says the boy was jogging on a paved walking path through a wooded area of Port Alberni when he encountered the bear.

Corporal Colin Banks says the bear — likely a two-year-old cub — got a hold of he boy with his paws and scratched him on the torso area.

Banks says the boy pushed him away with his right hand and may have poked the bear with a pocket knife he carried.

Conservation officers are now trying to catch the bear, and once they do, will determine whether the bear should be moved or destroyed.

via Teen boy survives bear attack in Port Alberni, B.C. – CTV News.

GIG HARBOR, WA – A woman survived what’s being described as a vicious black bear attack which happened on Sunday morning and now, her entire neighborhood is on edge, afraid the bear could attack again.

Officials say the drama began as the woman was walking her dog in front of a gate to an undeveloped subdivision.

The bear appeared on the side of the road and the woman’s dog ran after it. The woman then somehow got in between the bear and her dog and that’s when the bear attacked her.

The woman was later found by another person walking near the area and was rushed to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tacoma. Officials report the victim is going to be okay, as is her dog.

The bear got away and officers say they need to find it since it attacked a human.

“Once the bear is captured, unfortunately because it did involve an attack on a human being, the bear will be euthanized,” explained Captain Dan Brinson with Washington State Fish and Wildlife.

Wildlife officers need to know if the bear suffers from disease and if that is why it attacked the woman.

via Woman recovering after Washington bear attack | KBZK.com | Z7 | Bozeman, Montana.

ROBBINSVILLE, N.C. — Graham County police say a 2-year-old boy remains in critical condition after being mauled by pit bulls that belonged to his grandmother.

Sheriff’s Capt. Joseph Jones said Monday the boy was bitten on his neck, stomach and legs while he was playing in his yard where several of the dogs were running free Saturday.

Police have quarantined five pit bulls at the Haywood County animal shelter and they likely will be killed. Jones said the family kept the dogs as pets and were not breeding them.

The boy’s grandmother told investigators she had been trying to give the dogs away.

Jones says no charges have been filed.

The Asheville Citizen-Times reported that a deputy shot one dog at the scene.

via NC toddler in critical condition after dog attack :: WRAL.com.

GIG HARBOR, Wash. —The bear that mauled a woman near Gig Harbor remains at large.The traps remain set Monday, and agents plan to kill the bear because it harmed a person, said Fish and Wildlife Department spokesman Craig Bartlett. Officials also want to test the animal for disease.The woman who was attacked Sunday while walking her dog is in satisfactory condition at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma.She doesnt want her name, age or the nature of her wounds released, said hospital spokeswoman Jacquie Goodwill. The woman is expected to fully recover and should be released in about a day.Wildlife Capt. Dan Brinson told The News Tribune of Tacoma on Sunday that the woman suffered a severe laceration to an arm and bites to her back.She was found by a couple driving by.Wildlife agents hunted for the bear with dogs Sunday, but they lost the scent in the rain. Two traps were set out, baited with doughnuts, maple syrup and vanilla.Bartlett called the attack “highly unusual” and says its surprising there would be two attacks within two months of each other in Washington.John Chelminiak, a Bellevue city councilman, was mauled Sept. 17 while walking his dogs at a vacation cabin near Lake Wenatchee. He suffered serious wounds and lost an eye but is recovering.The Gig Harbor woman surprised the bear while walking her dog along a frequent route, said Goodwill.The woman expresses her thanks to the police and medics who responded and to everyone who has expressed their prayers and concerns, Goodwill said.

via Local News | Bear that mauled Gig Harbor woman still out there | Seattle Times Newspaper.

A 12-year-old Seward boy was attacked by a brown bear while walking to school this morning.

According to Alaska State Wildlife Enforcement Trooper Marc Cloward, the boy was walking to the bus stop early Tuesday morning.

Although it was dark, when he heard a noise, he wasn’t too concerned.

“He’s thinking that the sound he’s hearing is rain and snow falling off the trees,” Cloward said.

It wasn’t, though.

“He looks over and sees a sow and cubs and he’s already too close,” Cloward said.

The boy began to back away, but the sow growled and huffed and rushed, knocking him to the ground.

The boy screamed and wiggled, until he remembered what he had been told to do in case of a bear attack.

So he made himself go limp. He played dead as the bear ripped and bit at the backback he wore across his back.

According to Cloward’s estimates, the backpack absorbed the brunt of the attack.

The boy was taken to Providence Seward Medical Center, where he was examined and released to the care of his parents, according to Alaska State Troopers.

“I was impressed by how mature he was,” Cloward said. “He said to me during the interview, ‘I think she was just as scared as I was. She just wanted to get her cubs and get out of there.’”

The attack happened on Bear Lake Road near the fish weir.

“It’s kind of a bear thoroughfare there,” Cloward said. “They’re passing through, feeding and making a living.”

Cloward tracked the bear about a half mile toward the mountains. He’s unsure if it will return to the area.

If it does, it will have to be dispatched, according to Soldotna Fish & Game biologist Jeff Selinger.

“If a bear makes contact and we can identify it as the bear, it’s time to put that bear down,” he said.

Alaska Fish and Game Soldotna wildlife technician Larry Lewis was a little more forceful.

“The bear stepped over the line,” he said. “It’s a public safety issue now. People come first.”

If the bear is dispatched, the cubs will be also, since placement could not be found.

Low light and late hibernation

According to Selinger, the majority of documented bear attacks happen in low light conditions.

“I think a lot of it has to do with visibility, from both the bear’s and person’s aspect,” he said, adding that the potential for a bear encounter can happen at any time, regardless of lighting.

This time of year is also what he called the fringe season, when some bears have already gone into their dens while others choose to linger a bit longer.

“It’s just like people, there’s individual differences among bears,” he said.

One of the prompts behind the delay is a readily available food supply.

“That could be berries, salmon carcasses or human related,” he said.

All bears don’t hibernate for the whole winter, either.

“Some will sleep for a little bit and then wake up,” he said. “We’ve seen bear activity in every month of the year.”

For the most part, though, bears tend to become more lethargic as they prepare to den.

“They’re fat, they’re happy, they don’t have to be out intently searching for food. Life is just sort of puddling along for them,” he said.

Garbage away, and walk your kids to school

Alaska Fish and Game Soldotna wildlife technician Larry Lewis recommends parents walk or drive their children to and from the bus stop and school this time of year.

“In the dark, it’s very easy for a child to walk into wildlife situations,” he said.

According to Lewis, there’s been a lot of bear activity around the peninsula lately, most dealing with easily accessible food sources around homes.

“I can tell you we are having an inordinate amount of problems with garbage bears,” he said. “I can’t say there’s any correlation to what happened in Seward, but bears usually move through neighborhoods looking for easy food sources.”

At the same time, he added, the Seward situation played out more like a defensive attack: The sow attacked and and it perceived no threat, it retreated.

“The best thing to do when in a brown bear attack is to play dead and the boy did just that. He played limp.”

He also showed a maturity well beyond his years.

“He conducted himself in a manner that didn’t make the situation worse,” Cloward said. “To be able to keep his composure like that is amazing.”

via The Seward Phoenix LOG – Bear attacks boy walking to bus stop.

COVINGTON, Ga. — A 9-month-old baby is in critical condition at an Atlanta hospital after she was attacked by two raccoons while sleeping in her crib in the same room as her mother.

Authorities say they are investigating how the raccoons got inside the home and whether the family was keeping the animals as pets.

Newton County Sheriff’s Lt. Tyrone Oliver says authorities arrived about 4 a.m. on Wednesday after the mother called 911 to say the baby had been attacked. She was bitten severely on her head and on other parts of her body.

Oliver says the raccoons were outside the family’s house when deputies arrived, and that one was aggressive and fatally shot by a deputy. The other raccoon was given to animal control to be tested for rabies.

via Raccoons attack Georgia baby in her crib.

Beachgoers shouldn’t be afraid to go into the water despite the fatal shark attack on a Romoland teen near Lompoc, oceanographers and biologists said.

Lucas Ransom, 19, was killed Oct. 22 by a great white shark while bodyboarding with his roommate, about 100 yards off shore from Vandenberg Air Force Base.

His UC Santa Barbara roommate, Matt Garcia, reported Ransom was swimming when Ransom was pulled under the water. His bodyboard popped back to the surface with a 13-inch chomp taken out of it, and the water filled with blood. Ransom’s left leg was severed. He was pronounced dead on the shore.

Such attacks are rare, and sharks don’t prefer humans as their prey, experts said. In Ransom’s case, and similar shark attacks, the sharks usually mistake humans for other ocean mammals such as seals or sea lions. State Fish and Game officials said they believe that confusion occurred when Ransom was lying on his bodyboard with his feet hanging off the end.

Beachgoers just need to be aware of sharks’ presence and avoid coves and areas where seals and sea lions may congregate, Fish and Game officials said.

“More people are in the water up and down the coast and we know the sharks are out there looking for food,” Fish and Game Marine Biologist Carrie Wilson said. “Every once in a blue moon we have these things occur. When you look at the number of people in the water, (the number of attacks is) pretty small. The shark wasn’t doing anything sharks don’t do. It was just looking for prey.”

Wilson said the attack was likely a great white, based on the aggressive behavior and the reported length of the shark, estimated at 14 to16 feet.

“These sharks really don’t have much interest in humans. We’re too skinny compared to seals and sea lions,” Wilson said. “They want the blubber and high meat content.”

“The behavior is what you’d expect from a great white,” Wilson added. “The typical mode of hunt is an ambush predator. They like to take their prey by surprise and come from underneath.”

There have been 95 attacks on humans off the California coast in the past 50 years, Wilson said.

There have been four fatal great white shark attacks in the past decade, compared to eight others in the 50 years before, according to Fish and Game. Before Ransom, the most recent came in April 2008, when a man was killed off Solana Beach.

More sharks have moved closer to California beaches since the state banned fishery gillnets off the coast within three miles, Wilson said. That has lead to an increase in seal populations and a rise in great white sharks. The sharks tend to prefer the coastline’s temperate waters.

After the attack, Lucas’ father, Matt Ransom, e-mailed friends and family members, thanking them for their support and condolences.

Ransom and Garcia both swam competitively at Perris High School.

“He lived real well and he died real well. He was in the water for about 45 minutes before the shark got him and his buddy told us he was getting the rides of his young life, on a day with big swells,” the e-mail read.

“He and his brothers have always been an inspiration for me as their father. A big part of him will remain with me until we meet up again. All you parents should enjoy and hold close your sons and daughters. They are only on loan from God.”

via Beaches are safe despite shark attack, experts say | Local News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California.

Nineteen-year-old Elyse Frankcom was leading a swimming with dolphins encounter in waters off western Australia on Saturday when the shark bit into her hip and buttocks.

“As the shark bit her, it brushed aside a fairly large man who grabbed hold of the tail of the shark, which then made it let go,” Fremantle Sea Rescue senior skipper Frank Pisani said.

There were reportedly two dolphins by Ms Frankcom’s side when she dived into the seven-metre deep water and a shark came up from the bottom and bit into her.

Ms Frankcom has had surgery for her injuries and was in a stable condition in hospital on Sunday, and was expected to be released soon.

Media reports said the unnamed hero refused to speak to journalists when the tour boat returned to dock. “All I want is the girl to be OK,” he reportedly said.

via Australian swimmer saves woman by pulling shark’s tail – Telegraph.

The mother of a young Perth woman who was attacked by a shark says her daughter will not want the animal to be destroyed.

Elyse Frankcom, 19, was attacked on Saturday by the unidentified, three-metre shark as she led an underwater dolphin tour in waters off Garden Island, about 50 kilometres south of Perth.

Linda Frankcom says her daughter underwent several hours of surgery in which fragments of the shark’s teeth were removed from Elyse’s lower body.

She says her daughter plans to return to the water once she has recovered and that Elyse would not want the shark harmed.

“There’s no way she would want that shark hunted down – she had entered into their territory and she knew she was at risk entering into there,” she said.

Linda Frankcom also says Elyse has been in good spirits throughout the ordeal.

“She was conscious through the whole thing and she was in pretty good spirits, so she’s a bit of a joker sometimes so she was joking around and laughing but obviously in a bit of pain as well,” she said.

Department of Fisheries spokesman Tony Cappelluti said the shark was reportedly a great white or a whaler shark, but he was yet to confirm the species.

Elyse was saved from the jaws of the shark by a man on the dive who grabbed the shark by the tail as it attacked her.

Skipper of Fremantle Sea Rescue, Frank Pisani, said as the shark bit Ms Frankcom, it brushed past a “fairly large” man on the tour who grabbed it by the tail.

“She started to sink to the bottom but he grabbed hold of her and brought her to the surface and got her back on board the boat,” he said.

Ms Frankcom, who is deeply passionate about dolphins, declared on Facebook earlier this month that she “wouldn’t give in my job for the world”.

In another posting Ms Frankcom said she was aware of the risk sharks posed but was not worried about an attack.

“Hasn’t stopped hearing bout these 3 great whites … if I get attacked or die, at least I die happy and doin the thing I love,” she wrote.

“Time 2 use our shark shields soon maybe.”

Ms Frankcom was reportedly wearing a shark shield at the time, which sends out electronic impulses to deter the creatures.

The site of the attack is just kilometres from where 51-year-old Brian Guest was taken by a large great white when he was diving in December 2008.

In August this year, Busselton man Nick Edwards, 31, was killed by a shark when he was surfing at Gracetown beach, south of Perth.

via Shark attack victim in good spirits – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation).

A COURAGEOUS man has been hailed a hero after he pulled the tail of a shark as it savaged a young tour guide on a snorkelling expedition near Rockingham.

Rescuers praised the man’s brave actions, saying he saved the woman from further injury from the jaws of the ocean predator, believed to be a 3m great white shark.

Do you know who this unsung hero is? If you can shed light on the identity of this fearless lifesaver -  so we can nominate him for Australia’s highest award for heroism – please contact us on: staff@perthnow.com.au

Nineteen-year-old Elyse Frankcom had been hosting a swim-with-the-dolphins tour for Rockingham Wild Encounters when the shark attacked – biting into her hip and left buttock at 12.30pm.

Last night (Saturday), Miss Frankcom was in a stable condition in Royal Perth Hospital following surgery to repair the damage.

Related Coverage

Nine News Shark attack

Family speaks: ‘It’s the day we lost Nick’

Shark history: Recent WA shark attacks

The attack happened off Garden Island Naval Base, at the northern end.

It came just 10 weeks after Busselton surfer Nick Edwards was killed by a monster great white off Gracetown in the South-West.

And it took place just 35km north of  Port Kennedy, where father-of-three Brian Guest was mauled to death by a big great white while snorkelling with his son in December 2008.

The unnamed hero calmly walked off the tour boat when it returned to shore and was too modest to stop for a media interview.

“All I want is the girl to be OK,” he said.

Recovering in Royal Perth Hospital

Concerned family and friends of Ms Frankcom kept vigil at Royal Perth Hospital.

Her older sister, Samantha, said Ms Frankcom was in good hands and would not likely be deterred from returning to the water.

“Elyse is in high spirits. She should be okay to leave hospital tomorrow,” she said.

Samantha said her younger sister would definitely return to the water, despite the brush with death.

“She loves the water. You can’t tear her away from it,” she told The Sunday Times.

“This won’t scare her away. She will definitely go back. It’s been a passion for her since she was a child.”

The 19-year-old diver recently commented on shark attacks on her Facebook page.

“If I get attacked or die, at least I die happy and doin (sic) the thing I love,” she said.

Her parents formerly operated a scuba diving business in Mandurah.

“My sister was training to become a `dolphin girl’ for the dive tours,” Samantha Frankcom said.

“Her job would be to find the dolphins and bring them to the surface for people to swim with.”

Rescuer praised ‘hero’ who grabbed shark’s tail

Fremantle Sea Rescue senior skipper Frank Pisani, one of the first rescuers on scene, said Ms Frankcom would not likely have survived the vicious attack had one of the passengers not bravely intervened.

“As the shark bit her, it brushed aside a fairly large male who grabbed hold of the tail of the shark, which then made it let go,” Mr Pisani said.

“The girl then started to sink to the bottom and he grabbed her and brought her to the surface and got her back on board the boat. He certainly was instrumental in making this a good outcome.”

Mr Pisani said there was a paramedic on the boat, but no first-aid equipment, so sea rescue volunteers worked to stabilise the badly bleeding victim.

“We used all our first-aid equipment and did all we could to stem the bleeding before the RAC rescue helicopter arrived,” he said.

“There were very deep puncture wounds, quite wide but there was no actual loss of flesh.”

Ms Frankcom was taken to HMAS Stirling base, where she was treated by naval medics before being airlifted to RPH.

Rescuers said Ms Frankcom, who remained conscious after the attack, told dive boat operators and first-aiders that she believed the shark was a great white.

It is understood Ms Frankcom is a videographer and tour guide with Rockingham Wild Encounters, which operates the Apollo 3 charter.

Rockingham Wild Encounters operations director Aaron Heath said Ms Frankcom was one of two crew members who were wearing shark shields, which are designed to repel attacks using electronic impulses.

She had recently praised the shields on her Facebook page, saying: “The ocean is a beautiful place and you feel so much safer knowing one genius was able to invent an incredible piece of technology to help enjoy it with more peace.”

via Hero snorkeller grabs shark to save attack victim | Perth Now.

The mountain goat that fatally gored a man in Olympic National Park several weeks ago wasn’t diseased or disabled, but it was in breeding condition, or the rut.

Preliminary necropsy results show the mountain goat, an adult male, did not have viruses such as rabies, encephalitis, plague or tularemia, according to a news release from Olympic National Park.

The animal was killed after its Oct. 16 attack on Robert Boardman, 63. Boardman was hiking in the area with his wife and a friend.

Barb Maynes, a spokeswoman for Olympic National Park, said the rut “may have been a contributing factor,” but said that hikers have been around goats during breeding season before and it hasn’t been a problem.

“It’s unprecedented,” she said.

During the rut, she said male mountain goats are typically known to “keep an eye on their females,” and can be aggressive toward other males.

Rangers and wildlife biologists began monitoring daily goat behavior Oct. 18 but stopped Sunday because of recent snowfall. There were no observations of aggressive mountain-goat behavior.

Park biologists have put out a call for more information about mountain goat-human interactions from across the animals’ range. This winter, they will review the reports in detail, Maynes said.

Additional test results on the mountain goat are still awaiting completion, including one for Listeria, a chronic wasting disease. Maynes said those results should be released in another week.

via Local News | Goat that killed Olympic National Park hiker was in ‘rut’ | Seattle Times Newspaper.

PORTLAND, Maine — A scuba diver who came face-to-teeth with a shark used a camera to fend off the animal when it came at him with its teeth bared — and he has the frightening video to prove it.

Scott MacNichol, 30, was shaken up but uninjured after a porbeagle shark apparently mistook his camera equipment for food Saturday while diving near Eastport, off the eastern tip of Maine.

He estimated the shark was 8 feet long and weighed about 300 pounds.

MacNichol saw the shark swimming above him while he was filming the ocean floor under empty salmon pens as part of an environmental assessment for Cooke Aquaculture Inc. The animal then came at him, jabbing at the camera with its snout. In the video, its sharp teeth fill the frame before it swims off.

“He took a couple of bites at the camera. When he did that I was pretty much petrified,”MacNichol said Wednesday. “If you watch the video, you can hear me screaming underwater.”

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Porbeagles are coldwater sharks that have a similar body shape and tail to mako and great white sharks. Their diet is primarily herring, mackerel and other bony fish.

The shark was probably drawn to MacNichol from the camera’s light, batteries and silver casing, said Chris Heinig, owner of MER Assessment Corp., who was on the dive boat on the surface when the shark lunged at MacNichol.

“I think it came up and bumped the camera to see what it was,” Heinig said. “But I honestly don’t think the shark attacked Scott.”

While hundreds of shark attacks have occurred in Florida, California and other warm-water states, they are rare in New England. The last fatal shark attack in New England was in 1936, when a boy died after being attacked in Massachusetts, according to the International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida’s Museum of Natural History, which tracks shark attacks.

MacNichol, who has been diving commercially since 1998, took a day off from diving after the attack but doesn’t plan to give it up for good.

“People get in car accidents every day and that doesn’t keep them from driving,” he said.

via FoxNews.com – Maine Diver Has Face-to-Teeth Encounter with Shark.

MAN MAULED TO DEATH BY JAGUAR

October 26, 2010

Richard Foster; CEO, Research Centre

“We had a horrendous hurricane come through here on Sunday night. Winds of excess of a hundred miles an hour.”

The chain of events that has apparently led to the death of Bruce Cullerton started on Sunday night, during the passage of Hurricane Richard.  A four year old jaguar being rehabilitated by Richard and Carol Foster escaped and is believed to have mauled Cullerton on Monday night.

Richard Foster

“This cat I know from experience. I have worked with him a lot and he originally come from Backa Bush where he exhibit. Tourists decided they didn’t want him there so he was brought over to us. Now it took about six days or a little less to catch that cat in a trap. He was originally caught from the wild in a trap, so I understand so he had a healthy dislike for traps. It was pointless really setting it the first night when he was not hungry.”

And that belief that hunger will keep the animal close to familiar surroundings is what the Fosters and officials of the Forestry Department are hoping will help them to recapture the animal.

Patrick Jones; Stand Up

This is the cage where the Jaguar named Max escaped on Sunday night during the passage or Hurricane Richard. Indications are that a tree fell on top of the structure damaging it and allowing the animal to break free. In the ensuing twenty four hours it is believed that was when the jaguar attacked and killed Cullerton.

There is evidence at the scene that indicates that the jaguar attempted to drag Cullerton into the nearby bush. His body was found about a hundred feet from behind a vehicle parked under the house. Exactly what happened on Monday night never be known; but veterinarian Dr. Isabelle Paquet-Durand says this was a tragic incident that was not normal behaviour for a jaguar.

Dr. Isabelle Paquet-Durand

“In general jaguars, wild jaguars, will only seek proximity to humans when they are really sick and old like these problem jaguars of which some we have had here but normally they would not attack a human. This has never happened before; the only time that fatalities too have occurred with jaguars has been in zoos when people have not observed the rules and gone into an enclosure with a jaguar. Tame jaguars are dangerous, wild jaguars are never do this.”

This is Cullerton’s dog, and today the vet was tending its wounds, apparently from the same attack that killed its owner. The Fosters, with help from the Forestry Department and Belize Zoo are working feverishly to recapture the animal. According to Wildlife Officer Rasheda Garcia the intention is to trap the animal not kill it, just so random killings of other animals does not happen.

Rasheda Garcia

“We heard about the report this morning. Since we heard about it we came here and we have been investigating to find out exactly what happened. The jaguar escaped from the Fosters during the hurricane so now what we are doing we are working along with Omar Figaroa who is an expert on Jaguars in Belize. We are also working with some keepers from the Belize Zoo who have had a lot of experience capturing jaguars. Tonight we will be out trying to capture this jaguar.”

And the fate of the animal once recaptured is not certain.  What is known however is that the Fosters intended to use it in an upcoming National Geography documentary.

Richard Foster

“We were hoping to use it in a National Geographic film but so far this particular cat hadn’t had any expose in the media.”

Patrick Jones, Reporter

In terms of the safety of people in this area, should they be concerned until you capture this animal?

Richard Foster

“I would say just stay away from this general area. I don’t think it will do to Democracia; the cat, that’s why I wanted to establish food here the first night after it escaped, stayed in this area. This is his come and I am sure he probably within a couple hundred yards of us right now sleeping in the bushes. It is very timid during the day; they get bolder at night.”

And hopefully that trait will help the search team to locate and trap the jaguar before another incident takes place.

via LoveFM News and Music Power – Belize News Source and Radio Station.

ACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A newborn baby is dead after being attacked by a pit bull in a Jacksonville home.

The newborn died at a hospital. Authorities have not released the baby’s name.

Department of Children and Families spokesman John Harrell says the state agency and police are investigating whether the baby was being supervised and whether the dog previously showed aggressive behavior.

City animal control officials say the young dog has been euthanized.

In a separate case Monday night, Manatee County deputies fatally shot a pit bull that charged them after attacking a 5-year-old boy in Bradenton. Authorities say the boy tried to climb a tree to get away but the dog bit into his arm and tried to pull him down.

Neither the boy’s name nor condition were released.

via Fla. newborn dies after pit bull attack at home – Florida AP – MiamiHerald.com.

PERRIS, Calif. (KABC) — The father of a 19-year-old college student killed in a shark attack near Santa Barbara is opening up about his family’s tragic loss.

Luke Ransom, a graduate of Perris High School, was body boarding at Surf Beach on Friday when he was attacked.

Ransom was a junior at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

“He was a water boy,” said Ransom’s father, Matt. “Seemed almost fitting that the lord would take him that way because he loved the water.”

The teen’s father told Eyewitness News that his son had called home that morning just before going into the water.

“He was really excited,” Ransom said. “He said, ‘Mom, I can’t believe these waves.’ She was apprehensive because he’d never been to that beach before, and she just told him to be careful and give her a call when he was finished.”

But the call that came was not from their son, but rather his friend telling the family that their son had been attacked and killed by a shark.

The family rushed to Santa Barbara still in shock over what had happened.

“A lot of his roommates were there,” the Ransom said. “Everybody was devastated. There wasn’t a lot of talking going on, to tell you the truth.”

Although Luke Ransom was just another guy on the Perris High School swim team, friends say they could always tell him apart.

“He’d always wear his sunscreen on his nose,” said one friend. “That’s how we know him.”

The Department of Fish and Game said Ransom was most likely killed by a great white shark, perhaps 20 feet long.

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STORY: Surf Beach reopens after fatal shark attack

STORY: Shark kills UCSB student off Calif. coast

Despite the shark attack, the beach has since reopened.

Ransom’s father says that’s as it should be.

“The ocean is such a beautiful place for surfers and scuba divers and beach goers,” Ransom said. “It’s a beautiful part of nature, so a few sharks here or there shouldn’t stop people from enjoying such a beautiful place on the Earth.”

via Shark attack victim’s father speaks out | abc7.com.

Friday morning’s fatal shark attack off Vandenberg Air Force Base’s Surf Beach that killed a UCSB student was the first in mainland Santa Barbara County’s history.

Lucas Ransom, 19, died of his injuries after a great white shark bit his left leg and pulled him off his boogie board. The Romoland native was a junior majoring in chemical engineering.

Andrew Hughan, a spokesman for the California Department of Fish & Game, told Noozhawk on Monday that it was the 13th California shark attack fatality since the DFG began keeping records 95 years ago.

He confirmed that the shark involved in the attack was a great white, estimated at 14 to 16 feet in length based on the bite marks and bite pattern on the boogie board and victim. Photographs of Ransom’s boogie board showed bite measuring about 13 inches wide at the largest part.

Hughan said great whites are “the perfect predator,” and they swiftly attack without warning. Though they have poor eyesight, movement attracts them, and a person on a board can easily be mistaken for a seal or other food source. He said they also maintain a bit of secrecy, as they can’t be kept in captivity for long and it’s not clear why.

Scuba divers and spear fishers are advised to keep their fish away from them — even if they aren’t bleeding — and anyone in the ocean should avoid wearing shiny objects or sharply contrasting colors, such as a wetsuit with a bright yellow stripe, he said. But he said none of those matter as much as luck.

“It’s really fate, unfortunately,” Hughan said.

Worldwide, there were 61 attacks in 2009, five of them fatal, according to the University of Florida’s International Shark Attack File. California’s last fatal attack was in 2008, when a swimmer was killed off the coast of Solana Beach.

“We caution people to remember they’re in (sharks’) territory,” Hughan said. “They’re a wild animal.”

Great whites are suspected to have been involved in two other local incidents: A shark bit a man’s surfboard at Surf Beach in 2008, and a diver was fatally attacked off the coast of San Miguel Island in 1994.

Earlier this year, there were at least three instances of great whites attacking sea lions around Santa Barbara Island, prompting Channel Islands National Park officials to issue a warning to the public.

Shark attacks get a lot of attention for a reason — they’re rare. Dozens more people get killed by deer (through car crashes), snakes and dogs each year than sharks in the United States.

Surf Beach reopened to the public at 8 a.m. Monday, as there were no observed or reported shark sightings at any base beaches since being closed after the attack, VAFB said in a statement.

There are additional signs posted that warn of the recent attack, and Santa Barbara County officials have done the same for beaches in the Lompoc area. VAFB’s Minuteman and Wall beaches are not open to the public and remain closed for the base’s two-week inspection period, Lt. Ann Blodzinski said in a statement.

A memorial and paddle-out is planned for Thursday near Ransom’s hometown in Southern California.

Click here for tips for avoiding a shark attack, visit the National Parks Conservation Association’s website. Click here for more information about region-specific shark attack statistics.

via Fatal Attack by Great White Shark a First for Santa Barbara County – Noozhawk.com.

An elderly Vincent woman is in critical condition after she fell outside her home Monday, was mauled by a wild dog or coyote, and not found until 11 a.m. Tuesday.

Washington County Sheriff Larry Mincks said the woman’s small dog was found attacked and killed outside the home at 2250 Moody Ridge Road, Vincent.

The homeowner, Julia Stevens, 75, was transported by Little Hocking Volunteer Fire Department squad to Camden Clark Memorial Hospital after she was found by a home-health aide.

“It appears her health concerns are more from exposure than from any of the bite marks,” Mincks said.

An officer’s report indicates the woman had bites on her lower left leg and her upper body. Police believe she may have fallen from her mobility scooter when it became stuck in a rut outside her home.

Mincks said the woman likely spent the entire night outside in the cold and rainy weather. The temperature early Tuesday dipped down to 41 degrees.

Washington County Dog Warden Steve Strahler said deputies are expected to follow up with Stevens to learn more about the incident, which will help him determine what his role will be.

“My understanding is that she was unconscious and unable to tell anyone exactly what happened,” Strahler said. “If we are able to determine it was a coyote, we’ll contact (Ohio Department of Natural Resources) and assist them in trapping it.”

Strahler said there have been no reports of dogs at large in the area of the attack.

“We had a few a while back, but those have all been taken care of,” he said.

Strahler said he asked officers to describe the bite marks.

“It sounds like a coyote,” he said. “The measurement between the canines (teeth) was about an inch, and anything an inch or smaller is usually a coyote. Dogs are usually an inch-and-a-half to two-inches (apart).”

The police report did not indicate the breed of the dog that was killed.

“I wasn’t out there, but my understanding is that it was a small dog,” Strahler said.

via Woman in critical condition after wild animal attack – MariettaTimes.com | News, Sports, Jobs, Ohio, Community Information – The Marietta Times.

Three Southern California beaches closed after a fatal shark attack Friday were scheduled to reopen this morning, and some surfers say they’ll be in the water.

Surf Beach, which is open to the public, and two beaches open to anyone with access to Vandenberg Air Force Base were closed Friday after a shark fatally injured Lucas Ransom, 19, of Romoland, Calif., as he was heading out to catch a wave on his boogie board.

The 72-hour closure expires at 9 a.m. unless officers of the base’s conservation law enforcement division, who have been patrolling the beaches and monitoring the ocean with binoculars, saw a reason to keep it closed, base spokesman Jeremy Eggers said.

A photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department showed a 13-inch chunk missing from Ransom’s board. The department said Ransom, a junior majoring in chemical engineering at the University of California-Santa Barbara, had a massive wound to his left leg.

Ransom was bodyboarding with friend Matthew Garcia when he was pulled under the water. He resurfaced with his leg nearly severed.

“When the shark hit him, he just said, ‘Help me, dude!’ He knew what was going on,” Garcia said. “You just saw a red wave and this water is blue — as blue as it could ever be — and it was just red.”

The incident chilled surfers.

“Twenty-five percent of the people who normally surf on the weekend were in the water,” said Bill Bookout, owner of the Pismo Beach Surf Shop about 40 miles north. “I’ve had about half the rentals I normally do.”

Despite beautiful waves, Book-out also stayed out.

“Sharks can travel up to 50 miles a day,” he said. “That shark could have been here Saturday.”

Daniel Dunaetz, who was working at the Surf Connection in Lompoc, just outside the base, said surfers are aware of the risks, but many still seemed rattled.

“Whenever people do talk about it, they’re real leery. They just seem scared,” Dunaetz said.

Authorities have issued several warnings this year after great white shark sightings up and down the California coast. There have been 12 fatal shark attacks in California since the 1920s, according to the California Department of Fish and Game.

“You’re way more likely to be hurt in an auto accident than to be hurt or killed by a shark,” said Andy Nosal, a biologist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Eggers said swimmers and surfers can improve their odds by not wearing anything shiny, such as jewelry or a reflective bathing suit, that can make them resemble fish, and by paying attention to other wildlife. “For example, if seals or dolphins are moving quickly toward shore, that could be a sign that a threat is near,” he said.

Bookout said he’d be surfing this morning.

“To surf is one of the most beautiful things we have in life,” he said. “The freedom you feel when you’re out there cannot be matched.”

via Despite shark attack, some set to surf as beaches reopen – USATODAY.com.

DETROIT (AP) — An apparent increase in the number of people and pets being bitten by Michigan’s only venomous snake species is stoking fears among some residents in the state’s Lower Peninsula about the small, shy rattlesnake.

The Detroit News reports that the eastern massasauga rattlesnake has had an uncharacteristically busy year, delivering what appears to be more bites than usual.

“Just from my gut, it seems there are more bites than there have been in the past,” said Jeff Jundt, the curator for reptiles at the Detroit Zoo.

The zoo, which carries anti-venom, typically provides the medication once a year to hospitals for use in emergencies. But Jundt said so far this year he’s sent it three times.

State officials don’t track rattlesnake bites, although they are normally rare.

But this year, there’s been a string of them — in Orion Township, Highland Recreation Area and Flushing. At least seven times in the past five months, eastern massasaugas have bitten people or their pets, sending worried families to hospitals or veterinarian offices.

And Poison Control at Children’s Hospital of Michigan has this year received reports of at least four human bites.

None of those encounters has resulted in a death, but experts said the number of occurrences is out of the ordinary.

Logan Coleman’s family was sent into a panic in late August after the 7-year-old was bitten by an eastern massasauga in their yard in Spring Arbor Township, just west of Jackson.

“He came running back into the house yelling, ‘Mom, come out here and see what bit me — you’ve gotta see.’ He was screaming at the top of his lungs,” Kimberly Coleman, the boy’s mother, told The Detroit News.

Logan was bitten on his left index finger and the area was beginning to swell and harden.

A neighbor helped catch the snake in a bucket and the family raced to a nearby clinic where doctors identified the snake and transferred Logan to an Ann Arbor hospital that carried the anti-venom.

The youngster spent one night at the hospital, taking the anti-venom through an intravenous drip. Today, he bears no ill effects from the encounter, but his mother now occasionally patrols the yard when her son is outside.

The venom produced by the eastern massasauga is not a neurotoxin that causes paralysis, as in many snakes, but it damages tissues around the bite site. If untreated, it can be fatal in young or old people, as well as adults in poor health.

The apparent rise in rattlesnake encounters may be due to this year’s warm autumn — the snakes are most active spring to fall.

With warmer temperatures, the rattlesnakes are delaying their fall hibernation and enjoying extra time sunning themselves, said Chris Hoving, the endangered species coordinator with the state Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

The eastern massasauga is Michigan’s only rattlesnake and is found all across the Lower Peninsula in areas that include wetlands. At its largest, it grows to just under 3 feet, making it one of the smallest rattlesnake species.

Hoving said the snake’s defensive rattle produces a higher-pitched sound than humans might expect from a rattler.

“It tends to sound like an insect buzzing,” he said.

Due to the loss of wetlands where the snakes make their homes, the eastern massasauga’s numbers have diminished significantly. It is now protected by law in Michigan and is under consideration for endangered species designation by the federal government.

via Mich. Seeing Apparent Rise in Rattlesnake Bites.

SARASOTA, Fla. — A Sarasota County family is warning its neighbors to be on alert after an alligator pounced on their dog and dragged it into a lake.

An alligator killed Darryl Mizer’s 50-pound keeshond Noah on Tuesday. A trapper tried to locate and catch the animal but has not been able to find it.

Gary Morse, a spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation, says dogs resemble an alligator’s natural prey, and that such attacks are not uncommon.

Mizer, a retired psychologist, said Noah was fighting cancer and had to go outside a few times each night. At about 2 a.m. Tuesday, the dog wandered near the lake and was attacked.

via Alligator attacks, kills Sarasota family’s dog – Florida AP – MiamiHerald.com.

Not sure what exactly the mystery is here. It’s obviously a Great White. There aren’t many types of sharks that are 18 feet long. And the witness said it was grey on the top and white on the bottom…

(CBS/AP)  The huge shark that attacked and killed a body-surfer off the central California coast may have been a great white, a spokesman for the local sheriff’s office says.

The victim, Lucas Ransom, 19, was body-boarding two feet away from his friend, Matthew Garcia, who was surfing. Garcia says he heard a desperate cry for help. Within seconds, a shark flashed out of the water, bit into Ransom’s leg and pulled him under in a cloud of blood.

“When the shark hit him, he just said, ‘Help me, dude!’ He knew what was going on,” Garcia told the Associated Press as he recounted his friend’s death. “It was really fast. You just saw a red wave and this water is blue – as blue as it could ever be – and it was just red, the whole wave.”

As huge waves broke over his head, Garcia tried to find Lucas Ransom in the surf, but couldn’t. He decided to get help, but turned around again as he was swimming to shore and saw Ransom’s red body-board pop up. Garcia swam to his friend and did chest compressions as he brought him to shore.

The 19-year-old already appeared dead and his leg was mauled, he said.

“He was just floating in the water. I flipped him over on his back and under-hooked his arms. I was pressing on his chest and doing rescue breathing in the water,” Garcia said. “He was just kind of lifeless, just dead weight.”

The University of California, Santa Barbara, junior had a severe wound to his left leg and died a short time later on Surf Beach, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

The beach, 130 miles northwest of Los Angeles, is on the property of Vandenberg Air Force Base, in Lompoc, Calif., but is open to the public.

Sheriff’s deputies patrolled the coastline to search for Ransom’s missing leg but were only able to recover the body-board, which had a 1-foot segment on the side bitten off.

Federal and state Fish and Game officials were working to identify the type of shark that attacked Ransom.

“The size of the teeth and the width (of the bite in the body-board) are going to help the experts determine what kind of shark this is,” Drew Sugars, of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, told co-anchor Chris Wragge on “The Early Show on Saturday Morning.” “We have not determined the type. The witness (Garcia) did say that the top of the shark was gray, the bottom was white. This is typically a great white, but we’re not in a position to confirm that, Hopefully, by Monday, we’ll be able to determine what type of shark this is, but the teeth marks will help us in that determination.”

Sugars says officials hope the shark itself “is long gone. We’re not going to search for it at this point.”

As is protocol at Vandenberg, he adds, the beach involved will be closed for three days. Nearby beaches have warning signs posted but remain open.

The ocean was calm and beautiful before the attack, with large wave sets that the friends had been tracking all week as they moved down the West Coast from Alaska, Garcia said.

The shark, which breached the water on its side, appeared about 18 feet long, Garcia said.

“There was no sign, there was nothing. It was all very fast, very stealth,” said Garcia, 20.

Authorities have issued several warnings this year after great white shark sightings up and down the California coast.

There have been nearly 100 shark attacks in California since the 1920s, including a dozen that were fatal, according to the California Department of Fish and Game. But attacks have remained relatively rare even as the population of swimmers, divers and surfers sharing the waters has soared.

The last shark attack on Surf Beach was in 2008, when what was believed to be a great white shark bit a surfer’s board. The surfer was not harmed.

The last fatal attack in California was that same year, when triathlete David Martin, 66, bled to death after a great white shark bit his legs about 150 yards off of a San Diego County beach.

Randy Fry, 50, died from a great white attack in 2004 while diving off the coast of Mendocino, north of San Francisco Bay.

In 2003, a great white shark killed Deborah Franzman, 50, as she swam at Avila Beach, about 30 miles north of Vandenberg.

via Killer Shark May Have Been Great White – The Early Show – CBS News.

LOS ANGELES — A 19-year-old surfer was killed Friday in a rare shark attack a short distance off a California beach, when the animal pulled him under and inflicted a “massive wound,” police said.

Authorities closed local beaches for 72 hours after the attack by a shark described as up to 20 feet (6.1 meters) long.

The victim, identified as Lucas McKaine Ransom, “was boogie boarding on the break line about 100 yards off the beach with his friend when a shark suddenly pulled Ransom under the water,” said an updated statement.

“Ransom suffered a massive wound to his left leg and appeared to die shortly thereafter,” added the the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, noting that witnesses said the shark was between “14 and 20 feet (4.3-6.1 meters) long.”

The attack occurred at Surf Beach at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) near Santa Barbara, which is some 130 miles (215 kilometers) northwest up the Pacific coast from Los Angeles.

“Following standard protocol, VAFB has ordered the closure of all base beaches… for the next 72 hours,” while local authorities are posting warning signs at nearby beaches.

Earlier police had said the victim was in his early 20s and was in the water with a friend at the time of the attack. Officials were “working to identify the type of shark,” they added.

The last death of this kind involved a great white shark in California in 2008, when a 66-year-old man was attacked as he swam with friends off a beach in San Diego.

via AFP: California surfer killed in rare shark attack: officials.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif.  — The victim of a fatal shark attack at a beach northwest of Los Angeles cried out to his friend for help as the shark flashed out of the water with no warning, bit into his leg and pulled him under in a tide of red blood, the friend said Friday.

Matthew Garcia was two feet away from his friend, 19-year-old Lucas Ransom, when the shark attacked with no warning, he said. The whole attack lasted seconds while the pair were bodyboarding about 100 yards from the shore.

“When the shark hit him, he just said, ‘Help me, dude!’ He knew what was going on,” Garcia told the AP. “It was really fast. You just saw a red wave and this water is blue — as blue as it could ever be — and it was just red, the whole wave. Even the barrel was red.”

Lucas Ransom, shown in a 2007 photo from Murrieta, Calif., was killed in a shark attack Friday while boogie-boarding at a Vanderberg Air Force Base beach near Lompoc Calif.

As huge waves broke over his head, Garcia tried to find his friend in the surf but couldn’t. He decided to get help, but turned around once more as he was swimming to shore and saw Ransom’s red body board pop up. Garcia swam to his friend and did chest compressions as he brought him to shore.

Ransom already appeared dead and his leg was mauled, he said.

“He was just floating in the water. I flipped him over on his back and underhooked his arms. I was pressing on his chest and doing rescue breathing in the water,” Garcia said. “He was just kind of lifeless, just dead weight.”

The University of California, Santa Barbara, junior had a severe wound to his left leg and died a short time later at Surf Beach, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement. The beach, 130 miles northwest of Los Angeles, is on the property of Vandenberg Air Force Base but is open to the public.

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Sheriff’s deputies patrolled the coastline to search for Ransom’s missing leg but were only able to recover the boogie board, which had a 1-foot segment on the side bitten off.

Ransom was from Romoland in Riverside County, in southern California.

Federal and state Fish and Game officials were working to identify the type of shark that attacked Ransom. -

Officials closed three beaches after the shark attack.

Airman 1st Class Daniel Clark, left, and Staff Sgt. Keri Embry, post a sign warning surfers of a recent shark attack Friday at Vandenburg Air Force Base, Calif.

The victim was a University of California, Santa Barbara student studying chemical engineering.

Federal and state Fish and Game officials were working to identify the type of shark that attacked. It was described by witnesses as being 14 to 20 feet in length.

Officials at Vandenberg closed Surf, Wall and Minuteman beaches for at least 72 hours, Lt. Ann Blodzinski told the Santa Barbara Independent.

In September 2008, base officials issued a 48-hour warning to beach users after a shark bit a surfer’s board at Surf Beach, according to the Santa Maria Times.

Base officials said at the time that they believed it was the first shark incident off Vandenberg, the newspaper reported.

Fatal shark attacks are rare in the area. A great white shark killed a woman in 2003 at Avila Beach, about 30 miles north of Vandenberg.

Great whites also killed two men in 2004 and 2008 at beaches in Mendocino and San Diego counties.

via Shark attack: Friend describes fatal scene – U.S. news – Life – msnbc.com.

Authorities have closed several beaches in Santa Barbara County after a deadly shark attack Friday morning near the coastal town of Surf.Officials at Vandenberg Air Force Base told The Times that they have closed Surf, Wall and Minuteman beaches for 72 hours due to the attack.[Updated at 11:56 p.m.: A base spokesman said the Santa Barbara County coroners investigators are at the beach and that the investigation is being handled in conjunction with the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Department.]The Santa Maria Times reported that a body surfer was fatally bitten by a shark. The paper said the body surfer was not connected with the military base.Surf is located north of Santa Barbara and west of Lompoc on the Vandenberg Air Force Base.

via Shark fatally attacks body surfer in Santa Barbara County; beaches closed [Updated] | L.A. NOW | Los Angeles Times.

DIVIDE, COLO. — A Colorado teenager says a mountain lion attacked her while she was checking to see if her car had a flat tire.Kendra Rutter told KKTV in Colorado Springs that the mountain lion pounced on her after she got out of her car on the side of a rural road to check on her tire early Sunday morning in Divide. Rutter told the television station Monday that the mountain lion knocked her down and she fought back by kicking the animal in the head.She says the animal ran away and she drove off. She suffered cuts to her shoulder and leg.The teenagers age was not immediately available.The Division of Wildlife says it has set up a trap for the animal and will euthanize it if it is caught.

via Teen with car trouble says mountain lion attacked | Washington Examiner.

When Jack Musick heard that a teen had been bitten while surfing off Sandbridge last month, he immediately got to work trying to pin down the culprit.

Could it have been a bull shark?

Probably not, concluded Musick, a professor emeritus at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science who investigates shark attacks. They’re uncommon in Virginia.

How about a sandbar shark?

Not likely. They’re not very active and prefer to feed in deeper water.

Maybe a blacktip shark?

Bingo. According to Musick’s report, which he’s submitted to the International Shark Attack File in Florida, the attacker was probably a small blacktip or spinner shark, maybe even two.

Those species often visit Virginia’s waters in September, he wrote. They’re also active feeders and have been implicated in similar nonfatal attacks here, in Florida and elsewhere. The circumstances also fit, Musick said.

Caleb Kauchak, 18, was wading in chest-deep water next to his surfboard the afternoon of Sept. 24 when something latched onto his ankle, shook him and let go. He jumped onto his board and felt another bite, on his knee.

He needed 51 stitches. While his injuries have healed almost completely, the scars still draw lots of attention, Kauchak said.

The attack – in murky water during the time of day when sharks start to feed – was most likely a case of mistaken identity, Musick said. The shark probably thought Kauchak’s leg was a fish, and let go when it realized its mistake, he said.

“The shark was too small for it to have been a predatory attack,” Musick said. “Also, if that had been a large shark, the damage would’ve been a lot greater. It probably would have removed a limb or something.”

Shark attacks are rare in Virginia. In 2001, however, a shark fatally attacked a 10-year-old Richmond boy as he surfed with his father off Sandbridge, not far from where Kauchak was bitten. A 9-1/2 foot bull shark is believed responsible.

Whatever bit Kauchak was much smaller.

Blacktip sharks can get up to 5 feet 9 inches long and tend to live in shallow coastal waters from New England to Florida, according to the Virginia Institute of Marine Science website. Spinners can grow up to 9 feet 10 inches long and visit southern Virginia’s waters on occasion.

Those two species have been linked to 58 attacks on humans in the past 50 years, according to estimates by the International Shark Attack File, which tracks all shark bites worldwide. One, in 1973 involving a teen being bitten in the elbow while snorkeling and spearing crabs south of Sandbridge, was similar to the attack on Kauchak, Musick said.

With just three or four shark attacks in Virginia in the past 40 years, and millions of people in the water here over the years, Musick said the “probability of a shark encounter is miniscule.”

via Attack in Va. Beach was likely from 1 of 2 shark species | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com.

Williamsburg, MO (KSDK) — Even if there are a few scrapes between them, John Reynolds insist his dogs are friendly. All 17 of them. All pit bulls.

“They were like best buddies,” Reynolds says of his father the 84 year old Rev. John Reynolds and one of the pit bulls. “My dad would sit there and feed him off his spoon. They slept together.”

Reynolds says no one knew his dogs’ nature more than his father who owned the home and property where John raises the dogs.

Which makes what he found on Wednesday night, October 13th, even harder to understand.

“I could see that he’d been attacked by something,” Reynolds recalls.

He came home that night and found his father on the ground in the pen with severe bite marks. He did not survive the attack.

The sheriff’s department says the dogs were on the loose but, with the exception of one dog who was wounded, showed few signs of an attack given the severity of Rev. Reynolds’ injuries.

“They think that my dad might have been out here and they might have been playing or rough-housing and it got out of control,” Reynolds says of his conversations with investigators. “But I just can’t, I don’t believe it.”

He admits it’s only speculation, but Reynolds believes stray dogs or possibly even a mountain lion may have attacked his father and his pit bulls.

While extremely rare, the Sheriff says deputies have taken reports on, and had sightings of, mountain lions in Callaway County. The official report on Rev. Reynolds’ death only says his injuries were consistent with an animal attack.

“I know that there [are] a lot of people out there that are dead set against pit bulls and I’m sure they’re going to try to use this to get their point across,” says Reynolds, defending his dogs. “I know he wouldn’t like it,” he says of his late father.

The investigation is ongoing, but the Sheriff says there won’t be any charges since the property owner has passed away. The dogs won’t be seized because the county doesn’t have the resources to handle that

via Rev. John Reynolds found dead with severe bite marks | ksdk.com | St. Louis, MO.

Williamsburg, MO (KSDK) — Even if there are a few scrapes between them, John Reynolds insist his dogs are friendly. All 17 of them. All pit bulls.

“They were like best buddies,” Reynolds says of his father the 84 year old Rev. John Reynolds and one of the pit bulls. “My dad would sit there and feed him off his spoon. They slept together.”

Reynolds says no one knew his dogs’ nature more than his father who owned the home and property where John raises the dogs.

Which makes what he found on Wednesday night, October 13th, even harder to understand.

“I could see that he’d been attacked by something,” Reynolds recalls.

He came home that night and found his father on the ground in the pen with severe bite marks. He did not survive the attack.

The sheriff’s department says the dogs were on the loose but, with the exception of one dog who was wounded, showed few signs of an attack given the severity of Rev. Reynolds’ injuries.

“They think that my dad might have been out here and they might have been playing or rough-housing and it got out of control,” Reynolds says of his conversations with investigators. “But I just can’t, I don’t believe it.”

He admits it’s only speculation, but Reynolds believes stray dogs or possibly even a mountain lion may have attacked his father and his pit bulls.

While extremely rare, the Sheriff says deputies have taken reports on, and had sightings of, mountain lions in Callaway County. The official report on Rev. Reynolds’ death only says his injuries were consistent with an animal attack.

“I know that there [are] a lot of people out there that are dead set against pit bulls and I’m sure they’re going to try to use this to get their point across,” says Reynolds, defending his dogs. “I know he wouldn’t like it,” he says of his late father.

The investigation is ongoing, but the Sheriff says there won’t be any charges since the property owner has passed away. The dogs won’t be seized because the county doesn’t have the resources to handle that

via Rev. John Reynolds found dead with severe bite marks | ksdk.com | St. Louis, MO.

Kendra Rutter was attacked by a mountain lion when she pulled off a rural road to check on a car problem. The attack happened on County Road 51 in Divide.Posted: 10:13 PM Oct 18, 2010Reporter: Rick MontanezEmail Address: rmontanez@kktv.com PLAY VIDEO: Teen Attacked By Mountain LionStory 0 CommentsFont Size: Kendra Rutter was attacked by a mountain lion when she pulled off a rural road to check on a car problem. The attack happened on County Road 51 in Divide.

The aggressive cat attacked from behind. “I didnt think Id make it out with my life,” Rutter said.Cuts on her shoulder and leg, along with torn, blood-stained jeans are raw reminders of how close Rutter came to being killed.She says the mountain lion was just a few feet tall, coming up to her knees. “Its a wild animal, I was in his territory, in my opinion,” Rutter said.She was coming home from babysitting just after 1 a.m. Sunday, she pulled off the road because she thought she had a flat. When she got out to check her tire the cat pounced out of the shadows.”I turned and jumped and I got a paw in my shoulder,” Rutter said.The mountain lion knocked the teen into the street. As the cat paced back and forth, she had no other choice than to fight back.

So, she kicked the mountain lion in the head.”My knee still kinda hurts,” Rutter said. “Im pretty sure it was right behind the jaw, I waited til he was close enough to me so I wouldnt miss.”The cat ran off and Rutter got in her car and raced home. She told 11 News fighting back was pure instinct. “Its what you learn from growing up here, the animals were here first,” she said.The Division of Wildlife said this was just a minor attack. The DOW has set a trap to catch the mountain lion. If caught, it will have to be put down since it attacked a human.The DOW recommends fighting back if you encounter a mountain lion.Over the past decade there have been five people attacked and injured by a mountain lion.

via 11 Exclusive: Teen Attacked By Mountain Lion.

DUBOIS — A Pennsylvania hunter who was attacked by a grizzly is recovering from injuries to his head, face, and arm, Wyoming wildlife officials said.

The man was hunting elk when he suddenly encountered the bear about 10 yards away Wednesday northwest of Dubois, said Wyoming Game and Fish bear management supervisor Mark Bruscino.

The grizzly bit the man in the head, face, and arm, he said. The hunter, who is not being named, fired a shot at the grizzly but officials think he may have missed.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported Saturday that the man had surgery Thursday to repair broken bones in his face.

“It was a surprise, sudden encounter within the realm of typical bear behavior,” Bruscino said. “In most cases, a bear startled at close range will run, but occasionally bears do make contact with the person.”

Wildlife officials will not try to capture or kill the grizzly because it was exhibiting natural behavior, he said.

This is the third time this year that a bear has attacked a hunter in Wyoming. The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported that a shortage of natural food sources for the bears this year may be a reason for increased encounters between the animals and humans.

Earlier this month, an out-of-state hunter west of Cody shot and killed a grizzly bear after it him in the arm. The attack happened in the Jim Mountain area between Cody and Yellowstone National Park.

The hunter hiked three miles to a trailhead and drove himself to a hospital in Cody.

via Pennsylvania man recovering after Wyo. grizzly bear attack.

CUYAMACA, Calif — A 67-year-old La Jolla man died from a rattlesnake bite he suffered while wading through an East Country stream as part of a trout study near Cuyamaca Reservoir, it was reported Saturday.

William “Skip” Price, reportedly an avid fly fisherman, was wearing water sandals when he was bitten on one foot by the rattler along Boulder Creek Wednesday, Gary Strawn of Santee, one of five people with Price, told The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Strawn said Price stopped breathing within minutes, and he and others performed CPR for about 20 minutes until paramedics arrived.

A sheriff’s helicopter took Price to Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, where he was declared dead about 1 p.m., according to the county Medical Examiner’s Office.

Strawn, conservation chairman of San Diego Fly Fishers, said he met Price that morning when they and four other fly-fishing volunteers carpooled out Boulder Creek Road, in the Pine Hills area northeast of Cuyamaca Reservoir, to take part in a study of native steelhead trout.

Price was bitten within minutes of starting the survey as he stepped over logs and boulders along the streambed, Strawn said.

Strawn said he never saw the snake, “but it must have been a big one. The bite marks on top of his foot were an inch and a half across.”

via La Jolla Man Dies From Rattlesnake Bite In East County – San Diego News Story – KGTV San Diego.

SAN DIEGO (CBS – It all happened so fast. One moment 67-year-old William “Skip” Price was taking part in a volunteer fishing project, and the next he was fighting for his life.

The rattlesnake attack happened in the East County community of Pine Hills on Boulder Creek Road along Boulder Creek.

“I think we did the best we could, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough,” friend Gary Strawn said.

It’s a scene he says he plays over and over again in his head — administering CPR to his fellow fly fisherman William Price just moments after being bitten by a rattlesnake.

“You could see the bite marks on the top of his foot, and they were about an inch and a half apart, so that’s a pretty good sized snake,” Strawn said.

William, whose nickname was “Skip”, was walking along the shoreline at Boulder Creek getting ready to collect samples for a volunteer genetic trout clipping project when Gary says what looked like a western diamondback rattlesnake slithered its way onto his foot. Within minutes, the 67-year-old La Jolla man was unconscious and then stopped breathing.

“Wayne kept telling us to keep watching his feet to see if the coloring was coming back and if we could keep his extremities pink instead of blue it meant we were probably getting some blood flow out there,” Strawn said.

The longtime member of the Golden State Flycasters group was airlifted to Palomar Medical Center, but later died. Skip’s widow tells News 8 her husband was a gentle giant whose passion for fishing was only matched by the love he had for his family.

His friends at GSF say Skip was a devoted conservationist and enjoyed teaching local Boy Scout groups how to fly fish.

While the medical examiner has yet to determine the official cause of death, Strawn says he plans to return to Boulder Creek to finish the work Skip started.

“It’s gonna be difficult for me to get up there, but I hope we can continue to do what we can to maintain this great waterway we have,” he said.

via San Diego man dies after being bitten by rattlesnake – San Diego, California Talk Radio Station – 760 KFMB AM – 760kfmb.