Weekly Weird News for 2 September 2022
Pumpkin lattes and animal attacks
Hello and thanks for joining me for this pumpkin spice-flavored edition of Weekly Weird News. I do have some suitable news content to begin, some weird weather phenomena, and an array of animal attacks. It’s that time of year…
Pumpkin-flavored records
A man journeyed down the Missouri River in an 800-lb hollowed-out pumpkin, unofficially breaking a Guinness world record. It wasn’t easy to go 41 miles downriver and keep upright. It took him 11 hours. He said it was “a long trip”. His official distance was noted to be 38 miles. https://rivercountry.newschannelnebraska.com/story/47179645/pumpkin-grower-paddles-the-river-to-set-worlds-record
A pumpkin in Alaska tipped the scales at 2,147 lbs. The largest pumpkin ever weighed 2,702 lbs grown in Italy in 2021. https://www.adn.com/alaska-life/2022/08/29/anchorage-pumpkin-grower-outdoes-himself-with-new-record-at-alaska-state-fair/
Last man standing
The last person from a tribe in the Brazilian wilds who lived isolated from the modern world has died from natural causes. The rest of his tribe was violently exterminated by land grabbers. An organization had been leaving supplies for him. Officials from the indigenous protection agency found his body. There is really no place on earth (on land) that remains untouched and unspoiled anymore. https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/28/americas/brazil-indigenous-man-in-the-hole-death-intl-hnk/index.html
Find Nessie
You can enjoy six beautiful views of Scotland thanks to new live stream cameras from the Visit Inverness Loch Ness website which are pointed at and around Loch Ness. The cameras provide awesome views of the land, lake, and tourists. The underlying purpose is to showcase the beauty but the promotional purpose is to “look for Nessie”. You can see the ubiquitous weird waves that many people mistake for the monster, yet it’s just nice to watch and imagine you’re there in person. I wish I was. https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotland-now/new-webcams-installed-loch-ness-27856458
Bee funeral?
For a second time, a strange and mysterious small-scale natural event has been reported - dead bees surrounded by flower petals. A Twitterer posted a video of a dead bumblebee surrounded by hundreds of yellow flower bits carried in by ants. She noted other flower circles found nearby in North Carolina. As usual, commenters made uninformed guesses as to what was going on here, mostly assuming that the ants were acting in a human-like fashion. That is, conducting a funeral for the dead insect. However, that is highly unlikely. While scientists do not know what’s behind this behavior, it has been seen before - in 2018. They suspect it could be related to the chemicals given off by the dead bee. It’s not clear what caused the bees to die either. https://au.news.yahoo.com/mysterious-flower-circles-appear-dead-bees-051047560.html
Rainbow clouds
A spectacular rainbow scarf cloud, or iridescent pileus, was spotted in China last week. The rainbow-colored banner cloud form above a storm cloud forming a cap or scarf. The ice crystals in the cloud refracted the light of the sun which was at just the right angle, making for an incredible view that some people thought might have been faked. Many angles were documented by several observers, and, while the iridescence is real, the color may have been enhanced or superimposed. A similar event took place earlier in August in Virginia. https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/news/article/this-spectacular-rainbow-coloured-scarf-cloud-stunned-onlookers-china
Huge hail kills infant in Spain
Giant hailstones falling in Spain proved fatal for a 20-month-old child who was hit by the 10 cm balls of ice. The storm caused serious damage and other injuries. https://spanishnewstoday.com/baby_killed_by_blow_from_hailstones_in_spain_1824128-a.html
Unexplained pool of blood
A 4 x 7 foot pool of blood was found on a suburban street in central Pennsylvania this week. No one knows how it got there or to whom it used to belong. No missing persons or injuries have been reported to police. No one from the nearby retirement home was missing. The blood was tested to be human. The only clue was a pair of prescription sunglasses nearby. Police are asking for anyone who knows what happened to come forward. https://www.wgal.com/article/silver-spring-township-police-news-conference-large-amount-of-blood-found/41054917
Mama lion did her job
A man in Ghana entered a lion’s enclosure apparently to steal two white lion cubs when he was attacked and killed presumably by the lioness. The man climbed two fences to get to them. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-62712476
Biting the hand that feeds you
A captive alligator bit the director of a wildlife park in Florida. The injury resulted in the loss of his hand. It was his second serious alligator-related injury in 10 years. However, the man doesn’t blame the animal for acting on instinct and will continue to work with alligators after he adjusts post-surgery. He said the alligator responded to his command to release its jaws after the bite or it could have been much worse. https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/31/us/florida-alligator-bite-amputation-scn-trnd/index.html
Goring the man that serves you
An employee of a zoo in Sweden was gored to death by an eland, a large antelope with spiraled horns. No additional details were given but it is being considered a “workplace accident”. The incident was witnessed by a zoo executive. The worker had extensive experience with the animals. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/antelope-attack-eland-gores-sweden-animal-park-worker-to-death/
Summer of the shark
There are more sharks along the east coast than there have been in a very long while. Even endangered sharks are recovering numbers. People are having more “interactions” even though attacks are few. https://slate.com/technology/2022/09/shark-attacks-new-york-east-coast-reasons-science-risk.html
Sea turtle attack
A Russian woman was attacked by a sea turtle while swimming near shore in the Mediterranean Sea at a resort area in Turkey. The woman was floating when she was bitten in the thigh and then in the hand. A rescuer was also bitten. The presence of tourists seems to bother the large turtles who access the beach. It was not the first attack. https://dip.org.ua/en/tourism/a-shocking-turtle-attack-on-a-tourist-in-turkey-bitten-thigh-and-arm/
Jellyfish swarm
A drone captured thousands of jellyfish swarming at Navarre Beach in Florida. The drone operator heard of the number of animals and sent the drone flying. The sea nettles took 45 minutes to pass by. It’s not typical for these animals to be in such huge numbers in proximity. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article264934939.html
I love watching webcams from all over the world. Never knew about the Loch Ness cams. Yay! More stuff to see.
And there’s good old Ed Weinstock reporting from the streets, as always. Lol! What an appropriately weird story.
Every year in New Zealand people are killed by livestock including red deer. Just because an animal is herbivorous doesn't mean to say that it's not dangerous. Which is why I always have to laugh – or groan – at those dinosaur movies where they just front up and pat the sauropods.