"If we do not bring them in
now, they may never be seen again."
Such are the words of Michael Buck,
administrator of the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife.
The last three po'ouli birds known to exist in the entire world
will be taken into captivity in a last-minute effort to save the
species from extinction.
The last three birds, whose
Hawaiian name means "black-faced," live within 1 and 1/2
miles of each other in the dense rainforest of Maui, and
scientists believe they have never met. First identified in
the Hana rainforest in 1973 by students on a University of Hawaii
expedition, its population at the time was an estimated 200.
The small, stocky brown bird wears a visual "bandit's black
mask," and the cheeks and breast feathers are white, turning
a light red-brown toward the posterior. All in all, the
state of Hawaii, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the San
Diego Zoo are working hard together to try to save it.
"We decided that if we didn't
intervene, these birds might never find each other and the species
would go extinct," said Paul Henson of the Fish and Wildlife
Service.
Interestingly, the po`ouli is the
only Hawaiian forest bird known to consume tree snails. It
also rarely calls or sings and is often seen before it is heard.
The east Maui rainforest contains
more species of endangered forest birds than anywhere else in the
State.
Plessie Resembling Nessie Discovered
by Jonathan
Drake
S: AnimalPlanet.com
(10-02)
A
fossilized plesiosaur resembling Scotland's Loch
Ness Monster and
possibly new to science was recently discovered in the central
Australian outback. Some 23-feet (seven-meters) long, the
remains were found by a team of four scientists from the South
Australian Museum in the far north of South Australia state.
"Potentially," told
paleontologist Ben Kear to The Australian newspaper,
"we're looking at an animal new to science."
Exactly where these fossil bones
are located, however, has been kept a closely guarded secret to
protect them from inexperienced dinosaur dealers and amateurs
intent on finding and using them as souvenirs. Using
satellite tracking to relocate the reptile, Ben Kear and his
colleagues are not taking any chances.
"Our greatest fear is that we
discover something and then we go back to study it and it's
gone," said Ben McHenry, a colleague of Kear's. "That
has happened several times and it's very disheartening.
We're trying to draw least attention to ourselves, which is a
shame because finds should be big news for the public, but then
the wrong people find out about it." The
bones must first be examined and analyzed before they can be
officially declared those of a new species. Regardless, the
discovery is no doubt a remarkable one.
Bigfoot Entertains Vancouver
by Jonathan
Robison
S: The Ottawa Citizen (10-02)
"It has been really quiet for a long time, but now we're
getting something of a comeback for Sasquatch sightings,"
says John Kirk, president of the British Columbia Cryptozoology
Club.
A number of Sasquatch sightings on Vancouver Island and near
Squamish on the Lower Mainland have recently revived hopes that
evidence of the legendary Bigfoot may yet be found.
The reports came in from the east coast of southern Vancouver
Island last month, where three people say they saw strange
creatures between Port Alberni and Tofino, while another reported
hearing a strange howling in the forest.
According to the Alberni Valley Times, Arnold Frank and
Patrick Frank, his nephew, saw the creature on two occasions.
"We just saw some real big orange eyes, real high off the
ground," Arnold Frank said. "We both figured it
was too big to be a bear, and bears don't walk on two legs."
Kirk says the mention of glowing eyes gives the report
credibility. "The description of orange eyes gives them
some credibility," he said. "There's a reflective
characteristic for Sasquatch eyes from all the sightings . . .
Many people report red, glowing eyes, and orange would just be a
variation of that."
Also reported was a sighting by an elderly woman who claims to
have seen a creature crossing the road in front of her car.
The bipedal animal allegedly stopped in front of her car, looking
directly at her before disappearing into the bush.
Don't
think Bigfoot sightings are a phenomena of recent times.
Reports of Sasquatch go back in B.C. history to undated native
accounts from before European contact.
For
some reason, however, no significant physical evidence has ever
been brought forth of North America's famous ape. Someday,
perhaps, it will.
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