Fossilized impressions of jellyfish, some up to 3 feet in diameter, have been discovered in a Wisconsin quarry, in what scientists say is one of the largest finds of its kind in the world.  Wait a minute . . . did I just say Wisconsin!?

Yes, I did, and why should we be surprised when oceanic fossils have been discovered in every part of the globe?  Truly, water covered everywhere at some point in time.

Fossilized jellyfish are a rare find, simply because they have no durable body parts.  "Preservation of a soft-bodied organism is incredibly rare, but a whole deposit of them is like finding your own vein of gold," says James Hagadorn, a scientist at the California Institute of Technology and co-author of an article reporting the find in February's issue of the journal Geology.  So, what caused them to fossilize?  The speed with which they were buried, he says, account for their survival in the fossil record.

Hagadorn theorizes that the creatures were apparently buried within hours after being stranded in a shallow lagoon some 510 million years ago.  There is a problem with this idea, however.  They found the fossilized jellyfish in seven layers in the quarry, encased in about 12 vertical feet of rock, representing a span of time of up to 1 million years.  Did one jellyfish die, then, thousands of years later, another one die, and so on?  Because each and every specimen beautifully fossilized, this scenario seems extremely unlikely.

Rather, evidence indicates that they were buried all at once, and that the layers actually don't reveal a 1 million year span of time.  Try an experiment.  Get a jar, fill it with water, and put in three different types of ground (sand, dirt, etc).  Shake it up, and watch as each forms its own neat layer.

Afterwards, reconsider how the jellyfish may have met their demise.

Crocodile Hunter Dismisses Rumors
by Jonathan Drake
TrueAuthority.com

Steve Irwin is dead . . . Steve Irwin is ending his 10-year marriage to wife Terri . . . these are just a few of the rumors that this wildlife dynamic duo have had to extinguish in recent years.  Hey, it comes with stardom.

Steve Irwin, who enjoys superstar status in the United States where his TV series is a smash hit, is trying to maintain his sense of humor in spite of the gossip.

"People can say what they like, but the fact is that Terri and I are as close as two people could possibly be," he said.  

"We love each other, we love our little girl Bindi, we love our dog Sui and I guess for some strange reason some people just can't handle that."

How bout the "dead" rumor?

"I get that one all the time, mate. But as far as I can tell I'm still here," says Steve.  "I was driving down to Brissie the other day and some radio station was talking about how Terri had gone back to live in the United States and I was meant to be with some new sheila . . . as if . . . and I laughed my head off."

Regardless, Irwin's fame has brought him wealth and recognition, but he says that's not what makes him happy.

"Saving wildlife is what gives me the greatest pleasure, that and Terri and Bindi."

Irwin's shows appear on Animal Planet both weekdays and weekends.

Man Gets Gulped By Large Grouper
by Jonathan Robison
TrueAuthority.com

Andre Ronnlund, a 24-year old Swedish backpacker, thought he was going to die with his head in the mouth of a giant grouper while diving at Yongala, off Townsville, Australia, last month.

"In the beginning, it was fun," said Andre, speaking for the first time of his bizarre ordeal. "Me and my diving buddy had never seen such big fish.  But then it came right up to within inches of our faces and followed us everywhere we went. I felt it was a little bit threatening and I didn't like it."

According to his story, Mr. Ronnlund started to run short on air, and decided to signal his diving buddy that he was going to surface.

That's when it made its move.

"I was hit from underneath and everything suddenly went black. My breathing gear was shredded. I was inside the mouth of this big fish and I blacked out.  At first I thought it was a shark. I didn't see it coming. I didn't know what hit me.  I was as helpless as a prawn on the proverbial barbie and I thought, 'This is it', and I would end my days as fish food.  I was stuck in its mouth and it was squeezing pretty hard. I felt the blood running down my neck and I couldn't move. I was in great pain, just waiting to die."

Though the fish ripped off Andrew's regulator, his mask held on tight, and almost as quickly as the grouper attacked, it let go.

Interestingly enough, Ronnlund is believed to be the only person to report a grouper attack.

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