animals

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Survivors' story: Jeff Evans' Home Survived Camp Fire Nov 8 2018
"I inherited 11 dogs... my world changed pretty dramatically. I can't leave with 11 dogs. So I stayed here" in the Evacuation Zone.
59-year-old Jeff Evans and his parents, who live with him, told me his house survived unscathed, but his neighbors were not so lucky.
The Camp Fire in Northern California incinerated entire towns. More than 13,000 single-family homes were destroyed in the blaze.

California Camp Fire ravages town of Paradise, destroying more than 6,500 structures
Homes destroyed by the Camp Fire in Paradise, California.
Trees survived.

Fierce winds picked up in the Sierra foothills that morning, fueling the most destructive fire in California history, which has burned nearly 10,000 homes, killed at least 71 people and left more than 1,000 unaccounted for.

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Photo courtesy NPR and Newsweek

“Poet's Pacific paradise: Pablo Neruda’s homes in Chile”

“There's a little bit of traffic”

Photo courtesy @ThisisChile.cl (via @guardian) and @ThisisChile.cl (via el_jose_patagonia | IG)

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A polar bear appeared to be praying for a cold winter after being seen placing his huge paws together and looking up at the sky.
The cub bear was pictured seemingly looking up to the heavens and asking for divine intervention in the animal's current plight.
Temperatures in their Alaskan habitat are higher than usual and as a result the pack have been left stranded on land waiting for the ice to freeze.
Until temperatures drop and more ice freezes after melting during the spring, the polar bears cannot go and find seals.

The male juvenile bear made the plea to a higher power just before he went to sleep, while his while his mother and sister were already napping.

Photographer, Shayne McGuire, captured the beautiful bear in Barter Island, Alaska, on the October 7.
She said: 'It was nap time for the bear, his mum and sister had already curled up, yet, there he sat, contemplating something, that we will never know.
'Then he looked up at the sky, raised his head and paws, and I heard one of my group say 'he is praying for the ice to freeze.'
'It is late in the season and yet, very little snow.
' I have seen global warming affect their habitat, I have been going since 2013 and there has always been snow in late September, early October.
'In 2015, there were snow storms and the snow was deep.
'Since then, I have been in early October to mid October and have had some ice, very little snow.'

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As the sun rises through the mist, a pair of swans and their seven cygnets glide majestically along in a scene that evokes the end of the hottest summer on record.
The stunning photograph was taken by James MacDonald on his smartphone when he spotted the birds’ stately, single file procession during a morning run in Bushy Park, south-west London.

Mr MacDonald, 40, a mapmaker for DK Travel guides who lives near the park, said: ‘They were on the move along an inlet from a small pond to a larger lake. I’d seen swans with their young in the park earlier in the year, when the parents are still very protective and won’t let you get near, so it was nice to be able to get close enough to take a picture of these now they are bigger.’

Richard Martin-Barton, of forecasters MeteoGroup, said: ‘It will feel a little bit Mediterranean, thanks to slightly warmer air moving in from Northern Spain. But it’s going to be a case of enjoy it while you can if you live in south-east England because – by the middle of next week – they will see the cooler, wetter conditions the rest of the country will be having.’

Emmy-winning 'Born To Explore' shares passion for adventure
Richard Wiese travels to Windsor, England to participate in a swan rescue for an episode of the Westport-produced travel program, "Born To Explore." The program, which airs Saturdays on ABC, recently took home an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Single Camera Photography.  read more »

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Ocean Warriors: Chasing the Thunder is a Vulcan Productions high-seas documentary about the Sea Shepherd’s epic 110-day, 10,000-mile chase of the "Thunder," considered the world’s most notorious poaching vessel. Across two seas and three oceans, the marine activists hunted the fugitive fishing ship through massive ice floes, storms-tossed seas, a near collision and violent clashes until the Thunder dramatically sank, burying the evidence of its crimes on the bottom of the South Atlantic.

The chase of the Thunder started in the "Shadowlands", the ice fields of the Southern Ocean, and lasted 110 days. From beginning to end it was a harrowing journey. Captain Peter Hammarstedt and his team faced daunting odds but surged forward.

Captain Sid Chakravarty, Captain Hammarstedt and the rest of the crew have worked aboard the Sea Shepherd to fight illegal fishing and help save our ocean’s wildlife. "For the past 10 years, Sea Shepherd has been defending whales in the Southern Ocean," said Hammarstedt. "This year we’re defending Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish." Toothfish are coveted by poachers because they are known as Chilean Sea Bass in restaurants throughout the north. They are flaky, delicious and very expensive. "The fact that these fish live in the most remote waters in the world makes these poachers feel like they can get away with anything," said Chakravarty. Captain Chakravarty ultimately joined the mission with his additional Sea Shepherd vessel.  read more »

A True Fairytale Wedding
Imagine being the wedding photographer in this scenario. You know you’ve got a hilarious photo opportunity, but you can’t really interrupt the proceedings because you don’t want to ruin the moment. Would you just shoot this and let the couple be surprised when you deliver the final set of photos?

THIS. IS. SPARTA!!!
Oh, bird fights—so tiny, hilarious, and cute. These two are different species, and it looks like they’re well aware of it. Why else would you boot someone who’s just trying to enjoy a seedy little snack? Mother Nature is beyond tough when you really think about it.

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Cargo Overboard
This cargo ship came so close to toppling over. The drivers of the rescue boats don’t look too concerned. Maybe the ship was more controlled than it looks to be in the picture. Believe it or not, it didn’t flip. No one was hurt, but it made for some insane photos. Unbelievably, only four of those large shipping containers ended up in the water.
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Photo courtesy livestly.com

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Winx: Australian horse takes Queen Elizabeth Stakes for 25th consecutive win
The champion mare made her signature late charge to take the A$4m (£2.18m) race.
Six-year-old Winx is now unbeaten in three years, matching the 25 successive wins of fellow Australian mare Black Caviar, who retired in 2013. Winx first ran in 2014 and has now won 29 of her 35 races, the winning streak starting on 16 May 2015.
"What can I say? She is just an exceptional athlete," said her jockey Hugh Bowman.

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Photo courtesy BBC