Parasites vs. T-Rex

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/47907/title/Parasite_may_have_felled_a_mighty_T._rex

Trichomonas or something similar may have brought down some T-Rex specimens.

"Little Jack" Horner was one of the co-authors.

Cats vs. birds

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/29/science/29angi.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

Interesting article on cats as predators.

A polarizing species

Goliath grouper, formerly known as jewfish, is a polarizing species in Florida.

Once a staple of the commercial fishing and diving industries, the giant reef fish were nearly wiped out by spearfishers and hook-and-liners in the late 1980s. In 1990, the federal government put goliath grouper on the prohibited list, and in recent years, populations on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida have bounced back.

- Miami Herald (link here)

Err on the side of what is best for the fish.

T-Rex of the Seas

Paleontologists have unearthed the nearly complete remains of an immense ichthyosaur with serrated teeth, an evolutionary innovation that would have rendered the behemoth the top predator in its ecosystem.

- Science News (link here)

They are just not making top predators like they used to.

Also note the University of Chicago connection: vertebrate paleontologist Nadia Frobisch.

Lucky Buck

A large crowd of sportsmen and passers-by had gathered in front of Dutch's Trading Post to admire "Lucky Buck" - a 30-point "deer of a lifetime" that Wayne Schumacher took by bow over the weekend.

- (Fond du Lac, WI) Reporter/azcentral (link here)

The hunter might have been lucky, but how did the deer feel about it?

Big squid

Numerous large squid are reportedly washing up dead on the central Oregon coast near Heceta Head.

- AP/azcentral (link here)

Global warming?

New, nastier python

Discoveries in West Miami-Dade have scientists worried about a new, potentially more troublesome species of python establishing itself in the Everglades.

- Miami Herald (link here)

Are they good to eat?

Mini T-Rex

A miniature version of Tyrannosaurus rex is throwing a bone to paleontologists interested in how the king of dinosaurs evolved.

- Science News (link here)

Paul Sereno in the news again.

Girl vs. alligator

A 16-year-old girl has bagged a 10-foot alligator in a South Carolina swamp.

In the middle of the night. With a crossbow.

- AP/azcentral (link here)

Excellent.

Bear attacks man

Colorado wildlife officials say a man is recovering from his injuries after a black bear entered his home and attacked him.

- AP/azcentral (link here)

A person is not safe any more, even when they are in their own home.

Bobcat attacks man

Hermantown resident Gary Lucia suffered minor injuries after what he described as an attack by a bobcat in his garage late Friday night.

- Duluth News Tribune (link here)

Bobcats are dangerous, especially those 80-pounders.