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2:16 PM
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Dogs may be inquisitive by nature, but this eight-month-old German Shepherd was heading for trouble when he decided to check out this hole in the wall.Rebel somehow squeezed his head into a tight spot in the 18in wall in his garden at home in Los Angeles, California, and got well and truly stuck.
It was only when a friend of the owner, who was out at the time, heard Rebel whimpering that he found the pup was in a bit of a tight spot and called the authorities.County Animal Services officers arrived and decided the dog was not in serious danger. They also concluded that if Rebel could get his head into the hole, they would be able to pull him out, but their main concern was doing so without hurting him.With officers on either side of the wall, they tucked in the pup’s ears and nudged him back and forth for about 30 minutes before freeing him none the worse for wear.
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1:08 PM
Unknown
Dan Aykroyd, David Bowie, Kiefer Sutherland and Christopher Walken have got it, so it can’t be a bad thing for your chances of success. It may not be the norm in terms of eye colouration, but since when was being the same so great? Difference is a good thing, right? Just ask these animals. Then again, they’d probably just look blankly at you – wondering, in dog and cat speak, “What the hell are you going on about?” – as you stare back at their amazing different coloured eyes.Purrrfect: Complete heterochromia in a female cat
This difference in colouration – in humans or animals – is called heterochromia. Usually found in the iris, heterochromia can also affect the hair or skin, though we’re going to focus on eyes here, and specifically those of man’s beast and second beast friends, dogs and cats.What have we here? Mismatching eyes in a cat
Heterochromia occurs due to a relative excess or lack of the pigment melanin. Think loosely along the lines of Michael Jackson, except more likely to be inherited, resulting from genetic mosaicism (cells with different genotypes), or due to disease or injury – the possible causes of heterochromia.Bright eye: Heterochromia of the eye in a pet dog
When someone tells you you’ve got nice eyes, what they’re really saying in a less clinical way is that they like your distribution and concentration of melanin, as this is what determines your eye colour. Irises affected by heterochromia are either hyperpigmented or hypopigmented.We’ve been expecting you Mr Bond: Domestic cat with full heterochromia
Heterochromia of the eye also comes in two packages: complete heterochromia, where one iris is a different colour from the other, and partial heterochromia, where part of one iris is a different colour from the rest of it. Partial heterochromia is less common – and less eye catching.Eye eye: Siberian Husky with complete and partial heterochromia
OK, so now most of the boring science bit is done, on with the animals. Although rare in humans, complete heterochromia is more common in other species, and almost always involves one blue eye – often found in a white patch, where melanin is lacking from the skin and hair.Introducing Kitty Pazzaz: An archetypal odd-eyed cat
Cats are one of the most commonly affected species, especially breeds like Turkish Van and Turkish Angora. Known colloquially as odd-eyed cats, these flash felines are usually white or mostly white, with one blue peeper and one normal eye of copper, orange, yellow or green.Different again: Heterochromia in non-white cat with green eyes
The odd-eyed colouring is caused when either the dominant white gene or white spotting gene stop melanin granules from reaching one eye during the cat’s development from kitty to moggy. The condition also affects cats of colours other than white, so long as they have that white spotting gene.Say cheese: Flash photography effect on blue but not green eye
But we’re digressing into genetics again. When taking snaps of odd-eyed cats, a red-eye effect can be seen in the blue coloured eye but not the other. Eyeshine is produced in both eyes but in the normal, non-blue peeper a layer of melanin removes certain light colours.What are you looking at? Copper bi-eye Siberian Husky
As for dogs, complete heterochromia is commonly observed in Siberian Huskies, the eyes of which are normally light blue, dark blue, amber, or brown. With complete heterochromia, one eye of the husky may be brown and the other blue, or with partial heterochromia, both may be half brown and half blue.Also starring Scarlet: Complete heterochromia in a Siberian Husky
Whether you find heterochromia in canines and felines unnerving, alluring, or just plain different, you can’t deny it’s eye-catching. What’s more, who’s to say the pets in question aren’t peering back at gawpers wondering why their eyes are so boringly homochromatic.
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Boston terrier, Cat, kitty, Siberian Huskies, Canines, Pets, animals, canine, Cat, coloration, colour, different, dogs, eyes, feline, heterochromia
4:00 PM
Unknown
Rats as big as cats, fanged frogs and grunting fish - they sound like something from a horror movie.But, incredibly, there is a 'lost world' on a distant island where these nightmarish creatures really exist.A team of scientists discovered the bizarre animals - and dozens of others - at a remote volcano in Papua New Guinea.
In the kilometre-deep crater of Mount Bosavi, they found a habitat teeming with life which has evolved in isolation since the volcano last erupted 200,000 years ago.Among the new species was the the Bosavi Woolly Rat.One of the biggest rats in the world, it measures just over 32 inches from nose to tail and weighs 3lb.The silvery grey mammal has dense fur and its teeth suggest it has a largely vegetarian diet and probably builds nests in tree hollows or underground.
The Bosavi Woolly was discovered by a team from the BBC's natural history unit as they searched for new wildlife while filming the series Lost Land Of The Volcano.During the trip to a little-known part of the rain forest, the team also found about 40 other new species, which are at various stages of verification.This included a marsupial called the Bosavi Silky Cuscus, a camouflaged gecko, a fanged frog and a fish called the Henamo Grunter, which makes a grunting sound from its swim bladder.
Researchers also found an extremely hairy caterpillar which is now awaiting cataloguing in Oxford, where the team will give names to their finds.It is estimated that along with the giant rat and cuscus the expedition found about 16 species of frogs, one species of gecko, at least three species of fish, at least 20 of insects and spiders and possibly one new species of bat.The expedition was led by climber and naturalist Steve Backshall-wildlife cameraman Gordon Buchanan and head scientist Dr George McGavin.Mr Buchanan and Smithsonian biologist Dr Kristofer Helgen were first on the scene when the rat was found by a tracker from the local Kasua tribe. Dr Helgen said:'This is one of the world's largest rats. It is a true rat, related to the same kind you find in the city sewers, but a heck of a lot bigger.'I had a cat and it was about the same size of this rat. This rat was incredibly tame.
It just sat next to me nibbling on a piece of leaf. It won't have seen a human being before. The crater of Mount Bosavi really is the lost world.'Papua New Guinea is famous for the number and diversity of rodents that live there, with more than 57 species from the Murid family of rats and mice on the island.Further evidence of the rich wildlife of the tropical location came with the discovery of the Bosavi Silky Cuscus. This animal, which resembles a small bear, is a marsupial that lives up in trees, feeding on fruits and leaves.Weighing in at some 4.5lb, it has thick silky fur adapted for the mountain environment in which it lives. Dr Helgen has identified it as a new subspecies in the group of strange marsupials known as cuscuses.
He said: 'Long ago it was isolated on this volcano and has become something unique to Bosavi.'The habitat in the area is currently regarded as pristine, but less than 20 miles to the south of Mount Bosavi extensive logging operations are happening.The mountain acts like an island in the vast sea of jungle, trapping different species on it.The expedition base camp was in the foothills east of Mount Bosavi with smaller teams going out to remote locations.
It was only when a friend of the owner, who was out at the time, heard Rebel whimpering that he found the pup was in a bit of a tight spot and called the authorities.
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