Python-filled underwear and predators released in wild: See latest animal stories
Unique creatures, odd animals and new species are being discovered across the planet. Some are found lurking in remote corners of the world, while others have been hiding right under our noses.
Learn more about some recent rare animal encounters from around the world:
Endangered creature — thought missing from India forest — rediscovered. See it
In the Kaziranga-Karbi Anglong Landscape of northeastern India, researchers have rediscovered the Asiatic wild dog, or dhole, which was thought to be missing from the region since the 1990s. This endangered species was captured on camera traps set up to monitor animal movement through natural corridors. The sighting marks the first photographic evidence of a dhole in this area. | Published June 27 | Read More |
Endangered female tiger dies after fight with male during introduction at UK zoo
At Marwell Wildlife in Winchester, England, a tragic incident occurred when Valentina, an Amur tiger, died after a confrontation with a male tiger named Pasha. Despite careful monitoring and preparation by zoo staff, the introduction turned fatal for Valentina, who was a beloved member of the zoo community. Amur tigers are critically endangered. | Published July 2 | Read More |
Bulge in man's underwear at airport turns out to be 3 pythons, Thai officials say
In a bizarre smuggling attempt, a Sri Lankan man was caught at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport with three ball pythons hidden in his underwear. These snakes, requiring special permits for transport, were discovered during a body search after a tip-off about the man's activities. | Published July 3 | Read More |
'Argentina's top aquatic predator' released in wild for first time. 'Huge win'
In northeastern Argentina, giant river otters, known as the country's 'top aquatic predator,' have been reintroduced into the wild after being locally extinct for about 40 years. Conservationists released a family of otters into the Iberá Wetlands, marking a significant milestone in the species' recovery. | Published July 4 | Read More |
Rare 'golden' creature filmed sneaking through Thailand forest. Watch it prowl
In the forests of Khao Luang National Park, Thailand, a rare sighting of the Asian golden cat, or Temminck's cat, was captured on a trail camera. These medium-sized wild cats are known for their striking golden coats and elusive nature, typically hunting at night. | Published July 8 | Read More |
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Eater
17 minutes ago
- Eater
Siti in East Austin Takes Asian Street Food and Makes It a Modern Marvel
A specific hunger pang made chef Laila Bazahm take the menu at Siti, her second Austin restaurant, in the direction of Singaporean dishes. 'It is a modern Southeast Asian restaurant based on dishes I craved from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines,' she says of Siti, set in the Frances Modern Inn, a small hotel that's tucked away off East 11th Street, near Nickel City. Bazham began her culinary career in Singapore, at the now-closed Joël Robuchon, and would go to the Singaporean hawkers market to eat regularly. 'I love laksa, and I would regularly go to 328 Katong Laksa. They had the best laksa in Singapore; you could get a big bowl for like $3,' she says. When she couldn't find a similar noodle soup — typically made of coconut milk broth with dried prawns, fish cakes, and bean sprouts — paired with an inability to find a similar dish in Austin, Bazahm perfected a recipe just for herself. But that made her start to think: Should I open a restaurant that serves laksa? What would that look like, and what else would it serve? Her interpretation at Siti involves scallops, which she notes that hawker stalls would never serve in the dish, and Gulf shrimp in a broth that takes six to eight hours to prepare. Laksa the Siti way. Mackenzie Smith Bazahm was born and raised in the Philippines, which is another important influence on Siti. 'We pay homage to the women in Southeast Asia. The grandmothers — especially mine — my mom, my aunts,' she says of Siti, the Malaysian word for 'lady.' 'I grew up cooking with all of them and it is where I developed my love for it.' Siti strives to recreate their cooking techniques with a modern, elevated style. Bazahm laughingly recalls going into the kitchen with her mother after attending culinary school and working at Joël Robuchon, and finding herself correcting how her mother cooked. 'She just looked at me and then said, 'I don't want to do this with you because you're not fun anymore,'' Bazahm recalls. 'That's when it hit me. She's been doing this for years, and she is the best cook ever. I got caught up in the Western techniques that I'd just learned.' With Siti, the techniques and preferences of the aunties and the hawker stalls are at the forefront of Bazahm's mind. Hiramasa crudo with tom kha broth. Mackenzie Smith The menu's hiramasa (yellowtail amberjack) dish, served with tom kha broth, is one of Bazahm's favorites on the menu. 'I love tom kha, and every time I go to a Thai restaurant, I order it,' she says. 'I was thinking, 'How can I present that differently?'' The crudo dish gets served in the broth with lime, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, and galangal (a spice in the ginger family) that she describes as 'earth-forward and refreshing.' Bazahm serves tom kha ice cream with calamansi (a lime from the Philippines) and sudachi (a small Japanese citrus fruit) and yuzu curd, that is finished with peanuts and candied ginger, developed by chef Greg Maze from Merry Monarch Creamery. There is also Singapore chili crab, which Bazahm is presenting as a lobster dish, using a whole lobster and mantou buns (a Chinese steamed bun). And there are satays made with chicken, beef short rib, and local mushrooms and eggplant, all cooked in her Mibrasa oven from Spain. All of Bazahm's spices, including the chile in that lobster dish, are made in-house, from scratch. 'Even my Srirarcha, I make in-house. It's all cooked here, made here, and prepped with a lot of care,' she says. Chef Laila Bazahm Mackenzie Smith Bazahm was initially looking at another location, before the owner of the Frances Modern reached out after hearing about what she wanted to do. Siti takes up the entire lower floor of the 15-room Inn, like taking a trip to Bali, she says. It has a lanai (that will include AC once a permit comes through) overlooking a backyard garden. Bazahm describes the decor as Asian colonial style, evoking the Singaporean shop houses, which typically feature ground-floor shops and homes on the second floor. The team installed wooden shutters, which are ubiquitous in Singapore, and artwork and decorative details that touch on Asian themes. Siti is open now at 1123 East 11th Street, inside the Frances Modern Inn. Reservations are recommended and can be made on OpenTable.
Forbes
3 hours ago
- Forbes
AAIFF 2025 Brings 90+ Asian And Asian American Films To NYC
The 48th Asian American International Film Festival will run from July 31 - August 10, 2025. The Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) returns to New York City this week for its 48th year, bringing 11 days of fresh and compelling storytelling from across the Asian diaspora. Starting July 31st, the festival will showcase more than 90 films, including documentaries, narrative features, shorts and music videos. Besides film screenings, it will also hold filmmaker Q&As, panel discussions, special receptions and an awards ceremony. Here's what you need to know about the 48th Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF48). What is the Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF)? The Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) is the oldest and longest running U.S. film festival dedicated to highlighting Asian and Asian American stories. AAIFF47 Opening Night Screening Who organizes AAIFF? The annual festival is organized by Asian CineVision, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to 'the development, exhibition, promotion, and preservation of Asian and Asian American experiences through storytelling.' Since its launch in 1978 in New York City's Lower East Side, AAIFF has screened movies by emerging and established filmmakers from more than 20 countries. Past editions have featured U.S. premieres by iconic directors like Wayne Wang (The Joy Luck Club, Maid in Manhattan) and Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Brokeback Mountain). A packed audience at the 47th Asian American International Film Festival When is the 2025 Asian American International Film Festival (aka AAIFF48)? AAIFF48 runs from from Thursday, July 31st through Sunday, August 10th, 2025. Where is AAIFF48 taking place? In-person screenings and other events at AAIFF48 will take place across five different venues in Manhattan. The hybrid festival will feature both in-person and online film screenings, with most of the in-person screenings happening at Regal Union Square. For more information, visit the AAIFF website. Featured films at AAIFF48: Slanted, Transplant and more With over 90 films being screened at this year's AAIFF, it would be impossible to list them all here, but here are a few highlights: The festival will kick off on Thursday, July 31st with a red carpet and screening of Slanted, which won the narrative feature competition at SXSW. Written and directed by Chinese-Australian filmmaker Amy Wang in her feature debut, the satirical thriller follows a Chinese-American teen who undergoes experimental surgery to look white in an effort to be named prom queen—a decision that leads to drastic and unforeseen consequences. Slanted stars Shirley Chen (Didi, Beast Beast), Mckenna Grace (Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Gifted) and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan (Never Have I Ever, Freakier Friday). A Q&A and reception will follow the screening. Shirley Chen stars as insecure Chinese-American teen Joan Huang in 'Slanted.' Tamil filmmaker Chithra Jeyaram's Love Chaos Kin upends the traditional narrative around transracial adoptions. The documentary tells the story of half-white, half-Native American twins who are adopted into a South Asian immigrant family. Complex questions about race, identity and belonging arise when the twins reconnect with their white birth mother and their estranged Navajo father. Decathlon: The CK Yang & Rafer Johnson Story, a documentary by Taiwanese-Canadian director Frank W. Chen, chronicles the real-life friendship and rivalry between C.K. Yang—the first Taiwanese athlete to win an Olympic medal—and American decathlete and Olympic gold medalist Rafer Johnson amidst the turbulent backdrop of the Cold War and the civil rights movement. AAIFF48's Centerpiece Screening is Transplant, a gripping thriller about an ambitious and gifted surgical resident who gets more than he bargained for when he comes under the tutelage of a preeminent heart transplant surgeon. Co-produced by Forest Whitaker and starring Korean-American K-pop star and multi-hyphenate entertainer Eric Nam, Transplant is the feature directorial debut of Korean-American filmmaker Jason Park, who also co-wrote and co-produced the film. A Q&A and reception will take place after the screening. Eric Nam stars as Jonah Yoon in 'Transplant.' The documentary Mistress Dispeller gives an intimate look into a bizarre profession that's burgeoning in China: the mistress dispeller. When a Chinese woman learns that her husband has been cheating on her with a younger woman, she enlists the help of Wang Zhenxi, a 'mistress dispeller' whose job it is to save their marriage and end the extramarital affair. Directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Elizabeth Lo, who also co-wrote and co-produced the film, Mistress Dispeller had its world premiere at last year's Venice International Film Festival and boasts a 100% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes as of this writing. In Shook Saamer Usmani (3 Body Problem, Succession) plays Ashish, an aspiring writer who struggles to navigate his parents' divorce, a stalled writing career and his father's Parkinson's diagnosis. But a budding romance with the charming barista Claire leads him to discover that life can still offer joy and fulfillment, even if it doesn't always go as planned. Directed, co-written and co-produced by Indo-Canadian documentary filmmaker Amar Wala, Shook marks Wala's scripted feature debut and is partly based on his own personal experiences. AAIFF48 will also feature a variety of short films grouped into 10 shorts showcases. Additionally, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Asian CineVision, AAIFF48 will host a series of panels and special events, including a showing of Filipino-American filmmaker H.P. Mendoza's 2009 musical comedy Fruit Fly and a screening of the never-before-released director's cut of Captain America, the 1990 superhero film by the late auteur and cult favorite Albert Pyun. For the full schedule of film screenings and other events, visit How to watch AAIFF48 films Some films will be screened in-person only, while others will only be available to watch online as video-on-demand (VOD). There are also films that offer both in-person and online viewing options. How to buy tickets for AAIFF48 General tickets are $18 for in-person screenings and $10 for VOD and can be purchased directly on the festival website. Discounted ticket packages are also available. To purchase tickets for in-person and/or online screenings, visit and navigate to the Tickets tab. You can also buy tickets directly on each film's info page on the AAIFF website. For more information on ticketing options, check out the FAQ section of the AAIFF website.
Newsweek
5 hours ago
- Newsweek
Parents' 'Dramatic' Home Solution for Giving Daughter Space Goes Viral
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Working from home can sometimes come with challenges. If it's not Wi-Fi issues, it may be a lack of space for a household of remote workers. One parent's solution to this problem has gone viral on TikTok, earning almost 1 million views. The hilarious clip, shared by daughter @miz_fey, shows her parents taking her request to be alone during a virtual meeting to a whole new level. They can be seen using their laptop and phones in the bathroom. Her dad has pulled a chair up to his makeshift desk, which is the sink, and her mom is sat on the toilet with her laptop on the toilet tank. The text layered over the clip reads: "I work from home and had a meeting so my parents decided to give me privacy. So dramatic." Two screenshots from the viral video showing the parents working in the bathroom. Two screenshots from the viral video showing the parents working in the bathroom. TikTok/@miz_fey Statista found that, by 2019, remote work was widely reported to enhance well-being—73 percent of remote workers cited improved personal wellness and better work-life balance. So much so, many would accept a pay cut to work remotely more frequently. During the clip, the daughter can be heard encouraging her parents to leave the restroom, but they are determined to honor her request. With her dad saying, "you said we must not talk," and playfully adding, "we must not breathe," the video has racked up over 130,000 likes. Newsweek is waiting for @miz_fey to provide a comment. The hashtags say that the parents are Nigerian, which explains a lot, according to the comments. One comment with over 26,000 likes read: "When it comes to career, Nigerian parents don't play." "Immigrant parents want the kids to succeed at all costs—I love them," added another. This statement has been backed by research. A review by the Nigerian Association of Social Psychologists highlights that African immigrant parents in North America shape their parenting goals based on cultural values, immigration experiences and adaptation to the host country. Specifically, skilled Nigerian professionals aim for their children to attain competitive education and successful careers in the U.S. In 2023, Pew Research Center also revealed Asian parents (70 percent) are the most likely to consider their children's college graduation extremely or very important. This is followed by Hispanic (57 percent), Black (51 percent) and white parents (29percent), highlighting sharp racial and ethnic differences in educational priorities. Some users have commented to share their own working-from-home experiences. "This is so sweet. My own was the opposite lol [laugh out loud] … I had to sit in the bathroom for my meetings while my parents were in the living room blasting music," posted one. "My mom said she doesn't like to visit because when we work she must act like she can't speak and she didn't come in this world for that," commented another.
