Latest news with #wildlifeofficers
CBS News
6 hours ago
- CBS News
Smuggler traveling from Thailand stopped with lizards, tarantulas, possums, authorities in India say
Indian customs officers made the latest "significant" seizure of endangered wildlife from a passenger arriving from Thailand, a government statement said: nearly 100 creatures including lizards, sunbirds and tree-climbing possums. Customs officers said the passenger, who was also carrying two tarantula spiders and tortoises, had "exhibited signs of nervousness" on arrival at India's financial capital Mumbai. The seizure comes after a passenger was stopped smuggling dozens of venomous vipers, also arriving from Thailand, earlier in June. They included 44 Indonesian pit vipers and were "concealed in checked-in baggage," Mumbai Customs said in a statement. The wildlife in the latest seizure included iguanas, as well as a kinkajou or honey bear -- a small raccoon-like animal from Mexico's rainforests -- along with six "sugar gliders" — a gliding possum found in Australia. Photographs released by the customs unit showed the six sugar gliders huddled together in a basket, as well as a box crammed with lizards. Wildlife that customs officials in Mumbai, India said on June 10, 2025 they caught an airline passenger from Thailand trying to smuggle into the country. Among them: six sugar gliders huddled together in a basket, as well as a box crammed with lizards. Mumbia (India ) Customs, on X "In a significant operation, customs officers ... intercepted an Indian national ... leading to the seizure of multiple live and deceased wildlife species, some of which are protected under wildlife protection laws," the Ministry of Finance said in a statement late Monday. Disturbing smuggling trend Wildlife trade monitor TRAFFIC, which battles the smuggling of wild animals and plants, on Tuesday warned of a "very troubling" trend in trafficking driven by the exotic pet trade. More than 7,000 animals, dead and alive, have been seized along the Thailand-India air route in the last 3-and-a-half years, it said. Customs officers at Mumbai airport are more used to seizing smuggled gold, cash or cannabis -- but instances of wildlife seizure have seen a gradual rise recently. Customs officers seized dozens of snakes and several turtles from an Indian national flying from Thailand earlier in June. Among them were several spider-tailed horned vipers, a venomous species only described by scientists in 2006 and classified as "near-threatened" by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). TRAFFIC said its analysis showed that while most cases involve animals smuggled out of Thailand, more than 80 percent of interceptions happened in India. "The almost-weekly discoveries and diversity of wildlife en route to India is very troubling," said TRAFFIC's Southeast Asia director Kanitha Krishnasamy. Many of those captured were alive, which "shows that the clamor for exotic pets is driving the trade," she added. In February, customs officials at Mumbai airport also stopped a smuggler with five Siamang gibbons, a small ape native to the forests of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Those small creatures, listed as endangered by the IUCN, were "ingeniously concealed" in a plastic crate placed inside the passenger's trolley bag, customs officers said. In November, authorities found a passenger carrying a wriggling live cargo of 12 turtles.
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Gruesome discovery in case of elderly man and his dog brutally killed in Florida bear attack
One of three black bears killed by wildlife officers in southwest Florida have been officially connected to a fatal attack on a man and his dog, according to lab results released on Friday. Necropsy results of the 263-pound male bear revealed that partial remains of 89-year-old Robert Markel were found inside the animal, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said. Testing showed that the same bear's DNA was present on Markel's body, inside his home and on the deceased dog's body. Wildlife officials have not explicitly said that the bear is the one that killed Markel, but a preliminary autopsy by the Collier County Medical Examiner found that Markel's cause of death is consistent with a bear attack. It was not clear whether Markel had already been dead when the bear found him. Markel was attacked early on Monday morning near his home in a rural area east of Naples, just south of Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area. Wildlife officers set several traps and cameras. They killed three black bears in the area and sent their remains to a Gainesville lab. None of the animals tested positive for rabies, officials said. Wildlife officials are still investigating the events that led to the attack. Markel's grandson made the heartbreaking 911 call after discovering the chaotic scene in his grandfather's camper, reported WBBH. Testing showed that same bear's DNA was present on Markel's body, inside his Jerome home and on the dog's body 'I'm putting my clothes on, getting my gun, and going to look for a bear,' the grandson said. 'The bear just got the dog, the dog's dead. We went in to check on him in the camper, he's gone, the camper's tore all apart.' The dispatcher asked Markel's grandson if it was possible that the elderly man ran from the bear. Markel's grandson replied, 'He's 89, he can't run. He can't even walk without falling over.' His grandson told operators that the bear had entered his residence while he was sleeping. Markel and his dog were found in separate locations, approximately 200 yards apart. The FWC has captured and killed at least three bears who they believe have been involved in the attack. Wildlife experts note that black bears - the only species found in Florida - typically avoid human contact. Authorities have killed three bears and sent them off for DNA testing to see if they were the attackers The attack was particularly unusual and concerning. Florida's black bears, which were once threatened, have increasingly wandered into neighborhoods and private property in recent years, especially in more rural areas of north and central Florida. The state is home to approximately 4,050 black bears, according to the FWC.
CBS News
09-05-2025
- CBS News
Lab tests connect black bear killed by Florida wildlife officers to fatal attack on man and his dog
Lab results have connected one of three black bears killed by wildlife officers in southwest Florida to a fatal attack on a man and his dog a day earlier, officials said Friday. Necropsy results revealed that a 263-pound (119-kilogram) male bear contained the partial remains of 89-year-old Robert Markel, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said in a statement. Testing showed that same bear's DNA was present on Markel's body, inside his home and on the dog's body. Wildlife officials have not explicitly said that bear is the one that killed Markel, but a preliminary autopsy by the Collier County Medical Examiner found that Markel's cause of death is consistent with a bear attack. Markel was attacked early Monday near his home in a rural area east of Naples, just south of Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area. Wildlife officers set several traps and cameras. They killed three black bears in the area and sent their remains to a Gainesville lab. None of the animals tested positive for rabies, officials said. Wildlife officials are still investigating the events that led to the attack. Florida's black bears, which were once threatened, have increasingly wandered into neighborhoods and private property in recent years, especially in more rural areas of north and central Florida.
Associated Press
09-05-2025
- Associated Press
Lab tests connect black bear killed by Florida wildlife officers to fatal attack on man and his dog
JEROME, Fla. (AP) — Lab results have connected one of three black bears killed by wildlife officers in southwest Florida to a fatal attack on a man and his dog a day earlier, officials said Friday. Necropsy results revealed that a 263-pound (119-kilogram) male bear contained the partial remains of 89-year-old Robert Markel, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said in a statement. Testing showed that same bear's DNA was present on Markel's body, inside his home and on the dog's body. Wildlife officials have not explicitly said that bear is the one that killed Markel, but a preliminary autopsy by the Collier County Medical Examiner found that Markel's cause of death is consistent with a bear attack. Markel was attacked early Monday near his home in a rural area east of Naples, just south of Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area. Wildlife officers set several traps and cameras. They killed three black bears in the area and sent their remains to a Gainesville lab. None of the animals tested positive for rabies, officials said. Wildlife officials are still investigating the events that led to the attack. Florida's black bears, which were once threatened, have increasingly wandered into neighborhoods and private property in recent years, especially in more rural areas of north and central Florida.
