News of the Weird - this just in!

[Nereus]

This one was on his way to Mt. Buller (snowfield), but nobody would give him a lift.

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[PeteC]

I had to look up Mt. Buller. Interesting place and good web site below, with webcams. Getting a bit dark at this hour to see well, but tomorrow morning sould look good with snow, sky and sun.

http://www.mtbuller.com.au/Winter/snow- ... /snow-cams

[pharvey]

^ Now that is one big bugger I wouldn't fancy taking on!!

Here's one that already seems to have got there: -

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The above is actually a photo taken this week at a vineyard near Sydney, which has seen it's first snowfall since 1836 - which has caused absolute chaos....

[PeteC]

Go back a page and look at the posts.

[pharvey]

Go back a page and look at the posts.

The joys of Night-shift" and pint or two later......

[PeteC]

No exaggeration, this could be the story of the year if it comes to pass. It will be fun following it, and I hope a journal of their efforts is published. The Guardian is pretty good with stories like this, so I'm hoping they'll keep readers up to date. Pete

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/a ... d-location

'Nazi gold train': deathbed confession may have revealed location

"......Poland’s deputy culture minister, Piotr Zuchowski, said ground-penetrating radar had found images of a buried train near Wałbrzych, in the country’s south-west, on a 4km stretch of railway near the Wrocław-Wałbrzych line.

Calling it an exceptional find, Zuchowski said the fact that the train appeared to be armoured indicated that it might be carrying valuable cargo. A deathbed confession from an unnamed man had led officials to the site, he added. Zuchowski said the dying man was involved in the operation to hide the train 70 years ago. “I am more than 99% certain that this train exists,” he told a press conference on Friday.

The German train, which may contain up to 300 tonnes of gold, jewels and weapons, as well as valuable art, has long been rumoured to have gone missing when the Nazis were fleeing Russia’s Red Army......"

[hhfarang]

"China enlists monkeys to keep birds from spoiling big parade"

BEIJING (AP) — China is leaning on the animal kingdom — including a squad of nest-wrecking monkeys — to ensure its military parade commemorating the end of World War II goes smoothly.



Chinese troops practice marching ahead of a Sept. 3 military parade at a camp on the outskirts of Beijing. China is leaning on the animal kingdom - including a squad of nest-wrecking monkeys - to ensure its military parade commemorating the end of World War II goes smoothly. To minimize the chances of birds striking engines during the many airplane flyovers connected to the Beijing parade, state media reports say, the military has used falcons to chase away birds and a team of trained macaques to flush nests out of trees around the pilots’ training grounds.

September 02, 2015

To minimize the chances of birds striking engines during the many airplane flyovers connected to the Beijing parade, state media reports say, the military has used falcons to chase away birds and a team of trained macaques to flush nests out of trees around the pilots' training grounds.

"We bought two monkeys in April last year from Henan province. After one month's training, the macaques mastered the skill of taking apart birds' nests," air force official Wang Mingzhi was quoted as saying by China News Service. Three more monkeys were later added to the team, which can dismantle up to 60 nests per day in return for rewards, Wang said.

Other air-clearing measures in the capital include bans on kites, balloons and sport pigeons. Beijing's airports will be closed for three hours.

http://www.mail.com/int/news/world/3789 ... tage-ss1-1

[hhfarang]

"Shear factor - giant Australian sheep in need of a haircut"



"Australian animal welfare officers Wednesday put out an urgent appeal for shearers after finding a huge sheep with wool so overgrown its life was in danger, with a national champion set to take on the challenge.

The very woolly merino sheep was spotted wandering on its own near Mulligan Flats, a grassy woodland just outside the national capital Canberra, by bushwalkers who alerted local RSPCA officers.

The officers headed out to the area, but had to return on Wednesday morning with reinforcements after noting the creature's size.

"It's definitely one of the biggest sheep we've ever seen," said Tammy Ven Dange, head of the RSPCA in the Australian Capital Territory, adding that the as-yet-unnamed animal was "four to five times its normal size".

The extent of the wool growth and the sheep's nervousness around human beings after what was likely years of solitude also meant rescuers were not yet able to confirm its gender, age and weight, although they thought it was male.

"He's pretty stressed out at the moment. We're trying to keep him calm and hopefully tomorrow (Thursday) we're going to sedate him and shear him," Ven Dange told AFP."
...

https://news.yahoo.com/shear-factor-gia ... 37260.html

[Nereus]

Aussie champ trims 'record' fleece off Chris the sheep

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/6 ... -the-sheep

Some 40.45 kilogrammes (89.18 pounds) of wool was taken off in one large piece from the animal by Australian Shearers' Hall of Famer Ian Elkins in a 42-minute process that he said was "certainly a challenge".

It took me 42 minutes to shear the sheep, which is a long time because it normally takes me three minutes.

I'm sure it was very, very relieved after all that fleece came off. Sheep are shorn once every 12 months and the average fleece weight is five kilogrammes."

.......................................................
They seem to think it is probably around 5 years since it was last shorn. Usually, the fleece will incur a "break" long before that and start to shed itself. It must have been on good tucker, as a lack of feed will also induce a fleece to shed.

[PeteC]

^ I initially thought he was a new recruit for the Wales RWC team.

[pharvey]

^ Well, we need a decent Tight-Head!!

[dtaai-maai]

Now we know what BaaBaa has been up to...

[Bristolian]

^ Well, we need a decent Tight-Head!!

Probably only a Welshman could say; did he look sexier before or after the shearing?

[hhfarang]

"Lost Australian sheep yields 30 sweaters worth of fleece

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A lost, overgrown sheep found in Australian scrubland was shorn for perhaps the first time on Thursday, yielding 40 kilograms (89 pounds) of wool — the equivalent of 30 sweaters — and shedding almost half his body weight...."

[Big Boy]

Proof that we're everywhere.

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South Africans stunned by Plymouth Argyle graffiti found on underwater pipe

A DECLARATION of support for Plymouth Argyle FC has be found in one the most remote locations on the planet - on the side of an underwater pipe around 100 miles off the South African coast.

Full story: North Devon Journal