A bird sighting on New York’s Long Island has avian enthusiasts flocking to the region in hopes of spotting a feathered friend that has never been seen before in the state. The common cuckoo is typically found from Europe to Japan, with the majority of the population wintering in Africa. But one was recently spotted […]
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A baby elephant at the Oregon Zoo had more tricks than treats to show when handlers gave it a small pumpkin to play with during an annual fall event where giant elephants smash half-ton pumpkins. Weighing just 775 pounds (351.5 kilograms), eight-month-old Asian elephant Tula-Tu is about the heft of one […]
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Dogs dressed up as everything from Elvis Presley to Scooby Doo’s Mystery Machine went trick-or-treating in Michigan’s capital Friday as part of the annual Howloween event organized by a local pet store. The costumed canines made a loop through Lansing’s Old Town arts district, stopping outside restaurants, gift shops and jewelry […]
Ah, rats! Researchers think they have debunked the origin of Chicago’s so-called “rat hole,” one of the Windy City’s weirdest local landmarks. Hold on, now. The rat hole wasn’t what it you think. It wasn’t some back alley bar that served as a speakeasy for the city’s notorious gangster clientele or a tenement stuffed to […]
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Protesters rallying against the Trump administration in Portland put the city’s quirky and irreverent reputation on display Sunday by pedaling through the streets wearing absolutely nothing — or close to it — in an “emergency” edition of the annual World Naked Bike Ride. Crowds that have gathered daily and nightly outside […]
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A New Orleans family cleaning up their overgrown backyard made an extremely unusual find: Under the weeds was a mysterious marble tablet with Latin characters that included the phrase “spirits of the dead.” “The fact that it was in Latin that really just gave us pause, right?” said Daniella Santoro, a […]
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — In the contest for best scrapple sculpture in Philadelphia on Friday it was the “Mush Push” fashioned from the regionally popular pork breakfast meat that got Patrick Moser’s entry over the goal line. The Norristown tattoo artist’s tribute to the Philadelphia Eagles’ trademark short yardage play, known as the “tush push,” took […]
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (AP) — Century-old wreaths made from human hair fill the walls of Leila’s Hair Museum, and glass cases overflow with necklaces and watch bands woven from the locks of the dead. There also are tresses purported to come from past presidents, Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe and even Jesus. For about 30 years, this […]
DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — A dog named Eeyore turned into a rescuer, leading a Florida sheriff’s deputy to where a missing 86-year-old woman had fallen while walking him, bodycam footage shows. The woman’s husband reported her missing on the night of Sept. 25 after she didn’t return from her walk. “She just takes that dog, […]
Francine the calico cat is back home at a Lowe’s store in Virginia after going missing for a few weeks, hitching a ride on a truck that turned up at a sister facility in another state. Two employees from a Lowe’s in Richmond made the 90-minute drive early Monday to pick up Francine, who disappeared […]
ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (AP) — A bear surprised shoppers at a southern Arizona grocery store when it walked through the front door and ran around inside for a few minutes before exiting the building. Over the weekend, the bear was seen in the neighborhood near the Fry’s location and was spotted again Monday behind the […]
JAY, Vt. (AP) — Months before the first snow beckons skiers, sheep and goats are hitting the slopes in Vermont. Dozens of animals have been mowing down overgrown vegetation at Jay Peak near the Canadian border. They’re expected to clear 25 acres (10 hectares) over a five-week stint, an experiment officials say is worth a […]
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Police in Northern California were understandably perplexed when they pulled over a Waymo taxi after it made an illegal U-turn, only to find no driver behind the wheel and therefore, no one to ticket. The San Bruno Police Department wrote in now viral weekend social media posts that officers were conducting […]
A veterinarian who refused to return a dog to a homeless man after finding the ailing pit bull mix tied to a truck was convicted of theft Friday in western Michigan. Amanda Hergenreder took the dog on a two-hour drive to her clinic, where she cleared up a severe urinary tract infection and removed a […]
The skateboard that Tony Hawk used to make history in 1999 has sold for a record-breaking $1.15 million, according to a statement from Julien’s Auctions on Wednesday. The deck, called the Birdhouse “Falcon 2,” was used by Hawk to land the first-ever 900 trick — a 2-and-a-half-turn trick few skateboarders dare to try — at […]
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Residents of a San Francisco Bay Area city are on the lookout for an aggressive squirrel that has sent at least two people to the emergency room for medical treatment. Joan Heblack told ABC affiliate KGO-TV that she was walking in the Lucas Valley neighborhood of San Rafael when a squirrel […]
PEMBROKE, Maine (AP) — A bull moose that fell into an abandoned well in Maine was pulled to safety during an elaborate five hour rescue. The operation happened Wednesday after Cole Brown, whose family owned the forested land in northern Maine, spotted a pair of antlers. He heard a noise and initially thought it was […]
ADDISON, Vt. (AP) — NEEDS EDIT — HOLD FOR PHOTOS AND VIDEO FROM AMANDA SWINHART, THEN MOVE SPOT ___ Celine Thouin learned a lot as a student at Franklin Pierce University, and one of the skills she has held onto the longest is how to use an ancient spear-throwing tool. She got to share that […]
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A cloud of smoke from two pounds of methamphetamine seized by the FBI and being incinerated inside a Montana animal shelter prompted its evacuation and sent workers to the hospital, city officials in Billings said. The smoke started to fill the building during a drug burn on Wednesday, apparently because of […]
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — When Alex Babich, 47, stood in his backyard in Fort Wayne, Indiana, craning his neck to look 35 feet into the sky, he wasn’t just staring at a sunflower. He was looking at his roots — and his future legacy. The flower, nicknamed “Clover” and confirmed Wednesday by Guinness World […]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A dying octopus in a Southern California aquarium is receiving an outflowing of love and well wishes as she spends her final days pouring her last energy into caring for her eggs — even though they will never hatch. Many on social media have reminisced about seeing the giant Pacific octopus […]
CAPE MAY, N.J. (AP) — Humpty Dumpty took a big fall, and now police are hoping to crack the case. A playful, colorful statue of the nursery rhyme icon was forcibly removed from a structure at a miniature golf course in Cape May, New Jersey, on Sunday and dumped down the street. Local police say […]
DENVER (AP) — Hikers who climbed a Colorado mountain got more than just a sweeping view at the top. A man in an ice cream cone costume unexpectedly was handing out frozen treats. No one seemed to know the man who carried ice cream sandwiches and dry ice in a 60-pound (27-kilogram) pack up Huron […]
HERSHEY, Pa. (AP) — A lost boy wandering a monorail line high above the crowd at Hersheypark was rescued by a park visitor who climbed onto a building and jumped onto the rails. The child was reported missing at about 5:05 p.m. Saturday after he became separated from his parents, according to a news release […]
