Florida battles slimy invasion by giant snails

South Florida is fighting a growing infestation of one of the world’s most destructive invasive species: the giant African land snail, which can grow as big as a rat and gnaw through stucco and plaster.
More than 1,000 of the mollusks are being caught each week in Miami-Dade and 117,000 in total since the first snail was spotted by a homeowner in September 2011, said Denise Feiber, a spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Residents will soon likely begin encountering them more often, crunching them underfoot as the snails emerge from underground hibernation at the start of the state’s rainy season in just seven weeks, Feiber said.
The snails attack “over 500 known species of plants - pretty much anything that’s in their path and green,” Feiber said. More

Police stop 6-year-old driver heading for Chinese food

Illinois – Police in Lapeer responded to an unusual phone call Saturday morning from  drivers on M-24 who reported a vehicle driving erratically.
“They told police when they called that it looked like a 6-year-old was  driving the car,” said Sgt. Andy Engster of the Lapeer County Sheriff’s  Department. “And they were exactly right.”
By the time police arrived to pull over the six-year-old boy, two drivers of  other vehicles had already boxed him into a turnaround, said Engster. One  reached into the window and pulled the keys out of the ignition.
When police asked the boy why he took the car, he told them he was going to  get Chinese food. More

Couple too scared to leave home – terrorized by an angry pheasant

Vandalizing cars, attacking the elderly and head-butting windows.
Phil has become notorious in his home village. Phil is a very territorial pheasant.
Residents of Wentnor in Shropshire spoke of their despair yesterday at the bird’s behaviour, with some saying they can’t leave their home for fear of being pecked and chased.
Experts said this is probably because Phil  has become confused, seeing  her as a rival male pheasant.
Sally-Ann Hudson, a medical secretary,  said: “Sometimes I go from one room into another, and he will run round  the outside of the house following my movements. “
“He even tries to get into the house – it’s  like something from a Hitchcock film. 
Residents of Wentnor in Shropshire spoke of their despair yesterday at the bird’s behaviour, with some saying they can’t leave their home for fear of being pecked and chased. More

Dead hamster rises from the grave

England – Over the Easter weekend, one pet in Painswick, England was literally getting  into the holiday spirit – after she rose from the grave on Good Friday.
Tink, a 2-year-old hamster, was found lifeless in her cage by Lisa  Kilbourne-Smith, 23, and her boyfriend James Davis, 24, who were watching her  for a friend, Stroud News and Journal reported.
Believing Tink to be dead, the couple phoned the hamster’s owner about the  news.  They then wrapped the hamster in a paper towel and buried her one  foot below the surface in a flower bed.
The next day, on Good Friday,  Tink had eaten her way out of the paper  towel and dug out of the soil. Tink was discovered by Lisa’s father Les while he was in the garden, crushing  boxes to recycle.
According to veterinarians, it was likely that Tink was hibernating, a common  practice for hamsters. More

Man wants to be reimbursed after dog eats $500

Montana – A Montana man whose 12-year-old golden retriever ate five $100 bills hopes to  be reimbursed by the federal government.
Wayne Klinkel tells the Independent Record that his dog Sundance ate the  bills while he and his wife were on a road trip to visit their daughter.
Klinkel says he carefully picked through the dog’s droppings, and his  daughter recovered more when snow melted.
He says he washed the remnants of the bills and taped them together and sent  them to the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing with an  explanation of what happened. More

Baby seal found in forest four miles from sea

Sweden - A baby seal has been discovered in a forest four miles away from the coast by a perplexed walker. A member of the public was strolling through Uppsala in Sweden when they made the shock discovery. Officials are baffled as to how the animal got there. A somewhat confused person called and said he was out walking in the woods where he had found a seal pup. I thought he was joking at first, the local policeman Henrik Pederson said. More

Dog Runs Over Pedestrian With Car

Pennsylvania – Police say a dog that was left in an unattended vehicle pushed it into drive and the car struck a pedestrian in central Pennsylvania.
West York Police say the accident happened shortly before 11:30 a.m. and the pedestrian was found lying in the street.
The York Daily Record reports police say the car had been left running when the dog inside knocked it into gear, causing it to slowly drive away.
Police say the unnamed pedestrian tried to stop the car before it hit a parked truck, but was unsuccessful and was caught between the two vehicles.