Monthly Archives: June 2021

It isseal season along the coasts of south-east South Australiaand western Victoria, a time of year whenjuvenile seals head to shore as their mothers hunt.

It means more seal sightingsand therefore one of the busiest times of the year for the Australian Marine Wildlife Research and Rescue Organisation (AMWRRO).

Founder Aaron Machado is asking for beach-lovers to take care.

"At the Coorongwe've already had one tragedy where a fisherman has been fishing most of the day, next to a seal and then a four-wheel drive doing great speeds over 60kph ran straight over the top of it," he said.

"That's unfortunately going to happen where you have vehicles on beaches and critters who come ashorelooking like a bit of seaweed."

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A not-for-profit based in Adelaide, the conservation and rescue organisation is open 24/7.

But Mr Machado is stressing the importance of learning when an animal is or is not in need of rescue or assistance.

"We've had probably in excess of 1,000, 1,200 phone calls for the past three weeks," he said.

"A lot of people may live in areas where they haven't seen a seal on the beach before ... but because you may not have seen it in the past, it doesn't mean it's not supposed to be there."

Returning to shore to rest after a few days at seais completely normal behaviour for the juvenile seals.

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They may need help, however,if they have an open wound, are tangled in debris, or skinny enough to see ribs and a dipbetween the shoulder blades.

If an animal appears in need, Mr Machado warns people to contact the professionals first, as seals can become aggressive and distressed.

"They could lash out make a phone call before you interact," he said.

Two main species can be spotted along the coastline the long-nosed fur sealand the endangered Australian sea lion.

It is an offence to harm or kill either protected animal and could result in a $100,000 fine.

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Portland Tourist Association presidentDennis Carrsaid now was the time to spot seal pups from a safe distancealong the beach at Cape Bridgewater.

"They're running along the foreshore there in the late afternoons usually around 3:00pm or 4:00pm," he said.

"They come in with the wavesand play aroundand surf the waves.

"Just remember there are reasons for the rules; it's to protect our sealsand all our fish life."

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Seal season's a busy time for rescue groups, but not all washed-up pups are in need - ABC News

LIANYUNGANG, China, June 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --On the afternoon of June 18, the 2021 Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) International Round Table was successfully held in Lianyungang city, Jiangsu province. The conference was co-hosted by the Secretariat of the SCO and Lianyungang Municipal People's Government, with the theme of "enhancing international cooperation in economy and trade, and promoting facilitation in merchandise exports and imports among SCO member states".

The SCO Secretariat and relevant officials from SCO member states, observer countries, and dialogue partner countries participated in the meeting in the form of "online + offline". The meeting was chaired by Fang Wei, the Mayor of Lianyungang city. Vladimir Norov, Secretary-General of the SCO Secretariat, Hui Jianlin, Deputy Governor of Jiangsu Province, and Xiang Xuelong, Secretary of the CPC Lianyungang Municipal Committee delivered speeches.

As a strong fulcrum for the Belt and Road intersection and the important node city in the New Eurasian Continental Bridge Economic Corridor, Lianyungang assumes the role of a two-way opening window and a sea-land conversion hub. In recent years, with the vigorous economic development of the SCO countries and the in-depth implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, Lianyungang is making every effort to build the SCO overseas base and the China-Kazakhstan logistics cooperation base. The cooperation effects and demonstration effects achieved caused widespread concern.

On the basis of the cooperation results of the first SCO Round Table, using the SCO's actual needs and long-term development of international industrial cooperation and special product trade as entry point, this year's meeting aims at new trends and explores new ideas, new countermeasures, and constructs the international logistics cooperation relationship of mutual respect, mutual support, and win-win cooperation.

Participants affirmed the important contribution of Lianyungang in the SCO member states in fighting the COVID-19 and coping with its negative impact, and noted the huge development potential of port of Lianyungang, and believed that the urban logistics and industrial clusters should be used more actively. It is to strengthen the multilateral cooperation and exchanges in the SCO Free Trade Zone, and develop cooperation in the transportation, transshipment and processing of transnational goods under the framework of the national strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative.

For more details, please visit http://www.scoilp.gov.cn/Default.aspx?mpid=10

SOURCE Lianyungang Municipal People's Government

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The 2021 SCO International Round Table was held in Lianyungang, Jiangsu - PRNewswire

Harris County Precinct 4 hosts a summer movie night event at Kickerillo-Mischer Preserve June 28. (Courtesy Harris County Precinct 4)

Harris County Precinct 4 hosts a Fathers Day Fishing event during which participants can enjoy a leisurely day of fishing and visit the Trails As Parks information booth to find fish ID cards and borrow poles and bait, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis. While all ages are welcome, participants age 17 and older must have a valid Texas fishing license. 9 a.m.-noon. Free. Dennis Johnston Park, 709 Riley Fuzzel Road, Spring. 281-353-8100. http://www.hcp4.net

June 22: Show off 'The Office' knowledge

CityPlace at Springwoods Village hosts a trivia night on the plaza focusing on the NBC television series 'The Office,' as part of a summer-long series. 7:30 p.m. Free. CityPlace at Springwoods Village Plaza, 1250 Lake Plaza Drive, Spring. 713-840-2700. http://www.cityplacespringwoods.com

June 24: Check car seats

Spring Fire Department hosts a child car seat safety check event in partnership with Safe Kids Greater Houston led by Texas Childrens Hospital. Car seat checks are available by appointment only, which can be made in advance by calling 832-824-3481 or emailing [emailprotected]. 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Free. Spring Fire Station No. 74, 23803 Aldine Westfield Road, Spring. 281-355-1266. http://www.springfd.org

June 24: Go for a run

Camp Gladiator trainers will lead a one-, three- and five-mile community run starting at the CityPlace at Springwoods Village Plaza. 6 p.m. Free. CityPlace at Springwoods Village Plaza, 1250 Lake Plaza Drive, Spring. 713-840-2700. http://www.cityplacespringwoods.com

June 28: Watch Aladdin

Families are invited to bring blankets, chair sand snacks to watch Disneys animated film Aladdin. The event includes take-home craft kits, and while registration is not required, space is limited. Kickerillo-Mischer Preserve, 20215 Chasewood Park Drive, Houston. 281-353-8100. http://www.hcp4.net

July 4: Enjoy an Independence Day picnic

Trinity Klein Lutheran Church hosts a church-wide picnic following Sunday service on July 4. The event will feature the music of Lyle Lovett, a tribute to veterans and members of the armed forces, as well as a special message from former U.S. Navy SEAL and author Chad Williams. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own picnic supplies and both indoor and outdoor seating options will be available. To RSVP for the event, click here. 10-11:30 a.m. (church service), 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (picnic). Free. Trinity Klein Lutheran Church, 5201 Spring Cypress Road, Spring. 281-376-5773. http://www.trinityklein.org

July 14: Donate blood

Spring Fire Department hosts a blood drive in partnership with the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center. Appointments can be made in advance by clicking here. 8:30-11:30 a.m. Free. Spring Fire Station No. 71, 656 E. Louetta Road, Spring. 281-355-1266. http://www.springfd.org

July 15: Learn about the state of health care

The Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce hosts its annual State of Health Care panel discussion as part of its monthly Keynote Speaker Series. Panelists include Keith Barber, CEO of Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital, Scott Davis, CEO of HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest, and Mario Garner, president of CHI St. Lukes Hospital-The Vintage Hospital. The virtual event will be hosted via Zoom and attendees can register in advance by clicking here. Noon-1 p.m. Free. 281-440-4160. http://www.houstonnwchamber.org

July 15-17: Shop for a cause

St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Community hosts a three-day garage sale, the proceeds from which will benefit its Community Outreach Ministry. 8 a.m.-3 p.m. daily. Free. St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Community Christus Center, 7810 Cypresswood Drive, Spring. 281-370-3401. http://www.ignatiusloyola.org

July 16: Watch Mulan

Families are invited to bring blankets, chair sand snacks to watch Disneys animated film Mulan. The event includes take-home craft kits, and while registration is not required, space is limited. Collins Park, 6727 Cypresswood Drive, Spring. 281-353-8100. http://www.hcp4.net

All month: Return to the library

After reopening to the public in May for the first time in more than a year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Barbara Bush Branch Library will host a variety of in-person and virtual events this summer ranging from writing workshops for teens to book clubs for adults. For a complete list of events, click here. Barbara Bush Branch Library, 6817 Cypresswood Drive, Spring. 832-927-7800. http://www.hcpl.net/branch/barbara-bush-branch-library

LIVE MUSIC

Vintage Park

110 Vintage Park Blvd., Ste. 270, Houston

281-655-8000

http://www.vintageparkhouston.com

June

19 Twin Connection, 7-10 p.m.

24 Yelba Heaton Band, 7-10 p.m.

25 Adrian Michael, 7-10 p.m.

26 Gary Michael Dahl Band, 7-10 p.m.

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'The Office' trivia, Father's Day fishing: 15 events, things to do in Spring and Klein in June, July - Community Impact Newspaper

Newly released documents show a Tasmanian government staff member called for an investigation into the procedures and requirements of staff at aquaculture giant Tassal after the death of a seal in 2018.

WARNING: This story contains images and descriptions which may causedistress

The documents also showthe number of seals that are killed and injured due to the approved and legislated use of deterrents is likely to be much higher than reported.

The documents were released followinga Right to Information (RTI) request onthe use of seal deterrents used by salmon farm giants Tassal, Huon Aquacultureand Petuna.

They showa number of investigations were made by the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment (DPIPWE) into the deaths of seals in and around salmon leases across the state.

Supplied: DPIPWE

The investigation started in 2018 after a seal was found dead on a Tassal fish containment pen at Nubeena, alleged to be caused by a scare cap dart that was found within the abdominal cavity and intestines of the animal.

DPIPWE wildlife biologistSam Thalmann, who performed a necropsy on the seal, indicated to his colleagues via email that, "the dart had penetrated the skin and torn through the small intestines of the seal" and was located and clearly identified in the "small intestines".

"The Tassal staff who were present during the necropsy showed no signs of disturbance nor any indication that anything out of the ordinary had occurred to result in the injury and subsequent death," he wrote

"It is certainly my understanding that they were strongly of the impression that this death occurred through "normal" mitigation activities and deployment of deterrent devices.

ABC News: Manika Champ

"Given the outcome of this incident, the current culture and attitude of the staff, in association with an unknown number of seal deaths and subsequent identification into cause of death, I believe that some form of investigation into the procedures, adherence to a minimum requirements (ie minimum distance) and identification of the type of firearm (and available pressures) for deploying these darts is required. "

The documents show that a condition of the permit for fish farmers to use seal deterrent devices states that seal scare caps should not be discharged when a seal is within 5 metres of the permit holder.

The documents show that in the 2018 calendar year up to October, Mr Thalmann recorded 34 dead marine mammal reports from the aquaculture industry.

"Necropsies could only be performed on 12 of the seals retrieved, with 50 per cent of these showing blunt force trauma contributing to their death," Mr Thalmann said.

It is documented that Mr Thalmann believes the findings are likely "a large underestimate of the proportion of seals that die due to approved and legislated deterrent use".

"This is also likely a large underestimate as many seals with injury/penetrating wounds resulting from deterrents would leave the area and die outside of the lease area," he wrote.

Supplied: DPIPWE

"I can personally testify that this appears to be the case as having performed recent survey work around seal haul-outs adjacent to marine farming zones, I have noted a proportion of injured and debilitated seals in significant higher densities than would be expected to occur at a wild haul-out."

The documents also show the government department issued 789 seal deterrent permits over a three-year period.

Over this period, aquaculture giant Tassal used 55,798 seal crackers and 3,647 rounds of bean bags against seals, Huon Aquaculture used 16,008 crackers and 315 rounds of bean bags to deter the seals and Petuna used 3,533 seal crackers and no bean bags.

Following the findings from the necropsies, Mr Thalmann had email correspondence with his colleagues at DPIPWE to recommend the department implement a number of actions, including the banning of "scare-cap devices from firearms with multiple power settings" and further investigations to determine what tissue damage may result from scare-caps and bean bags on seals.

The documents also showed in September 2019, a seal was reported to be injured but alive at a Tassal marine farming lease at Tinderbox.

An investigation into the incident indicated the seal was trying to access a fish pen when a DPIPWE wildlife ranger attempted to contain the seal in an empty fish pen and then trap or sedate the seal to remove it from the pen and transfer it to a holding cage.

The documents indicate the seal was successfully trapped and transferred to Tassal's onshore facility at Electrona before it was examined the following morning.

Supplied: DPIPWE

Overnight, the seal had vomited a significant amount of partly digested farmed salmon and on further examination, the seal had the tail of a beanbag hanging from between the eyelids of the closed left eye.

Wildlife officers said during email correspondence that, "there was obvious swelling of the soft tissues of the left eye, however, there was discharge weeping from the eye."

It is documented that the beanbag projectile lodged in its eye caused permanent ocular damageand the animal was euthanased the following day.

Beanbags are lead-filled projectiles encased in a Kevlar bag that are fired to deter seals from marine farm staff and associated infrastructure.

In email correspondence, DPIPWE staff noted a conversation with Tassal about the incident, in which it was alleged the Tassal staff member said he was aware ofthe incident and indicated that there had been an internal investigation into the matter.

But it was found to be unintentional as it is "hard, as they are fast" and no internal disciplinary action was to be undertaken.

The documents show DPIPWE staff indicated this incident to be a compliance issue on two fronts. Firstly, they said: "Beanbags should never be discharged towards the head of a seal."

And secondly, they claimedit is a permit requirement that injuries caused to seals are reported to a DPIPWE contact officer within one hour of the event, but it is alleged this particular injury was not called in within the time frame.

The wildlife offer said, "we believe it is highly unlikely that the shooter wouldn't have realised the animal had been struck in the head at the time."

Environment Tasmania said the new documents showed there needs to be an investigation by the integrity commission around the salmon industry'streatment of seals.

Supplied: DPIPWE

"We've got people working in open water, shooting weapons and exploding underwater crackers at seals, that can then swim off and die slowly and inhumanly," Environment Tasmania's lead marine campaigner Jilly Middleton said.

"Members of the public were finding the seals. Some had eye wounds, some had gashes to their skin, some of them were too old to tell what was going on."

She said while government representatives continue to remind the industry of their obligations, there needto be changes to practices.

"One of the issues we're really worried about is the misuse of the weaponry that the salmon farmers are using on the seals," Ms Middleton said.

"One of the concerns raised in the RTI papers is there was an attitude and culture amongst the staff at the time [of one of the seal deaths]that indicated that this was normal, this was an expected outcome, this was par for the course and none of them were surprised."

ABC News: Alison Costelloe

A spokesperson for Tassal said the company'sprimary effort is exclusion and that they do not seek to engage with wildlife except when necessary.

"However, we do operate in wild environments, and occasional wildlife interactions do occur."

"Tassal is committed to compliance with all regulations regarding seal and wildlife management around our operational areas."

Tasmania is to ban salmon farmer Tassal from relocating seals in the south to the state's north by the end of the year.

"We publicly report on our interactions with wildlife through our online sustainability reporting dashboard."

The aquaculture giant said they dedicate resources to animal welfare and farm practices, including a $90 millionrollout of sanctuary pens to strengthen the exclusion of wildlife.

"The welfare of both our fish and the marine mammals and birds that interact with our farms is of critical importance to us."

The Minister for Primary Industries and Resources Guy Barnett said he was unaware of the findings found in the RTI documents about seal deaths and deterrents.

"We have a seal management plan and a framework that operates across the salmon and fishing industry, it's an important framework and it should be abided by," Mr Barnett said.

"Animal welfare is a top priority for our government, it's a very serious matter."

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Calls for inquiry into legislated and approved animal deterrents following Tasmanian seal deaths - ABC News

A SEAL, nicknamed Sid, which has been spotted eating fish in the River Wye near Chepstow is not having an effect on salmon stocks according to Natural Resources Wales (NRW).

It has been noted that his impact on the river's salmon could be more than that of the area's fishermen - who are now required to adopt a catch-and-release method.

Sid the seal 'not having an effect' on salmon stocks in the Wye

The fishermen at Black Rock Lave Net Heritage Fishery, for example, have long debated with NRW over the implementation of this rule.

The fishermen said that such a rule could spell the end of their craft.

NRW, however, have said that Sid's salmon-catching is not having any effect on the stocks of the fish in the river.

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"There are two types of seal found around the British Isles the common (harbour) seal and the grey seal," said a spokesperson.

Sid the seal 'not having an effect' on salmon stocks in the Wye

"Both are relatively common and in certain areas are seeing their numbers increase an issue which some say is responsible for reducing fish stocks and leads to concerns from sea and freshwater anglers alike.

"They are on the IUCN Red List for endangered species, grey seals are protected by the Habitats Directive and the Conservation of Seals Act in the UK and have legal protection in Special Areas of Conservation and Special Sites of Scientific Interest.

Sid the seal 'not having an effect' on salmon stocks in the Wye

They said that seals such as Sid are a"a natural feature of the Wye estuary and are often spotted there".

Sid's antics are, NRW said: "An example of nature in action.

"The seal is within its natural range.

"It is not an indication that the salmon stocks are either declining or recovering."

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Sid the salmon-eating seal "not having an effect" on fish in the River Wye - South Wales Argus

A baby seal gets its first swimming lesson at an aquarium in Japan.

One of the cutest corners of the Internet has to be the place that consistently dishes out cute animal videos. Atthe end of a bad day, watching a few videos of kittens, dogs or any of our other favourite animals being their natural self can prove to be quite relaxing. The latest animal video that has grabbed the Internet's attention is the clip of ababy seal having its first encounter with swimming.The video of the little one being dipped in a pool of water for the first time has gone viral on social media thanks tojust how cute the animal looks.

The video was originally shared by the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan of Japan on their official YouTube channel in May, but grabbed the Internet's attention recently.Itfeatures an instructor holding the baby seal and gently dipping it by the tail end into a pool. The seal initially stays still, moving only to look up at the instructor before it begins to use its arms inswimming-like motions. At this point, the instructor lowers the body of the seal into the water, placing his hand around the nape and chest area of the seal as it begins to swim. Soon the seal takes to the water confidently, and at one point even swims in between the instructor's legs as he watches on.

After a successful maiden swim, the seal is taken out of the pool and towel-dried by the instructors. At this point, several users who saw the video were willing to admit that this seal swimming had to one of the cutest sights on the Internet.The videomade it to Twitter thanks to former American basketball player Rex Chapman who shared a short clip on his feed. Along with it, he wrote, "This baby seal being introduced to water for the very first time is the sweetest thing you'll see today"

The video has garnered over 2.7 million 'views' on the mirco-blogging site since it was uploaded on Wednesday. Reacting to the clip, one user said, "I like the way he looks to his human assistant for reassurance."

Praising the instructor, another viewer wrote, "I don't think I have even seen a human baby handled more gently during an introduction to water!"

Since it was uploaded on YouTube on May 25, 2021, the videohas been viewed over 4 million times, so far, and has garnered 1.5 lakh'likes'.

Responding to the video, one YouTube viewer said, "An earless dog with fins is what that is." Another comment said, " I don't know why this was in my recommended feed but I would die for that seal."

Take a look at some of the other reactions.

Tell us what you think of the cute seal's first brush with swimming.

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This Video Of A Baby Seal's First Swim Lesson Will Melt Your Heart Into A Puddle - NDTV