Category: Outdoors

Big-wave surfer admits this was ‘my worst wipeout ever’

Jamie Mitchell thought it was going to be a special day when competing in the 2019 Jaws Big Wave Championships. Instead, it was forgettable.

Jamie Mitchell thought it was going to be a special day when competing in the 2019 Jaws Big Wave Championships last week in Maui, Hawaii, but instead it was a day to forget, and parts of it he did forget. Like during what he called “my worst wipeout ever.”

On Saturday, Surfer Today posted video of the wicked wipeout:

“It was not how I envisioned my day going,” the Australian surfer told Surfer Today. “I was 100 percent ready and thought it was going to be a special day for me. But Mother Nature had other ideas.

“I will say it was my worst wipeout ever. I hit so hard when I fell I’m not sure if I blacked out or not. But I remember getting sucked over and then was instantly on the bottom and pinned to the rocks on my back.

“There was so much intensity down there. I don’t even know how to explain it. Thank God it finally let me up, and I hit the surface with a second to spare before the next one mowed me.

“I saw stars after that. I tried to go back out and get back into the heat but I couldn’t see straight, and my balance was off. So, not the day I wanted.”

Also on FTW Outdoors: Watch shark knock 7-year-old boy off surfboard

For the record, Billy Kemper and Paige Alms, both Maui natives, won the men’s and women’s divisions with Kemper winning it for an unprecedented fourth time and Alms for the third time.

The event played out Thursday in 30- to 50-foot waves at Peahi.

Photo courtesy of Surfer Today and the World Surf League.

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Swimmers reach shore just in time after shark siren blares

Swimmers in Cape Town, South Africa, headed for the beach in a hurry when the shark siren blared. They reached shore just in time.

It might not have rivaled the “get out of the water” scene of “Jaws,” but swimmers at Fish Hoek Beach in Cape Town, South Africa, headed for the beach in a hurry, some faster than others, when the shark siren blared. And they appeared to reach shore just in time.

Aly Ison captured video of the moment after Shark Spotters sounded the alarm and moments later also recorded footage of the actual shark close to shore.

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“When the shark alarm goes off and you actually see the shark,” Ison wrote on Facebook. “The Shark Spotters do an amazing job spotting the sharks in the bay. This one appears to be a bronze whaler.”

The Shark Spotters confirmed it was, indeed, a bronze whaler, a.k.a. a copper shark, according to The South African.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Watch shark knock 7-year-old boy off surfboard

Fish Hoek Beach is about a mile long and is protected from currents and strong surf as it sits within False Bay. Shark Spotters are often on duty and when they sound the alarm, the locals know the drill, especially considering there were fatal shark attacks in this bay in 2004 and 2011.

Usually when a shark is spotted, officials can deploy exclusion barriers to protect the swimmers in the bay, but “due to fishing activity in Fish Hoek corner” they couldn’t be activated, The South African reported.

Photo courtesy of Aly Ison.

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Bizarre catches by Russian fisherman

A commercial fisherman started photographing weird catches that come up in the trawling nets, and some of the fish are out of this world.

Roman Fedortsov works as a commercial fisherman on a trawler out of the port city of Murmansk in the northwest part of Russia. He began photographing the bizarre catches his boat made and started posting the photos on social media.

He now has more than half a million followers on Instagram.

These strange-looking fish are out of this world. Behold…

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Video showing man riding on back of deer leads to arrest

An Oregon man has been arrested on wildlife harassment charges after video surfaced showing him riding on the back of a wild buck mule deer.

An 18-year-old Oregon man has been charged with wildlife harassment and animal abuse after video surfaced showing him riding on the back of a mule deer.

Oregon State Police identified two men suspected in the Dec. 6 stunt after reviewing the footage – since removed from social media platforms – as part of an investigation that also involved the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife.

Jacob Belcher, of Riley, was identified as the man riding on the back of a buck that had become trapped inside a fenced area in Harney County.

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“Throughout the video, the mule deer buck can be heard grunting and/or bleating and after escaping the rider, the buck jumped into a linked fence, multiple times, attempting to escape the enclosure,” Oregon State Police stated in a news release issued Tuesday night. “The buck was eventually freed and its status at this time is unknown.”

Mule deer image courtesy of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Belcher, who was arrested and sent to Harney County Jail, was charged with wildlife harassment and animal abuse.

The secondary suspect, who was not identified, was said to have videotaped the stunt and faces charges of “Aiding in a Wildlife Offense.”

Charges were referred to the Harney County District Attorney’s Office.

Hunter sprays deer repellent in brother’s hunting spot, is cited

An unusual dispute came to light when an officer got a complaint about hunter harassment only to find it was one brother reporting another.

A family feud between two hunters in Michigan culminated in a man admitting to a conservation officer that he sprayed deer repellent on his brother’s hunting stands.

The unusual dispute came to light when Department of Natural Resources conservation officer Mike Wells received a complaint about hunter harassment in Newaygo County only to discover it was one brother reporting the other, according to MLive.com.

The complainant has two hunting stands that sit on U.S. Forest Service property, which is located next to a private camp that was willed to both brothers by their father. The other brother hunts from a blind on the private property.

The complainant told Wells he was “extremely frustrated” by his brother’s continued harassment while on the private property. He proceeded to give Wells two SD Cards from trail cameras that showed a subject wearing a yellow backpack sprayer spraying the two hunting stands on Forest Service land.

Wells accompanied the complainant to the stands and collected evidence samples of the unknown liquid.

Then, on the morning of the firearm season, Wells approached the suspected brother as he hunted from the blind on private property and discovered he was illegally hunting over bait.

Wells confronted the suspect and showed him a photo from the trail camera, at which point he confessed to spraying both stands because his brother was intentionally cutting off the deer by hunting the public land next to the private camp.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Watch shark knock 7-year-old boy off surfboard

He also admitted that the spray was “liquid fence,” designed to deter deer from entering the area and that he did it to scare deer away. He apologized and told Wells his emotions got the best of him.

Wells submitted a warrant request for hunter harassment and baiting deer when prohibited.

According to Michigan law, unlawful baiting deer is a misdemeanor offense that carries a penalty of a maximum of 90 days in jail, a fine between $50 and $500, court costs and state fees, and loss of hunting privileges at the court’s discretion.

Hunter harassment is also a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to 93 days and/or a fine of between $500 and $1,000 plus court costs.

“I suppose this means the gift exchange is cancelled for them this Christmas,” one commenter on MLive.com quipped.

Photo of a deer courtesy of USFWS. Photo of a typical deer stand in Michigan courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.

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Great white sharks show off Hilton Head; first catch is ‘perfect’

Great white sharks that generated so many headlines off Cape Cod during the summer and fall are beginning to show off South Carolina.

Great white sharks that generated so many headlines off Cape Cod during the summer are beginning to show off South Carolina.

Capt. Chip Michalove of Outcast Sport Fishing logged his first tag-and-release of the season Sunday off Hilton Head, involving a young female shark that “took off like a bullet” after the hook was removed.

“She originally grabbed the bait right behind the boat, but missed the hook,” Michalove explained on Facebook. “About an hour later she came back more aggressive and took it all. Perfect hook set and perfect tag application.”

And perfect photo.

The junior apex predator measured only 8 feet, but opened wide to reveal a classic set of great white shark choppers before she was set free, allowing for a spectacular image capture (top and bottom images).

Salt Creek Outfitters accompanied Michalove to gather footage for a documentary and afterward stated, “Man are we glad we did, this shark put on a show for us yesterday and she wasn’t afraid to show off her smile, either.”

Michalove, who has a scientific permit to tag white sharks, told For The Win Outdoors that white sharks are just beginning to arrive off Hilton Head.

“They’re right on time this winter,” he said. “The water is much colder than usual so I was curious if they already went by.”

Michalove said early arrivals tend to be juveniles, with adult sharks showing a bit later and ranging “for a few months” between South Carolina and Florida.

“By Christmas or early January we get a 14- to 16-footer, like clockwork,” the captain said.

The sharks do not have thousands of seals on which to prey, as they do during the summer feeding months in coastal waters off Cape Cod. Michalove said they’re more opportunistic beyond Hilton Head, “looking for anything sick, dying or weak to eat.”

–Images showing the great white shark caught and released Sunday are courtesy of Outcast Sport Fishing and Salt Creek Outfitters

What in the world is this creature?

Can you guess the creature in this photo posted to the Facebook page of John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum in Philadelphia?

A photo of an unidentified species from the Animal Kingdom was posted to the Facebook page of John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum over the weekend with this question: Can you guess what creature this is?

The hint was a voracious insectivore.

A day later the answer was revealed. It is an eastern red bat.

“This solitary bat roosts in trees during warmer seasons, often disguised as dead leaves,” the Philadelphia, Pa., refuge explained on Facebook. “To survive the winter cold, they migrate south where they can remain active or drop into the leaf litter and go into a state of torpor! Torpor, like hibernation, is a state of reduced metabolism and activity in response to cold temperature.

“The difference between hibernation and torpor is that hibernation is for an extended period, while torpor can be shorter. Eastern red bats, like this one found in December, can come out of torpor on warmer winter days to feed.

“So next time you are walking and you notice a rather fuzzy leaf…take a closer look!”

The eastern red bat, with its distinctive fur, is known to inhabit eastern North America and Bermuda.

Photos of the roosting eastern red bat courtesy of Kim Sheridan/USFWS. Photo of an eastern red bat being held is from Wikipedia Commons.

Also on FTW Outdoors:

Burmese pythons to be part of Super Bowl LIV

Watch: Shark knocks 7-year-old boy off surfboard

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Great white shark gets stuck in divers’ cage

Disturbing video has surfaced showing a great white shark trying to squeeze into a cage with divers inside at Mexico’s Guadalupe Island.

Disturbing video has surfaced showing a great white shark trying to squeeze into a cage with divers inside at Mexico’s Guadalupe Island. (Warning: The video contains graphic footage.)

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Mexican activist Arturo Islas Allende shared the video to his social media platforms under a title that translates to “Negligence kills white shark.” He implicated a Nautilus Dive Adventures vessel and complained that cage openings were not adjusted in a manner to keep sharks and divers safe.

RELATED: Can you spot the hidden object in this great white shark photo?

The divers, who were clearly frightened as the massive predator writhed after getting its head stuck in a cage opening, were not injured. It remains unclear whether the shark, in fact, perished after its ordeal.

Nautilus Liveaboards had not responded to inquiries about the incident, which occurred in October, at the time of this post.

Guadalupe Island is seasonal home to dozens of adult great white sharks and regarded as one of the world’s premier shark-diving destinations. In typical situations, crews on the vessels will pull baits toward cages so divers in cages can photograph the apex predators in close quarters.

Crews are not allowed to feed sharks, and cages must meet specifications set by the Mexican government.

Michael Domeier, president and executive director of the Marine Conservation Science Institute, has conducted extensive shark research at Guadalupe Island. Many sharks are identifiable based on distinctive markings and are part of an expansive database.

Domeier told For The Win Outdoors that the shark in the video is named Stouffer.

Domeier declined to guess why the shark tried to get inside the cage, but added: “It doesn’t look to me like the bait was too close. For some reason that shark wanted what was in the cage. It hit the cage, backed up, then charged again. It could have turned and swam away.”

–Images and video are courtesy of Arturo Islas Allende

Burmese pythons to be part of Super Bowl LIV

In a lead-up to Super Bowl LIV, the state of Florida is hosting the Python Bowl as part of the big game’s philanthropic focus.

As a lead-up to Super Bowl LIV and in concert with the Miami Super Bowl Host committee, the Python Bowl will be staged in the Everglades on Jan. 10-19 as part of the Super Bowl’s philanthropic focus.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, holding what looked to be a python-skinned football, announced Thursday the opening of registration for the 2020 Python Challenge Python Bowl, a python-catching contest that will help rid the Everglades of the invasive constrictors.

The pro and rookie catching the longest python will each win $2,000. The most pythons in both pro and rookie categories will win a $5,000 Tracker 570 Off Road ATV. Other money and prizes will be by random drawings. The winners will be announced Jan. 25 at a Super Bowl LIV event. The actual Super Bowl is Feb. 2.

The Python Bowl is open to the public, but those who register must first complete a free online training on how to safely catch and handle pythons.

“The protection of our environment and natural resources is critical,” Governor DeSantis said. “Invasive Burmese pythons have decimated local wildlife and pose a massive threat to natural food chains and flora and fauna. The 2020 Python Bowl is sure to be a great success, and I look forward to the positive effects it will have on preserving and protecting the Everglades ecosystem.”

The governor also announced that python contractors will immediately be able to access over 150 miles of secondary trails within Big Cypress National Park.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Hikers take risk Grand Canyon officials warn against

Pythons were discovered in the Everglades two decades ago and have established a population estimated to be over 100,000. The creatures are causing serious damage to the ecosystem of the Everglades as they feed on native wildlife like deer, bobcats, alligators, possum and rabbits.

The Florida Wildlife Commission and South Florida Water Management District instituted an eradication program that rewards python hunters for catching the invasive species. The Python Bowl is in addition to that program.

“As a conservation biologist, it is exciting to be completely aligned with our policy-makers including FWC Commissioners and the governor to combat this important conservation issue,” Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission executive director Eric Sutton said.

Every Super Bowl has a philanthropic focus and, for the first time, the environment has been chosen as the emphasis with the Ocean to Everglades (OSE) initiative, involving the Host Committee, the Everglades Foundation and Ocean Conservancy.

Rodney Barreto, chairman of the Miami Super Bowl Host Committee, sits on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

“We know Governor DeSantis and many partners have long been committed to environmental initiatives like this,” Barreto said. “With the support of the Miami Super Bowl Committee, we now have a broader audience ready to learn more about the unique ecosystem of South Florida and how they can help conserve it.”

Photo of Florida governor Ron DeSantis holding a python-skinned football courtesy of the Governor’s Press Office.

Four people holding a record 17-foot python courtesy of Big Cypress National Preserve.

Three people holding massive python courtesy of USGS.

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Massive Mola mola surprises whale watchers

For a group of whale watchers on Tuesday, the highlight did not involve whales or dolphins, but a bizarre-looking fish called a Mola mola.

For a group of San Diego whale watchers on Tuesday, the highlight did not involve whales or dolphins, but a bizarre-looking fish called a Mola mola.

The surprise encounter occurred 10 miles southwest of Mission Bay as Capt. Domenic Biagini, of Gone Whale Watching San Diego, was searching for cetaceans. The Mola mola, or ocean sunfish, stood out because of its immense size and pale coloration as it lolled beneath the surface.

“It was really neat because most of the people on the boat specialized in diving, so this whole trip was something different for them,” Biagini told For The Win Outdoors. “Right as they got on the boat they asked about molas, and I explained how we haven’t seen that many this year. So for this to have happened on this specific trip made it that much more special.”

Mola molas are the world’s largest bony fishes (these do not include sharks or rays) and can measure up to 14 feet and weigh 5,000 pounds. They inhabit tropical and temperate seas and feed primarily on sea jellies, squid, small fish, and crustaceans.

Because of their truncated bodies, the position of their fins, and their odd-shaped mouths, their appearance is otherworldly. Or, as the Monterey Bay Aquarium states on its website, “Ocean sunfish, or molas, look like the invention of a mad scientist.”


Biagini said most Mola molas encountered off Southern California measure 2 to 3 feet, but the sunfish that swam around his boat for 10 minutes on Tuesday measured at least 7 feet.

“It was by far the largest I’ve ever seen,” he said.

The divers on the boat were so impressed that some were tempted to jump in for a swim with the docile critter. “It was hard keeping them in the boat,” Biagini joked. “But everyone behaved.”

–Images courtesy of Gone Whale Watching San Diego