Posted on 12/29/2004 6:17:33 AM PST by NYer
As the human death toll from Sunday's earthquake and subsequent tsunami continues to skyrocket in Asia, a mystery is unfolding in Sri Lanka.
Somehow, the animals survived the disaster.
According to reports out of Colombo, Sri Lankan wildlife officials are said to be stunned.
"The strange thing is we haven't recorded any dead animals," H.D. Ratnayake, deputy director of the national Wildlife Department, told Reuters. "No elephants are dead, not even a dead hare or rabbit."
"I think animals can sense disaster," he added. "They have a sixth sense. They know when things are happening."
The sentiment was echoed by Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne, whose Jetwing Eco Holidays runs a hotel in the Yala National Park, the country's largest wildlife reserve where hundreds of wild elephants dwell along with some 130 other species.
"This is very interesting. I am finding bodies of humans, but I have yet to see a dead animal,'' he told the Associated Press.
Floodwaters reportedly rushed up to two miles inland at the park, where 41 human bodies have been recovered so far, including 13 foreigners, according to Lanka Business Online.
Wildlife officers reportedly found a 13-year-old boy yesterday morning, the only survivor of the tsunami at the park.
Wildlife Conservation Director General Dayananda Kariyawasam told the paper except for dead fish, no carcasses of animals have been found.
The human death toll in Sri Lanka exceeds 21,000.
The riddle has been solved.
The coastal areas are normally the most populated places near the water. Where people are, wild animals typically aren't.
Plus the humans that drowned probably were holding onto something while trying to survive,so they would up on the land while the water recessed. As our furry friends lack hands.
It's not that big of a mystery.
you think they feel something pressure-wise?
interesting theory....
That may be true, but thats 2/3 the speed of sound at sea level, and so the sound wouldn't have reached the shore much before the wave did.
Animals are not curius. When something bizarre happens, they move away from it, not toward it.
That's my thinking. The average animal can do 20MPH easily. If the wave was doing thirty, it'd be no problem for the creatures to get out of Dodge.
MY concern now is this: Don't these things usually happen back-to-back? Shouldn't we be expecting another quake soon?
I just threw out some old pumpernickel rye bread. They are straddling the fence and won't come down. Birds don't like dark bread or chocolate cake. I wonder sometimes if they are color blind. What I do now is I get a slice of white bread and when they swoop down for that that's when they find the black bread and eat it. They also avoid the food if they sense a cat's around.
Animals run fast.
"Not even a bunny, or a hare?"
There must be some TOUGH bunnies in Sri Lanka...
One of the FOX News reports I saw from Phu Ket showed dogs [including puppies] climbing around in the wreckage of the village the reporter was in. If the locals are amazed that there are no dead animals, they must have a reason to be-- they have pets, too. Don't for get rats and cats who live right in amongst people.
There are some 'tough' blue jays in my neighborhood, who love nothing more than to taunt my cats ;-D
From www.weather.gov "In deep water, the waves may reach speeds exceeding 500 miles per hour."
"Just from watching the birds we feed in our backyard, they disapear right before a storm."
Thanks for the reminder! I forgot to fill the feeders this morning, LOL!
I agree. Those critters headed for the hills before the wave hit. If they could dial a phone, they would've been on planes flying out of there hours before. ;)
All animals are good swimmers, and they _never_ give up trying to survive.
Yep, they headed to high ground wondering why all the two-legged idiots were just sitting there.
My Tessio cat hides in the Laundry Room when a storm comes in. I find her behind the commode. It is a room with no windows. When I find her there I am alarmed because a storm is either on the way or has just started. She is my clue that something is up.
Natures checks and balances...
They also understand what V-E-T spells.
That sound you heard was a collective sigh of relief from all the hardcore PETA members. 600,000 people may die, but at least no animals got killed.
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