Mommy, pictured, Abrazzo are the parents of a clutch of Western Santa Cruz Galapagos tortoises that hatched at the Philadelphia Zoo earlier this year. The parents are centenarians, which is about middle age for the species. (Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Zoo ),
Who says 100 is too old to become a parent?
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Certainly not Mommy, who’s a bit of a blue blood, and her partner Abrazzo. The two centenarians from Philadelphia are first-time parents. It was a natural birth, and their four offspring are thriving.
Oh, did we mention Mommy and Abrazzo are endangered Western Santa Cruz Galapagos tortoises, or that 100 is considered middle-aged for their species?
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The hatchlings are the first in the Philadelphia Zoo’s 150-year history. More eggs in the clutch could hatch in the coming weeks.
Mommy, who was given her maternal-sounding name decades before she earned it, is the oldest first-time mom of her species. She is also considered one of the most genetically valuable Galapagos tortoises in the Species Survival Plan run by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. It’s a program focused on managing and breeding endangered species found exclusively on the southwestern slopes of Santa Cruz Island.
(Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Zoo) Cops Need Help Uncovering Mystery
Police in Gurnee, Illinois, are asking for the public’s help in blowing the lid off a mysterious crime spree that is both confounding and dangerous and creates gaping holes in sidewalks and streets.
Manhole covers have been disappearing around town in recent days. No one knows why, whether they’re being repurposed, or if it’s just a spring fling intended to leave people wondering.
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Police took a light-hearted tone in a Facebook post.
“It seems we’ve got a mystery on our hands. Our manhole covers are disappearing faster than your last slice of pizza at a family gathering,” authorities said. “We’re on the case, but we need your help to stop these thieves and keep our streets safe and well-covered.”
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Levity aside, police warned people to watch their step, writing, “We don’t want you to become part of the mystery yourself.”
(Photo courtesy of Gurnee Police Department) ‘Just Blind Luck’
A missing 74-year-old woman survived three days of freezing temperatures in the northern Michigan woods after she got lost driving home from a casino and her car caught fire and burned.
The woman from Norton Shores, which is about 90 miles from the Little River Casino, hadn’t been seen for three days on Sunday, April 6, when authorities were called to investigate a report of a burned-out vehicle on the long driveway to a rarely used seasonal home in Grant Township.
After an aerial search using thermal imaging, the woman was found lying next to a downed tree in a heavily wooded area about 7:08 p.m. She was using the tree to shield herself from rain, authorities said.
The burned vehicle was found on the long drive to the seasonal home. Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole said it was “just blind luck” that the homeowners were staying there at the time.
The judge presiding over the Bryan Kohberger murder trial has set final ground rules ahead of the high-profile proceedings, including a restriction on emotionally charged language during key parts of the case.
Kohberger, 30, is accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students in November 2022. At the time, he was a criminal justice graduate student at Washington State University. The DeSales University graduate was arrested weeks later at his family’s home in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania.
During Wednesday’s pre-trial hearing in Boise, Idaho, defense attorneys asked 4th District Judge Steven Hippler to limit the state’s use of graphic evidence and inflammatory language — specifically terms like “murderer,” “psychopath,” and “sociopath.”
A Florida man looking for a job expressed his disappointment at not getting an interview by throwing bottles of urine inside the store where his application had been rejected, according to St. Petersburg police.
Police said the man had several bottles of urine with him and intentionally splattered his urine inside the store, according to multiple reports.
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The 51-year-old man, a registered sex offender, was charged with battery, criminal mischief and aggravated assault.
In other alleged criminal debauchery, a New York City man was caught on video sexually assaulting a corpse on a subway, according to police.
Transit employees found the dead body on the train Wednesday morning. While reviewing security video, police saw the suspect performing sex acts on the corpse. Police believe the suspect may have pulled the body from the train seat to the floor, and that the entire assault took several minutes.
