If the past few years are an indication, Yellowstone's first grizzly bear sighting of 2022 could occur any day. Continue reading

By Pete Thomas/ForTheWin Outdoors A man walking on a Southern California beach Friday discovered a well-preserved carcass of a bizarre-looking fish that typically resides at depths of 2,000-plus feet. The extraordinary discovery of what has since been identified as a female Pacific footballfish, a type of anglerfish, was made by Ben Estes at Crystal Cove State Park in Newport Beach. Images of the 18-inch anglerfish were captured by Estes and Crystal Cove employees, and shared to Facebook on Saturday by Davey’s Locker Sportfishing & Whale Watching. It’s been identified as a deep-sea Pacific footballfish, which is a species of anglerfish... Continue reading

A wildlife photographer this week shared a “super rare” photo showing a large sea snake breaching nearly clear of the surface at the Great Barrier Reef in the Coral Sea. Continue reading

A tourist in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, while flying a drone from his hotel balcony, has captured footage of a humpback whale helping to cause a man to fall overboard. Also featured in Lou Boyer's footage is a humpback whale calf born just hours earlier, and turkey vultures going after the drone. Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Ghost or Grinch? These are just two observations regarding an image captured via drone Friday off Australia’s Bondi Beach, just in time for Halloween. The image, captured by Drone Shark App and shared via social media, shows two swimmers and what’s described as a grey nurse shark swimming through an immense school of salmon just yards from shore. The swimmers parted the salmon in the form of two circular clearings, which appear as eyes in a ghost-like face, while the shark cleared an area that might be perceived as a mouth. The salmon school was so dense... Continue reading

A black bear provided tense moments for a family in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., recently when it removed a window screen and considered breaking into the house. Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Devin Kanda was fortunate to have been facing the right direction when a large tiger shark surfaced as his feet dangled from his kayak recently off Oahu. As Hawaii News Now states in the video report posted below, Kanda had just caught an 18-pound ono off Diamond Head when he spotted the approaching shark, enabling a quick response. “I caught it in my peripheral [vision] … and I looked up,” he said. “And just in time I pulled my leg before it could take a bite of my foot.” Kanda’s video camera was operating during the July... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Great white sharks are not known for their speed, so for Matt Larmand it was surprising to watch a young white shark dash across the surface at perhaps 20 mph. “He was going at least 20 mph,” Larmand said. “I was going full throttle on the drone trying to catch up to him.” Larmand, an licensed drone pilot for Dana Wharf Whale Watching, captured the accompanying footage Thursday from his home on Capistrano Beach in Dana Point, Ca. Capo Beach, as the community is referred to by locals, sometimes attracts juvenile white sharks in spring and summer.... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas A reporter for NBC Montana has gained social media fame for his hilarious – and wise – reaction during a close bison encounter inside Yellowstone National Park. “Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh no… I ain’t messing with you,” Deion Broxton says in the accompanying footage, after noticing the advancing herd and before ducking for cover behind the crew vehicle. “Oh no. I’m not messing with you.” Bison do not appear in the footage Broxton tweeted Wednesday, which was later shared to Facebook by NBC News Montana (both clips were widely circulated). But Broxton later tweeted... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas There’s not much to write about Kobe Bryant that isn’t already known, but how many fans know that the NBA superstar was fascinated by sharks? He was so curious that in the summer of 2013, while recovering from a torn achilles tendon, Bryant traveled to Mexico’s Guadalupe Island to dive with great white sharks. Martin Graf of Shark Diver said that the Los Angeles Lakers’ star enjoyed close views of two white sharks while inside the cage, and afterward soaked up the magical atmosphere surrounding the vast and remote volcanic island, 150 miles west of Ensenada. “It... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Keith Poe spends much of his time offshore, trying to lure large sharks close enough to bait and tag for science. What does the Southern California fisherman do with smaller sharks attracted by his chumming technique? The accompanying footage shows Poe gently pulling a free-swimming mako shark by its dorsal fin and stroking its back as casually as one might stroke the back of a family pet. “Come on, girl. Come here,” Poe says, reaching toward the 6-foot shark. “We’re gonna get you some pets. Come on, come on. Yeah, get you some pets.” It’s a definite... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Video showing a man ice fishing in Kazakhstan, exhibiting a style of catching that’d be illegal in the U.S., has gone viral on social media, perhaps because of its simplistic nature. Зимняя рыбалка говоришь? Да что ты знаешь о ней?)) pic.twitter.com/BI2G5FY3mG — Габит Рахимберлин (@Starshina73) January 12, 2020 The footage, shared Sunday by Twitter user Gabit Rahimberlin, has been viewed more than 7 million times. The unidentified fisherman, accompanied by two white sheep, is the picture of confidence as he chops a hole in the ice, baits the water with pellets, and hurls his pitchfork through the... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas After hooking two giant yellowfin tuna and losing both – one after a 4-hour fight – a group of anglers out of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, boated the catch of a lifetime. Steve Hammerschmidt of Huntington Beach landed the 365-pound ‘super cow’ after a marathon struggle last Tuesday in the Pacific, 30 miles north of the resort city on Baja California’s tip. Veteran anglers often refer to yellowfin tuna topping 200 pounds as “cows.” Tuna topping 300 pounds are “super cows,” and catches of these giants are quite rare. However, even larger yellowfin tuna exist within their... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Yellowstone National Park has confirmed that two wolf pups found dead on a park road last month perished as a result of an automobile strike. The black male and female pups, which belonged to the Junction Butte Pack, were hit around sunset on the road between Tower Junction and the Northeast Entrance. The park waited for necropsy results before making the announcement. The incident remains under investigation by Yellowstone law enforcement officials. The Junction Butte Pack, whose territory spans from Tower Junction toward Lamar Valley, is frequently observed by tourists and its close proximity to people and... Continue reading

*Click on this link to view an updated post with a second video and input from Mexico By Pete Thomas Disturbing video has surfaced showing a great white shark becoming stuck in a cage with divers inside at Mexico’s Guadalupe Island. 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. The divers, who were clearly frightened as the massive predator writhed its... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas For a group of San Diego whale watchers on Tuesday, the highlight did not involve whales or dolphins, but a bizarre-looking 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 said. “Right as... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Researchers are busy studying great white sharks off Cape Cod, but sometimes the sharks conduct their own research. The accompanying footage shows a fairly large white shark swimming close to a research boat off Chatham to inspect a GoPro camera used to capture footage of the apex predator. The shark swims to within inches of the pole-camera early in the footage, captured last week along the coast, and bumps the device toward the end. Scientists with the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries and the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy have been tagging white sharks at a time when... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Hikers in bear country should always pay close attention to their surroundings. Joshua Wade Covill and his wife Stephanie were exploring Montana’s Glacier National Park recently when they spotted a grizzly bear following closely behind a hiker who seemed unaware of the looming threat. The Covills were hiking Hidden Lake Trail on June 25, and were a quarter-mile away when they witnessed the close encounter. Covill later wrote on Facebook, “We watched this young grizzly bear walk right up behind this guy and he HAD NO IDEA!” The unidentified hiker probably was fortunate that this was not... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Beachgoers north of Los Angeles might be interested in tracking the whereabouts of a tagged great white shark that has spent the past couple of weeks cruising parts of the coast. The 15-foot female shark, nicknamed Murphy Jean, has returned to California after spending 100 days in Hawaiian waters. She was detected off Santa Rosa Island on June 13. She was later tracked swimming along the Morro Bay breakwater, not far from a popular surf spot. She then cruised up and down the coast, likely feeding on seals and sea lions. Her position on Sunday night was... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas A grizzly bear and her two yearling cubs were killed by train strikes earlier this month near Glacier National Park. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks explained in a news release issued Monday that the bears had been grazing alongside railroad tracks two miles east of Marias Pass, in Glacier County, when the first collision occurred at about 4:19 a.m. on June 6. That claimed the life of the mother bear, a 232-pound animal that was captured and released 19 years ago as part of a Glacier National Park research effort. Her two cubs, weighing about 65 pounds... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Two brothers on a fishing trip this week in Mexico discovered a live oarfish struggling in the shallows and helped revive the mysterious creature. Noah and Jacob Thompson, from Texas, found the juvenile oarfish near La Capilla in Baja California’s East Cape region. They carried the serpent-like fish to deeper water and watched it swim away, according to John Ireland, owner of Rancho Leonero Resort. Oarfish, deep-water denizens that can measure 30-plus feet, occasionally wash ashore dead or near-death on Sea of Cortez beaches. Encounters, however, are extremely rare. Ireland told Pete Thomas Outdoors that he had... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas A Yellowstone National Park concession employee was injured Wednesday during an encounter with a cow elk. The female employee was hospitalized after the incident in Mammoth Hot Springs, a developed area in the northwest portion of the park. The park, as of Thursday morning, had not released her name. Park spokeswoman Linda Veress declined to disclose the nature of the woman’s injuries. Mammoth Hot Springs, location of park headquarters, also boasts a hotel, the Albright Visitor Center, and other buildings surrounded by verdant lawns. Elk gather in the area seeking shelter from predators and close encounters with... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas An angler who caught and killed a great white shark Jan. 5 on Oceanside Pier was sentenced Friday to three years probation and fined $250. Bodi Dee Roberts, 21, also was banned from the popular fishing pier in north San Diego County. Roberts caught the juvenile shark from the pier and was confronted by angry bystanders as he left with the carcass, according to 10 News San Diego. California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers eventually confronted Roberts and seized the shark. Great white sharks are protected by state and federal regulations off California. According to the... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas Yellowstone National Park has announced that select roads and concession services will reopen for spring and summer on Friday at 8 a.m. As an added bonus for travelers this weekend, entrance fees will be waived Saturday as part of the annual National Park Week celebration. The spring thaw is underway in the vast park, which encompasses portions of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. Migratory birds are arriving, bears are waking up, bison births are occurring and, of course, geysers are blowing steam. Roads scheduled to open include the West Entrance to Old Faithful; Mammoth Hot Springs to Old... Continue reading

By Pete Thomas A group of anglers on Sunday reeled in one of the largest blue marlin ever caught off Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, after a 6-hour struggle that continued long after the billfish had been subdued. Four hours into a fight that sapped the strength of four novice fishermen who had already battled several large tuna, the 814-pound marlin perished. Tiburon deckhand Salvador “Chava” Flores spent the next two hours reeling the behemoth to the surface. (The anglers had hoped to release the fish alive.) Their new dilemma was that the marlin, which had struck a trolled ballyhoo and... Continue reading