Murder hornets, infected mink, curious penguins: Times this year when nature was truly 2020

Wyatte Grantham-Philips, USA TODAY

It's no secret that 2020 was all kinds of unexpected — for humans and animals.

Due to less human activity amid the coronavirus pandemic, lions and penguins playfully roamed free. Farmed mink appeared to rise from the dead after contracting a mutated strain of COVID-19, and spotted lanterned flies prompted quarantines. "Murder hornets" flew into headlines and a koala climbed into our hearts.

As we approach 2021, reflections on what may have seemed like a never-ending year have begun. Remember the ways nature and animals surprised us in these past 12 months? If not, don't worry — we have you covered.

Here were some of nature's top stories from around the world in 2020.

COVID vaccine wasn't the only discovery: A look at all the ways science thrived in 2020

'Murder hornets' in the US

Look into the eyes of this "murder hornet." The invasive species slaughters honeybees, can be deadly to humans and unfortunately has been spotted in the USA.
Look into the eyes of this "murder hornet." The invasive species slaughters honeybees, can be deadly to humans and unfortunately has been spotted in the USA.

Yes, 2020 brought increased fears around the spread of an invasive, potentially deadly, species: the "murder hornets."

Asian giant hornets, officially named Vespa mandarinia and nicknamed "murder hornets," are the world's largest hornet and can grow up to 2 inches long.

Terrifying in appearance, their stings can deliver a potentially deadly venom, said Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist with the Washington Department of Agriculture. The stings can cause necrosis and lead to organ failure.

The hornets were first spotted in the U.S. in December 2019. So far, the hornets have been contained to one U.S. county and a border area in Canada. In Asian countries, the hornets kill more than a dozen people a year, but wildlife officials say the threat to Americans is low.

Can animal poop ward off 'murder' hornets? It helps these honey bees defend against their giant predator.

— Ryan Miller and John Bacon

Mink rise from graves

This year, mink became infected with a mutated strain of COVID-19 — and then appeared to rise from the dead.

About 3,000 mother minks and their cubs were killed at one farm in Denmark, where a mutated variation of the coronavirus has infected minks being farmed for their fur.
About 3,000 mother minks and their cubs were killed at one farm in Denmark, where a mutated variation of the coronavirus has infected minks being farmed for their fur.

In November, Denmark, which produces 40% of the world's mink fur, planned to cull its entire mink population after human cases were tied to mink infected with a mutated strain of the novel coronavirus.

The hurried nature of the burials, however, meant that the creatures were buried only in shallow graves – and later appeared to emerge from the dead, causing a national panic.

“The gases cause the animals to expand and in the worst cases, the mink get pushed out of the ground,” Jannike Elmegaard, a Danish Veterinary and Food Administration spokesman, told The Associated Press.

— Joshua Bote

Chicago penguins 'roam free'

In March, after Chicago's Shedd Aquarium was forced to close amid the pandemic, staff decided to let a few waddling residents out of their enclosures for a field trip.

Beluga whales couldn't stop staring at a penguin at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, which was closed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Beluga whales couldn't stop staring at a penguin at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, which was closed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The aquarium shared videos on Twitter of three penguins checking out exhibits from the other side of the glass.

"Without guests in the building, caretakers are getting creative in how they provide enrichment to animals," the aquarium said in a statement.

In November, a group of penguins also ventured from Shedd Aquarium to Chicago's Soldier Field for some exercise.

Video: Beluga whales can't stop staring at penguin roaming around closed aquarium

— N'dea Yancey-Bragg

Koala brings holiday cheer

Christmas came early for one family in Australia — thanks to a special furry ornament found in their tree: a koala.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 1300KOALAZ (@1300koalaz)

The McCormick family found the creature tangled in lights and plastic branches in early December. They called the local Adelaide and Hills Koala Rescue, and at first, the hotline operator thought it was a prank call.

"But no, a koala desperate to get in the Christmas spirit had wandered into Amanda McCormick’s house and decided it wanted to be the fairy on the Christmas tree," Adelaide and Hills Koala Rescue wrote on Instagram.

"Tis the season to be jolly... Koalalalala Lalalala."

Sports' year in review: Heartwarming sports moments of 2020 provided some joy during dark year

Best books of 2020: These 13 titles scored perfect 4-star reviews from USA TODAY’s critics

Spotted lanternfly prompts quarantine

Quarantine wasn't only prompted because of COVID-19 this year. Meet the spotted lanternfly.

In August, the New Jersey Department of Agriculture and Rutgers Cooperative Extension offices across New Jersey received reports of people seeing the spotted lanternfly.

While the spotted lanternfly is no threat to humans or animals, it is known to feed on 70 different types of plants and trees. Multiple New Jersey counties went under quarantine, and residents across the state were asked to do their part in combating the spread of the invasive species by "eliminating" the bug whenever possible.

— Nicholas Polanin, Bridgewater Courier News contributor

Goats take over UK town

Mountain goats roam the streets of the town of Llandudno in Wales on March 31, 2020.
Mountain goats roam the streets of the town of Llandudno in Wales on March 31, 2020.

The streets of Llandudno, Wales, are usually filled with tourists and locals — but instead in March they saw a herd of mountain goats roam freely.

With people in the village and all of Britain told to stay home to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the goats were able to get a little closer than normal and explore.

Residents said their new neighbors were eating leaves and bushes in the town square.

— Ryan Miller

Lions take cat nap on South Africa road

Typically, lions and tigers only roam the paved roads of Kruger National Park at night, when the park is closed to guests.
Typically, lions and tigers only roam the paved roads of Kruger National Park at night, when the park is closed to guests.

Because of reduced human traffic, a pride of lions from South Africa’s Kruger National Park was caught napping on an empty road in April.

Typically, lions only roam paved roads at night, when the park is closed to guests. But Isaac Phaahla, a communications and marketing manager at the park, told USA TODAY that the "animals must have realized that there has not been traffic since the lockdown" and had taken advantage of the newfound space.

— Joshua Bote

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Weird 2020 nature news: Murder hornets, dead mink, goats and lions

Latest Stories

  • Texas attorney general asked Trump administration to revoke COVID relief funds for Harris County

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton asked the Trump administration in the spring to revoke millions of dollars in COVID relief for Harris County, which includes Houston, because the funds were earmarked to expand mail-in voting in the 2020 election.

  • Dr Deborah Birx: White House virus expert quits over holiday travel

    Dr Deborah Birx says the criticism she has faced for a family get-together is "very difficult".

  • Trump's longtime Deutsche Bank private banker and her close colleague abruptly resign

    Rosemary Vrablic, a managing director and senior banker in Deutsche Bank's wealth management division, has resigned, effective Dec. 31, Vrablic and Deutsche Bank said Tuesday. Vrablic became President Trump's private banker at the German lender in 2011, at a time when Trump was having difficulties borrowing money due to his history of defaulting on loans. Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner, already a client of Vrablic, introduced her to Trump."The reasons for Ms. Vrablic's abrupt resignation were not clear," The New York Times reports. But Deutsche Bank in August opened an internal investigation into a real estate deal in which Vrablic and a longtime colleague at the bank, Dominic Scalzi, invested in an apartment building partly owned by Kushner. Scalzi is also resigning at the end of the year.The status of the internal review is unclear, the Times reports. But the relationship between Trump and Deutsche Bank is the subject of congressional, civil, and criminal investigations, including a criminal inquiry by the Manhattan district attorney. Vrablic is not among the handful of Deutsche Bank employees questioned by New York investigators yet, but her lawyer told CNN that "Ms. Vrablic is committed to cooperating with the authorities if asked."Deutsche Bank has been exploring how it can end its heavily scrutinized relationship with Trump, Reuters reports. But for Trump, his "key contacts at his biggest financial backer are leaving at a perilous time for the departing president," the Times reports. "He owes Deutsche Bank about $330 million, and the loans come due in 2023 and 2024. Mr. Trump provided a personal guarantee to get the loans, meaning that if he fails to pay them back, the bank can pursue his personal assets."More stories from theweek.com Trump is reportedly turning on 'virtually every person around him' A Lincoln Project ad reportedly turned Trump against Mike Pence. Pence is now bending. Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame

  • Russia’s New Territory

    In November, Russia gained a slice of somebody else’s country. It did this not through unidentified troops moving across a border, nor through hybrid warfare. Instead, it negotiated its capture in full view of, and without a single question asked by, the United States or the rest of the world.Fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh preceded the annexation. The mountainous region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but since a 1994 ceasefire between the two nations has been controlled by ethnic Armenians. The conflict flared up again in September. Two months later came a peace deal, with Russia the winner: It mediated a ceasefire that placed the Kremlin’s ostensibly peacekeeping boots on the ground. America watched idly as this happened.As Armenia’s traditional protector, Russia held the only leverage to convince Armenia to sign this ceasefire. By signing, Yerevan gave up claims to the territories it had occupied within Azerbaijan since 1994 and gained nothing — bar a ceasefire rather than a forced surrender. In return for securing for its ally a marginally smaller humiliation, Moscow gained a present and a presence.In reality — unless America is prepared to engage fully in the peace process — Nagorno-Karabakh is now Russia’s indefinitely. The Kremlin ostensibly controls the territory for five years, with an automatic rollover for an additional five should none of the three parties to the ceasefire object six months before the end of the mandate.Russia certainly won’t. It is now gatekeeper to a region central to Europe’s energy diversification (reducing the role of Russian imports). If the region is strategically important to NATO, that makes it strategically important to the Kremlin.Armenia, for mistrust of Azerbaijan, will want the peacekeepers to stay. The short but brutal conflict has proven conclusively that Armenia cannot win militarily, and that therefore ethnic Armenians must accept either governance by Azerbaijan or the protectorate of Russia. Weak and broken, Yerevan finds it less of a humiliation to accept Russian tutelage in Nagorno-Karabakh, if only to deny an archenemy a complete victory. But this is a longer-term disaster for the Armenians. It means they are effectively trapped in a Russian embrace. They cannot turn west and cannot turn east — either diplomatically or for investment — because the Russians are now in charge.Though traditionally thought of by Moscow as “on the other side,” Azerbaijan — owing to lukewarm support from the United States and EU in recent years — has been steadily deepening diplomatic and economic relations with Russia, in part from necessity and a lack of serious alternatives. Yet now, with Russian military boots on Azerbaijani territory for the first time since the fall of the Soviet Union, Moscow’s leverage has also become economic leverage: By militarily guaranteeing a transport corridor across Armenia — closed before the ceasefire — to Azerbaijan’s exclave of Nakhichevan, Russia now controls Azerbaijan’s long-sought-after, direct land route from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean and Europe.The West certainly could have seen this coming. This is how it always begins: A toehold soon morphs into a footprint. Crimea, Eastern Ukraine, South Ossetia, Abkhazia — the list of examples goes on. Russian presence becomes Russian control: the only logic of Putin’s neo-czarist ambitions.Indeed, now, only a matter of weeks after troop deployment, the Kremlin is maneuvering: Lines on maps have started to bend and flex. On the Russian Ministry of Defense website, a page shows a map outlining the area where Russian peacekeepers, by the terms of the agreement, are to be stationed and will have jurisdiction within which to operate. On December 13, miraculously, the land they control had expanded. This was changed back to the original on the next day, after Azerbaijani diplomatic pressure. But this activity demonstrates that Kremlin cartographers are getting creative — and very early in this intervention.Rumors now swell of Russian “passportization” in Nagorno-Karabakh. Manufacturing new demographic realities on the ground by granting citizenship has been used to maintain influence in the internal affairs in other post-Soviet nations. Once Russians occupy the area, the Russian state is obliged to step in.It is a classic of the Kremlin repertoire. It preceded the invasion of Crimea. It happened in two regions in Georgia, South Ossetia and Abkhazia, again before wars broke out, with Russia coming out as the chief beneficiary. Most recently, passportization has been aggressively deployed in eastern Ukraine, through a helpfully streamlined process. The Kremlin forecasts that there will be over one million Russian citizens bearing newly minted documents by the end of the year. In all of these situations, Russia’s grip is secure.Passportization would mean that a negotiated settlement on the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh — what was supposed to be some form of autonomy within Azerbaijan, as in Soviet days — will never materialize. It will instead turn into a Russian-passport protectorate, giving Russia the pretext — or in Moscow’s lexicon, the legal right — to jump into the region were any imagined threat to its “citizens” to emerge.Considering the U.S.-led assistance now poured into Ukraine in the wake of Russian destabilization, it is surprising that more precautionary measures are not being taken in the South Caucasus.Yet time remains for America to step in: The ceasefire shall give way to negotiations for a final peace deal, with much left to decide. The U.S. must fully and comprehensively oppose passportization. American companies should invest in infrastructure and energy projects in the region so as to limit Russia’s room for maneuver. And U.S.-led joint investment initiatives between Armenia and Azerbaijan would help to cut the dependence of both on Russia.It’s time for America to step up diplomatic and economic efforts and reinsert itself in this process. Otherwise, Russia’s empire will continue to expand unchecked.

  • China expels US ship from disputed waters in fresh escalation in South China Sea

    China on Tuesday claimed its military had “expelled” a US Navy destroyer after it “trespassed” into Chinese territorial waters close to the Spratly Islands, in a fresh escalation of tensions between Washington and Beijing over the South China Sea. The statement by Senior Colonel Tian Junli, spokesman for the People’s Liberation Southern Command, came shortly after the US Navy announced the USS John S McCain had asserted its “navigational rights and freedoms” in the disputed seas near the islands, “consistent with international law.” The incident occurred as Shandong, China’s second aircraft carrier, was reported to be conducting drills in the region after sailing through the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Sunday. The Chinese government claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, directly disputing the territorial claims of reefs, islands and waters by its smaller regional neighbours. The Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan have all laid claims to the Spratlys. This year, Beijing has been demonstrating its assertiveness over the energy-rich waters, prompting the US to denounce its “bullying behaviour” there and step up its own freedom of navigation operations.

  • 11 Luxurious Bedding Options to Start the New Year Right

    Slip into something a little more comfortableOriginally Appeared on Architectural Digest

  • US companies no longer have to pay sick leave to people with Covid after Mitch McConnell reportedly blocks extension

    ‘This crisis has made it clearer than ever why paid leave for every worker is so important to families,’ says senator Patty Murray

  • Police kept Black man naked in yard while looking for teens

    A 71-year-old Black man in South Carolina was embarrassed and feared for his life when a police officer looking for teens who might have been breaking into cars held him outside naked and at gunpoint after he peeked out his door to check on the disturbance, the man said in a lawsuit. Body camera video of the June 2019 encounter in Rock Hill shows Officer Vincent Mentesana cursing at Jethro DeVane and telling him not to close the door. Mentesana orders DeVane to stand outside his home naked at 4 a.m., facing the wall, according to the video, which DeVane and his lawyer obtained through a public records request and released Tuesday.

  • The disappointing downfall of Dr. Deborah Birx

    Along with Dr. Anthony Fauci, Birx was seen as a potential counter to Trump and those who abetted his worst impulses.

  • 5 surprising things tucked into Congress' nearly 6,000-page spending bill

    The most significant aspect of Congress' omnibus spending bill is the $900 coronavirus relief package embedded within it, but there are a few surprising add-ons -- as there usually are in such legislation -- tucked into the nearly 6,000-paged text.One item that snuck in there was the proposed creation of two new Smithsonian museums, one focused on women's history, and the other for the proposed "National Museum of the American Latino." Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) had previously blocked standalone bills that would have funded them.> Tucked into the stimulus bill: two new Smithsonian museums pic.twitter.com/vVwVkcXZIR> > -- Aman Batheja (@amanbatheja) December 21, 2020The package also contains proposed legislation that would change how drugs are regulated in horseracing, a murder hornet eradication program, and a continued ban on federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, an organization that hasn't existed for years. That language has apparently appeared quite frequently in bills over the last few years, and some Republican lawmakers reportedly think it may just keep getting copy-and-pasted by aides.The sovereignty of Tibet, Taiwan, and Hong Kong also received frequent mentions, which, in other words, means the bill includes language hinting at opposition to potential Chinese encroachment on those places. One item that's been garnering a lot of attention concerns the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. Several observers pointed out that while that may seem unnecessary or even silly at first glance, especially because it seems out of place in a bill primarily focused on pandemic relief, it actually addresses a significant geopolitical issue. > This is what the Dalai Lama thing is about. https://t.co/4OeRl3VzhR> > -- Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) December 21, 2020> We can argue whether this language belongs in this bill, but it's not just that Congress decided to regulate reincarnation on top of everything else.> > -- Jim Geraghty (@jimgeraghty) December 21, 2020More stories from theweek.com Trump is reportedly turning on 'virtually every person around him' Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame Residents protest after Minnesota town approves permit for whites-only church

  • Dr. Anthony Fauci receives his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine

    On Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci received his first dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Before he received the shot, Fauci said he feels “extreme confidence in the safety and the efficacy” of the vaccine.

  • 'My second life': California nurse walks out of hospital after 8-month COVID-19 ordeal

    As a veteran ICU nurse whose job is to care for the most critically ill patients at her hospital in Long Beach, California, Merlin Pambuan was well aware of the deadly ravages COVID-19 can inflict on the human body. Last spring in a tragic role reversal, Pambuan became one of those patients - admitted to the intensive care unit of St. Mary Medical Center, her workplace for the past 40 years, where she was rendered unconscious by paralysis-inducing sedation and placed on a ventilator to breathe. On Monday Pambuan beat the odds of her eight-month ordeal by walking out the front door of the hospital, drawing cheers, applause and exhilaration from colleagues lining the lobby to rejoice in her discharge.

  • Stimulus checks: Mnuchin announces when Americans will get second payment

    $600 direct payments could be issued as soon as next week, Treasury Secretary says

  • $250M facility to help NJ lead offshore wind power industry

    New Jersey is doubling down on its drive to dominate the offshore wind energy supply chain in the U.S., adding a $250 million facility to build the huge poles supporting wind turbines to a second planned facility where blades would be built. On Tuesday, Gov. Phil Murphy unveiled plans to build a facility to build monopiles, the steel columns that support offshore wind turbines at the Paulsboro Marine Terminal on the Delaware River in southern New Jersey. The announcement came six months after officials announced plans to develop the New Jersey Wind Port in Lower Alloways Creek Township, which would be a first-in-the-nation infrastructure investment providing a location for staging, assembly, and manufacturing activities for offshore wind projects on the East Coast.

  • Biden called Trump 'Putin's puppy.' The president-elect may put Moscow on a tighter leash.

    The incoming president is expected to quickly draw a contrast with Trump's coddling of Russia.

  • Israel's government collapses, triggering 4th election in 2 years

    Israel is headed to its fourth election in under two years, following the government's collapse early Wednesday morning.Because the Knesset, Israel's parliament, was unable to pass a budget by the midnight Tuesday deadline, the government automatically dissolved and elections were set for March 23.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will now have to see if he can fend off challenges from three former aides who broke away from his Likud party. In May, the right-wing Netanyahu formed an alliance with center-left Defense Minister Benny Gantz in order to form an "emergency" government, with Gantz named the "alternate prime minister" under the promise that he would become prime minister at the end of the year. This move alienated many of Gantz's supporters, The Associated Press reports, and his bloc is not expected to do well in the March elections.Last year, Netanyahu was hit with corruption charges, and witnesses will begin appearing in court for his trial in February. Gantz's Blue and White party called Netanyahu out on Tuesday night, saying, "A criminal defendant with three indictments is dragging the country to a fourth round of elections. If there wasn't a trial, there would be a budget and there wouldn't be elections."More stories from theweek.com Trump is reportedly turning on 'virtually every person around him' A Lincoln Project ad reportedly turned Trump against Mike Pence. Pence is now bending. Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame

  • China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine proves effective in Brazil trials - WSJ

    Sao Paulo state's Butantan Institute, which is organizing the late-stage trials of Sinovac's vaccine CoronaVac in Brazil, said on Monday that any reports on the efficacy of the shot before a Wednesday announcement were "mere speculation." Brazil is the first country to complete late-stage trials of CoronaVac, which is also being tested in Indonesia and Turkey, the Journal reported https://www.wsj.com/articles/sinovacs-covid-19-vaccine-shown-to-be-effective-in-brazil-trials-11608581330?mod=latest_headlines. The results from the Brazil trials put CoronaVac above the 50% threshold that international scientists deem necessary to protect people, the Journal report said.

  • The US Navy appears to be sending Iran a message with a submarine packed with missiles

    Monday's statement marks the first time since 2012 the Navy has announced the presence of a guided-missile submarine in the Persian Gulf.

  • Mexico is named world’s deadliest country for journalists

    The number of journalists killed in the country doubled in 2020

  • Indicted Giuliani associate seeks White House communications

    A lawyer for Lev Parnas, the indicted former associate of Rudy Giuliani, asked a federal judge Tuesday to order the White House and Justice Department turn over any emails or text messages in which they discussed the decision to charge his client with making illegal campaign contributions. The defense attorney, Joseph Bondy, filed court papers seeking to dismiss the charges, saying he suspected Attorney General William Barr orchestrated Parnas' indictment “as a means to protect the President and thwart his potential testimony in the impeachment inquiry.” Bondy also requested an evidentiary hearing to determine why Vice President Mike Pence and others weren't prosecuted for receiving “improper” campaign contributions.