According to a top Canadian military general, Taliban forces in Afghanistan utilize forests of ten-foot tall marijuana plants to evade Canadian troops. The plants provide a nearly impenetrable barrier, and dense camouflage, for Taliban militias, and render thermal devices for detecting movement obsolete. Marijuana plants, according to General Rick Hillier, chief of the Canadian defense staff, absorb energy and heat, which allows Taliban forces to evade thermal detecting devices used by Canadian forces. "It's very difficult to penetrate with thermal devices . . . and as a result you really have to be careful that the Taliban don't dodge in and out of those marijuana forests," the general remarked at a press conference in Ottawa.

Despite a strong condemnation from some conservative Christians, the Oslo Natural History Museum has put on display several pieces of art that show homosexuality among animals. The exhibition entitled "Against Nature" is claimed to be the world's first on one of the most controversial subjects. "Homosexuality has been observed for more than 1,500 animal species, and is well documented for 500 of them," Geir Soeli, the project leader of the exhibition told Reuters in an interview.

The world's first museum exhibition about homosexuality among animals organized in Norway says bird and bees could be gay. The Oslo Natural History Museum now believes human homosexuality could be natural. Geir Soeli, the project leader of the exhibition, told Reuters, "Homosexuality has been observed for more than 1,500 animal species, and is well documented for 500 of them. "

Animal rights group, The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), called for theme park operator Six Flags Inc, based in New York, to cancel a competition in which people will try to break the world cockroach-eating record. Six Flags first came under fire by animal rights activists for staging a contest as part of a promotion leading up to Halloween offering customers free entry or line-jumping advantages if they eat a live Madagascar hissing cockroach, which grow between 1. 5 to 3 inches.

The British embassy reported that a leopard is running loose on their compound in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Embassy spokeswoman Holly Tett told Reuters, "There have been lots of wildlife in the compound, including mongoose, jackals and civet cats. The leopard which we are talking about has caused no injuries. " She added, "The embassy is looking at different ways on how to deal with the leopard. "