News of the Weird: England enlists its royal goose counters

For five days every summer, a flotilla of rowboats is unleashed on the River Thames in London, where carefully selected, scarlet-coated oarsmen are tasked with Swan Upping — a census of the swans, the Associated Press reported. These swans belong to the Lord of the Swans, otherwise known as King Charles, and they must be marked and checked for disease or injury. Veteran King’s Swan Marker David Barber sees the ritual as more than tradition: “I think it’s serving a very useful purpose. It gives us an indication of what’s going on throughout the country.” The census dates to the 12th century, when swans were important food sources for royal banquets.

The National Police Agency in Japan is issuing warnings about a “Real Gimmick Mini Revolver” found among the prizes in claw machines around the country, Oddity Central reported. The plastic toy, which comes with eight plastic bullets, reportedly also can fire real bullets. Sixteen thousand of the toys have been imported from China since December. The added danger is that shooting a live bullet could cause the plastic gun to blow up in the shooter’s hand.

Neil Hopper, 49, a vascular surgeon from Truro, England, has been the subject of an investigation after he allegedly amputated his own legs in an attempt to defraud two insurance companies, The Guardian reported on July 23. Devon and Cornwall police said that he told insurers that the amputations were necessary because of sepsis, but, according to investigators, the injuries were self-inflicted. Hopper is accused of trying to collect $320,000 from one company and $314,000 from the other. He is scheduled to reappear in court on Aug. 26.

The South Florida Water Management District is working with the University of Florida to develop a new strategy for managing invasive pythons in the Everglades, WFLA-TV reported on July 23. Solar-powered toy bunnies that emit heat and are equipped with cameras are alerting staff to python activity, which sends them out to capture the snakes.

For more than a year, Natasha Lavoie of British Columbia has been receiving phone calls about her missing cat, United Press International reported. Problem is, her cat’s very much not missing. The mix-up mystery was finally traced to a T-shirt sold by Wisdumb NY, which features a lost cat poster that includes Lavoie’s phone number. The company said the “use of a real number within the art created was not intentional” and the shirt no longer is available. But the calls keep coming, and Lavoie isn’t planning to change her number. “I’ve had my number for 20 years,” she said. “I’ll just keep not answering.”

People magazine reported on July 24 that 33-year-old Jane Labowitch of Maryland is making a living, and a name for herself, with her Etch-a-Sketch art. Labowitch’s subjects include Russia’s St. Basil’s Cathedral and Grant Wood’s “American Gothic.” She said when she was little, her grandmother wouldn’t let her watch TV as much as she wanted, so she made art on her Etch-a-Sketch. She hopes the classic toy “isn’t going anywhere. I think that it’s got a lot left to give the world.”

On July 23 in Tallahassee, Fla., police took a famous mouse into custody: Chuck E. Cheese. The Tallahassee Democrat reported that Mr. Cheese, aka Jermell Jones, had been identified as the person who stole a patron’s credit card in June. Jones, wearing his mouse costume, was handcuffed and escorted out of the restaurant in front of the patrons. Officers found the stolen credit card in his possession.