NEVADA
It’s not hard to see Elvis when you’re in Vegas — or, if not the real guy, a half-dozen or so elaborately costumed impersonators. Recently, however, an exotic toucan stole the spotlight, at least according to PawBoost, a website for missing pets. Sam the toucan — named after the eloquent spokesbird for Froot Loops, a colorful fruit-free breakfast
comestible — escaped his enclosure in November. For months, he eluded rescuers like SouthWest Exotic Avian Rescue (SWEAR). But Sam’s Free Bird days ended after he flew into a northwest Las Vegas home’s garage and was recovered, KVVU reported. Dozens of locals reported seeing the large-beaked bird flying around or perching in trees, though Katherine Eddington initially thought that the big black bird she saw was a crow with a banana. Eddington was driving north on Simmons when Sam flew over an intersection and “landed in this tree next to Burger King.” SWEAR president and co-founder Skye Marsh was relieved. “You can tell he’s had some run-ins with things. The tip of his beak is chipped off. So he’s got some stories in that little bird brain.” She was surprised his condition wasn’t worse, given that toucans are native to humid climates, not the hot dry desert. Sam is currently in quarantine and undergoing bloodwork to ensure he doesn’t have bird flu. We hope Sam once again achieves peak, and beak, performance, and remembers what his large-beaked namesake said: “Follow your nose,” ideally homeward. Good advice; toucans are better than one.
OREGON
They’ve been washing up on Pacific beaches every year for decades, and in March they returned: Velella velella, more poetically known as “by-the-wind-sailors.” These 2-inch-long floating hydrozoans are “close relatives of jellyfish and corals” and can form “vast blue and purple armadas stretching for miles.” Each has a small transparent fin that works like a sail to travel the sea’s currents. And “they feed from the surface, using stinging tentacles to hunt krill underwater,” Oregon Public Broadcasting reports. Strong winds wash them ashore “in staggering numbers,” sometimes amounting to “the trillions on beaches around the world, including the West Coast,” according to University of Washington researchers, The Oregonian reports. In photographs they resemble blue-tinted sea glass or even stacks of bluish mussel shells. Are they a hazard? Not really, although Oregon State University says walking barefoot through fresh “strandings” is not advised, and it’s best to avoid touching your eyes or mouth after handling them. Or don’t handle them, period: They’re like most decaying creatures, slippery when wet, and stinky. And better not let your dog eat too many of them; you’ll both be sorry.
IDAHO
If you prefer your coffee — or yerba mate — with a side of capybara and an extra helping of fluffy snuggles, then Coeur d’Alene’s new sipping spot, the Capy Hour Café, is the place for you. The family-owned team behind Big Red’s Barn dreamed up this reservation-only immersive experience that lets you hang out with adorable capybaras while enjoying açai bowls and Brazilian-inspired specialty coffees and teas. “There’s something incredibly gentle and grounding about these animals. We’re excited to create a space where people can experience the joy they bring in a completely new way,” Ginger Harris of Big Red’s Barn told Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls Press. The world’s largest rodent, the semiaquatic capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) resembles a giant guinea pig. Native to Northern and Central South America, capybaras are extremely laid-back and highly sociable herbivores that live in packs. The Capy Hour Café donates a portion of every ticket it sells to the Wildlife Foundation Program, which supports wildlife conservation, reforestation efforts and ongoing programs dedicated to protecting animals in the wild. Start the day right, and wake up and smell the capy. As far as immersive experiences go, it’s considerably more relaxing than attempting yoga with crocodiles or taking cooking classes with grizzly bears.
CALIFORNIA
If you’ve seen Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, particularly the scene where a rhinoceros appears to “give birth” to Jim Carrey, then you probably have no need to ever see it again. But on the off chance that this remains one of your favorite memories, we regret to inform you that you just missed your chance to bid on the actual mechanical rhino, which was removed from the Planet Hollywood Collection and auctioned off by Propstore Auctions. The rhino sold for $60,000 to Ripley’s Entertainment, as in Ripley’s Believe It or Not, yahoo.com reported. We definitely believe it, Ripley’s, and think the rhino’s new home is completely apropos.
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This article appeared in the May 2026 print edition of the magazine with the headline “Heard around the West.”
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