WebClawer: A giant rabbit is caught in the U.K., an otter “films” photographer, and real-life “Snakes on a Plane”?

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From the Oscars to a real-life ‘Snakes on a Plane,’ the Web is crawling with animal news:

-- Where’s Samuel L. Jackson when you need him? Australian authorities stopped a man boarding a flight to Bangkok out of Sydney with three black-headed pythons and an albino carpet python hidden in his luggage. Forty native lizards -- 24 shingleback lizards and 16 bluetongue lizards -- were also found in the luggage. The 24-year-old man has been charged with attempting to export native species without a permit and could face 10 years of jail time and a $110,000 fine. ‘Customs and Border Protection continues to prevent, investigate and prosecute wildlife smuggling attempts into and out of Australia in a bid to end this cruel practice,’ said Richard Janeczko, spokesman for Customs and Border Patrol. Australian Associated Press

-- Two Canterbury, U.K., police officers said it seemed like ‘something out of Alice in Wonderland’ when they came upon a 2-foot-long, 20-pound albino rabbit hopping along the road. Fearing it could cause a traffic accident, the officers pursued the rabbit for 10 minutes with no success. ‘Pet-loving members of the public who were passing by saw us struggling and rushed to our assistance. Now, with 10 pairs of hands at the ready, the rabbit’s time on the run was coming to an end.’ After a 200-yard chase, the animal was apprehended -- although where it came from is still a mystery. It’s being cared for at a local veterinary hospital and has been nicknamed, naturally, ‘Tiny.’ Telegraph

-- A wildlife photographer capturing images of herons, seals and sea otters in Monterey Bay was in for a surprise recently when he discovered an otter was itself holding a video camera. Enrique Aguirre, who snapped a photo of the otter in action, suspects the camera was dropped by a kayaker and retrieved by the curious animal. ‘I was like, did I actually see an otter with a video camera or was I hallucinating?’ he said. Santa Cruz Sentinel

-- Oscar-watchers might not have gotten the chance to see Mickey Rourke sing the praises of his recently departed Chihuahua, Loki, in his acceptance speech (Sean Penn bested Rourke in the Best Actor race). But Rourke did win acting honors for ‘The Wrestler’ at Saturday’s Independent Spirit Awards and choked up when speaking of his beloved pet. ‘I’ve just gotten thousands of letters from strangers and people that know me about my dog that died six days ago,’ the actor said. ‘Loki, this is for you, baby.’ The Dish Rag

-- Lindsay Barnett