Jockstrip: The world as we know it.

Aussie caught with pigeons in pants

MELBOURNE, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- An Australian man is facing serious charges after customs officers at Melbourne Airport found two live pigeons hidden in his pants, authorities said.

The 23-year-old Melbourne-area man had the birds strapped to his legs when he arrived in Australia Sunday on a flight from Dubai, The Age reported Monday. The officers also seized a multi-vitamin container holding two birds eggs, as well as a money belt containing plant seeds and undeclared samples of eggplant.

It wasn't known what the alleged smuggler intended to do with the birds but now he could end up being a jailbird for as long as 10 years if convicted.

"Wildlife smuggling is not only cruel to the animals involved, it poses a severe risk to the Australian environment and the health of the Australian community," customs spokesman Richard Janeczko said.

"It is important that people declare all animal and plant materials to customs and border protection when they enter Australia."

Groundhog bites NYC mayor

NEW YORK, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Staten Island Chuck, one of those weather-forecasting groundhogs, chomped on the finger of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg Monday.

"He got my finger pretty good," the mayor said.

Bloomberg was wearing gloves at the time so the damage wasn't very severe. He covered the cut with a napkin until a doctor could take a look at it, the New York Daily News reported.

The attack occurred when Bloomberg tried to pick up the groundhog after failing to lure it out of its wooden home with a corn cob at the Staten Island Zoo.

Mayoral spokesman Stu Loeser told WPIX-TV there was no concern about rabies because Chuck was raised in captivity and has been isolated from other animals.

Bloomberg appeared to be taking a light-hearted view of the incident, joking later that it was a case of "a terrorist rodent who could very well have been trained by al-Qaida in Afghanistan."

For the record, Staten Island Chuck -- just like Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil -- didn't see his shadow. So, in accordance with Groundhog Day lore, it will be a short winter. But Chuck had better be spot-on with his forecast, or else, the mayor intimated.

"If Chuck embarrasses us, this is going to be a very long winter for the Staten Island Zoo," he said.

Pants picture led to burglar's arrest

WAKEFIELD, England, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- English police said they nabbed a burglar after a teenage photography student snapped a picture of the fleeing man's distinctive pants.

Shaun Rimmer, 25, was sentenced to four years in jail after he admitted to a string of car thefts and burglaries, including the incident during the summer that led to his arrest, The Daily Mail reported Monday.

Police said quick-thinking photography student Josh Kellett, 17, was able to snap a photo of Rimmer's distinctive out-of-style track pants while the burglar was scaling a fence to escape from his neighbor's Wakefield yard. Police arrived and arrested Rimmer during a search of the neighborhood using Kellett's picture to identify the culprit's pants.

Rimmer's accomplice, Anthony Booth, 31, is due to be sentenced later this month.

A Leeds Crown Court judge awarded Kellett $214 for his contribution to the burglar's capture.

Architecture advice: 5 cents

SEATTLE, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- An out-of-work Seattle architect said he is braving the treacherous economy by offering his expert advice at a cost of 5 cents per question.

John Morefield said he dispenses his architecture wisdom from a small wooden stand at a Seattle's Ballard Market, giving architecture-related advice and answering any questions people may have about their homes, KOMO-TV, Seattle, reported Monday.

"Any questions about your home, your kitchen doesn't work -- drop a nickel, fire away," Morefield said. "It's as simple as that, just starting conversations with people about their homes and what they want them to be."

Morefield said that while he made only 35 cents Sunday -- which he donated along with his other 5-cent profits to the Ballard food bank -- his project has a larger eventual goal.

"I was laid off twice this year, and I decided to open my own design firm, and I needed a way to meet people," he said. "One nickel turns into one conversation, turns into one design job, turns into a local contractor who hires a local painter who buys from a local supplier."