Q: It was recently reported that John Malone, CEO of Liberty Media, which owns the Atlanta Braves, owns 2.2 million acres of land, just ahead of Ted Turner’s 2.1 million acres. What person or entity owns the most land in the world?
—Bill Collier, Statham
A: Queen Elizabeth II is considered to be the world's biggest landowner. Her title as queen of 32 countries and head of a commonwealth of 54 countries gives her the ownership of 6.6 billion acres, or one-sixth of the land surface of earth, according to published reports. The world's top 12 landowners are monarchs and Pope Francis, who technically owns the property "owned by the Catholic Church throughout the globe, including the hundreds of Vatican embassies that are legally titled to The Holy See as an independent nation," according to BusinessInsider.com. Malone is the top landowner in the U.S., with Turner second, CNBC reported in October.
Q: Fish related to the piranha recently attacked a group of swimmers near Rosario, Argentina. The type of fish that attacked the swimmers looked like a 2-pound piranha. What type of fish was involved in this incident?
—William McKee Jr., Flowery Branch
A: Palometa is the species of piranha that was responsible for injuring about 70 people near Rosario, Argentina on Christmas. A 7-year-old girl lost part of her finger and several others had severe bites to their extremities while swimming in the Parana River, about 200 miles northwest of Buenos Aires. "This is not normal," Federico Cornier, the director of emergency services in Rosario, told several media outlets. "… This is an exceptional event."
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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