Jackalope hunting on the great frontier
Sweetwater, Texas - The Jackalope is an extraordinary animal. Our cameraman, Pete Murtaugh, described it to me as we rode the Texas Eagle down to Dallas. He says the Jackalope is like a cross between a Jack rabbit and an antelope - a sort of giant bunny with horns.
I was pretty sceptical so I asked the other passengers about Jackalope. Elam and Joe, the two Amish men who taught me dominos (see a brief glimpse of them in this video), had heard of them but said there were none in Indiana, where they are from. Joe gave me his address and told me to send him picture if I did manage to spot one.
A guy transposing music on his computer at the back of the lounge car said he had actually seen one of these elusive beasts. He said there used to be a few Jackalope in the area of California he grew up, but that they are pretty rare now.
Even Pete has only ever seen a dead Jackalope mounted behind a bar in Texas. He says the Great Plains are now one of the few areas of America where there are still Jackalope in the wild.
I hope I will see one. Tom Henderson, one of the local ranchers here in Sweetwater, has invited us over to his ranch tomorrow afternoon. We are going to take a couple of his horses out to look over his land. Tom has a herd of Texas Longhorns and says we may spot a rattlesnake; they have just come out of hibernation. With any luck there will be Jackalope too.
To be honest I am surprised I have never heard of an animal as strange as a Jackalope before, but then America is a big place with lots of weird animals in it.
The size of the country has played a crucial part in developing the American character. Frontier spirit, the belief that a great wilderness of opportunity lies out West, or just over the horizon, is a quintessentially American attitude.
In Europe every inch of land was owned and worked by someone. In America the supply of land seemed endless. For three centuries there was always more land across the next range of hills, the next river, the frontier.
That sense that this country was boundless had a profound effect on people's attitudes to resources. If resources are scarce one takes good care of them, if there is plenty of something there is no need to take care of it.
For the first three centuries of modern American history the frontier was a real entity, a defined geographical line. In my last blog post I talked about how the railroads had drawn people and settlements out across the whole of this continental nation until the frontier was finally officially dissolved.
I suggested that in the last few years a new frontier had been crossed, a clean energy frontier. I got my metaphor wrong.
Just as for centuries America seemed boundless, for centuries we have thought the capacity of the atmosphere to absorb pollution was boundless.
I think that is new frontier we have crossed. In 1890 the US Census Bureau declared that the American frontier had ceased to exist, the country was settled. In a similar way over the last two decades scientists have shown that mankind has pumped so much greenhouse gas into the atmosphere that we have begun to change the climate.
Just as America has, over the last century and a half, had to adjust, with difficulty, to the limits of its land and other resources, now the world has to come to terms with the limited capacity of the earth's atmosphere.
What I have been seeing here in Sweetwater is the first the large-scale attempt in America to begin to deal with the consequences of the end of the atmospheric frontier.
In the next blog I really will write about the energy revolution that is happening here in Sweetwater but first I have to put on my new hat ready to ride out in search of Jackalope. I suppose one thing that is never in short supply here in America is another sucker.
Do you know anything about Jackalope and their habits? If so please comment now to tell me how best to stalk them. Alternatively, join our Facebook group and post up your Jackalope pictures or follow me on Twitter and be the first find out if I do see a Jackalope in the wild.
I'm Justin Rowlatt and I am the BBC's Ethical Man. My family and I spent a year trying to cut our carbon emissions and reporting on the exercise for 
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~52~RS~)
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I have heard that going out at night (when their vision is poor) and clanging two horse shoes together in a burlap sack is a good way to attract Jackalopes...or maybe that's Snipe hunting.
Either way, you end up with the same thing.
Cheers!
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They are quite rare, getting all the more so as their habitat is shrinking.
Am from Northern Arizona, where also have some Jackalopes in the high country; but there are also the larger ones in the low desert near Mexico (I believe these known as the Great Desert Jackalopes).
Though I have never been luck to see one in the wild, I do recall that my cousin had one mounted on the wall of his house. Peculiar creatures, indeed.
Also of note, it is said that they sing at night, in a voice almost sounding human.
Good luck on your hunting trip!
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If you stay out there looking for jackalopes long enough, you are bound to find some baby rattlers.
Go ahead and try to pet them, they'll like you.
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It is distantly related to the Australian Bunyip. Be very careful, and good luck.
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Is there really nothing more itneresting in Texas to report on then a whole blog rabbiting on about jackalopes?
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That dead one behind a bar in Texas is probably the one in the Buckhorn Saloon and Museum in San Antonio.
Definitely worth a visit, and they will of course courteously do their best to help with your enquiry.
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While you're out there (so to speak), if you can't find a jackalope, you might try a little cow tipping (-;
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The Jackalope legend, which originated in Texas, is one of those spoofs like Bigfoot. Clever taxidermists create them out of large jackrabbit heads and baby antelope(?) horns.
But then, everybody knows that, right?
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If you want to find a Jackalope, you need to find Bloom County.
To find Bloom County you need to find a Public Library.
Having never been to Texas, I unfortunately can't offer any advice on finding one of those.
Good Luck!
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The History of the Jackalope is one like all endangered species.
the Jacakalope was first spotted by spanish settlers to the southwestern part of the country in the late 1500 early 1600's as the Spain began to explore the southwest. they began to hear stories From the Native Americans in the region of a giant horned animal that was Part antelope and part Jack rabbit. They were cunning very fast and very powerfull they were rumored to be able to bring down a tree with their antlers. They were as many as there were buffalo. buffalo rulled the plains Jackalope the desserts and mountains of the southwest. The Mountain Lion was their only advisary as bears feared them. Native Americans hunted them for their pelts and Meat was rumored to have healing Properties. As one unnamed spanish missionary wrote of how the Jackalope meat tasted "when cooked over the cerimonial fire, the animal almost has a sweet flavor much like that of the coca bean when refined, as I tasted the meat of this animal I could feel as my life was being restored I awoke the next day no longer in pain that comes with age and my hands looked as if they wre that of my youth Remarkable."The Hunt was a Spiritual one and only the bravest Strongest and Quickest of them could hunt The animal. As the word Got out about the Jackalope and its rumored properties the Spanish promptly hunted it to near extinction so tha only a mere 100 or so survived. it is only because of the native American tribes of the southwest that they still exsist scatterd among the southwestern states. To protect them the Story of them was made to be a joke and one of humor so no one would ever hunt the animal again. though only a few survie they are protected feircely by the Tribes of the southwest. and where they live is known only to a proctected few now. this is the legend of the Jackalope (abriged Version)
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When you come back here you can take part in our annual Haggis hunt. The season starts on the 1st April at one minute past midnight and finishes at midday 1st April. This year as a conservation measure you can only shoot clockwise mature Haggi that's those with the short legs on the right hand side. Shooting of faggots (baby haggi with only six legs) has of course been banned for some years now. In 2010 it will be the season for shooting anti clockwise animals.
Good luck.
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I saw my first 'lope in Sheridan, Wyoming in 1954, I'll never forget it.
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Try entering "Shope papillomavirus in rabbits" into a popular search engine, should save a bit of petrol.
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Just as well that we Brits know that Americans loack a sense of humo(u)r. Otherwise we might imagine that someone is pulling your hind leg.
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Ok I am sick and tired of this little mythical creature popping up time and time again. Lets clear the air once and for all so real news can happen, there is no such thing as a Jackelope.
Here's a real easy way to debunk it, have someone provide a live specimen to examine and demand to be shown it right away. Of course they will come up with almost any unreasonable excuse not to show you the bugger. Its the same deal as those Nigerians having millions to give out if you contact them.
Just for once I would love to see the scammers get scammed either with a real live varient of that which they have been imaging to exist or someone figures out how to take those Nigerians for every penny they stole from those who believed the lies.
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If you want to see herds of Jackalopes in the wild, go to Douglas, Wyoming, the jackalope capital of the world. They have so many they have a statue of one in the middle of town.
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Skip the jackalope and concentrate on nabbing a Chupacabra!
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You will have a hard time finding a jackalope, because global warming has severely restricted their habitat. They don't like the heat. You have to look for them where the sun doesn't shine.
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yes!
they have a jackalope at the mexicanhat lodge
and steak fry.
at mexicanhat,utah near monument valley,ariz.
westrover
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Ride you horse backwards - The jackalope typically sneaks in close behind you as you ride so the only reliable way to see them is to sit backwards on your horse
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The real question is: Why did Jack Alope?
And does he even want to be found!
I think not!! So if you are fortunate enough to find him ask him the question on everybody's
mind Why did Jackalope..........
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I have actually seen an entire heard of jackalopes in Odessa, TX. They are quite fast, and are usually seen with hockey sticks, pucks and skates. Of course, sighting them is much easier if one is sipping on a Shiner Bock!!!
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The elusive Jackalope. Only the greatest of stalkers have seen a live one. I was once hunting on the high plains (Western Kansas) it was early, light was visible but the sun had not yet peaked over the eastern horizion. All of a sudden, I heard a noise. I headed in the direction of the sound, and it began to sound like someone was singing. Being a good eight miles from the nearest house it suddenly dawned on me that the likelyhood of another person being out there was next to zero. I slowly crept toward the noise. It was quite beautiful really, not quite human but very very close. As I approached the source of the song I decided that only one animal I knew of was able to produce that kind of song. My heart raced as I approached, I was going to see a Jackalope. I got quite close, I think he was down in a Buffalo wallow not 150 yards from me. Just before I could look down my scope to see if it was there I steped in a Prairie dog hole. I rolled my ankle and let out a bit of a yelp. After my noise it was gone.
I wish you better luck in your search, snap a picture for those of us that have gotten oh so close, yet kept so far away. ;D
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My daddy seed a lot of um, in the old days. Theys down by Ajo, Az.
Desert kind they had hollow horns wher they stored water.
He sed they tasted a lot like chicken.
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Poor English, they don't have any plains suitable for jackalope or bunyip habitat, no mountains tall enough for yetis, they're stuck with that tired old plesiosaur up in Scotland.
At least Ireland has pookahs.
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Your plan doesn't sound very ambitious. If you're going to go for jackalopes, you may as well go for a flying jackalope (habitat: South Dakota), tame it and use it as a flying mount, holding onto its antlers as it swoops majestically across the sky.
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I have know Tom Henderson for over 20 years, and if you truly want to see something unbelivable stick wth him!!
and if you think something sounds a little "fishy" there is an easy way to tell if he is lying, watch to see if his lips are moving, it is the best way to tell if he is Lying!
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Your quest for the elusive jack-a-lope will parallel that of proving global warming is caused by human intervention.
While there IS a yearly change in the myriad atmospheric components affecting global temperatures, those elements directly attributable to human intervention are ONLY 0.117% of the TOTAL. Anyone arrogant enough to believe that we (humans) can make a measurable difference while only being responsible for 0.00117 of the whole... is ignorant.
One volcanic eruption contributes more carbon emissions than the entire last 100 years of human pollutants... including that from poor nations with no ecological restrictions on industrial output. How many volcanic eruptions have there been in the last 100 years?
I find it quite fitting that jack-a-lopes were used as the focus of the article.
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When we wuz livin down near San Antone, we used to see jackalope road kill all the time. But some ultra centrist religous group had compunds in the area and they used to gather it all up to feed the members. A couple years ago they started hunting and trapping the varments and their numbers in Texas are down to about 4 per 1000 sq/miles. Let's just say they are hard to find. But, fer those of ya that really likes chasing things you won't ever find, you should start looking for the Armadillo/Chicken Hawk creature. We call it the Armadillo that looks like it's mother mated with a Chicken Hawk. The most crazy lookin thing yer ever to see. It is only about four inches tall but it weighs over 300 lbs. and can jump almost 12 feet in the air without using it's wings. And you should see the derned things fly.
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approach it with the same care as you would of Rabbit of Caerbannog. remember it has a a vicious streak a mile wide!
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Jackalopes are plentiful and held in captivity in all 50 States and all US Territories and Possessions, as evidenced by the wide availability of postcards where they are made to pose in their natural habitat (also widely available, contrary to the myth concerning its pretended endangerment). They are almost as common as dead horses, the henious result of beating at the hands of callous jokers, who think themselves clever, till faced with the dire consequences of their sophomoric behavior.
This may be an effect of the British Stimulus Package at work, sending the endangered News Jackass to chase the "elusive" Jackalope, but the endangerment occasioned here is that of newsworthiness... as well as that of the News Jackass itself: the one funny thing in this "story" is the intriguing response of the blogging public. Normally, I never go beyond the second post (when at all), but I gobbled up the entire thing, while laughing hysterically. Interactive "journalisim" at its best... I suggests a new domain: bbc.comedy.co.uk. Thanks for the laughs.
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Daddy sed that they liked the smell of coffee and peyote. He sed that if youed tasted up your coffee with a bit of peoyte they would come around and you could se them all around you..
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Make that: [Unsuitable/Broken URL removed by Moderator]
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Originally from New York City, I moved to Colorado about 20+ years ago. Jackalope are not native to the (pardon the expression) New England states, and I have only seen Colorado Jackalopes from a distance; they're shy, but aggressive when threatened, and can move quite fast. One can occasionally see one mounted as a trophy, as you did, on a barroom wall, but primarily they are only available in that form from certified taxidermists, and are quite pricey. Like Bigfoot, their existence is questioned by cynics and doubters, but evidence abounds to the contrary. Their scat (fewmets to you Brits) is often mistaken for deer droppings, being about the same size and color. Their colour ranges from white (not often seen) to a pale tortoise shell marking, but the most common is a light brown that blends in with the colour of the dry grasses of the American prairies of the Southwest, which is why they're so difficult to spot. They live in burrows in the ground, and their antelope-like horns are very useful in digging out these underground homes.
Terriers have been used to try to flush them out of their burrows, but the Jackalope have not only several entrances and exits in a complex system of tunnels, but they've been known to gore the terriers when meeting them underground. They are vegetarian, subsisting efficiently on a diet of prairie grasses. They reproduce in large litters, but the young are easy prey for hawks and eagles, so few survive into adulthood.
I wish you well on your quest to find one.
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Justin,
Enjoying your blog posts, but would like to make a small correction (and not about jackalopes!)
You wrote: "In 1890 the US Census Bureau declared that the American frontier had ceased to exist, the country was settled."
That's not exactly true. The census bureau did indicate that, based on a calculation of area divided by total population, there were about 2 people per square mile. They argued that because of the growth and spread of the population that, "at present the unsettled area has been so broken into by isolated bodies of settlement that there can hardly be said to be a frontier line. In the discussion of its extent, its westward movement, etc., it can not, therefore, any longer have a place in the census reports."
The historian Frederick Jackson Turner took that statement and argued in his 1890 essay, 'The Significance of the Frontier in American History' that "this brief official statement marks the closing of a great historic movement".
Technically, the census bureau said the frontier was no longer measurable. Turner took it the extra step and said it no longer existed; that is was 'closed'. By speaking of the frontier in the past tense, he also consigned the traits of the frontier that he considered important to the past, which suggested that those traits - that so defined the American character - no longer existed (he did clarify this in his 1920 monograph on the subject).
Here's a link to the 1920 monograph, which includes the 1890 essay as the first chapter.
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/22994/22994-8.txt
(my quotations are taken from this text)
And, yes, I'm a dyed in the wool pedant - but after having Turner shoved down my throat in grad school, it's nice to be able to haul him out and use him for a change!
Best regards and good luck finding that jackalope.
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And, p.s., your hat is the wrong colour for Jackalope hunting.
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Oh darlin', I searched for some sign that you know this is just a cowboy legend! That said, the best time to REALLY see them is after 2 AM (which is when the bars close)!
And don't let those Texans fool ya further, the legend got started in WYOMING!
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I was told by my long deceased "Dustbowl Okie", "Uncle Jake Cobb", that the "Western long-ear Jackalope" was attracted to the sound of empty beer cans tossed from a truck, onto pavement, on clouded fall nights. He told me he had first encountered them while working on the "WPA- Grand Coolie Dam project in the 1930's. The need for new men was frequent due to the "Long-eared" attraction to the sound of beer cans on pavement.
Growing up in Northern California I witnessed, on a cloudy October night in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, West of Lake Tahoe, a battle of epic proportions between a Black Bear and a small herd of Jackalope's. The bear lost and the Jackalopes were in such a frenzy it was unsafe to get out of the pickup truck so Jake said, "We best sit and have a few more beers until daylight comes, and its safe to drive". In the light of day there was nothing left of the bear to be found, just a large pile of empty beer cans, tossed off the pavement, for safety of course. Mounted Jakalopes can be purchased at the Hoover Dam Visitors Center, Jackalope's can always be found by a dam site and a large pile of empties, or so the story goes.
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'For three centuries there was always more land across the next range of hills, the next river, the frontier.'
Hey Justin, and the American historical psyche, what about the people who lived there for centuries?
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In New Mexico the Jackalope season is very short (Feb 29 from 48 minutes before dawn to 53 minutes after sunset, except when there are clouds present).
Fortunately, this is their natural spawning time so they are plentiful if you know where to look. A few years ago I was successful in bagging one and it now hangs proudly on my office wall here in Boston.
Btw, it's not well known but the Jackalope is a flightless form of the Wolpertinger. They share a distant common relative still found in the wild backcountry of Liechtenstein.
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Didaktos,
What the hell is wrong with you? This is a pleasant little tongue in cheek debate about Jackalopes and you have to use it as a personal rant about Global Warming. Methinks you need to find yourself an existence
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Dear Ethical Man:
In your quest to find the Jackalope (and ya know that's a just a hare w/ overgrown teeth that curl up toward the sky lookin' like horns!!), don't forget to look for that "Lowliest of the Lowlies," my all-time fave, Didelphis virginiana....the Virginia Opossum!
(If you can't find one of those, look out for the "Incredible Undercarriage Bumper," the Nine-Banded Armadillo.)
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Jackalops are easy to find. it is empolite to kill one they are kinda rare. They have a super sence of smeil, they are frindly and not violent. To cox them to you , you need some horse and mule feed a carrot a nice sandy spot, some wood for a fire a nice moonlite night, a bottle of mescal by the time you finsh the bottle one will show up maybe two. Good hunting.
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Excuse me Colaradogramma, err whatever. Bein that yer from Colarado. is that the correct way to spell colarado? yer supposed to use the word Texas in ever sentence.
Plus you know, as of Jan. 1, we can drive all the way to Estes Park from Austin, without ever leaving Texas?
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I grew up in Arizona, and one morning when I was delivering newspapers in the neighborhood, I carelessly rode my bicycle across someone's garden. It turned out that the house and property belonged to the parents of one of my friends at school. Later that day at school, my friend told me his father was angry because I rode my bicycle across his garden and killed some of the plants. I told him I was being chased by a jackalope. He never questioned my answer.
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The North American Jackalope, despite an alarming number of people claiming it to be a hoax, was an actual animal of the genus Antilocapra and species diazi. Don't get your hopes up for finding one however, since the fossil record indicates this cousin of the pronghorn has been extinct for nearly 10,000 years (end of the last ice age). The name 'Jackalope' was coined by Derek E. G. Briggs, chairman of the Department of Geology and Geophysics at Yale University and former president of the Paleontological Society. The nickname 'Jackalope' was a response to skull fragments found in northern Mexico that show the nose of the animal was much shorter than what we would think of today as an antelope. In addition, the occipital protuberances and cochlear ducts are much larger than any extant species. This does not mean the Jackalope had large "rabbit" ears, instead a later consensus was developed that these features were the artifacts of large muscles used to turn the ear in any 180 degree direction. This is a common predation warning system of many surviving species. The original fossil is kept in a facility in Zacatecas, Mexico although more examples are now available in many large US universities as well as the Smithsonian.
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The US had limits to agricultural growth a century ago. Utah Mormons went to great lengths to occupy tiny bits of arable land, while in the South, a cotton boom meant that nearly every bit of forest was cleared. Georgia's maximum acreage of farmland was sometime around 1905 (there's accurate documentation available). Afterward, in the Piedmont region, the fields were abandoned and reverted to pine and eventually hardwoods.
The abandoned land created some dilemmas. William Coker, a wealthy botany professor at the University of North Carolina, purchased a lot of land around Chapel Hill, apparently simply for conservation purposes. His descendants did well financially by selling tracts for residential development as the area's population grew.
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The official rules (in the state of Wyoming) say to hunt a jackalope, the hunter can only hunt between midnight and 2 a.m. on June 31 and may not have an IQ above 72.
'nuf said!
However, you can get a license in Douglas, Wyoming year-round. I'm not sure how they get to bend the rules, but I hear they are overrun, as they are the jackalope capital of the nation.
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Hello from a real American.
I felt compelled to speak out from across the Atlantic to tell you that the Jackalope is a completely fictional creature. Like, laughably fictional. So laughably fictional I am having a hard time figuring out if this post is fake or real.
It's just a rabbit with horns glued to its sad little head.
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it was a female jackalope that was in the search for the holy grail Damn that was vicious
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Grew up on the Powder River in Wyo.,We used to shoot Jack Rabbits,use their skins and used white tail deer horns.
SOLD many of these to the DUDES that traveled I-90 from the Yellowstone Park, Back to the Big Cities in the East. The going price was a cool twenty Dollars.
Its the same TRICK the White House is using on the people to-day.
Selling us a Jackalope,Something that was pieced together by Kids,sold to Idiots that believed it was the Easter Bunny with HORNS, that it would bring you GOOD LUCK.
Obama,Harry and Nancy scurry around every day Wishing for Luck,just wait when they try to Eat the Jackalope..............
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The jackalope — also called an antelabbit, aunt benny, Wyoming thistled hare or stagbunny — is a fictional animal and a cross between a jackrabbit and an antelope, goat, or deer, and is usually portrayed as a rabbit with antlers. The word jackalope and antelabbit are portmanteaus.
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I spent many ypouthful summers in Munich Germany hunting "Wolperdingers" in the woods near my opa's house. He had a stuffed one on his mantle that I wasn't allowed to touch, ever.
I'll wager Ethic Man has as much luck (and fun) finding a Jackalope as I did a Wolperdinger!
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If you're going to bring that snobby attitude with ya, take your own advice: Pretentious europeans are abundant here too.
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Should you be unlucky enough to hit one on the road, you are obligated to toss it on the bonnet/hood of the vehicle. Watch that they do not come back to life and spoil the finsih!
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Howdy from San Antonio, TEXAS, the birthplace of the Republic of Texas and the state of TEXAS. Jackalopes... yep heard plenty of em over the years. Usually on full moons they can be heard singing for their mates. Mates is this context is not drinking mates as you would find in a pub! Its lonely being a unseen legend (not like Elvis). The one Jackalope I have a first hand knowledge of is "El Espirito del Noche" (spirit of the night) He is part Mini-Rex and had been known to visit the Texas Hillcounty and Austin incognito to listen to local country/western music artists. Mainly he sings older Willie Nelson songs that were popular in the 1950's and 1960's. His voice is a mix between Roy Rogers or Gene Autry's. He's been known to drink his fill of Shiner Bock Beer as well as Patron tequilla. The Mexican Federales are still on the lookout for him for a missing tractor trailer load of carrots last seen just south of Nuevo Laredo last Christmas.
I'll keep you folks updated on "El Spirito del Noche" when I get additional news of his whereabouts.
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Jackalopes... ya, i seen 'em as a kid. One charged our car on a family vacation, in Wyoming, near Jackalope Junction; took out the right front tire. Dad found a rattlesnake near by, tied it around the flat and we limped into the next town on the spare snake. The rattle on the snake was handy to warn other drivers of our slow progress in the days before hazard light switches. But that was many years ago. Jackalopes in the wild have just about been wiped out by trophy hunters. You can buy 'em stuffed and mounted on the internet.
Welcome to the USA.
matt
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Ok I think we need to get some things clear here. there are two kinds of Jackalope the Prarie Jackalope more common one. Its small and can Grow up to 3 to 4 ft tall standing on its hind leggs this is because it lives out in the open and needs to use the brush to hide. then there is the very Rare Mountain Jackalope Can get to the Size of man 5 to 6 ft tall very strong and very fast very Quiet. they are usally found in the Rocky mountains and High desserts and high plains of the southwest.Usally on Native American Lands. Thicker fur larger horns a full grown bull will have 4 to 6 point antlers while a female Smaller more compact Gets to about 5 ft tall and has a 2 to 4 points depending on age.
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Jackalope hunting permits.
US$10.00 each two for US$8.50
Write Silk_Suit,
Poor Boys Trailor Park
Space 22 second from end.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Bait US$10.00
How to hunt um US$10.00
Maps US$10.00
Inquire bout outfitting, guides and transport.
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first off, go to the missionary bar in Sweetwater. you'll need to get good and pissed and then ask for chief spoutinbull. tell him you seek the guidance and wisdom of the shaman hewho pullsyerleg. go to his sweat lodge and drink the magic herbal tea. this will help to direct you to the trails that lead to the jackalope dens.
after an hour or so you'll see the lights that will lead you on your quest. amid these lights you'll see the spirit guides mustuvhad toomuchtodrink and howcouldu fallforthiss. they will be on their steeds mean and spirited.
follow their lead and past the next range you will come to the area known as oz(you'll know you're there because of all of the colors). this is where the jackalope roam free without worry.
there will be a man of tim holding a rattle snake sceptor whoo can point you to the blind for viewing. make sure you bring your ten gaugue shotgun. it will require much firepower for the beast is strong and proud.
when the beast comes past your line of sight, fire many times for his is quick with the flettnes of the gazzelle. you'll need to bob up and down for with the speed comes much hopping from its powerfull legs.
after your quest retrieve the carcass and revile in the triumph of your hunt.
as you awaken in the morning, you will come to the realiztion that you should not have had all the yeager bombs and eaten the fried "mushrooms" which turned out to be peyote. you'll discover that it was all a dream brought about by watching television and listening to sgt. peppers.
oh, and f.y.i.-the jackalope has been extinct for about, what time is it?- two hours.
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I have it on good authority that jackalopes are often found in the vicinity of sasquatch and the legendary furry trout.
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I have it under good authority the only true way to truly see a Jack-a-lope is to imbibe on the peyote pipe, while under a cloudless canopy of night-sky, in the middle of the desert, whilst singing native-American songs. The other little known alternative to this would be to drink 1.75 liters of Captain Morgan Silver spiced rum with your significant other whilst viewing through the steam-coated back window of your trusty 1966 rambler station wagon. I spotted something this way that I thought might be a Jack-a-Lope but it looked eerily like my brother running nude through the sage and cactus...
I had a similar experience while trying to spot a glimpse of the Yeti on a Captain Morgan spiced rum outing on Mt. Kilimanjaro several years back...my brother insists he was in neither location.
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Dear Justin, Get yourself a copy of the movie The Incredibles. On this disk, you will find a 5 minute short movie called Boundin'. This will tell you all you need to know about the Jackalope. They do sing, by the way. Julian
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Be careful not to use narcotics when hunting a Jack-a-lope. You will find that it will turn into a Chupacabras in no time.
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You have as much chance as seeing one as seeing BigFoot....!!
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Good luck on the Jack-a-lope hunt, since your out looking for endangered species here in the USA could ya swing up into Illinois and search for the even more elusive non-criminally linked politician? Thanks!
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Don't knowbout the Jackalope BUt I do know that snipes are real.
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The country's breathing a sigh of stars
A bitch's baby from a buzzard's egg
American fortune seekers
West coast gold diggers
Southern forgetters
There's something wrong
I'm panning for hope in a junk sick river
Trying to find the other two bits on my dollar
Down fault lines and phone lines
On every breath of every dawn
There's something wrong
The prairie's bearing the vulture's child
The whippoorwill sails on a lonesome call
From the twilight to the horizon
There's something wrong
I'm looking for the jackalope in a burnt out car
In the dirt behind the daydream
Through a window painted on a blackened building
There's something wrong
And the click-clack of the freight train goes
This and that, this and that
'Till your ears are ringing
And your vision is clouded
My Papaw sang it to me while bangin on his fiddle round the campfire when we's Jackalope huntin. I miss em! Anybody out there know'd what the hell he was gabbin on about?
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well, bucko, you're not doing too well with your own knowledge now are you? especially when it comes to natural resources....
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=the-economist-has-no-clothes
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Jackalopes are a myth. Skilled taxidermists make them by sewing together the belly skin of a hoop snake, the antlers off a bunyip, the claws of a drop-bear and the unmentionable parts of a sasquatch.
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You should have better luck finding a jackalope in Texas as finding the best president the country has ever had...
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Lepus cornutus pictured here from Bonnaterre's Tableau Encyclopedique et Methodique, 1789) was probably really a poor cottontail rabbit suffering from papillomavirus, which has also affected humans. You can see photos of rabbits suffering from this infection here or if you prefer to read the authoritative UK text on the topic see this article. It is a disturbing and sad affliction when it hits rabbits or humans. See the famous "tree man" of Indonesia here and here.
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I lived in the Sweetwater area for a while. Other than the rattlesnake hunt and some dried up lakes, you have three things you can do. Eat Barbeque and drink beer, go to Walmart and see if there is anything new, and catch Jackalopes.
Of the three catching Jackalopes is by far the most interesting. You have to wear Texas made boots or they'll run from you. Don't trust T-sip guides cause they are all slow witted and well not too smart. Go hire an Aggie guide and for the price of one six pack per Jackalope caught, you'll do OK.
By the way flag down a game warden and ask him if the Jackalope migration is early or late? Most of them winter up between Snyder and Lamesa in Borden County!
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Go ahead and laugh- lots of fakes but based on some seriously sick jackrabbits:
http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~hollidac/jacksforreal.html
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One night when I was out Snipe hunting I actually caught a confused Jackalope in my reinforced Snipe bag!
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Ethical Man, first and foremost your wearing the wrong hat my good man. They'll see you coming from .75 km away!
Secondly,
do come to California we have many of the tricksy rodents, along with Snipes, equally rare critters! Be sure to go out at night, to either the beach or a wooded region, with marsh-mallows, an net, lantern and blanket. (pretty assistant optional) You'll find something I'm sure! Failing that, petting rattlesnakes is a state sport, give it a whirl!
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I'm a Jackalope Rancher. They are rather expensive because they are difficult to herd. Sometimes their little horns get all tangled up and it takes a lot of time and patience to separate them. Send me an email and I'll send you a confidential quote.
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Come down to the Four-Corners region later this spring, and you might catch a glimpse of some high-desert jackalope migrating to their summer pastures just below the La Plata Mountains.
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Jackalope has been seen in the 16th century in the old world: See for instance http://nomadenseelewow.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/wolpertinger.jpg
or search among Google pictures for the animal Wolpertinger.
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Keep in mind you'll need a proper jackalope hunting license. These are very inexpensive and can be purchased in Jackson, Wyoming. In order to preserve the endangered jackalope (and it's cousin, the flying jackalope), the hunting season is very short - just one day. Every year there is a big festival to celebrate the opening (and same day closing) of jackalope season on June 31st. Hope you enjoy. Good luck, and good hunting.
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After passing through Sweetwater one day I looked out the window of my pick up truck and noticed a chicken running along beside me. I looked at the speedometer and was going 55 mph!!! The chicken turned into a gate and ran by a rancher standing that was standing by the gate. I stopped and asked him hoe a chicken could run that fast and he said that they had discovered that resteraunts sold more drumstick than anything else so they began experimenting and eventually were able to grow 3 legged chickens. I asked him if they taste the same and he said he didn't know because they can't catch them.
I think you will find it easier to prove the existance of the jackalope than man made GW...
good hunting!
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Of course they exist ....
Many things in this life
Are not what they appear
Yeah I look like a hare
But if you stop and you stare
I'm related to a deer
... staring you down
Creepy Jackalope Eye .....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMyYoc9b-D0
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Some friends have feasted on jackalope, though I find this most inhumane because of their scarcity. Here in the Hill Country, we are more of a jackalope sanctuary (along with the deer).
Should we accidentally hit a jackalope and it is beyond rehabilitation, we will reverently eat it in a recipe such as http://www.bigoven.com/161295-Texas-Road-Kill-Chili-recipe.html.
Many other helpful sites give advice such as what to do when encountering jackalopes "DON'T PANIC. Never look a Jackalope in the eye, as they interpret this as an act of aggression. Simply give him a wide berth, walking slowly to his right side, as Jackalopes tend to be left handed (On an interesting side note, the Latin for "left", or "left-handed", is sinister. Apropos? Perhaps.). No matter how frightened you may be, do NOT under ANY circumstances, run. Running will undoubtedly trigger their instinct to chase, and eventually eat, whatever or whoever is running from them. If you should encounter a sleeping Jackalope, count your blessings. They are somewhat less dangerous, when they are asleep. But, for the love of God, NEVER poke a sleeping Jackalope! They are notoriously light sleepers, and quicker than you can imagine. Again, just veer to the right, on tip-toe." [http://hubpages.com/hub/BT--True-Hollywood-Story]
Wikipedia also confirms their existence.
Good luck in your search, Ethical Man.
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On the Canadian prairies we know them as Antlabbits. Very rare as the jack rabbits and the antelope will have nothing to do with them - each blame the other.
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OH MY GOD!
Now I know why no real science is being reported in this blog.
You believe all the cr*p you are being told out there.
You will come back believing Texas oil is the way to save the planet!
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#17 Are you for real!
Those things spit machine gun bullets, and fly faster than sound!
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