Posted on 02/21/2007 12:32:50 PM PST by aculeus
The odd-looking animal spotted in several Piedmont counties last year evidently was a hairless gray fox.
That's the conclusion of Jaap Hillenius. He examined the carcass of a similar animal that had been hit by a car in the Charleston, S.C., area.
So it wasn't an exotic cross-species, though some central North Carolina residents who spotted the animals had reported it having the head of a cat and the body of a canine.
Just a fox sans hair because of a mutant gene, said Hillenius, associate professor in the biology department at College of Charleston.
"That's the best we can think of," he said. "There was no obvious reason for hair loss — no mange or malnutrition. It was normal except it didn't have hair follicles in the skin."
Hillenius sent part of the carcass' tongue to a UCLA lab, which confirmed it was a fox, he said. His findings were presented last weekend at the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition in Charleston.
"It had been seen in the area, and people were so interested in it," Hillenius said.
Three years ago, interest was high in the Piedmont. Sightings of similar creatures were reported in Guilford and Randolph counties; in 2006, one was seen and photographed near Raleigh.
Area residents theorized it could be an Australian dingo, an escapee from the nearby North Carolina Zoo or even some new species.
In May 2004, Asheboro businessman Bill Kurdian snapped a picture of one of the creatures feeding on corn he and his wife had put out for wild animals. After the sighting near Raleigh last year, state wildlife officials guessed that it could have been a hairless fox.
Hillenius saw Kurdian's photo Tuesday and said the animal seemed similar to the one he examined.
The fox ID makes sense, Kurdian said .
"I know that when he was out there, foxes would come up and feed next to it," he said. "There were no signs of aggression. They went up and smelled each other. There was no sense they feared each other."
Kurdian had hoped to trap the animal so it could be identified. But it disappeared about a year ago, he said.
Still, his nighttime photo of the mystery creature remains on numerous Web sites.
"You wouldn't believe the number of people who have asked me about that," he said.
Hillenius said his first goal was to identify the creature. Now he wants to know how many are around.
Evidently, there are more than a few. Sightings have been reported in Alaska and Colorado, in addition to the Carolinas.
GLOBAL WARMING IS DESTROYING OUR FOX'S FUR!
Of course, this must be Bush's fault.
The hairless foxes around here have MANGE.
I thought this was going to be an Edward's thread.
My Mom (83) is always saying he's grinnin' like a sh!t eating possum.
Yep, sounds like a mange epidemic.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1356885/posts
Expert says mystery beast is a 'mangey coyote'
I read the headline and thought maybe Hillary was campaigning there.
Looking at the pic I'd say fox, although most foxes around Raleigh are red foxes.
The pic depicts a lactating female.
How would they survive the winter?
Another hairless beast.
"Another hairless beast."
Is that you Britney?
They would put on a faux fur coat.
::rimshot::
Cuddling???
Breaking news: Helen Thomas in search of new rug ....
The story said it was a mutant gene that caused the animals to have "no hair follicles" in the skin.
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