The Jackalope (Lepus-temperamentalus) is one of the rarest animals
in the world. Known by the ancients as "deerbunnies", it wasn't until the early 1960's that the modern more fearsome name
of "jackalope" was adopted. A cross between a now extinct pygmy-deer and a species of killer-rabbit, they are extremely shy
unless approached. None have ever been captured alive.
It
is written that you can extract the Jackalope's milk as it sleeps belly up at night. The milk is belived to be medicinal and
can be used to treat a variety of afflictions. The truth is these creatures are aggressive and unpredictable, and should not
be provoked for any reason!
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The Jackaloupe once roamed the plains of the South and
Southwest in vast herds that grazed on the natural grasses that grew there. Their antlers, originally used in ceremonial battles
for territory and breeding rights, later proved a vital asset when battling buffalos for shrinking grasslands. When forced
into smaller and smaller regions the Jackaloupes became desperate for food, and would lay waste to entire farms, ranches and
the occasional saloon (Jackaloupes are fervent heavy drinkers).
Driven nearly to extinction by hunters and outraged farmers,
these specimens are the result of an aggressive reintroduction plan. The Jackaloupes are raised on farms where one in three
is sold in the form of a proud taxidermied head. The proceeds go toward the purchase of land to be set aside creating the
largest Jackaloupe reserve in the world. The remaining two-thirds are raised in captivity and released when they are able
to fend for themselves.
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The jackalope
is an aggressive species, willing to use its antlers to fight. Thus, it is also sometimes called
the "warrior rabbit."
Jackalopes possess an uncanny ability to mimic human sounds. In the old West, when cowboys would
gather by their campfires to sing at night, jackalopes would frequently be heard singing back, mimicking the voices of the
cowboys. Jackalopes become especially vocal before thunderstorms, perhaps because they mate only when lightning flashes (or
so it is theorized).
When chased, the jackalope will use its vocal abilities to elude capture. For instance, when chased
by people it will call out phrases such as, "There he goes, over there," in order to throw pursuers off its track. The best
way to catch a jackalope is to lure it with whiskey, as they have a particular fondness for this drink. Once intoxicated,
the animal becomes slower and easier to hunt.
Jackalope milk is particularly sought after because it is believed to
be a powerful aphrodisiac (for which reason, the jackalope is also sometimes referred to as the 'horny rabbit'). However,
it can be incredibly dangerous to milk a jackalope, and any attempt to do so is not advised. A peculiar feature of the milk
is that it comes from the animal already homogenized on account of the creature's powerful leaps.
Douglas, Wyoming
has declared itself to be the Jackalope capital of America because, according to legend, the first jackalope was spotted there
around 1829. A large statue of a jackalope stands in the town center, and every year the town plays host to Jackalope Day,
usually held in June. Jackalope hunting licenses can be obtained from the Douglas Chamber of Commerce, though hunting of jackalopes
is restricted to the hours of midnight to 2 a.m. on June 31.
The jackalope is now most commonly sighted in the states
of Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska. However, the jackalope does appear to have a European cousin, which in Germany is known
as the wolperdinger. In Sweden, a related species is called the skvader.
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The
jackalope, a cottontail or domestic rabbit or jackrabbit mounted with the horns of a young antelope, deer or goat is commonly
believed to have originated in the folklore of the American West.
Even the famous Encyclopedie Methodique volume of plates has a figure of a horned hare; this figure
is a copy of an engraving which first apeared in Jacob Klein's Summa Dubiorum Circa Classes Quadrupedum et Amphibiorum
in 1743. Thus, many of the naturalists of the 16th through 18th centuries
believed that horned rabbits really existed.
Perhaps immigrants to the U.S. from Europe brought
the idea of the horned hare with them and this has evolved into our modern jackalope. This notion is strengthened by the fact
that illustrations of horned hares were included in the Encyclopedie Methodique and in some 18th century German
schoolbooks and would, thus, have been known to many people through their schooling. More modern huntsmen's tales about European
horned hares also exist: the Austrian raurackl, the Bavarian wolpertinger, the
Thuringian rasselbock, and the dilldapp in Switzerland.
Dan Japuntich has found a truly ancient reference to a horned rabbit in the Bhuddist Dharmas. For example, in
the Shurangama Sutra, Volume 1, Part Two, Sutra text:
Page 159: The
Buddha said to Ananda, "You say that the mind with its aware nature that perceives and makes discriminations is not located
anywhere at all. Everything existing in the world consists of space, the waters, and the land, the creatures that fly and
walk, and all external objects. Would your non-attachment also exist?
Page 160: "If it did not exist,
it would be the same as fur on a tortoise or horns on a rabbit. Just what would that non-attachment be?"
It's tempting to opine that, if the Buddha and his disciples had spent a little less time trying to negate themselves
and to focus inward, they might have actually seen a few horned rabbits and used a different simile.
Finally, there is a papillomavirus which can cause horn-like growths on rabbits' heads, so there really are rabbits which, at a distance, appear to have horns. Such animals are probably
responsible for the jackalope, raurackl, rasselbock, wolpertinger, dilldapp and similar legends in the U.S., Europe and in
African folk tales and for the belief in the existence of horned hares by naturalists in the 16th through 18th centuries.
"The jackalope is an antlered species of rabbit, unfortunately rumored to be extinct, though occasional sightings of this
rare creature continue to occur, suggesting that pockets of jackalope populations continue to persist in its native home,
the American West.
