It was in 1977 that my late friend, Franklyn Angus Davin-Wilson, asked what I thought about "the killer canids of Cavan" as reported on by Charles Hoy Fort (The Books of Charles Fort, 1942). I responded that I had not heard of the report. It turns out I should have said "reports". People in Cavan, Ireland bitten by mysterious "canid-like creature" and they all went insane and were institutionalised.
It took 35 years before I could close the file on that one. The case is examined in The Red Paper: Canidae. Add to that "The Black Beast of Edale" which took a lot of research to get far more than the cryptozoologists had to offer (quoting one press report) and I was firmly looking beyond foxes or wolves.
The Girt (Great) Dog of Ennerdale is near mythological when you look at the various claims for what it was: an early imported and escaped thylacine. A tiger. An unknown type of ancient native British cat, a hyena and, of course, a werewolf or dire wolf (Dire wolves pop up everywhere when cryptozoologists are involved. As an archivist I did what any good researcher should do: I went back to the factual original account often cited by cryptozoologists but very obviously never read by them., I identified the animal.
Jackals and wolves were all mysterious appearances and disappearances as far as cryptozoologists and Forteans were concerned but like coyotes in the UK it took research to find out where those canids came from.
And then we have the Beast of Gevaudan. Lion? Child killing serial killer with a cannibalistic leaning, a dire wolf or, if you go by You Tubers who base their knowledge on the utter mess that is the internet, now !positively a lion". I went back and, in mysterious Beasts and Creatures, catalogued a large number of mysterious French beasts and the conclusions were even a surprise for me. Again, based on historical documents and talking to French naturalists.
I have specifically specialised in foxes and other wild canids, wolverines and also, as a side line, hyena. I would dearly love to say that a case has stumped me and is totally unexplainable but when you find that the unexplainable aspects are actually fake and created by certain fringe people to "sex up" a story you are simply left with fact and every one of my books has heavy reference sections.
Naturalists should NEVER be afraid to look at anything described as "mysterious" because they may find getting to the truth enjoyable but also learn. Seeing how a known animal can spark off a "mysterious sea creature" or "mystery predator" story can tell you a lot about people and how they perceive our wildlife but also how things can go very wrong.
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