I have mentioned the fact that the Study has a huge photo data base and that includes of taxidermy since we are not funded we cannot afford to buy specimens that are of extreme interest. If you read The Red Paper: Canids (very few have) you would have seen the masks (mounted heads of foxes) of supposed "foxes" released and killed by hunts that were anything other than foxes. Jackals, coyotes, wolves et al were all kept and released to hunt -newspapers of the 19th Century feature many news reports and features on jackal hunts.
Some taxidermies we traced but new owners refused to cooperate in a study. However, it was quite obvious that certain 'fox' masks were either mistakenly labelled by hunts which is not likely, or they were just called this by antique dealers -another group that constantly refuses to cooperate in any way. Many of the plaques/shields do NOT say "fox" but just give the duration of the hunt (the important part to them) and start-end locations.
I have noted before that experts in wolves and coyotes clearly identified masks as such but when they asked where the masks originated from and "England" was given most started spluttering and trying to back-track. Why? Who knows.
Take this one: "Vale of Clifttwr Hunt June 1963 "
The Vale of Clettwr (also spelled Cletwr) is a rural geographic area located in Mid Wales primarily within the county of Ceredigion. It stretches across a lush, hilly region between the towns of Lampeter, Llandysul, and Tregaron, roughly following the path of the Afon Clettwr river.
Chunkiest 'fox' I have seen. What do you think?
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