7 Comments
User's avatar
Ronald Pine's avatar

Javelinas, more properly called Collared Peccaries, are not pigs, in spite of their piglike appearance. They belong to a different zoological family, the Tayassuidae. Pigs belong to the family Suidae.

Expand full comment
Sharon A. Hill's avatar

My bad, changed to peccary.

Expand full comment
Jim Veihdeffer's avatar

Dang it Ronald! I was just about to offer that correction! "Javelina are not pigs. They look similar, but pigs are from the "Old World" and peccary are "New World" animals." (Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum)

Expand full comment
Guerilla Surgeon's avatar

I've seen that "Nessie" pic described as the tail of an otter without any perspective to show size. Didn't realise it was faked.

Expand full comment
Sharon A. Hill's avatar

I assumed that it was common knowledge that it was a fake head/neck attached to a toy. Here is the story. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lochness/legend3.html

Expand full comment
Guerilla Surgeon's avatar

That's interesting, I had a book years ago – written I think in the 1950s or 60s which showed that picture and a whole lot of other pictures of otters diving, which looked remarkably similar. Although let's face it is not a brilliant picture to begin with. But being relatively old I somehow doubt the ability of 1930s toy submarines to support anything that tall without tipping over. :)

Expand full comment
Stephen Saunders's avatar

Polar bears on the roof reminded me of this story from our area. If the less than imaginatively named protagonist were real, climate change would be even more concerning: https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2022-01-11/snowy-the-bear-to-remain-at-bath-pub-after-campaign-to-save-it

Expand full comment