The
fur-bearing trout (or
furry trout) is a fictional creature purportedly found in North America and Iceland. According to tales, the trout has created a thick coat of fur
to maintain its body heat. Tales of furry fish date to the 17th-century
and later the "shaggy trout" of Iceland. The earliest known American
publication dates from a 1929
Montana Wildlife magazine article by J.H. Hicken. A taxidermy furry trout produced by Ross C. Jobe is a specimen at the Royal Museum of Scotland; it is a trout with white rabbit fur "ingeniously" attached.
There are no real examples of any fur-bearing trout species, but two
examples of hair-like growths on fish are known. The "cotton mold",
Saprolegnia, can infect fish, which can result in the appearance of fish covered in the white "fur". A real fish,
Mirapinna esau, also known as the "Hairy Fish", has hair-like outgrowths and wings.
Fur-bearing trout are fictional creatures that are purportedly found in Arkansas, northern North America, and Iceland.
The basic claim (or tall tale) is that the waters of lakes and rivers in the area are so cold that they evolved a thick coat of fur to maintain their body heat.
Another theory says that it is due to four jugs - or two bottles
- of hair tonic being spilled into the Arkansas River.
The origins vary, but one of the earlier claims date to a
17th-century Scottish immigrant's letter to his relatives referring to
"furried animals and fish" being plentiful in the New World. It was
followed by a request to procure a specimen of these "furried fish" and
one was sent back home.
A publication in 1900 recounts the Icelandic Lodsilungur, another haired trout, as being a common folklore.
The earliest known American publication dates from a 1929
Montana Wildlife magazine article by J.H. Hicken.
 |
| cotton mold |
The "cotton mold"
Saprolegnia
will sometimes infect fish, causing tufts of fur-like growth to appear
on the body. A heavy infection will result in the death of the fish, and
as the fungus continues to grow afterwards, dead fish that are largely
covered in the white "fur" can occasionally be found washed ashore.
A real fish,
Mirapinna esau known as the "Hairy Fish", has hair-like outgrowths and wings. It was discovered in the Azores in 1956.
According to Icelandic legend, the Lodsilungur is a furry trout that is
the creation of demons and giants. The Lodsilungur are described as
inedible fish that overwhelm rivers and are a form of punishment for
human wickedness. In 1900,
The Scottish Review
featured an account of the Lodsilungur as a poisonous "Shaggy trout" of
northern Iceland. In 1854, a shaggy trout was "cast on shore at Svina-vatn" and featured in an 1855 illustration in
Nordri, a newspaper. It was described as having a reddish hair on its lower jaw and neck, sides and fins, but the writer of the
Nordri article did not specifically identify it by name. Sjón, a popular Icelandic writer, became obsessed with the folk tale when he was nine.
Sjón recounted that if a man were to eat the furry trout he would become pregnant and
that his scrotum would have to be cut open to deliver the baby. Sjón noted that the story "might explain why I was later propelled towards surrealism.
An account of a furry trout appeared in 1929 in
Montana Wildlife
magazine and was first noted by J.H. Hicken. Hicken's account states
that when the fish is caught "the change of temperature from this water
to atmosphere is so great that the fish explodes upon being taken from
the water, and fur and skin come off in one perfect piece, making it
available for commercial purposes, and leaving the body of the fish for
refrigerator purposes or eating, as desired."
Another fur-bearing trout story originated with Wilbur Foshay, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce.
Foshay promoted the story so convincingly that it was picked up by the
Salida Record newspaper.
According to its Foshay, the trout grew fur due to the cold temperatures of the Arkansas River and shed the fur as the water temperatures warmed in the summer.
In November 1938, a story in the
Puebloan Cheiftan
recounted the hairy trout history and stated that "old-timers living
along the Arkansas River near Salida have told tales for many years of
the fur-bearing trout indigenous to the waters of the Arkansas near
there."
In 2014,
Mysteries at the Museum visited the Salida Museum and is expected to be part of a segment in late 2014.
A tall tale
was recounted by S.E. Schlosser, it states that hairy trout were the
result of two bottles or four jugs of spilled hair tonic. To catch hairy
trout, fisherman would act as barbers and lure fish from the waters
with the offer of a free trim or shave.
An intentionally fantastical story in Maine and claimed hairy trout were under catch and release policy that was enforced by wardens' carrying Brannock Devices.
If a fish was caught, the warden would measure it against the fisher's
foot. If the fish's length matched the fisher's foot size, the fish
could be eaten and the outards made into furry slippers.
The Canadian Fur-bearing trout is another example of the furry trout
hoax. According to the story, a trout with white fur was caught in Lake Superior off Gros Cap in Algoma, Ontario, Canada and its taxidermist was Ross C. Jobe.
The purchaser of the fish learned of the hoax after presenting it to the Royal Museum of Scotland. The white fur of a rabbit was described as being "ingeniously" attached to the fish.
A fictional description of the Canadian "Hairy" Trout was published by Takeshi Yamada.
- Source: wikipedia -
How would you like to catch some hairy trout? Maybe we can fire this back up and start making some cash leading fishing expeditions to catch hairy trout.
Really the whole story is pretty funny and at the same time maybe a little sad that some people back then fell for it. But as most of you know, the more outlandish the claim, the more apt some people are to believe it. If you just think back about some of the past Bigfoot hoaxes and some of the things that was told about the dead Bigfoot that Rick Dyer had ....some of it was off the charts unbelievable but yet some believed it.
The fur bearing trout hoax, has to be one of the all time best and funnest hoaxes ever. It makes me wonder about some of the things people may believe today, will it be proven a hoax 10 years down the road? Of course, we know more about things nowadays than we did back in the furry trout days. So I assume we will know even more about things in the days ahead.
Again, just shake your head and move on.
Thanks
~Tom~
This
post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the
cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto
Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of
unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild
land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet
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This
post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the
cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto
Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of
unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild
land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet
Fur-bearing trout are fictional creatures that are purportedly found in Arkansas, northern North America, and Iceland. The basic claim (or tall tale) is that the waters of lakes and rivers in the area are so cold that they evolved a thick coat of fur to maintain their body heat. Another theory says that it is due to four jugs - or two bottles - of hair tonic being spilled into the Arkansas River.
This post by TCC Team Member Jennifer Caywood. Jennifer is a bigfoot enthusiast and has conducted witness interviews and been on bigfoot expeditions. Jennifer is also a big Seattle Seahawks Fan.
This is a guest post by Gordon Ambrose from The discerning man's squatch. Stop by his facebook page and give it a like. Gordon is a bigfoot enthusiast who employs critical thinking when looking at bigfoot evidence.
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