Chupabcabra Was a Hybrid
Chupacabra update: Mystery grows with new test results
But for Phylis Canion, it's a search for the lineage of a beast
living under the oak trees of her Cuero ranch.
"The interest in the chupacabra has been overwhelming," said the Cuero
rancher.
At least, that's the name the strange creature has been given in the
last year.
Its DNA has been flown across the continent as Cuero residents search
for a final answer about their mysterious, blood-sucking beast.
The much-anticipated results are back from experts at the University
of California at Davis.
Last year, the KENS I-Team had scientists from Texas State University
evaluate DNA from the animal Canion found.
The animal was one of three peculiar, lavender-colored, dog-like
animals Cuero residents found last July.
Results from Texas State University stated the animal is from the
coyote family.
But Canion wanted to know more, so she sent more DNA, tooth and tissue
samples, off to California.
Results from the University of California at Davis show the animal is
in fact a mutt: on the mother's side it is part coyote.
"On the paternal side, it had Mexican wolf in it," said Canion.
Scientists from the University of California at Davis say they can't
tell when the Mexican wolf heritage made its way into the gene pool.
It could be generations ago, but Canion believes the father's genes
are important and can explain some of the odd characteristics of the
creature.
"It was a hybrid, because it has this other breed in it," she said.
Canion is referring to the hairless, odd-colored skin originally
thought to be caused by parasites or disease. Now, experts aren't so sure.
The Cuero rancher said she expects further testing to find out where
all the hair has gone and why the animal, she says, seems to crave
just blood from its victims.
"We still can't figure that one out," she said.
Meantime, an international media storm continues to descend on the
small Texas town.
Italy's popular Voyager TV show spent an hour on the story of Canion
and her creature.
Japan is sending a television crew this month, too, as the legend
continues to grow.
E-mails and letters to Canion at her shop certainly haven't slacked,
either.
"It may be quiet out here in rural Cuero, Texas, but the drama still
continues. There are still sightings of the animal, and chickens? They
keep disappearing, too. Some of it captured in footage by the
Discovery Channel," she said.
They had cameras running, heat-seeking cameras, six cameras that ran
for 31 days and took over a thousand shots, and in that it also picked
this animal up.
That's a lot of images to comb through and may give even more insight
into the creature's habits.
Together with the new DNA results, the Cuero rancher is reassured the
animal is not a fluke of nature. Canion firmly believes a family of
the Cuero creatures are living — and hunting — her property.
T-shirt sales of the chupacabra are still going strong, with more than
16,000 sold already.
There's even been legal action to keep some knock-offs from being sold
on eBay where they were going for three times the price.
KVue.com 6th February 2008
The supposed chupacabra found in Cuero was stated to be a coyote after initial DNA testing. More extensive DNA testing, this time covering the paternal side, has found Mexican wolf genes as well. There's a possible parallel here with the big cat shot in Australia, which has not had the full DNA tests. Jan