Web Hoax Museum

	The toilet monster! Your wife will never yell at you about leaving the seat up again! Not recommended for those with a weak heart. Watch video demo.
	The Covert Clicker. Secretly control the TV, anywhere, any time! Picture a crowded sports bar on Super Bowl Sunday. With seconds left on the clock - CLICK! - the TV channel changes to the Home and Garden Television network!
	Carpool Kenny! An inflatable passenger for the carpool lane. Just inflate him and you’re good to go!
	Fanny Bank! A farting piggy bank. Drop some loot and hear it toot! Saving your pennies will be a gas.
	Slip On Tattoo Sleeves Amaze your friends, shock your spouse, or co-workers. The tattoo is printed directly on stretchable fabric sleeves made of machine washable nylon.
	George Bush Toilet Paper Sit down, relax, and enjoy. Individually shrink-wrapped. With classic quotes: "They misunderestimated me." "Bring 'em on!"
Lots of other stuff: Hilarious T-Shirts — Bizarre Garden Gnomes — Car Pranks — Classic Pranks — Workplace Office Humor — Darwin / Jesus Fish Plaques

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MISCELLANEOUS Main Page (Weblog) Forum Register Login Recent Comments Weblog Categories RSS Feed 2.0 Search (old forum) About the Museum About the Curator Contact HOAXES BY ERA Before 1700 1700-1799 1800-1868 1869-1913 1914-1949 1950-1976 1977-1989 1990-1999 After 2000

APRIL FOOL'S DAY Top 100 April Fools Hoaxes Top 10 Worst April Fools History of April Fools Day GALLERIES Hoax Websites Hoax Photos Top 10 College Pranks Birth Hoaxes Tall-Tale Creatures TESTS AND QUIZZES Hoax Photo Test 1 Hoax Photo Test 2 Hoax Photo Test 3 Hoax Photo Test 4 Gullibility Test 1 Gullibility Test 2 April Fools Test Christmas Test BOOKS BY ALEX Elephants on Acid (2007) Hippo Eats Dwarf (2006) Museum of Hoaxes (2002)

HOAX MUSEUM T-SHIRTS

'Tall-Tale Creature-ology' is a venerable branch of Natural History dedicated to the study of fauna and flora possessing properties of a fantastic and remarkable nature. It should be distinguished from its close cousin Cryptozoology, which is the study of creatures that prefer to remain hidden. The Museum of Hoaxes would like to go on record stating that it neither denies nor confirms the existence of any of the creatures listed below.

The abbagoochie (pronounced abba-GOO-cheez) is a fierce little creature resembling a cross between an owl, a fox, and a deer. It is indigenous to Costa Rica, where people refer to it as a "dryland piranha" because it will eat anything, including creatures far larger than itself such as horses and cows. If cornered, an abbagoochie will consume itself "in a devilish whirlwind" rather than allow itself to be captured. They mate only once every 6 ½ years.

In 1999, in an ill-considered move, the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR) introduced thirteen baby Abbagoochies from Costa Rica into West Virginia in order to keep down the population of overpopulated predators such as coyotes and rattlesnakes. But soon, as reported by Jim Wilson of the Webster Echo in February 2001, the abbagoochie itself multiplied out of control and began attacking livestock. Soon after Wilson's article appeared, sightings of Abbagoochies began occurring throughout the region. Some farmers began carrying shotguns in order to protect their livestock. Concerned parents walked their kids to the schoolbus to make sure they were safe. And one man reported that he had accidentally run over an abbagoochie. Antennalope are a stunning example of cross-species symbiosis. These North-American antelopes have evolved to have metal antennas on top of their heads, instead of the traditional antlers. They roam throughout the American plains, constantly on the move, migrating to where radio signals are weakest. Because their antennas relay radio signals, engineers have been able to use this natural resource to create transcontinental radio networks. The antennalope were featured in a 2003 ad campaign for Nextel long-range walkie-talkies. The bare-fronted hoodwink is an extremely shy species of bird. To date it has never been fully observed. In fact, its existence has only been surmised thanks to the efforts of ornithologist M.F. Meiklejohn who conducted a careful study of birds "partially seen or indeterminately heard." Meiklejohn advised that bird watchers in the field could recognize the species by its "blurred appearance and extremely rapid flight away from the observer." He also noted that amateur bird watchers appeared to have more luck spying it than did more experienced observers. The photo to the right shows a museum curator's effort to guess at what the hoodwink might look like. This specimen was exhibited at the Royal Scottish Museum in Edinburgh on April 1, 1975. Burmese Mountain Dogs are a rare dog breed that live in the mountains of Myanmar. They have been bred to hunt skunks and protect livestock. Their abilities as skunk hunters are quite remarkable. Note their skunk-like markings which can fool a skunk into believing the dog is another skunk, until too late. Despite their size, they can climb trees over 50-feet high in pursuit of the arboreal Burmese Skunk. In the event that a skunk sprays them, they can also shed the scent with a mere rinsing. Burmese Mountain Dogs make great pets. Their major drawback is their excessive shedding. However, they should not be confused with Bernese Mountain Dogs, which are Swiss farm dogs. More information can be found at BurmeseMountainDog.org. The Camelce is a curious hybrid of the American elk and the Asiatic camel, created when camels imported by the U.S. government for use as pack animals in the Arizona desert got loose and mated with elks in the wild. The existence of this creature was first reported in an 1875 New York Herald article about the Newton-Jenney expedition to the Black Hills of South Dakota. Correspondent R.B. Davenport noted discovering a large skeleton that looked to him like the skeleton of a bull elk, but he was later corrected by the scout "California Joe" who identified the bones as those of a Camelce. Said California Joe (as quoted by Davenport): "Well, sir, I reckon that there must be the bones of one of them camelces I's'eerd so much about. You see, a good many year ago the guv'ment decided to use camels for packin' supplies down in the deserts of Arizony. Some of the females escaped and, feelin' sorta lonely, they joined up with a elk herd. It wasn't long before they was matin' with the bull elks and the result was somethin' that was half-camel and half-elk. Dog-gonedest animal I ever seed ... " The Dog-Collared Sombre Blackbird (Clericus polydenominata) is a large black-plumaged bird, displaying a white collar around its throat, that is often found around old buildings with spires. It is very sociable, and has a distinctive call that sounds like "Brrrrr—rethren." It often congregates with flocks of Common Laity. This bird was first described in 1963 by Frank Goodliffe in the South African scientific journal Bokmakierie. It was later listed in the journal Zoological Record as a member of the family Icteridae (which includes such birds as the American Orioles). M.A. Traylor later suggested that it properly belonged in the family Ploceidae, the Bishop Birds. Drop bears are carnivorous, tree-dwelling marsupials found throughout Australia. Their preferred dwelling is eucalyptus trees or gum trees. They are related to koala bears, though larger and equipped with sharp teeth and razor-like claws. Sometimes people refer to them as the koala bear's evil twin.

Drop bears prefer to feed at night. They wait in trees and then drop down on top of their prey, usually instantly knocking it unconscious. They will then proceed to devour it. They will quite readily attack creatures larger than themselves, including humans.

The only known way to deter a drop bear is to spread toothpaste or vegemite behind your ears and on your neck. It also makes sense not to pitch your tent beneath a tree that contains a drop bear. A good way to find out if a drop bear is in a tree is to lie down beneath the tree and spit upwards. If a drop bear is sleeping up there, it will wake up and spit back.

Australians are known for going to great lengths to make sure that backpacking tourists are aware of the dangers posed by drop bears. Young children attending camp are also frequently warned of this threat to their safety. Fur-Bearing Trout (also known as Beaver Trout) possess thick coats of fur that help to keep them warm in the cold northern waters where they live.

According to legend, the fur-bearing trout was first encountered by Europeans when Scottish settlers emigrated to Canada during the seventeenth century. One settler wrote home remarking about the abundance of "furried animals and fish" in the new land. Asked to provide more information about the furried fish, he duly sent home a specimen. Fur-Bearing trouts mounted as trophies can be found hanging on walls throughout the Great Lakes region of North America.

Other fur-bearing aquatic animals besides trout are sometimes encountered. For instance, fur-bearing crab (below - left) are occasionally sold on eBay. However, it should be noted that a fur-bearing lobster (below - right) found recently deep in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Easter Island is not considered to be a tall-tale creature. It is a subject of mainstream scientific inquiry (seriously!).

The giant rooster is not a distinct species, but rather a mutant, oversized version of the common rooster. It's not clear what makes them so big. Maybe it's the food they eat, or something in the air. Maybe it's radiation. Whatever the reason, giant roosters have been a frequent subject of photographs from the beginning of the twentieth century onwards. Many of these photographs have been sent as postcards. During the drought years of the Great Depression midwestern farmers seemed to enjoy sending postcards of giant roosters (and other giant-sized livestock and produce) to their friends and relatives back east. These postcards were frequently captioned: "They grow 'em big here!"

The rare mushroom known as Golfballia ambusta prefers to grow in fields of partially mown grass. It can be found throughout the world, but is said to have originated in Scotland. It was first described by R.W.G. Dennis in the Journal of the Kew Guild, who observed it growing in Lancashire and East Africa. He noted that the most remarkable thing about this fungus was the small, hard fruit bodies it grew, which resembled the spheres "employed by the Caledonians in certain tribal rites, practised at all seasons."