Baby Boar PIglet Adopted by Cattle

A wild boar piglet is adopted by a herd of cattle, and the baby boar has learned to moo:

http://www.thelocal.de/society/20101105-30983.html

Mothman Flutterings: New Look

Finally, a look I can live with over on my WordPress blog Mothman Flutterings. Check it out. Now that I have a new look I like and that says "Mothman" I feel inspired to bring more Mothy goodness to the blog.

Owl Haiku

the owls

owls are plentiful
these days, appearing where you'd
least expect them to

"UFO Pets" New Website out of Florida

Saw this link for a new website called UFO Pets on UFO Updates: a new website focusing on Fortean creatures, including of course Chupacabras, in Florida. I don't know much about the site, but from skimming it, it seems to be a collection of encounters and cases of cryptids in Florida, including Bigfoot sightings.

Frame 352: "Going to kill it in 3 mths"

In September I blogged about an email I received from someone calling himself Brian, who said he was going to kill himself a Bigfoot on Mt. Hood, on my paranormal Bigfoot blog Frame 352:

Frame 352: "Going to kill it in 3 mths"

Today, "Bigfootareus" stopped by to leave a comment on that post, who seems bored by Brian's intent to kill himself a BF, but isn't too worried, for BF is "invisible in the higher dimensions."

Octopus Confessional: Sick and Dead Sea Lions Washing Up on Oregon Coast

Octopus Confessional: Sick and Dead Sea Lions Washing Up on Oregon Coast

Deer are Stealing Xmas

Here's another example of deer and human colliding: A Rogue Valley (Oregon) Christmas tree farmer says deer are causing damage to his crop. Other xmas tree farmers are having the same problem.

Larry Ryerson with the U-Cut Christmas Tree Farm in Medford estimates that deer have gotten to about 1,000 of their 10,000 trees. They say bucks can even ruin some trees beyond repair.

It seems there's been a "deer meme" what with reports of aggressive deer -- termed so because they're attacking humans on our own turf -- crashing through windows, chasing after dogs, etc. Despite commenting that xmas tree farmers still expect a good crop this year, even with the deer damage, the idea of deer causing trouble for humans seemed noteworthy enough to write an article about it, no matter how short.


My point here isn't that I'm not sympathetic to those losing their livelihood. I'mjust struck by the Fortean irony and juxtapositions of Christmas trees and deer as iconic symbols on the one hand, and a would be battle between human and deer on the other, as one tries to earn a living by ensuring the availability of one product (xmas tree) while fighting against another (deer) who has been invited, even though unintentionally, by the plethora of trees in its habitat.

More here.

Birds Attack

Starlings are responsible for an outage in a Portland area substation.

Did He Find a Tasmanian Tiger Pelt?

Bill Warren buys a pelt for $5.00 at a garage sale; thinks it possible it's the pelt of a Tasmanian Tiger. Hassles with U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and negoiations with an auction house ensue. Adding to Fortean goodness: Warren is a singer, knew Sinatra, is a treasure hunter, and ran for Congress.

Radioactive Rabbit

Highly radioactive rabbit trapped at Hanford.

TRI-CITIES, Wash. (AP) - A radioactive rabbit was trapped on the Hanford nuclear reservation, but there is no sign any people were exposed to the animal.

Washington state Health Department workers with the Office of Radiation Protection have been searching for contaminated rabbit droppings. None have been found in areas accessible to the public, regional director Earl Fordham said Thursday.

Radioactive animals in the area are not uncommon. Radioactive wasps and nests have been found through the years, along with other animals:

Hanford has an extensive program to check for contaminated animals. In 2009, 33 contaminated animals or animal materials such as droppings were found on the site, the Tri-City Herald reported.

In Hanford's earlier years, contaminated animals were more common.

Liquid waste with radioactive salts was discharged into the ground near central Hanford during the Cold War. Rabbits and other animals were attracted to the salts and spread radioactive droppings across as much as 13.7 square miles of sage-covered land before the waste sites were sealed to keep out animals in 1969.

As the article mentions, there is on-going testing to this day to find radioactive animals in the area.

Increase in Wild Animal Attacks

 "There are strange things lost and forgotten in obscure corners of the newspaper." ~ Arthur Machen

It seems we've been hearing about a lot of strange animal behavior the past few years; increases in some animal populations, like bear, wild hogs and deer for example, and an increase in attacks on humans by these animals.

As we know, as we humans expand our habitats, we are also intruding on animal habitats. Combined with a plethora of events: climate changes/global warming, decrease in food supplies, mange and other diseases are just some of the reasons for this. Animals become more aggressive, more used to, and unafraid of, humans, more aggressive due to hunger, disease, loss of habitat, etc.

Two recent events (one fatal) from the Pacific Northwest illustrate this almost apocalyptic aggressive animal behavior.

In Washington state, Robert H. Boardman was on a hike in Olympic National Park. He was killed by a mountain goat as he tried to get the goat off the trail as his companions had walked on ahead: [Mountain goat kills man in Olympic National Park]

Other acquaintances — Jessica and Bill Baccus and their three children — were hiking the same trail. When they reached the saddle at the top of the trail, they found Willits, frantic and cellphone in hand. Willits told them a mountain goat had attacked Boardman and that the goat wouldn't let people get near him.

Boardman was lying motionless farther up the trail, about 100 feet away, while the animal stood over him, Jessica Baccus said.
"The mountain goat was terribly aggressive," she said. "It wouldn't move. It stared us down."

Bill Baccus, a park scientist, had his park radio and immediately called a dispatcher. Because Baccus has spent a lot of time around mountain goats, he led the effort to try to lure the goat away from Boardman.
Three people spread out along a slope, shouting and pelting the animal with rocks, Jessica Baccus said. The goat, distracted by the reflective light of a hiker's silver space blanket, finally backed away after about 15 minutes.

Today, in Umatilla, Oregon, a bird watcher was attacked by a buck mule deer. Quentin Hinds was bird watching near McNary Dam. He began to take photographs of the deer, who attacked him. Hinds was taken to the hospital and treated and released.

It is mating season, as the article points out; [Deer attack sends Oregon bird watcher to hospital] people are urged to be aware of this and be respectful and wary of their surroundings.


There are so many odd stories, often downright strange and tragic ones, of animals behaving very unusually indeed. Sign of the times -- yet another signal from the earth, our environment, consciousness, that things are dreadfully wrong?


These stories remind me of the classic Arthur Machen story The Terror,[1917] where animals commit acts of murder upon humans. The story was a metaphor but regardless, it also stands on its own as an eerie portent.


Responding to aggressive wildlife, authorities and citizens also become aggressive. Again in Oregon, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in Ashland encourage bow hunters to go hunting for deer. Some residents agree it's a good idea and something needs to be done to combat deer attacks; Ashland has had deer attacking humans and/or their pets as they walk their dogs, deer crashing through glass doors and windows, deer conflicting with humans on the street. . . (and I know it's in bad taste but I can't help but think of Monty Python here.)

Other Ashland residents are not welcoming of the bow hunting idea:

A handful of residents at the meeting said they didn't think Ashland had a deer problem and they were strongly against killing the animals.

"I have never had a problem with any of the deer," said Sallie Rose Sandler. "Is there no animal that can live without fear of humans, or do we have to kill them all?"

Cougars are another animal that are a problem for many areas in the country, including Oregon. Once unusual to see cougar in human populated areas, cougars are becoming more visible in urban areas. Just today an item appeared in the Register Guard about a cougar seen twice during the afternoon -- unusual time of day for a cougar sighting -- in a residential area. While this particular neighborhood is  "wild and isolated," it's still habitated by humans and, as the article points out, residents are worried because school buses pick up and drop off students in the area. We've also had recent reports of cougars seen in local parks, and, a few years ago, the Register Guard published a photograph of a cougar sleeping in a tree -- on the University of Oregon campus.

The Orange Orb: Owl Says: Not So Fast...

Just when I thought my episodes with owl synchronicities were over, I get an interesting email from Tim Binnall; read about it on my blog Orange Orb:

The Orange Orb: Owl Says: Not So Fast...

The 'C' Influence: SP-8: Random Responses to Water Monsters, Clowns,C...

I've added my thoughts to the discussion at the C Influence blog on water monsters, and crypto research:

The 'C' Influence: SP-8: Random Responses to Water Monsters, Clowns,C...: "Clowns and Cannibals Bruce begins his post with the question:'What makes a creature monstrous to us?'

Lake Monsters on "The C-Influence"

The esoteric minded C-Influence blog, which addresses all kinds of philosophical, occult (in the true sense of the word), metaphysical type topics, -- and of which I'm a contributor to, along with others such as Bruce Duensing and Lon Strickler, has new posts up about lake monsters. Check it out here.

Odd Beams and Objects Caught on Trial Cams

Lon Strickler at Phantoms and Monsters has a good post on some weirdness caught by trail cams. Red glowing lights, strange objects, beams of light . . . and the unusual reaction of deer to those things. For Lon's post and images visit Phantoms and Monsters: Trial Cam Strangeness

The above reminded me of the strange beam of light that appeared to stop just above the ground caught on camera by Margie Alvarez in Stephenville, Texas, during the Stephenville UFO flap. (Other events came to mind, like the Skinwalker ranch, etc.)


In these cases; the ones Lon refers to, Stephenville, there is a lot of property available for "them" whoever "they" may be, to do their thing. Private property, rural, hard to get to, at night -- all good conditions for conducting covert activities.

I'm always interested in the reaction of animals to the anomalous; the animals responses are excellent clues -- and data -- in working towards figuring out what is going on.

Frame 352: Bigfoot Lunch Club's "A Man Who Would Kill Bigfoot"

The Bigfoot Lunch Club blog has a post about "Dave," who wants to shoot himself a bigfoot. I left a comment over there, and expanded a bit on Frame 352. (Link to Bigfoot Lunch Club can be found there.)

Frame 352: Bigfoot Lunch Club's "A Man Who Would Kill Bigfoot"

Yeti/Wild Thing Synchronicity

I had a very disturbing dream last night. I think it was because I was coming down with something and my body/subconscious was reacting to that, because after I was awake for about an hour, I suddenly felt clammy, chilled, sore throat -- fall crud. The dream sounds almost funny in some ways but it was very scary, just your basic all around nightmare. Something about the Yeti, with giant claws, ripping people apart. And smaller sized Yetis -- in the dream, they were called "Yet-its" -- who looked more like stuffed toys than real creatures. They were watching the big monster Yeti dismembering people, their bodies (or, pieces of their bodies) slowly slip down the outside of the glass on the windows of the second floor room where I was watching all this, and damn glad of course I wasn't one of the victims. Blood, guts, human body parts, all sliding down the glass. The "Yet -its" were shocked, and sad, at this, because the big monster Yeti wasn't supposed to be a murderous monster, but something went wrong.

I was telling someone at work about this dream and described the "Yet-its" as looking like the characters from Where the Wild Things Are. And a minute later, someone walks into the room with a T-shirt with a large monster character from the book, with the title, in large letters: Where the Wild Things Are.

So, owls and Yetis and Wild Things; a message, synchronicity? Maybe the "message" is simply the appearance of the synchronicities themselves, appearing in animal form, since that's where I like to be -- in the animal realm.

As to the nature of the yucky dream; had another violent dream the night before that, though not involving animals. Sadly, a person I know. Some personal issues in my life right now. Not surprising, given that and my run down state, that my dream mind conjures up attacking Yetis!

Owls Today

In the movie Encounters of the Fourth Kind, the owl figures prominently, which isn't surprising, since the movie is about alien abductions.  I saw the movie for the first time Saturday night, which inspired me to write the post below on owls, posted Sunday.

Today, I see in the morning paper that the owl appears in the cartoon jumble. At work, someone wearing an over sized T-shirt with a giant owl on it walks by me. I go to my desk to find owl stickers. Later, class divides into teams and decide on team names: one group chooses "the owls."

Love that owl synchronicity!

The OWL

The owl, as Forteans know, makes its appearance in various ways within UFO-alien abduction-high strangeness events and occult, para-political conspiracy themes.  Sometimes the owl appears to a witness of the anomalous as what it is: a bird, but. . . is it? Behind the owl there seems to be something else; an alien, an entity. Is the alien pretending to be an owl, appearing as an owl, or using the owl as familiar? Is the image of the owl projected; beamed to the human, as a tool to lull the human into a hypnotic state?

The owl, as a symbol, appears in conspiracies. The owl is on the dollar bill, and it figures strongly within the Bohemian Grove's rites; in these contexts, the owl represents hidden knowledge available to the few -- and privileged.

In a reversal mode, the owl is also a symbol of high skepticism to the point of ridiculous debunkery. Uber skeptic Joe Nickell has used the owl to "prove" that Mothman, the Kelly Hopkinville entities, and the Flatwoods Monster were simply owls. At least three seperate articles have been written by Nickell, where he details his anyalises of these very different (as to content, time and location) events, yet offers up the same solution: owls.

The television Twin Peaks (created by David Lynch)  acknowledged the esoteric imagery of the owl in what is now a cult classic line: "The owls are not what they seem."



Currently, AMC is airing its new series Rubicon, which is about a spy type think tank. Not exactly CIA, NSA, etc. but a department housed in a funky, run down old building that analyzes and reports on global political doings and individuals. Recent accidental deaths and suicides of Rubicon department heads and power mongers are how the main character, brilliant but naive in many ways, ends up as the new boss of his team. He's suspicious of the death of his boss, and begins looking into things. Soon, he's also being messed with. A small figure of an owl, found among the deceased belongings, appeals to and he puts it on his desk. There it sits, as a symbol of the conspiracy ("Who do we work for?" he asks his boss, who is either a mentor, or an enemy -- time will tell) swirling around him. Beyond the metaphoric meaning of the owl, this owl also serves a utilitarian purpose: within its base, someone has placed a bug in order to listen in to our hero in his office. The bug is discovered but is left within, later, he checks on it to find it's gone during a FBI lock down, only to discover the bug has been put back when they leave.

Herd of Aggressive Raccoons

Raccoons are among the animal forms aliens/trickster/fairy/entities use to guide us to liminal states, to flying saucer interiors, to other realms, or just appearing as  iconic animal figures in general high strangeness stuff.  Take Dr. Cary Mullis famous encounter several years of his meeting with a glowing, talking raccoon he met by his cabin in the woods. I wrote about a slightly odd raccoon sighting in the house where we saw our orange orb UFO and had our missing time -- though not in direct connection with those events on my blog The Orange Orb.

Here's a photo of a herd of raccoons on the C2C site, seen in the daytime in Florida, with a short description of the sighting and their behavior, which was termed "aggressive" (many rushing the photographer's car)  by the writer.

It's been my observation that stories of usually non-aggressive animals (though raccoons can be aggressive of course) have been increasing for a few years now, since around 2000, and really, as my files show, over the last fifteen years or so. It's the context and frequency of these kinds of stories that makes them so odd, so Fortean.