| appendages but has an upright posture with only the posterior pair of appendages supporting the body. The anterior pair are structurally modified for flight. This pair of appendages are feathered with tan to light brown shoulders and light brown flight wings with dark barring. The animals are strong fliers and flight is probably a dispersal mechanism in the young. However, as the animal ages and antler size increases tha animal's head becomes too heavy for straight flight. Although it can still become airborne, the head sags causing a looping flight path. Thus adult animals in flight often cannot see were they are going and crash into trees and other obstacles; probably one of the reasons the animals are restricted to arid grasslands. Adult animals are capable of straight directed flight in the winter when antlers are shed and before they redevelop. Since they have never been seen in the winter, it is believed that during this period the animal migrates north, possibly to reproduce or more likely to hibernate. They are believed to hibernate in cast-off pipes from the Alaskan pipeline along the Toolik River. This is based on a report by a pipeline inspector who is alleged to have found a group of Flacks sound asleep in an old pipe. Unfortunately his snowmobile and radio had both malfunctioned and he had been trapped on the tundra for a couple weeks with only a case of Old Crow. He ate all of the Flying Jackalope saving only a pair of antlers. It is worth noting that he knew what the animals were since he had spent the previous summer on a pilgramage to Sturgis, South Dakota (see section on Origin). The posterior pair of appendages, the legs, terminate in 4 toes. One toe directed forward, one backward and one on each side of the forward toe directed anteriorlaterally. Each toe ends with a claw. The toes and tibial portion of the leg are covered with black scales. When moving across land, the tracks left by the Flying Jackalope are similar to rooster pheasant tracks. The difference being that both feet of the Flack are cocked inward, giving the animal a duck waddle-type gait and limiting the animal's speed. Even though slow, the animal's formidable antlers and ability to fly, even in loops, make it able to avoid all predators. The only known predator is the Yetti, which probably feeds on the Flacks while they are hibernating. It is not known what the Flying Jackalope feeds on. The front incisors are somewhat hollow with a tube-like cavity running down the length of each tooth. While detailed anantomical studies have not been done, it may be possible this tube is designed to deliver a toxin which kills or stuns prey. Some investigators have also suggested that it may be used to suck the body fluids (blood) out of prey. It has been reported that Flacks use these incisors to puncture tin cans and remove the contents of the cans. These reports first occurred as complaints from old uranium miners and fossil hunters in the South Dakota badlands who found empty tin cans with 2 closely spaced punctures when returning to their camps. It has been suggested that Flacks have a preference for the contents of the Coors Silver Bullet. The aluminum in these cans is thin and easily punctured. Neither males nor femails produce a distinct odor or have any sexually specific behaviors. Also, males and females look exactly alike except for the middle toe of the right foot which has a claw that is 0.00347 inches shorter in females. This causes a reproductive problem since males and females can not recognize each other. One of the reasons the animals have such a bad disposition is that they are always frustrated. In fact, offspring seem to only be produced when homosexual animals inadvertently mate with the opposite sex. Thus, it is probable that population sizes are very small. The animals do travel in groups called a flerd (combination of the term flock and herd), so if you've seen one Flack, you'll probably see them all. |
