Ever since the 19th century, explorers and cowboys in the American West have reported sightings of rabbits with horns or antlers sprouting from their heads — but are jackalopes actually real?
Wally Gobetz/FlickrAre jackalopes real? Here’s a taxidermy jackalope mounted in a bar in Texas above an “Official Jackalope License.”
Scotland has the Loch Ness monster. Florida has the skunk ape. And Wyoming has the jackalope, an elusive but beloved rabbit-like cryptid with the antlers of a deer. So, are jackalopes real?
It depends on who you ask.
The jackalope has existed in Wyoming folklore since at least the 1930s, although some alleged sightings are much older. Stories abound about the creature’s attributes, powers, and even its taste in whiskey.
Real or not, it remains a popular creature in Wyoming. Some politicians have even tried to make it the official state cryptid.
Here’s everything you need to know about jackalopes — and whether or not they actually exist.
Whiskey, Lightning, And Milk: Inside The Myth Of The Jackalope
What is a jackalope? In its most basic form, the jackalope is described as a creature with the form of a rabbit but the antlers of a deer. As any Wyomingite will tell you, however, it’s much more than that.
For starters, the creature has a number of intriguing powers. Its milk is said to have medicinal and aphrodisiac properties. They’re purportedly clever animals that can mimic humans and often startle campers by singing their fireside songs right along with them.
Found Image Holdings/Corbis via Getty ImagesA 1960s “photo” of a jackalope perched on a hill.
Unsurprisingly, they’re said to be difficult to trap. These cryptids are quick — they can purportedly run up to 60 miles per hour — and elusive. They’re said to kick up dust when they run, making them hard to spot. But even if you corner a jackalope, it still might escape. This Wyoming cryptid, which can weigh anywhere from 10 to 60 pounds, will kick, claw, or even gore an opponent.
However, as taxidermy in bars across Wyoming will attest, some people do seemingly succeed at capturing and killing jackalopes. How? These shifty creatures reportedly have a weakness for whiskey. Legend states that they become slower and easier to trap after they’ve lapped some up.
So, are jackalopes real?
Are Jackalopes Real? Inside The Enduring Legend
Public DomainA 13th-century illustration by Persian naturalist Abu Yahya Zakariya’ ibn Muhammad al-Qazwinithat appears to show a jackalope.
Are jackalopes real? Believers in this elusive cryptid might point to the long history of alleged sightings as proof that these creatures actually exist.
Works like Field Guide to the North American Jackalope by Andy Robbins (2021) suggest that these cryptids show up in the fossil record. They also seem to appear in 13th-century manuscripts and 16th-century paintings. Plus, they were referenced by the Buddha (though to deny their existence) and were purportedly spotted in Wyoming as far back as 1829.
However, these “jackalopes” might have actually been rabbits with Shope papillomavirus, a disease that causes horn-like bumps to grow from the heads of infected bunnies. And the legend of the jackalope almost certainly starts with a Wyoming man named Douglas Herrick.
National Gallery of ArtA painting from 1502 that appears to show a jackalope.
In 1934, Douglas and his brother Ralph returned from hunting trip and tossed a jackrabbit that they’d killed onto the floor. By coincidence, it slid across the room and lined up perfectly with a pair of antlers. Douglas purportedly exclaimed: “Let’s mount it the way it is!”
And, with that, the first Wyoming jackalope was born. The brothers started making jackalope taxidermy and sold their first specimen to the Hotel LaBonte in Douglas, Wyoming (it was stolen in the 1970s).
“Lately, I can’t make ’em fast enough,” Douglas Herrick told The New York Times in 1977.
From this point on, the myth spread across the country. In fact, Wyoming isn’t the only state where you might encounter a taxidermy rabbit with antlers sitting behind a bar or mounted on the wall of someone’s home.
But Wyoming remains the jackalope capital of the world. And they’re very proud of it.
How The Horned Rabbit Became Wyoming’s Favorite Mythological Creature
Public DomainWhether or not jackalopes are real, these horned cryptids are a beloved part of Wyoming culture to this day.
Maybe jackalopes aren’t real. But they are an important part of Wyoming’s state culture.
As The New York Times reported, there are signs on the highway near Douglas, Wyoming, that warn motorists to “watch for jackalopes” (after all, they can be vicious when threatened). Horned rabbit motifs also appear on the town’s benches, fire trucks, and motel signs. And Douglas is even home to an eight-foot jackalope statue and a 13-foot jackalope cutout on a hill.
In the 1970s, the city also purportedly issued thousands of hunting permits for these spry creatures, but the elusive cryptids could only be hunted on June 31st (a day that does not exist) between midnight and 2 a.m. That said, Wyoming was designated as the jackalope’s official stomping grounds in 1985.
Library of CongressA statue in Douglas, Wyoming, which maintains a strong connection to the mythological creature.
But while the state celebrates the bison as its state mammal, the cutthroat trout as the state fish, and the western meadowlark as the state bird, the jackalope remains unanointed as Wyoming’s official mythological creature. Despite legislative efforts in 2005, 2013, and 2015, the beloved cryptid remains unrecognized as the state’s official anything.
So, are jackalopes real? Believers might point to historical evidence, like the alleged presence of the animal in the fossil record or how the cryptid has seemed to appear in paintings over the centuries. Non-believers might point to the science, like Shope papillomavirus, or the fact that there haven’t been any horned rabbits captured on camera.
But to Douglas Herrick, who popularized — if he didn’t outright invent — the jackalope, it’s just fun to believe. And why argue with someone who wants to have faith in the beloved cryptid?
“People get real mad if you tell them there’s no such thing as a jackalope,” he told The New York Times back in 1977. “They take it very seriously. And why make people mad?”
After diving into the debate over whether or not jackalopes are real, discover the stories of other famous cryptids like West Virginia’s Mothman or the Fresno Nightcrawler — which, based on blurry video evidence, looks like a pair of pants with a life of its own.
