FT272


Patience is indeed a virtue, especially in cryptozoological investigations. Back in 2002, I reported [FT162:22] the presence at the Antlers restaurant, in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, of a particularly unusual taxiderm bear – for, according to correspondent Larry Tribula who had lately dined there and had observed it, this bear sported a long bushy tail. I asked if anyone could supply further information, but none was forthcoming – until 20 November 2010, when fellow cryptid investigator Richard Muirhead kindly shared with me a revelatory email concerning this enigmatic exhibit. It had been emailed to one of his own correspondents, Andrew Ste Marie of Manchester in Michigan, by the restaurant’s proprietor, Chris Szabo, who had recently investigated the bear himself. Although on first sight it did indeed appear to possess a long bushy tail as reported by Tribula, when Szabo examined it close up, he discovered that this was an optical illusion. As can be seen in the photos above, the ‘tail’ was actually one of the bear’s hind legs, but with its foot obscured by fur, by other taxiderm animals close by, and by the precise angle of observation. So this intriguing bear’s mystery tail is no longer a tale of mystery.