Jackalope promoter makes final leap
Our view: Postcards with mythical critter are among Arizona tourism's
endearments
Tucson, Arizona

Bob Petley had a lot to answer for, not least the creation of a massive
population of people who think there is an animal called a jackalope.
The jackalope allegedly is found in the Arizona desert, a unique
creature that looks suspiciously like a jack rabbit with antlers.
If you see one, check your medication immediately.

Peltey was 93 when he died. His funeral was held last week in
Scottsdale.
He didn't invent the jackalope; the hybrid creature has been turning up
on funky postcards since the 1930s. But Petley, who photographed various
touristy features and created Arizona postcards in the '40s and '50s,
made it look like Arizona had its own subspecies.

He once found a stuffed rabbit in a gift shop. Somebody had stuck
antlers on the rabbit's head. This appealed to Petley's imagination.
Subsequently, he bought a jack rabbit from a taxidermist, put antlers on
its head, and stood it on one of the Papago Buttes in the Phoenix area.

It made a nice postcard and evidently created an instant endangered
species, since nobody ever saw one in the wild. For the record,
jackalopes do not exist, though there are humans who claim to have seen
one.
Years ago we knew a cowboy who claimed to have roped one in Wickenburg.
Unfortunately, he could not prove the claim because when he tried to
dally the creature to his saddle, it ripped off the horn and disappeared
down Sol's Wash, such was the strength of the Arizona jackalope.
We even found a Web site www.sudftw.com/jackcon.htm with a photo
purported to be a jackalope, though not one of the special Arizona
variety.
The accompanying text, written by someone with a droll sense of humor
and plenty of time, says, "The Jackalope (Lepus temperamentalus) is one
of the rarest animals in the world. A cross between a now extinct
pygmy-deer and a species of killer-rabbit, they are extremely shy unless
approached. None have ever been captured alive and this rare photo
(often criticized as fake) shows a mighty buck about to strike."
We, too, would criticize it as fake.