Forensic Science

New Murder Theory: Killed By Owl?

Strix varia A former neighbor of a Durham, North Carolina, man convicted of his wife’s murder claims the death was not caused by a human, but rather by an aggressive owl. Larry Pollard claims his deceased neighbor Kathleen Peterson was killed by an owl attack in December 2001, not by her husband, novelist Mike Peterson, who is serving a life sentence in prison for the crime, the Raleigh (N.C.) News & Observer reported on May 26, 2008. Kathleen and Mike Peterson, in happier times. Pollard, who formerly worked as a lawyer, said he has spent years gathering information that indicates [...]

Top 10 New Species of Old and Recent Discoveries

The above is a new species with the common name of the “shocking pink dragon millipede” and the scientific Latin name of Desmoxytes purpurosea. It was first found on 28 August 2006, and first described in Zootaxa 1563: 31–36, 2007. It’s May. The end of May 2008. But apparently there is one more “top ten list” for 2007 that needs to be published. The International Institute for Species Exploration (IISE) has announced their list of the top ten new species described in 2007, which includes at least a couple extinct animals, as well. The media appears to be confusing this [...]

Black Panther Killed: What Species Is It?

The breaking news headline says it all: “Deputy kills jaguar … or was it leopard?” Neosho, Missouri — A Newton County deputy shot and killed a large, black cat of uncertain species Monday morning, May 19, 2008, when the animal, either a leopard or a jaguar, charged him. Capt. Richard Leavens of the Newton County Sheriff’s Department said Vickie Sanders, 61, called shortly after 6 a.m. Monday to report what she took to be “a black panther” at the door of her home at 9555 Orchid Drive, southwest of Neosho. When Cpl. Donn Hall of the Sheriff’s Department arrived, he [...]

Not Lizard Man

DNA testing has shown an attack on a family van some blamed on the legendary Lizard Man appears to have been actually done by a domestic dog. Something chewed up the front fender of Bob and Dixie Rawson’s van in February 2008. Bite marks were left on the wheel wells and blood was found on the vehicle. The Item of Sumter reported that a veterinary lab in California tested the blood and found it came from a dog. But Bob Rawson isn’t sure, saying it would have to be one big dog. Lee County Sheriff E.J. Melvin isn’t convinced either. [...]

Mystery Bones

When these four St. Dominic Regional High School seniors were tearing down an old shed at Mt. Hope Cemetery in Lewiston during a class project, they came across some strange bones. From left to right are: Andrew Gwarjanski, Codie Keene, Jeff Lewandowski and Cameron Laney. (All photographs by Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal.) The Lewiston Sun-Journal’s Christopher Williams gave me a call yesterday, to help him with some mystery bones. Here’s his Tuesday, May 13, 2008, article about the riddle. Four high school seniors working in a cemetery Monday unearthed two intact animal skeletons. Speculation about the bones’ origin ranged from skunk [...]

Neandertals Were Separate Species

A new, simplified family tree of humanity, published on Sunday, has dealt a blow to those who contend that the enigmatic hominids known as Neandertals intermingled with our forebears. Neanderthals were a separate species to Homo sapiens, as anatomically modern humans are known, rather than offshoots of the same species, the new organigram published by the journal Nature declares. The method, invented by evolutionary analysts in Argentina, marks a break with the conventional technique by which anthropologists chart the twists and turns of the human odyssey. That technique typically divides the the genus Homo into various classifications according to the [...]