Sidehill gouger: Difference between revisions
imported>Fyrael this list will expand infinitely unless restricted to those with a citation provided |
imported>Realmartcraft Changed source image to the one migrated to Commons |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{short description|Mythical creature from American folklore}} | {{short description|Mythical creature from American folklore}} | ||
[[Image:Sidehill-Gouger.jpg|200px|right|thumb|The Sidehill Gouger: a "left-sided" mother looks forlornly at her "right-sided" pup.]] | [[Image:Sidehill-Gouger.jpg|200px|right|thumb|The Sidehill Gouger: a "left-sided" mother looks forlornly at her "right-sided" pup.]] | ||
In [[American folklore]], a '''Sidehill gouger''' is a [[fearsome critter]] adapted to living on hillsides by having legs on one side of their body shorter than the legs on the opposite side,<ref>{{cite news |last=Childs |first=Art |date=23 July 1922 |title=Yarns of the Big Woods: The Side-Hill Gourger |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/409553427/ |department=Junior Courier |newspaper=Buffalo Courier |location=Buffalo, New York |volume=87 |issue=204 |page=7 |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> having evolved to resemble any form of mammals such as [[pangolin]]s, [[goat]]s, [[human]]s, and [[bear]]s. This peculiarity allows them to walk on steep hillsides, although only in one direction; when lured or chased into the plain, they are trapped in an endless circular path. Some claim these creatures play a large role in, and in some cases are responsible for, the creation of [[hoodoo_(geology)|hoodoos]]. The creature is variously known as the Sidehill Dodger<ref name="Brown1935"/> Sidehill Hoofer,<ref name="Randolph1951"/> or Side-hill Gazink.<ref>{{cite book|last=Stegner|first=Wallace|title=The Sound of Mountain Water|year=1969|publisher=Doubleday & Company|pages=74}}</ref> | In [[American folklore]], a '''Sidehill gouger''' is a [[fearsome critter]] adapted to living on hillsides by having legs on one side of their body shorter than the legs on the opposite side,<ref>{{cite news |last=Childs |first=Art |date=23 July 1922 |title=Yarns of the Big Woods: The Side-Hill Gourger |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/409553427/ |department=Junior Courier |newspaper=Buffalo Courier |location=Buffalo, New York |volume=87 |issue=204 |page=7 |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> having evolved to resemble any form of mammals such as [[pangolin]]s, [[goat]]s, [[human]]s, and [[bear]]s. This peculiarity allows them to walk on steep hillsides, although only in one direction; when lured or chased into the plain, they are trapped in an endless circular path. Some claim these creatures play a large role in, and in some cases are responsible for, the creation of [[hoodoo_(geology)|hoodoos]]. The creature is variously known as the Sidehill Dodger<ref name="Brown1935"/> Sidehill Hoofer,<ref name="Randolph1951"/> or Side-hill Gazink.<ref>{{cite book|last=Stegner|first=Wallace|title=The Sound of Mountain Water|year=1969|publisher=Doubleday & Company|pages=74}}</ref> | ||
| Line 7: | Line 6: | ||
Gougers are said to have migrated to the west from New England, a feat accomplished by a pair of gougers who clung to each other in a fashion comparable to "a pair of drunks going home from town with their longer legs on the outer sides".<ref name="Tryon1939"/> | Gougers are said to have migrated to the west from New England, a feat accomplished by a pair of gougers who clung to each other in a fashion comparable to "a pair of drunks going home from town with their longer legs on the outer sides".<ref name="Tryon1939"/> | ||
A Vermont variation is known as the '''Wampahoofus'''. It was reported that farmers crossbreed them with their cows so they could graze easily on mountain sides.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}} | A Vermont variation is known as the '''Wampahoofus'''. It was reported that farmers crossbreed them with their cows so they could graze easily on mountain sides.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}} Others claim that a pair of '''Wampahoofus''' circle the summit of [[Mount Mansfield]], mating as their paths cross.{{citation needed|date=October 2025}} | ||
[[Frank C. Whitmore]] and [[Nicholas Hotton]], in their joint tongue-in-cheek response to an article in ''[[Smithsonian Magazine]]'', expounded the taxonomy of sidehill gougers (''Membriinequales declivitous''), noting in particular "the sidehill dodger, which inhabits the Driftless Area of Wisconsin; the dextrosinistral limb ratio approaches unity although the metapodials on the downhill side are noticeably stouter."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Eshelman |first1=Ralph E. |last2=Ward |first2=Lauck |editor-last=Berta |editor-first1=Analisa |editor-last2=Demere |editor-first2=Thomas A. |date=1 May 1994 |title=Tribute to Frank Clifford Whitmore, Jr |url=https://archive.org/stream/proceedingsofsan29sand#page/8/ |journal=Proceedings of the San Diego Society of Natural History |issue=29 |pages=3–10 |issn=1059-8707 |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Hotton |first1=Nicholas |author-link=Nicholas Hotton |last2=Whitmore |first2=Frank C. |author-link2=Frank C. Whitmore |year=1972 |title=Letters to the editor: Fantastic Animals Prowl the Tall Timber of our Mythology |magazine=Smithsonian Magazine |volume=3 |issue=7 |page=13}}</ref> A special award, the Order of the Sidehill Gouger, is awarded to worthy members for hard and long standing volunteer efforts by the Alberta Group of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association. | [[Frank C. Whitmore]] and [[Nicholas Hotton]], in their joint tongue-in-cheek response to an article in ''[[Smithsonian Magazine]]'', expounded the taxonomy of sidehill gougers (''Membriinequales declivitous''), noting in particular "the sidehill dodger, which inhabits the Driftless Area of Wisconsin; the dextrosinistral limb ratio approaches unity although the metapodials on the downhill side are noticeably stouter."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Eshelman |first1=Ralph E. |last2=Ward |first2=Lauck |editor-last=Berta |editor-first1=Analisa |editor-last2=Demere |editor-first2=Thomas A. |date=1 May 1994 |title=Tribute to Frank Clifford Whitmore, Jr |url=https://archive.org/stream/proceedingsofsan29sand#page/8/ |journal=Proceedings of the San Diego Society of Natural History |issue=29 |pages=3–10 |issn=1059-8707 |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Hotton |first1=Nicholas |author-link=Nicholas Hotton |last2=Whitmore |first2=Frank C. |author-link2=Frank C. Whitmore |year=1972 |title=Letters to the editor: Fantastic Animals Prowl the Tall Timber of our Mythology |magazine=Smithsonian Magazine |volume=3 |issue=7 |page=13}}</ref> A special award, the Order of the Sidehill Gouger, is awarded to worthy members for hard and long standing volunteer efforts by the Alberta Group of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association. | ||
Latest revision as of 17:56, 6 November 2025
In American folklore, a Sidehill gouger is a fearsome critter adapted to living on hillsides by having legs on one side of their body shorter than the legs on the opposite side,[1] having evolved to resemble any form of mammals such as pangolins, goats, humans, and bears. This peculiarity allows them to walk on steep hillsides, although only in one direction; when lured or chased into the plain, they are trapped in an endless circular path. Some claim these creatures play a large role in, and in some cases are responsible for, the creation of hoodoos. The creature is variously known as the Sidehill Dodger[2] Sidehill Hoofer,[3] or Side-hill Gazink.[4]
Sidehill gougers are mammals who dwell in hillside burrows,[2] and are occasionally depicted as laying eggs.[3][5] There are usually 6 to 8 pups to a litter.[6] Since the gouger is footed for hillsides, it cannot stand up on level ground. If by accident a gouger falls from a hill, it can easily be captured or starve to death.[3] When a clockwise gouger meets a counter-clockwise gouger, they have to fight to the death since they can only go in one direction.[3] The formation of terracettes has been attributed to gouger activity.[7]
Gougers are said to have migrated to the west from New England, a feat accomplished by a pair of gougers who clung to each other in a fashion comparable to "a pair of drunks going home from town with their longer legs on the outer sides".[6] A Vermont variation is known as the Wampahoofus. It was reported that farmers crossbreed them with their cows so they could graze easily on mountain sides.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Others claim that a pair of Wampahoofus circle the summit of Mount Mansfield, mating as their paths cross.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Frank C. Whitmore and Nicholas Hotton, in their joint tongue-in-cheek response to an article in Smithsonian Magazine, expounded the taxonomy of sidehill gougers (Membriinequales declivitous), noting in particular "the sidehill dodger, which inhabits the Driftless Area of Wisconsin; the dextrosinistral limb ratio approaches unity although the metapodials on the downhill side are noticeably stouter."[8][9] A special award, the Order of the Sidehill Gouger, is awarded to worthy members for hard and long standing volunteer efforts by the Alberta Group of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association.
In popular culture
- "Deadhead Mile" (2016) by K.N. Johnson (included in the anthology A Journey of Words) suggest gougers to be the culprits behind ski trails with dead ends.[10]
- Sidehill Gouger (2009) by Canned Games is a puzzle game on Xbox Live for Xbox 360, featuring a young boy hunting the sidehill gougers of his grandfather's stories.[11]
- Storyteller John Dashney featured the sidehill gouger (referred to as the "sidehill wowser") in a story supposedly about his grandfather, who specialized in hunting the creatures to the point of stretching his hounds' legs to help them chase the creatures better along hillsides. The story details an encounter in which his grandfather stumbled across two gougers at a time, resulting in a harrowing spiral chase up a hill until the opposite-oriented creatures crashed into one another, solving his problem.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
See also
References
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
External links
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b c d Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
- ↑ Template:Cite magazine
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".