---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 17 Dec 2001 13:58:30 -0500
From: Declan McCullagh
To: politech@politechbot.com
Subject: FC: DNA tests show federal officials planted fake evidence of lynx
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20011217-7117603.htm
Rare lynx hairs found in forests exposed as hoax
By Audrey Hudson
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Federal and state wildlife biologists planted false evidence of a
rare cat species in two national forests, officials told The
Washington Times.
Had the deception not been discovered, the government likely
would have banned many forms of recreation and use of natural
resources in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Wenatchee
National Forest in Washington state.
The previously unreported Forest Service investigation found that
the science of the habitat study had been skewed by seven government
officials: three Forest Service employees, two U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service officials and two employees of the Washington Department of
Fish and Wildlife.
The officials planted three separate samples of Canadian lynx
hair on rubbing posts used to identify existence of the creatures in
the two national forests.
DNA testing of two of the samples matched that of a lynx living
inside an animal preserve. The third DNA sample matched that of an
escaped pet lynx being held in a federal office until its owner
retrieved it, federal officials said.
[...]
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