As a result of information furnished by the New Mexico State Police, I investigated a reported mutilation in the Carson National Forest near the Coyote Ranger Station. I was accompanied by Bruce Higgins, a forester with the National Forest Service.
The animal -- a mature, white-faced heifer -- was found lying on its right side. I observed that the entire rear end as well as the underside of the body was missing. The left ear and left top portion of the lip had likewise vanished. However, the right ear, which was on the protected or underside of the animal, was still intact and bore a Forest Service Tag No. 605.
A normal distinctive dead odor prevailed and numerous flies were noted. No signs of a struggle were indicated, and the legs of the animal appeared to be intact. Other cow and deer tracks were noted in the immediate vicinity of the carcass.
Figures No. 1 and No. 2 show the animal when it was first found and reported as a mutilation. That the damage revealed in these photographs could be described as "surgical precision" is the epitome of suggestive thinking. However, last year I attended a conference in which a slide depicting similar damage was shown by an official as evidence of the unparalleled surgical skill with which these mutilations are performed.
Figure No. 3 shows that it is the exposed parts of the animal -- in this case the left ear, left eye, and upper lip that are missing. Forest Service tag no. 605 can readily be seen affixed to the right or protected ear, which remains intact.
In conclusion it is quite obvious that the carcass had been damaged by scavengers, which had attacked the most accessible parts of the animal. As the photographs indicate, the cuts were quite jagged. This verdict is further supported by the discovery of bird defecation on both the carcass and on a nearby log. When we arrived at the scene, a buzzard was spotted on the branch of a tree immediately above the dead animal, and buzzard feathers were found in the area. In addition, small pieces of white hair, which appeared identical to the hair on the carcass, were plainly visible in the buzzard defecation on the nearby log.