DNA testing has revealed that the so-called Cuero Chupacabra, a hairless dog-creature found in Cuero, Texas by Phylis Canion, is just a regular coyote.

Texas State University biologists did the testing, from a sample provided by San Antonio TV station KENS-TV. On November 1st, biologist Mike Forstner said in a statement, "The DNA sequence is a virtually identical match to DNA from the coyote. This is probably the answer a lot of folks thought might be the outcome. I, myself, really thought it was a domestic dog, but the Cuero Chupacabra is a Texas coyote."

This is the face of a plain ol' coyote. (Photo courtesy of Phylis Canion.)

"Virtually identical?" Well, there's still the question of why the coyote had no hair. Forstner said he will try to answer that question next. LiveScience's Ben Radford argues that the coyote most likely had mange, which can cause total hair loss and gross scabbing. He also notes that an undernourished feral coyote could be as small as a dog, but lack familiar dog-like features.