After last week’s ridiculously easy mystery object, I thought I’d go for something a bit more taxing:
So any idea what this skull belonged to?
As usual, answers, questions and suggestions below and I’ll do my best to respond. Good luck!
Zygoma
Adventures in natural history collections
Zygoma 
It looks like a long skull: is it a llama?
Not really Llama-y at all
Taxing? Clue’s in the clue. It’s an HMRC debt collector.
Yes, but wouldn’t that be last week’s bloodsucker?
Brilliant!
Bit bigger than a cat, but it has an enclosed orbit. Big canines. You can’t see the joins in the bone, like a badger. Strong jaws. Is it a fossa
The texture of the bone is like a seal, though, but it’s too small ?
The cat has an enclosed orbit, I mean (sometimes)
Excellent observations as always! Not a Fossa, but you’re certainly thinking along the right lines and have come the closest so far! (Although, the orbit is actually very open – they just have quite small eyes so it’s hard to spot where the orbit begins and ends)
Is it ringed or grey?
Neither!
OK so not a juvenile seal. Lets think of some otther smaller marine mammals – is the clue in the spelling and canadensis?
Not showing the side view suggests doing so would make this too easy …. It’s too small for the obvious guess but it could be a juvenile. Something marine because everything’s so well enclosed …. I’m going to say this because one day he won’t be able resist using this animal and on the same logic that a clock that’s stopped is right twice a day, I’m going for walrus
It would be a very small Walrus!
Interestingly though, most marine mammals actually have quite open (albeit robust) orbits – possibly to allow pressure to equalise more effectively.
It is an North American mammal known for it’s fighting spirit, amongst other things. Which might be why it’s the mascot for the football team of an American university. Of a state beginning with “W”.
Nice clue in the intro!
😉
😉
Looks badgery…
It does look as though it has been badgered – see http://icwdm.org/wildlife/badger.asp
..but it also looks very similar to http://scientificillustration.tumblr.com/post/10997594661/dorsal-view-of-otter-skulls-a-lutra-canadensis but on reflection scale suggests badger.
Good work
Perhaps a bit…
The sun will come out … on Monday.
On second thought, not big enough. I suspect the “taxing” bit was a clue after all. So I’ll go with that -idea.
Well discerned
Is it ‘the glutton?’
Nope, though it’s a cousin
looks like the fictional character that first showed up in The Incredible Hulk with keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing factor that allows him to recover from virtually any wound, disease or toxin at an accelerated rate?
Close, but no cigar 😉
Looks like subject of a viral video. It’s a mock nature program narrated by Randall with the catch phrase “Honey B__r don’t give a sh_t!”
Close relative from the New World
I am using the clues and going to go for cougar: http://www.skullsite.co.uk/Cougar/cougar.htm
You were closer on your first comment, although the size is right.
I don’t mean to “badger” you, but you replied “neither” to an earlier question, “Is it ringed or grey?”. I don’t think it’s ringed, but I suspect it is grey………….and with a prominant racing stripe! LOL.
Lol!