No return for aurochs. A letter to 'Science'

• Authors: Samojlik Tomasz , Aikhenbaum Jean , Piotr Daszkiewicz , Selva Nuria , Wajrak Adam
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

The rejection of the publication of the letter No return for aurochs intended for the journal Science as a reaction to the article Bringing back the aurochs constitutes a revolting act. The story of the false aurochs has actually been well–known for many years: it is a relatively new cattle breed, bred by the Heck brothers in the thirties and claimed to be aurochs or revived aurochs by Nazi propaganda. For that matter, the transformation of this Nazi fraud into a commercial fraud has been the subject of diverse publications. To call the Heck cattle by the name of aurochs is simply a misuse of the zoological nomenclature, which goes, moreover, very often with ordinary financial frauds on public funds. However, a powerful lobby, which manages to obtain grants to study and introduce this false aurochs, still exists. The authors of the letter No return for aurochs were deeply shocked to notice that such lies could be published in a serious and respected scientific journal. The rejection of the publication of the letter (manuscript number: aaf3907) by Science, which has not been justified by any scientific motives, was even more shocking, as it goes against the ethical standards of the research field.

Keywords

EN

Heck’s false aurochs Nazi fraud introduction of domestic cattle to the wild ecological risks

• Publisher: Polska Akademia Nauk. Instytut Historii Nauki im. Ludwika i Aleksandra Birkenmajerów
• Journal: Organon
• Year: 2016
• Volume: 48
• Pages: 187-189

Contributors

author

Samojlik Tomasz

• Instytut Biologii Ssaków PAN

author

Aikhenbaum Jean

• H.S.T.E.S.

author

Piotr Daszkiewicz

• Instytut Historii Nauki im. Ludwika i Aleksandra Birkenmajerów PAN
• Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (Paris)

author

Selva Nuria

• Instytut Ochrony Przyrody PAN

author

Wajrak Adam

• Gazeta Wyborcza

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