Fur-bearing Trout
A fictional creature supposedly found in the waters of North America and Iceland, this hoax dates back to the 17th century when locals told tales about Iceland’s “shaggy trout.” In 1929, the Montana Wildlife magazine added fuel to the fire by publishing an article about how the fish explodes when it is taken out of the water (allegedly due to temperature changes). Although it was quickly refuted, the hoax persists to this day.