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Day 8: The Chupacabra

Let's face it; it was only a matter of time.

The time has come to talk of the Chupacabra.

DUN. DUN. DUN.

To be honest, I knew I would end up talking about this, because frankly this thing is badass. And if you don't know what it is, shame on you, here let me take you on a journey.

First reported in Puerto Rico and spreading through Mexico and the United States, especially in Latin-American communities, the Chupacabra has a real liking for draining dry farmers' livestock especially goats, mmmm, goats.

The first reported attacks occurred in March 1995; eight sheep were mauled in the attack each completely drained of blood. After this the creature went on to do the same to over 150 farm animals, pets and livestock. Silverio Pérez, an entrepreneur is credited with coining the term Chupacabra when the attacks first started.

Descriptions range from hairless dog like creatures, leaving scientists to believe them to be coyotes with mange, to umm well check this out;

Is it just me or does that look like your typical Graylien? One person even said that the Chupacabra made telepathic contact with her. Not sure how much of that you want to believe but if there is any ounce of truth there it provides an interesting new spin on the whole Chupacabra Mythos. The Goat Sucking Alien Vampire, hells yeah.

One reoccurring description of the creature though is its "leathery or scaly greenish-gray skin and sharp spines or quills running down its back" They are approximately 1 to 1.2 m standing upright and apparently hop like a kangaroo.

So what is the Chupacabra? Monster? Alien? Dog with mange? One thing to mention is that in all the photos of the so called "Chupocabra" that was hit and killed on the roadside, sure if it is a dog with mange that would explain the hairlessness, but the hind legs are completely disproportionate to the rest of the body and the tail is long and rat-like. could it be a mangy fox then? I'll leave that up to you.

Here's some food for thought;

http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/weird-true-and-freaky/videos/legend-of-the-chupacabra.htm

- Dan

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Day 7: Japanese Nightmares; Akateko and Rokurokubi

Japanese folklore is truly the stuff of nightmares, as today's daily monster proves. Just have a look.

Akateko literally means "the red handed child", and frankly I'm surprised there's not a horror movie made about this, it takes the form of a bloodstained or bright red infant's hand dangling down from a tree. That thought alone kind of makes me feel uneasy.

The Aomori prefecture is located in the Tōhoku Region and is the home of the Akateko, so if you're in the mood for some red handed fun you know exactly where to go; specifically the city of Hachinohe.

It is a form of Yōkai, a special class of ghost or supernatural apparition within the Japanese culture thought to be malevolent or mischievous. Personally I'm not sure what I'd actually class Akateko as, it doesn't really do much, just sort of sits there and freaks you out. There is not a lot of information out there on the Akateko, so this article is quite difficult to write, but luckily I'll be having nightmares about it all week. That is fun.

Well that was delightful, I wonder what else Japan can throw our way.

Oh. Well that's pleasant.

Rokurokubi were a race of people, nay, Yokai, said to be able to extend their necks at night and mutate their faces into terrifying visages in order to scare people.

Most of the time they were tricksters and deceivers, practically undetectable during the day but taking zeal in scaring humans at night. It was believed that people could be transformed into Rokurokubi as a form of divine punishment; these Rokurokubi were evil, feasting on human flesh and blood and tended to favour eating men. 

So close your windows tonight.

Sweet dreams.

-Dan

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Day 5 and 6: Werewolves and Vampires

Due to obligations yesterday I wasn't able to post so I thought I'd give you a double team today, and hey why not tackle the two biggies together.

So most of you will have, I hope, heard of Vampires and Werewolves. Sadly this is probably because of awful so called "Dark fiction" which I am no great lover of. Let's put it this way; sexualising monsters is weird. Whether you believe in them or not Vampires equals necrophilia and werewolves equal bestiality. Uhh yeah, so deal. ;)

                                                     Awooga.

A werewolf, or Lycanthrope, is a human with the ability to transform into a large wolf or a therianthropic wolf. Therianthropic for those of you who are wondering is basically the metamorphosis of humans into animals, and as most werewolves are somewhere in between human and wolf, they fall into this category. Werewolf is an old English term coming from Were(man)wulf(wolf) much the same as Lycanthropy is derived from the Greek, lykánthropos. 

The term Lycanthropy could also refer to King Lycaon who was turned into a wolf by the god Zeus in retribution. 

The Werewolf mythos is generally regarded as European, however legends of shape shifting creatures are extremely prominent around the world.

So you want to go hunting werewolves? Fun for you. As I've said the countries widely regarded as 'werewolf' territory are mainly in Europe; France, Transylvania and Romania, an especially famous case occurring in Germany as well.

The idea that werewolves are only vulnerable to Silver weaponry is a distinctly 20th century idea, rising from the works of fiction in the fantasy and horror genre. Before this the werewolf was designated no specific vulnerabilities although my guess is it would have been regarded as more widely vulnerable, decapitation and if the worst comes to the worst, you could probably have killed one by burning it to hell. To be fair there's not a lot fire won't kill. Unlike Vampires, Werewolves are not thought to be subject to weakness of religious iconography. 

It is widely thought that becoming a werewolf requires infection from another werewolf, although it was initial belief had it that wearing a coat made of wolf skin and rubbing yourself with a magic salve would be just as effective. Don't try that. Or if you'd rather, the church had it that Satanic deals were the cause of Lycanthropy. Don't try that either.

If by some bizarre turn of events you find that you are actually a werewolf, don't panic! There are ways around that. First off you could try exorcism, herbally using Wolfsbane or surgery, but I won't go into the surgery. It's kind of because I don't know what they did, but I'm not sure that I really want to.

Some writers theorise that werewolves are used to explain serial killings. Peter Stumpp, executed 1589, also known as the "Werewolf of Bedburg" is one of the most notorious cases of werewolf serial killing in history. His victims included pregnant women and children, whom he ate. Under torture he revealed he'd been practising black magic since he was twelve years old and subsequently made a deal with the devil allowing him to become a wolf like creature. He was then torn apart on a wheel and had his severed head placed on a pole as a warning against further crimes.

Vampires have had many guises and and forms over the years, the idea of creatures feeding from blood of others dates back to "prehistoric times" but the term Vampire did not come into existence until 1734, which presumably comes from the French, vampyre.

It is interesting to note that fangs were not originally a general feature of traditional forms of the vampire (Bar the ones that were��truly monsters) and that the creatures themselves were traditionally bloated, purple and ruddy. 

In many cultures it was believed a Vampire was created when a demon entered the body, indeed the two became synonymous. By burying a corpse upside-down and placing objects such as sickles in the grave, it was believed that the demon that the demon could be appeased, or the dead would be happy and simply not wish to leave the coffin.

Vampires have many weaknesses, in this sense making them inferior to their werewolf counterparts if we are to believe they are only harmed by silver. Vampires could be killed by decapitation, incineration (See KILL IT WITH FIRE), silver weaponry,  the old tried and tested favourite; steak straight to the heart, and in some cultures increased exposure to sunlight, on top of that garlic, holy water and any kind of religious iconography are dangerous to the creatures. Like werewolves exorcism was also an option.

An 800 year old skeleton with an iron rod driven through it. 

If shanking a vampire sounds like your kind of thing, head over to Transylvania  Romania and Bulgaria. I hear they're nice this time of year.

Vampires have widely been portrayed in the media as suave, sophisticated villains. To anyone who truly likes vampires, I would highly recommend 1922's Nosferatu. Max Schreck's Orlok is a true monster and helped shape my own opinions of what makes a good vampire movie. Because unlike some recent releases this is a good vampire movie.

It is believed that Porphyria, a condition that makes the skin ultra sensitive to sunlight and very pale as well as promoting growth of the canine teeth may be one of the influences for modern views on vampires. For further reading on this please see "Vampire Forensics" by Mark Collins Jenkins, an excellent book.

 Anyway here's some vamp Vs. werewolf action to finish off with, 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JFZ1Ecq_0c

Van Helsing ftw ;)

-Dan

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Day 4: The Lake Brosno Dragon

Wittily dubbed "Bronsie", The Brosno Dragon or Bronsya is Russia's very own Nessie, hailing From Lake Brosno near Andreapol in West Russia. It is described as about five meters long and dinosaur or dragon-like in appearance.

Reports of the creature go back to the 13th centuary when the creature supposedly terrified the Tartar-Mongol army heading to Veliky Novgorod. As the horses ventured down to the lake, a huge creature emerged, immediately beginning a devastating rampage. It devoured horses and soldiers alike. Quite understandable the army was bricking it at this point and turned and ran, thus saving Novgorod.

There is even a rumour that the creature, apparently deciding to take a moral swing for the Allies, swallowed a German air plane during world war two.

All your horse are belong to me.

Investigation into the lake reveals it to be 120-160 meters deep in some areas, making it the deepest in all of Europe, if we are to believe that all lakes are joined by some kind of reservoir system, that would give it would be reasonable to say that if Nessie exists it could be related or even the same species as the monster of lake Bronsya.

Scientists reason that the creature could not be a reptile despite the descriptions as it would have died due to the cold, as alongside the descriptions of the creature and the scope that it would have had to have bred for the creatures to still be around now, it does not seem feasible for the lake to support an ecosystem of large marine mammals.

Scientific explanations range from Volcanic eruptions deep beneath the lake to mirages. Even boars and elks. Ultimately though is the idea that a creature could be living in the lake so preposterous? Personally this is one I'll have trouble accepting until we get concrete evidence, but if we can believe in Nessie why not Bronsie?

Hello there, Beastie.

For your entertainment and further viewing here is a Russian documentary on the subject, don't worry it's subbed ;) :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aef310EV7uE

- Dan

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Day 3: Beast of Gevaudan

Bit of a history lesson today...

Today we're talking about the infamous "Beast of Gevaudan" held responsible for the deaths of at least 113 people, 98 of whom were partially eaten and another 49 injuries in 1760s France.

It would easy to pass the creature off as an escaped bear or wolf, but descriptions from eyewitnesses probably indicate that if the creature was real there was likely more than one. Wild variations in the size, fur colour; sometimes the beast was described as red, sometimes black, sometimes with grey splotches... The craziest probably being one description of the beast with cloven hooves.

The beast first came to King Louis XV's attention after the attack of Jacques Portefaix and company, after which he took a personal interest in the attacks and sent wolfhunters Jean Charles Marc Antoine Vaumesle d'Enneval and his son Jean-François after the creature. They were later replaced by hunter François Antoine who finally brought the creature's reign of terror to an end after killing a huge wolf which he claimed could be responsible for the deaths and sure enough they stopped. Until a second beast emerged, which was slain in 1767, by Jean Chastel, supposedly with a silver bullet, the creatures stomach reputable contained human remains. 

The people of France took the threat the beast posed very seriously, hell they even sent the army in to kill this thing. That's right the army.

And royal huntsmen.

And some nobles.

And just threw some conscripted peasants in there too. Basically they went all out to kill this thing.

Contemporary explanations ranged from exaggerated accounts of wolf attacks to a werewolf, or rather a sorcerer who had used magic to become a terrifying beast.

Basically if you're a peasant in Medieval France don't go out on the moors.

-Dan 

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Day 2: Ningen

"Ningen" is Japanese literally means human, an appropriate name for these humanoid creatures which supposedly lurk beneath the icy waters of the Antarctic.

Sightings of the creatures, approximately 20-30 meters in length and completely white the only visible facial features being the eyes and mouth, originate from witnesses aboard a government run Whaling ship.

As with most Cryptids, no solid evidence exists for the existence of the Ningen other than an incredibly grainy video which I will post below and some pictures which could easily be icebergs, in fact most on the Ningen Mythos can be traced back to a 2 channel post.

Have a look at this and see what you think: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xfrmnu_alien-ningen-sighting-sagami-bay-japan-aug-23-2010_news#.UUtvb1tpjTA

I can't help but feel that the seriously distorted footage compared to the relative clarity of the footage before doesn't help it's case, there are seriously any number of things that this could be, along with the actual movement of the creature itself.

Ningen or iceburg?

It would be incredibly easy to mistake any sea dwelling creature for a Ningen, the bottom of a Ray bears a distinct resemblance to a human face and the Dugong would both be excellent candidates.

There also exists a gut wrenching Japanese film of the same name.

If you're interested.

Just putting that out there.

So anyway Day 2 is left with you, there's no real conclusive evidence either way.

-Dan.

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Day 1: The Big Grey Man

Ben Macdui is the second highest mountain in the United Kingdom after Ben Nevis, and the highest in the Cairngorms, it is also infamous among backpackers for it's local legend; The Big Grey Man. 

Sightings of the creature, although varying wildly typically began to arise at the beginning of the 21st century  Eyewitness accounts report it to be akin to the typical Yeti or Bigfoot, and also recall intense feelings of uneasiness or dread while on the mountain. One theory to explain these sightings is a phenomenon known as 'Brocken spectre' where shadows are cast onto mist, giving the impression of a huge figure. This combined with Mountain Panic would create an absolutely terrifying effect.

This is an interesting short film on the subject explaining further what I have summarised here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsEVMQ3mhH8

So perhaps the 'Big Grey Man' is off the Cryptozoology radar for now, Ben MacDuhi is still worth a visit, especially if you are lucky enough to experience the Brocken Spectre first hand; just remember though, that's your shadow, and it's probably not going to eat your face off

Probably.

No promises.

    - Dan