#ozark howler

[gatorpond]

just some thoughts on being a trans person in the south. probably gonna make this one an actual finished piece… later.

[the-trans-folk-witch]

The Booger Man of the Ozarks; King of The Witches and Lord of The Haints.

"Dont go out tonight. The Booger Man'll geetcha!" as my grandmother would say.

Instilling a fear of the dark In children was a way of keeping them safe in a place full of venomous snakes, cavernous holes in the ground, rabid dogs, and predatory religious leaders.

In the "old Ozarks" - a time not that long ago, there was a great fear of not just the dark, but the spiritual entities running amuck within it. Haints, spectors, boogers, and witches were believed to take to the skies, crawl out of holes in the ground, or out of a hollow tree and do as they wish to whomever they come across.

As many trad witches know of "the man in black" or various titles of the devil as he attends the witches sabbath; in my own life he is the booger-man. He is the creature of the night who rules over all within the darkness. He is the one who grants the skins of the booger dog to shapeshifters during the dog days of summer.

One cant help but feel this need to escape the sun and to only go out at night during the hottest days of the years. It is freeing to explore the wilderness or the bodies of others under the moonlight when the temperature outside is mildly cooler than when the sun is out. It is the booger man who frees us from the clutches of a depressing summer heat. The humid daytime is filled with pain but the humid night is wet and arousing. The Dark One fills the air with the sound of crickets, cicadas, and the light of fireflies. And he fulfills the desire of all witches and spirits. The great wish-granter as I call him. The initiator of witches, the granter of familiars, the father of lies. The most present and complex form of the devil in my craft; as he lies below the earth as i write this. I bring him above from the great below and darkness consumes the land from the east as the sun sets in the west. The clouds roll in, the hot rain pounds on my naked back, and i roll in the mud as the booger dogs do before the hunt so as to mask their scent from their prey.

A belated happy dog days to you. I hope the chase was thrilling.

This was scheduled to post earlier this summer but it never did...

[somninomicon]

Inktober day 12

[cyallowitz]

The Ozark Howler

Ozark Howler This cryptid has been sighted in the Ozark Mountains, which span the Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri.  Though, there have been a few sightings in Texas too, so maybe a few had issues with living in Oklahoma.  Still, what are these creatures supposed to be? The Ozark Howler is said to be the size of a bear, really hairy, and have horns.  Its fur is very dark, which is why…

[statecryptids]

OZARK HOWLER- ARKANSAS

The Ozarks are a range of low mountains found primarily in Northern Arkansas and southern Missouri with portions extending into Oklahoma and Kansas.   Their origins lie in the late Paleozoic when sand, silt, coral, and shells built up as layers of sludge on the bottom of a sea that covered  what would eventually become the American South. Over time these sediments hardened into rock- sand became sandstone, silt became slate, and the shells and coral became limestone- and the movement of tectonic plates pushed them upwards into a low dome-like plateau.  Over the next 485 million years rivers and rain gradually eroded the soft rocks into canyons, cliffs, and caves that have provided habitat for bears, bobcats, otters and other Southern wildlife along with more unusual creatures like blind cave fish, collared lizards and endangered grey bats. And perhaps a cryptid or two.

According to legend, the people of the Ozarks have been haunted for decades by the unearthly screams of a beast dubbed the Black Howler.  Those who have caught a glimpse of the monster describe it as a dark-furred cat nearly the size of a bear. Other reports claim it has glowing red eyes and demonic horns sprouting from its head.

Explanations for the beast range from a normal, though unknown, species of large cat to something more supernatural. A few people have even compared the beast to English and Welsh legends of black dogs, cŵn annwn, hellhounds, and other supernatural beasts that bring misfortune to those who see them.

More skeptical people have speculated that the Howler is simply a misidentified cougar. Though these big cats are believed to be extinct in this region, it’s possible that a small population has survived. Or perhaps a few lone individuals have wandered in from other areas. This theory is bolstered by photos from trail cams showing creatures that strongly resemble these animals, and by similar cases of “phantom big cats” occurring in areas of the US where they are not normally found.

Though some claim that legends of the Howler go back generations, cryptozoologist Loren Coleman has found that the first reports of the beast originated from posts on online forums in the late 1990s. His investigations indicate that the “folklore” about the beast was a deliberate hoax to mock the widespread reports of chupacabras and bigfoots that were becoming increasingly widespread at the time thanks to the advent of the internet. Hoax it may be, but the Howler has since become a popular piece of Ozark folklore and sightings are still regularly reported.

 The Howler is especially significant as one of the first urban legend monsters to be created online, laying the groundwork for later, more famous internet creatures like Slenderman, The Rake, Momo, and Trevor Henderson’s Siren Head.

RESOURCES

[alabastercatfish]

missed yesterday but we are back in the saddle today 💪 in a way. because i kind of ignored todays prompt, which was “superhero (real or made up)” so.. idk. i would have liked to have this guy in yesterday’s piece for the draw a comic prompt which is why he’s here today! i’d like to take another pass at him later so maybe you will see him again

[astrawitch]

The Ozark Howler

My entry for the 1bit Cryptid Collab

[theghosteas]

I meant to post this sooner but! I've made a red bubble store! So if any of y'all wanna support a young hobby artist or you just think any of these are cute, then I'd love for you to check it out :)

https://www.redbubble.com/people/TheGhostea/shop?utm_source=rb-native-app&utm_campaign=share-artist&utm_medium=android

[raincoyoteart]

The Ozark Howler

[junkverse]

A comic I did for Okie Comics back in 2020, for their Halloween issue.

Oklahoma has a surprising lack of local cryptids, but the Ozark Howler seemed a good candidate for two amateur cryptid hunters to go after...

[ickusdemon]

made a yo-kai based on the Ozark howler . I plan on making some more cryptids as yo-kai

[gatorpond]

welcome to the gator pond

new handle, same ol creature… altho they finally got a name. everyone say hi to junebug.

[the-trans-folk-witch]

Post Herbalist, Pre Pre-Medical traditional Witchcraft: a Joke but a reality.

Before I hand feed you my BITTER solar-infused coffee-induced rant, let me give a few ( comically self made) definitions: *see notes

Post Herbalist witchcraft: "energy work**" and magics that are performed by peoples with no means, funds, or ability to obtain herbs and knowledge of herbal medicine for magic and health. This loss of knowledge is due to colonization, fear of herbalisms ties to witchcraft, and the push for modern"white medicine. Note*- I fucking hate the term energy work, yet the magic itself is very very real and used by me.

Pre Pre-Medical witchcraft: -Not to be confused with Pre-med schooling in preparation for grad school.- Pre Pre-medical is what I call the average knowledge of modern medicine that the average person can obtain by ways of public K-12 schooling and the internet. Its place in witchcraft is the knowledge of medicine and the dangers of herbs and or anti-vaxx/med dangers within magical communities. In essence, Pre Pre-medical witchcraft is the belief in modern medicine as well as magical healing methods. Not to be confused with holistic healing which is utter bullshit when taught as completely factual in organized religious spaces.

With these definitions explained less blurred in the mind of the greater trad witch community, and ignorant tumblr onlookers, I move on to my spiel.

As a professional witch, conjurer, seer, and drama queen, I struggle to find a home amongst communities that have watered down witchcraft for a younger, whiter, and less informed audience. Gone are the days of nuance and professionalism. Today is now ruled by forever-beginners, eternal-newbs, and influencers turned teachers. With this post I hope to separate the wheat from the chaff and find the cream of the crop.

To practice witchcraft in a time where herbs are expensive yet taught as the only means to perform spells; and at a time when cities and suburbs have ruined free access to native plants; I find myself performing more prayer and power based magics. No longer do i spend money on herbs, candles and the like. Nor do I plan to purchase the land required to grow my own. I invest in verbal charms, prayer, writing, movement, and my own bodily secretions. I jokingly call this "Post herbalist Pre Pre-Medical witchcraft."It is more informed and rooted in history than generic "energy work". And is less concerned with the consumerism that is forced upon modern witches via herbs and more. The joke is the name is so humorously long and ignorant that it kind of works. I expect the internet will love it considering you folks love putting every adjective before "witch" such as "solar witches" and "crystal witches". Although I suspect people looking for such titles do not have the attention span to read this wordy blog post.

In 2020 I challenged myself to go a year without spending a dollar on my magic. Here we are in 2024 and I'm still going. Yes I use plant materials. Yes I buy things for spirit offerings. But no. I don't have a huge cabinet of herbs and candles. I fully rely on my spirits, my witchflame, the land, and my body to produce magic. No money required. I could spend another fifteen paragraphs explaining how to do so. But alas, i don't care to share. As I said, I am done engaging with forever-newbs who are at the same place they started in witchcraft ten years ago.

I hope my short yet long* rant leads you to... something useful

*note: this is actually a very short read. But in the modern internet sphere we are all unable to process information that's not in video format consisting of no more than 2 minutes. so this is a long post nowadays. hehe im really on a soap box today. sorry im so bitter.

[loki104-uwu]

Say hi kids!

finally got done with this sketch

[profoundstarfishmusic]

Your Month >> Your Cryptid pt 2/2

[chimeride]

Ozark Howler, the 253rd Known One.

I’d like to see your take on the hodag or ozark howler.

Hodag, the 252nd Known One.

First version :