The Burrunjor- a living dinosaur?

There is a legend of a creature called the Burrunjor. The Burrunjor is said to be bipedal , about 20 -30 feet tall( 6-10 metres) and have 2 short, almost useless arms and live in Arnhem Land Australia. Some say it is a living dinosaur , a relative of T. Rex.

IN Rex and Heather Gilroy's Book “Out of the Dreamtime—The Search for Australasia's Unknown Animals” is the following story:

Campfire stories substantiating Aboriginal claims are commonplace across the far north. Back in 1978, a Northern Territory busman and explorer, Bryan Clark, related a story to me of his own that had taken place some years before. While mustering cattle in the Urapunji area, he became lost in the remote wilderness of that part of Arnhem Land. It took him three days to find his way out of the region and back to the homestead from where he originally set out.He had not known at the time, but his footprints had been picked up and followed by two Aboriginal trackers and a mounted policeman. On the first night of their search they camped on the outskirts of the Burrunjor scrub, even though the two trackers protested strongly against doing so. The policeman hobbled his horse, cooked their meal, then climbed into his swag and went to sleep.Later that night the two Aborigines shouting intelligibly and grasping for their packs and saddles suddenly woke him up. The policeman also realised at this moment that the ground appeared to be shaking. Hurriedly getting to his feet, he too gathered up his belongings, and shortly afterwards, the three galloped away. As he told Bryan Clark later at the Urapunji homestead, he had also heard a sound, somewhat like a loud puffing or grunting noise, certainly loud enough to be coming from some large animal. When asked if he intended to include this incident in his report, he replied he would not because he feared no one would believe him. The policeman warned Bryan never again to return to that area, because if he got lost there again he’d be “on his own”, as he would not come looking for him! The region’s cave art, thousands of years old, depicts these monstrous animals. Many Aborigines believe these monsters wander back and forth across the Gulf country and Cape York to this day. Back in 1950, cattlemen lost stock to some mysterious beast that left the mutilated, half-eaten remains of cows and bulls in its wake over a wide area, stretching between the border country and Burketown. Searchers on horseback found huge reptilian tracks of some bipedal-walking beast. They followed these three-toed tracks with their cattle dogs through some rough jungle terrain until they entered swampland beyond which was more dense scrub. However, it was at this point that the cattle dogs became uneasy and ran off. The horses were also uneasy and obviously did not want to cross the swamp. While most of the cattlemen decided their animals knew best, two men set off on foot with their carbines. The story goes that they soon came across further tracks in an open area beyond the swamp. While his mate searched about, the other man briefly spotted the dark form of an enormous creature, perhaps 30ft in height, further off in dense timber. The men left the scene in haste. Johnny Mathews, a part-Aboriginal tracker, claimed to have seen a 25ft tall bipedal reptilian monster, moving through scrub near lagoon Creek on the Gulf coast one day in 1961. “Hardly anyone outside my own people believes my story, but I known what I saw”, he said to me in 1970. In 1985 a 4-wheel drive vehicle and it s family of travellers, the Askeys, heading for Roper River Mission, happened to take a back road for some sightseeing. Just before they were to pull up and turn around to resume their journey to the mission, they all saw, moving together across an open plain some distance away, two bipedal-walking reptilian creatures a good 20ft tall respectively. “The monsters were a greyish-brown colour and dinosaur-like in appearance. We didn’t wait around”, said the father, Mr Greg Askey.

In 1984, huge three-toed footprints from a gigantic bipedal reptile was found near Narooma, New South Wales. Rex Gilroy confirmed the find and made a plaster cast of one of the tracks. The track was approximately 2 feet wide and 2 1/2 feet long.

So is this another story of a living dinosaur or something else? Recent research has suggested that T.Rex and it’s relatives did not have useless forearms. Although its clawed forearms were small, it has been postulated it was likely they were suited for grasping and manipulating captured prey once they were enmeshed in the powerful jaws. They were then muscular and not useless.

Rather than a living dinosaur it has been suggested that these creatures are giant monitor lizards, much more likely to have survived in Australia’s harsh terrain than dinosaurs. We have to remember the world the dinosaurs lived in was very different from our own. The oxygen content in the air was higher , the lack or pollution, the clear water in the seas, much warmer and different types of plants. Most of the prey for a large dinosaur would have disappeared and it would have not only have to adapt to breathing differently, but eating differently and living differently. I am not saying it is impossible for something to adapt and change but that it is highly unlikely it would appear the same as it did 65 million years ago. In order to live in our climate and conditions it would have to have changed considerably and would therefore not appear as the T. Rex we know from fossil records but an adapted or even hybrid version. So what would it look like? I will leave that for you to think about as we approach a new decade.

I wish you all a Very Happy 2010 and hope the new year brings you all you hope and wish for. XX

A site with stories and legends from Australia:

http://outbackvoices.com/the-camelman/strange-aboriginal-beings

The Lake Utopia Monster

Indigenous people’s legends speak of a serpent with a huge mouth and teeth that inhabits Lake Utopia in New Brunswick, Canada. The serpent is said to break holes through the surface of the frozen lake and snap at people on the lake. There have been sightings reported for about the last 100 years. Lake Utopia is approximately 7 kilometers long and between 0.8 and 2.8 kilometers in width. The lake level varies throughout the year, as more or less water is allowed through a hydroelectric dam on the Maguadavic River in St. George.

In 1867 sawmill workers on the north shore of the lake reported they saw something 30 feet (nine metres) long and 10 feet (three metres) wide thrashing in the lake. Similar reports were made around the same time.

In 1868 a Saint Croix Courier ( a newspaper) reporter said he and other witnesses saw the monster.

In 1872 a Dominion Gazette article on the monster said "dwellers of the lake, without exception, believe that a huge fish or serpent has a home in Utopia" and they've seen it basking like a pine log on the surface of the water.

In1872 locals describe a monster with a large head following their canoes, snapping its jaws. The Canadian Illustrated News reported a hunting party set out to catch the monster without success.

In 1891 William Francis Ganong, a naturalist, records in his notebook a description of the monster provided by a lumberman who said he saw it 20 years prior. "It was dark red in colour, the part showing above the water was 20 feet long (about) and as big around as a small hogshead; it was much like a large eel."

In 1969 The Saint John Evening Times Globe reports on an interview with Mrs. Fred McKillop, of St. George, who said she saw a huge creature 18 years earlier. "It looked like a huge black rock . . . It moved up and down the lake, boiling and churning the water, making great waves," she was quoted .

In 1982 Sherman Hatt says he and family members saw a hump come out of the water about 10 feet long. He said it looked like a submarine with spray coming from both sides.

"It was huge-huge," he said. "Maybe there is an explanation but I cannot understand what it was."

In 1996 There were reports about Roger and Lois Wilcox who were canoeing on the lake when they saw ripples break the mirror-like surface 100 metres ( 300 feet) from them. It was heading toward Cannonball Island . Stewart. Wilcox, a retired military airman from St. George described it as 40 to 50 feet (13 to 16metres) long, undulating upward, not sideways. He said he saw a hump come five feet out of the water. He said, "I just don't know what it was."

The leading Lake Utopia Monster researcher Norma Stewart said most sightings are kept quiet, one was reported to her in 2000. Stewart believes there is a pattern of sightings at about every three to five year intervals.

So is this another giant eel sighting? The descriptions sound very familiar. There could be a family of large eels living in the lake that surface either when food is scare or maybe when they are breeding and are protecting their territory, hence the aggression. Of course that is only one explanation and I am sure everyone has their own.

Life as Loch Ness monster hunter

Here is a video from 2008 of Steve Feltham who lives by Loch Ness in a caravan and has dedicated his life to looking for Nessie. If you ever venture there and get to Dores, go and have a chat. He is a friendly guy :


http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/5717/Steve_Feltham_2.html

Monster Hunting in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — John Warms is on a monstrous quest for "strange creatures seldom seen." The 65-year-old researcher from Manitoba, Canada, visited Utah recently, hoping to hear firsthand tales of legendary beasts. A retired public school teacher, Warms is working to publish a new book on "Strange Creatures." "I'm certain they exist," based on many expeditions and interviews, Warms told the Deseret News. Warms is one of many proponents of such creatures but one of few to take a special interest in purported creatures that may reside in the Beehive State. Last week, Warms drove to Utah in search of its alleged water creatures, like the Bear Lake Monster and other strange beasts allegedly spotted in the Great Salt Lake in the 19th century. Depending on what he finds, he hopes to write a book and enhance his Web site, which he hopes will break new ground with previously untold stories about sightings of strange creatures. Warms isn't well known in the monster quest field just yet, but depending on what he finds in Utah and other places, that could change. Living with Canada's Fairford River in his backyard, he's heard many tales of strange creatures — from the traditional serpents to giant prehistoric beavers. These gigantic beavers are his favorite focus. Though believed to be extinct for over 10,000 years, these are scientifically named "castorides Ohioensis" and can grow to up to 9 feet tall and weigh 440 pounds. He stresses that the fact that these giant beavers actually existed makes some of his claims much more plausible. "I have encountered people in northern Manitoba and along the Alaska Highway who claim to have seen the bear-sized creature," he said. "I saw one in southern Manitoba, swimming, and the head was about basketball size. They seldom come ashore; that is why we don't know about them." In Utah, Warms is especially interested in Bear Lake. Because it is a deep — 200-plus feet — body of water, its probabilities of harboring a Loch Ness caliber monster seems quite probable to Warms. He also talked of a recent creature sighting in Lake Powell, where a woman described what Warms believes is another giant beaver. "Lake Powell was an isolated sighting," he said. "I am sure many more people must have seen them around but perhaps didn't want to be laughed at." In southern Manitoba, he has discovered large tunnels — up to 3 feet in diameter — along shorelines that he believes are made by such creatures to live in. Many are reinforced by clay linings and as soon as they are disturbed by man, the creature fills them in. There are even tales of what he calls "underwater moose" and giant frogs, among other water creatures. He's also amazed at how many tales of large snakes — 25-35 feet long — considered an impossibility by experts, because of the cold Canadian climate — that he hears about in his home area, too. There are even reports of large flying creatures in Canada, with 3-foot wingspans and that only come out at night. So far, he said, no scientific experts will take any interest in these purported creatures. He recently built a large aluminum sled that a snowmobile can pull so he and friends can better penetrate the Canadian wilderness this winter to look for more creature evidence. Drilling holes in the ground next to lakes and searching with underwater or infrared cameras will be his next steps to find evidence of strange water creatures. "It could rewrite books," he said of what he could find. He also said he once met a Manitoba Interlake hunter (now deceased) who thought he shot a wounded moose in some willows in 1941. "It took me thirty-five years to figure out what I had shot," the old man told Warms. He had supposedly shot and killed a bigfoot (but that term was unknown until 1958).

Source:http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705354304/Canadian-seeks-strange-creatures.html?pg=1

Just as some background to this item the story of plesiosaur fossils found in the Lake Powell area .:http://www.plesiosaur.com/links.php

The lone hunters of Mokele-Mbembe

Most people have read or heard of Roy Mackal's book on the hunt for the so called living dinosaur in the Congo "Mokele-Mbembe" or seen articles about Bill Gibbons and John Kirk's expeditions. But there have been others who have ventured alone to the area to seek out Lac(lake) Tele and look for the creature. Rory Nugent went in 1986(book Drums Along the Congo 1993 ed. Houghton Mufflin Co) and Redmond O'Hanlon ( book Congo Journey 1996 Penguin books).
Rory Nugent's book is the more upbeat of the two as O'Hanlon's has a more negative view of the indigenous people of the area. Both are amusing in parts ,especially about meetings with witch doctors. Nugent took a photo of something but as you will see from the text he was unable to get close enough to investigate.










































Extract From O'Hanlon's book

He ends his journey to Lac Tele by asking this:
p.379 " So Doubla". I asked softly"Why did Marcellin swear he saw the dinosaur?" "Don't you know?" said Doubla, giving me his first real smile." It's to bring idiots like you here. And make a lot of money"

So is it just a con? The races of the Congo refer to Mokele- Mbembe as the spirit of the forest and say it takes several forms. Some indigenous people's when questioned point to pictures of a Rhinoceros as the dinosaur and it is claimed that it is a race memory from when the jungle was once plains and the rhino roamed there. More than one investigator has pointed out the lake is quite shallow and it would have to be a small dinosaur to hide there. The water levels may rise in the rainy season of course. It is said that if there is any place that a dinosaur could still exist it would be in the Congo jungles but the jungles weren't always there and it would have been grass land plains thousands of years ago. There are still patches of this in the jungle, clearings where the animals gather (See the Channel 4 programme Congo , which is still sometimes transmitted)
So sadly it seems there may not be a living dinosaur unless it is some sort of evolved creature from the era of the dinosaurs. It would be unlikely to look like something from Jurassic Park though , probably much smaller and a changed appearance in order to adapt to the changing world around it.

cryptozoology at Christmas

First of all I want to wish you all a very merry christmas and all the the very best you wish for yourselves for 2010. Thank you to those who follow and read the blog. You are all stars.
I am back from some hospital tests and stuff and things well -the news isn't too good but it means I will be around to write the blog for a while yet as I won't be able to go to work or even get out of the house much for a while. Also means I will be able to get on with the book after the holidays and submit it for publication early 2010.
All that remains is for us to sing a cryptozoological carol and enjoy a cryptozoological christmas.

To be sung to the tune of the 12 days of christmas:
On the first day of christmas I received in the post an owlman in a large tree
On the second day of christmas I received in the post two thunderbirds
On the third day of christmas I received in the post three almas
On the fourth day of christmas I received in the post four ozark howlers
On the fifth day of christmas I received in the post five gold ogopogos
On the sixth day of christmas I received in the post six bunyips laying
On the seventh day of christmas I received in the post seven Nessies swimming
On the eigth day of christmas I received in the post eight chupacabras sucking
On the ninth day of christmas I received in the post nine yetis dancing
On the tenth day of christmas I received in the post ten spring heeled jacks leaping
On the eleventh day of christmas I received in the post eleven black dogs howling
On the twelvth day of christmas I received in the post twelve bigfoots drumming

And an owlman in a large treeeeeee......Merry Christmas everyone. xx*hug*

P.S. forgot to say will be back on the 27th Dec.

Lake Pepin and the creature known as Pepie

Lake Pepin is the largest lake on the Mississippi River, about two miles wide and 22 miles long with an average depth of 18 feet (5.5 m).. It forms the natural border between Minnesota and Wisconsin . A creature nicknamed Pepie is said to live in it’s waters.

The story goes that the native Dakota people that lived in the area refused to travel on Lake Pepin in bark canoes because of the large "creatures" that would rise from the depths of the Lake and puncture the thin bark skin .They would only travel on Lake Pepin in dugout canoes that were made by hollowing out a large log.

Then in April , 1871 "a lake monster is seen swimming in Lake Pepin" (Minnesota Almanac, published by the MN Historical Society). Many people have reported sightings of an unidentified creature surfacing in the lake since then. There is even a reward for proof it exists.

Lake Pepin Sea Monster? 'Capture' It For $50,000

Reporting James Schugel

There's one creature in Minnesota that's so hard to track that $50,000 reward is out for proof it exists .Ever since the 1800s, residents around Lake Pepin in Lake City, Minn. say they've spotted a sea monster. They call him, Pepie.

"It was very strange," said Larry Nielson, who says he's seen the mysterious creature. "We watched it for quite a while and we watched it for about 15 minutes and could not figure out what it might be." Steve Raymond shares the same story. "Now, I'm the third person who's reported it. I distinctly remember three humps, with one hump looking like a head," recalled Raymond about his experience on Lake Pepin.

The first sighting of the creature was in April 1871. An artist has tried to show what the monster, with a hypnotic red-eye and demon-like head, might look like. It's said to live within the depths of Devil's Abys. "So you never know what you're going to see out here," said Nielson. "There have been stories of something mysterious here."

Boaters have told stories of being attacked while on the water, first hearing several loud knocks on the hull, followed by several violent back and forth swings of the boat.

Nielson wants people to try and see for themselves because this mysterious monster that's eluded most cameras for more than a century. He's offering $50,000 for undisputable photographic and scientific evidence. "The idea behind the reward is make sure you come up with a camera. You might catch Pepie, but the worst thing that's going to happen is that you're going to get pictures of some of the most beautiful scenery in the world," said Nielson. This reward is also a marketing tool for Lake City. The local tourism bureau hopes the chance to see Pepie and get money for it will bring people to the area. Whether anyone finds anything specific on Pepie is yet to be seen. Nielson and Raymond don't need more proof from the public, because they already agree that they've seen something strange in the lake. Source:http://wcco.com/local/lake.pepin.monster.2.717605.html

So marketing ploy or is there something in the lake?

A P.S. I am off to hospital for tests for a couple of days so apologies in advance if I don't get blogs posted . They will be late if posted . I am sure you will manage fine without me ! Normal service will be resumed asap.

Lake Temiskaming Mugwump- fish or something else?

Lake Temiskaming in Quebec is a deep lake around 720 feet at it’s deepest point . A lake monster known as "Mugwump."is said to inhabit the lake.

The first published story of it appears to be by the then mayor of New Liskeard Jack Dent. In an April 20, 1979 he wrote an article in The North Bay Nugget newspaper in which he discussed the creature. According to Mayor Dent:

“… the Indian word, “mugwump” means fearless sturgeon and is all part of a very old Indian legend from an old Indian…”a direct descendant of Chief Wabi” who told him the mugwump was reputed to be the length of four Indian braves. Putting the average height of a brave at about five feet… concluded the mugwump was probably over 20 feet long…”Mayor Dent said he had only heard of the animal in 1969

Then in February 2, 1982 an article appeared by Alice Peeper in The Temiskaming Speaker, a Mrs. Kate Ardtree recalled her father telling stories about the animal as a child. Mrs Ardtree was elderly at the time so the story must have been from 1920’s or 1930’s. Mrs. Ardtree had never seen the animal herself. “…Sure I know about it, or should I say them?” she smiled. “I well remember my daddy talking about the monster.” Mrs. Ardtree also remembers her Dad bringing home one of its scales when she was just a girl. The scale was as big as a saucer and the family had it around the house for years….”

Dariene Wroe then wrote in the August 9, 1995 issue of The Temiskaming Speaker about the story of John Cobb. Cobb , then 83 years old, recalled an event from the early 1940’s when he worked on the tugboats moving logs along the lake.

“…One night I was coming up just about dark and I seen the darn thing in the lake.” He describes a creature about 20 feet long with a round head and nose like an animal’s. “I didn’t know what it was. When we come up close it disappeared…”

Then Chuck Coull outlined his encounter with a strange beast in the lake to journalist Mike Pearson in 1979. He claimed it happened in the early 1960’s:

“…We were cruising around in the boat, about a third of the way back from Burnt Island, when we saw what looked like a deadhead. We pulled up to it. It rolled over and swam away…. It was the biggest sturgeon you’ve ever seen… I’d been hearing about the thing all my life….”Chuck Coull was with his father at the time and estimates the animal sighted was around 8 feet long.

The Temiskaming Speaker also had reported that in 1978, Ernie Chartrand and his wife, who lived in the town of Haileybury, were seated at a table in The Matabanick, a local Hotel, where they had a good view of the lake. Their attention was drawn to "something" that was moving shoreward at a very fast pace. As it was nearing the shore, it did a sudden and complete turnabout and headed out back to deep water. Both Mr. and Mrs. Chartrand had noticed that this "thing" had a large humped back, and they noticed that it had no fins along its side or back, as itswam away. According to The Speaker, Ernie stated that it must have been 15 feet long. He further stated that he will go on record anytime as to his sighting of the Lake Temiskaming monster” (The Temiskaming Speaker February 3, 1982)

Another article by Alice Peeper of the The Temiskaming Speaker appeared February 17, 1982. This time it was the story of Roger Lapointe and Dan Arney who were ice fishing at the time in a borrowed hut.

According to Roger Lapointe and Dan Arney of Cobalt,the two men decided to try their luck at ice-fishing so they managed to borrow a friend's ice-fishing hut for a night.They had just settled in, when their tip-ups started to agitate in an alarming manner. Hauling the lines in, they discovered their bait and lines were missing. It looked like they were sheared right off, the men had reported later. Resetting the line, they settled back with a brew and were wondering what was stirring in the depths below the fish-hut, when in about 20 minutes, or perhaps half an hour, their tackle flew right up in the air and then vanished down the hole. The men were dumb-founded! "To hell with this," Lapointe relates, "Let's pack it in", and Arney agreed. They were donning their parkas, when Arney said he could feel the small hairs on the back of his neck stiffen (this sixth sense had served him well in the RCMP back a dozen years). Arney said he just knew that something was watching them as he reached out and put a silencing grip on his partner's arm and they began to survey the half-dark interior of the hut. Looking downwards at the fishing hole, they saw a black, glistening head with protruding eyeballs, and one of these eyes was staring fixedly at the men "like it was sizing us up for a snack", Lapointe remarked. When Arney shouted, "Let's get the hell out of here", he lost no time in following him out the door. They leaped aboard their snow machine and raced for shore. When contacted about their experience, both men agreed there was "something" out there in the lake, alright.

Another sighting of the Lake Timiskaming monster has been made by John Sheur of New Liskeard, who claims he saw the monster quite recently. Mr. Sheur says he was locking up his ice-fishing hut for the night, when he heard a crunching noise. Knowing he was the only fisherman still out on the lake, he decided to see what it was about. Thinking it was probably a dog, he almost walked into a long, dark animal, that seemed to be wrapped about several of the ice-fishing huts and was chewing something, said Sheur. What did its head look like? the reporter asked. Something like a dinosaur, said Sheur, "but I didn't stay for a second look." Sheur had dashed for shore on his snow machine and, rushing into a local hotel, tried to get several men to go out and investigate. Two men finally decided to go take a look, but all they found was a rather snake-like trail in the snow. They also noticed that one of the fish-hut doors was wide open. Someone had forgotten to secure it, so the men closed it against the drifting snow. Mr. Harmon of Haileybury, who has an ice-fishing hut near where the incident occurred, said it was the darndest thing that he had been losing line and fish left out in the snow. He presumed it was stray dogs, but now he's not so sure!

So what is it? Well a sturgeon would not come ashore on the ice so could it be our old standby a giant eel? Or could it be more than one creature lives in the lake? It is deep enough to hold more than one large predator, so perhaps there is a large sturgeon and something else in the deep waters.

Cryptozoologists are useful!

Cryptozoologists don’t just find monsters. They often find unknown species and even things that have been lost that are historically important. The late Robert Rines found several things in Loch Ness from ancient stone circles to this, a fitting memorial in some ways to his own tenacity and determination, like that of the pilots of WW2.

Extract from full article: Just over a year after the battle, R for Robert crashed into Loch Ness while on a training flight from RAF Lossiemouth on Hogmanay 1940 and remained lost until Nessie hunter Robert Rines discovered the wreckage while searching the bed of the loch. "When we found it in 1978, it was intact, but I went back in 1981 and the fuselage had been torn apart," Robin said. People had been trying to grapple for souvenirs, so we had to salvage it or lose it all together. I managed to get the backing of the National Heritage Memorial Fund and huge oil companies like Oceaneering International jumped at the chance to get involved. Had I actually had to pay for their services, it would have been about £20 million to recover her. "An aircraft had never been recovered from 70 metres before and I honestly don't think it could happen again because of cost." After 45 years beneath the loch, R for Robert was finally craned out of the water at Bona Lighthouse on 21st September 1985. "It was almost perfect," Robin added. "The people from Brooklands were astonished at the condition of the aircraft."

Source:http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/11239/Saved_from_watery_grave,_plane_deserves_place_in_history.html

Big Cat attack reported in USA

Tales of a big cat haunt Winslow residents Thursday, December 17, 2009

WINSLOW TWP., N.J. - December 17, 2009 (WPVI) -- Rumors will not die down that there's a big cat on the loose in Winslow Township and among its victims was a horse.

Winslow Township Police are warning people to be cautious and on the lookout for a large cat the size of a German Shepherd. They believe it may be responsible for the mauling death of a horse at a local ranch. The attack happened in late September at the Double D Ranch on Watsontown Road in the Tansboro section of Winslow. The horse suffered fatal wounds to its stomach and back. "One morning we walked out the door and there were all sorts of splinters and we have this damage to our door jam," Debra Walker said. Walker lives next door to the ranch. She believes the same animal likely clawed or chewed the front of her house. "What we heard was that it could have been a wild dog," Walker said. Officials initially thought it may be a feral dog, but since then, residents across the township have been reporting the same sighting of a large tan colored cat. Police say it could be a cougar, but such animals are not indigenous to the area which is making the case that much more perplexing. "It's a pretty scary feeling, that's why I keep my horses in and protected from the outside so that mine don't get attacked," Dan Glemser of Marlton said. Glemser, a breeder, keeps two of his horses here at the ranch including Destiny's Princess. He says rumors are rampant in the township about what sort of animal may be responsible for the mauling. "When I seen the marks on the horse, I thought it was something a little bit more vicious then a dog," Glemser said. Glemser now makes sure his horses remain in their stalls. He and others are keeping their eyes open to make sure the animal doesn't attack again. Police say if you see this large cat, report it immediately. Do not try and capture or kill it on your own.

Source:http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=7177252

The monster that haunts the Lake Edward area

It is said that there is a monster in Lake Edward called the irizima; which apparently means 'the-thing-that-may-not-be-spoken-of.' The indigenous people who live near Lake Edward in Zaire refer to it as a "gigantic hippopotamus with the horns of a rhinoceros on its head. "The lake is said to have an average depth of 111 m/364 ft. It is has good fish stocks is said to be free from crocodiles.

Some describe the creature as a gigantic hippopotamus with the horns of a rhinoceros upon its head, others say the irizima is a marsh monster with a hippo's legs, an elephant' trunk, a lizard's head, and an aardvark's tail. The creature seems to have been seen in many places around that area of Africa.

The story goes that Lewanika, King of the Barotse, saw the beast in the marshes of his land, and set a special warrior watch to capture it. 'A monster,' says he in his official report to the British Government, 'with a head like a snake, making a huge track in the reeds as large as a full-sized wagon would make were its wheels removed.'

J.E. Hughes in 1933. wrote in his book “Eighteen Years on Lake Bangweulu” that the Wa-Ushi tribesmen had killed such a creature along the Luapula River, between Lakes Mweru and Bangweulu. It is described as having a smooth body, without bristles, and armed with a single smooth horn fixed like that of a rhinoceros, but composed of smooth white ivory, very highly polished.

In December, 1919, the London Daily Mail published a letter from C.G. James, who had lived in what is now Zambia. He reported that there was an enormous beast with a single ivory horn living in the waters of Lakes Bangweulu and the surrounding lakes and swamps. James said this animal was called "Chipekwe" by the natives. The same creature is also mentioned in both Millais’ 1924 book “Far away up the Nile”

So what is or was this mysterious creature? It appears to live in more than one place in the area. Some say it is a quiet hervibore others that it attacks other animals. Could it be more than one species of creature? That would explain the differing descriptions. It sounds like a hybrid of two other creatures but whether a hippo and a rhinoceros would mate is debateable. Certainly one to add to the pile of unexplained and intriguing tales,

Lake Massawippi creature- any news?

This appeared in 2005:

A Quebec innkeeper claims to have picture proof that the legendary monster of Lake Massawippi exists.

Although it doesn't enjoy the status of Ogopogo -- the country's most famous water monster said to inhabit Lake Okanagan in the south central B.C. interior -- "Whippy" has been alive in local monster folklore. Townspeople have been reporting sightings of the elusive creature for generations in the peaceful, picturesque lake nestled in Quebec's Eastern Townships, near Sherbrooke. Jeff Stafford, owner of the Ripplecove Inn, showed photos of what he claimed are "Whippy" to CFCF News reporter Rob Lurie. Stafford said he was given the photos last week by a tourist, along with a story of how the alligator-like creature surfaced from the depths of the Massawippi and treated him to an extended view. The series of blurry photos show a far shot of an oddly-shaped protuberance sticking out of the water. "This thing was floating on top like a large crocodile or large water snake," Stafford told CFCF. He said, according to the tourist, that Whippy was 10 feet long, and had its head stuck out of the water for several minutes. "We were blown away," said Stafford, who didn't doubt the tourist's story for one second. There are many stories of monster sightings in these parts, reports Lurie. Nearby Lake Mephremagog has "Memphre"; Lake Champlains' has "Champ." But with this latest sighting on the Massawippi, the legend of Whippy has pulled ahead of the others. Florent Hebert, who's been guiding tours on the lake for 23 years, said he's seen a lot of strange things that he just can't explain. He said he's been trying to convince people of Whippy's existence, and that these photos finally prove he's not crazy. "I feel much better, because no one believes in the stories I've been telling about the lake," he told CFCF News. Scientists have explained that these waters are inhabited by some very large fish. At almost 500 feet deep, Lake Massawippi is home to many monster sturgeons. Fishermen have spotted fish more than seven feet long in the lake. Vancouver author John Kirk, whose specialty is investigating unknown animals, guesses the mystery creature in Stafford's photo "could be a form of catfish." "But it doesn't have the profile to be a classical lake monster," he told CTV News. Stafford said whatever it was, it didn't act very fish-like. "It was on the surface of the water for about 15 minutes -- that's not fish behavior," he said.

Source:http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1124491024189_22/

The lake , previously called Lake Tomifobi, is about a mile wide, about 8 or 9 miles long(I think that is about 38 kilometres) and at it’s deepest said to be 500 feet (160 meters) deep. It is another lake formed by glacier activity during the Ice Age, like Loch Ness and others.

Locals are said to talk about a creature they’ve name Wippi that inhabits the lake, and several claim to have seen it. Massawippi is the third lake in the area said to have an unknown creature or monster inhabiting it.( Lake Memphremagog's Memphre, Ogopogo)

I have been unable to find any other sightings of the monster apart from the article. It would be thought that there would be local legends from the indigenous people , even under it’s old name, about a monster, but I have been unable to find any. Large fish are not unknown in the lake and fishermen have reported sturgeon 7 feet long in it’s waters. So unknown creature or tourism? The photo doesn’t give any clues and could be anything(As per you may think ) . So does anyone have any more information on Whippi , or do we put it down to sturgeon or catfish?

The Times newspaper UK reports on reward for mermaid capture

The Times December 15, 2009

Million-dollar reward helps mermaid lure tourists to Kiryat Yam

It is one of the uglier towns on Israel’s coast: boxes of Soviet-style housing projects jostle close to the shore and tankers plough the shipping lanes, heading for more important destinations to the south. However, Kiryat Yam, a development town full of Russian and Ethiopian immigrants, has been galvanised by a claim that neither the busy port of Haifa to the south nor the walled crusader city of Acre to the north can match: according to the mayor, it has its own mermaid. Tourists are stopping here to try to summon the elusive creature by blowing on a ram’s horn, a Jewish relic, and investors have expressed an interest in developing the almost deserted beachfront. Shmuel Sisso, the town’s mayor, has whipped up excitement by offering a $1 million (£615,000) reward for anyone who provides proof of the siren’s existence. Oleg Borisov, 56, a market-stall holder, believes that he was the first to have contact with the creature a couple of years ago while he and his dog were having a night swim. “I was in up to my head when I felt something moving in the water,” said Mr Borisov, who moved here from Ukraine 20 years ago. “All of a sudden I felt as if somebody was spreading my legs and going right between them. My dog started barking and there was a loud splash on the water. I screamed and fled — I was stuttering I was so scared.” He has never returned to the water at night. When Mr Sisso built a promenade along the shore this year, and people started reporting strange sightings in the surf, Mr Borisov made the connection. “For sure it was a mermaid,” he said, adding that he believes she must have a message to deliver. “There will come a time when she will appear,” he said. “The Messiah is coming soon, too, in 2012.” On the jetty, alongside a small fibreglass statuette of a mermaid sprayed with gold paint, Mordechai, 57, a native of Kiryat Yam, prepared for his daily swim. He dismissed the story as nonsense. “I’ve been swimming here every day for 50 years and I didn’t see her,” he said. He conceded, however, that there was mention of sirens in the G’mara, a Jewish holy text. “If you believe in God, you believe anything can be created. And I believe in God.” In his office, Mr Sisso grinned at all the attention that his mermaid has attracted. He said that at least two witnesses claimed to have seen the creature, and he produced two snapshots from a British amateur photographer showing a yellow discoloration in the surf at sunset. Vince Palmer, from East Sussex, said in an accompanying letter that the pictures proved the mermaid’s existence — and he enclosed, helpfully, a self-addressed envelope for the $1 million cheque. “Before this picture she performed many tricks but I’m afraid I missed these with my camera,” he wrote. The mayor’s reward offer has sparked the threat of international legal action from an American group called the Mermaid Medical Association. They wrote to Mr Sisso, telling him that they were “shocked about your decision to pay a reward of one million dollars to those who will hunt the mermaid. “Therefore if you don’t declare in a period of ten days that you withdraw from your decision we intend to approach the International Court of Justice and to ask for its interference,” said the group’s director, Jeff Lerman.Mr Sisso was not intimidated. Nor has he been forced so far to come up with the reward money: he is too busy dreaming up mermaid-themed costume parades and more hotels to worry about such trivialities.

Source :http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6956546.ece

It is difficult to find any comment to say ,maybe someone else would care to post one.

The Mothman story re-surfaces.

An extract from the article:

Remembering the Mothman Written by Nick Diamond

On a chilly, fall night in November 1966, two young couples drove into the TNT area north of Point Pleasant, West Virginia, when they realized they were not alone,” reads the plaque on the front of a twelve foot tall stainless steel sculpture of the Mothman that stands eerily in downtown Point Pleasant, West Virginia.The legend of the Mothman was born in the small town of Point Pleasant during the 1960’s when over a hundred eyewitnesses were horrified by something they had never seen before. The townspeople began reporting sightings of a tall creature with piercing red eyes and demon wings. The creature was said to be about eight feet tall and resembled the figure of a man.Today, the little town in West Virginia still remembers the events that took place. A book was even written by John A Keel, supernatural phenomenon expert and writer. Keel investigated the events in the town and put his findings and works together in the book “The Mothman Prophecies.” The book also inspired the creation of the 2002 Richard Gere film “The Mothman Prophecies.” A festival is also held every year in memory of the legend. Tours and guides are also given to anyone interested in probing the little town of every nook and cranny the story can offer. Tourism, tourism, and even more tourism seems to be the biggest reason people visit the town today.Point Pleasant is approximately 226.57 miles from Frostburg, Maryland, averaging about a three and a half hour drive along interstate 68 West. The best way to get there is by simply taking the interstate and driving west through Morgantown, Clarksburg, and Pomeroy until you reach Point Pleasant

The first encounter of the Mothman took place on November 15, 1966, by David and Linda Scarberry and Steve and Mary Mallette. The two couples were traveling late at night in the Scarberry car. They passed the West Virginia Ordanance Works, an old abandoned World War II TNT factory. They noticed two red lights in the shadows by an old generator plant. After stopping the car, they realized the lights were the glowing eyes of a large creature, “shaped like a man, but bigger, maybe six and a half or seven feet tall, with big wings folded against its back,” according to Roger Scarberry. The couples were terrified. They fled and reported what they saw to the police.They were not the only ones who encountered this creature. On the 16^th Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Wamsley and Mrs. Marcella Bennett were going to see some friends who lived near the TNT plant. When Mrs. Bennett got out of the car she realized there was a figure lurking behind them. “It seemed like it had been lying down, slowly rising up from the ground, large and gray, with glowing red eyes.” Mrs. Wamsley ran inside and phoned the police as the creature walked onto the porch and peered in at the couples through the window. The entity fled before the police arrived.During these strange encounters, something terrible happened to the town of Point Pleasant. On December 15, 1967, the Silver Bridge, which connected Point Pleasant to Ohio, collapsed. It plummeted to the depths of the river, killing 46 people. The event was heavily investigated, and the only consensus of the collapse was a small manufacturing flaw in the single eye-bar suspension chain. The believers in the Mothman sightings would say that the two events are connected. Witnesses and believers even claim that the Mothman appears before upcoming disasters.

Between 1966 and 1977 there were over a hundred eyewitness encounters with the creature. Jeff Wamsley was among the few people willing to discuss his personal knowledge of the events. Mr. Wamsley has lived in Point Pleasant his entire life. “I actually live in nearby Gallipolis, Ohio, now…I was born and raised in Point Pleasant West Virginia…right down the street from where those original witnesses lived back in 1966,” said Wamsley. “I grew up hearing about the Mothman sightings…I was always interested in the story because it took place literally in my hometown…I was lucky enough to launch two book projects that contained exclusive interviews with many of those original witnesses. I have collected archives for years and run the worlds only Mothman museum…I ran my own chain of record stores for about fifteen years.” Mr. Wamsley now teaches graphic design in Point Pleasant at the career center and high school.

Regardless of what people believe, the events that occurred in Point Pleasant have been strongly speculated as hysteria. Skeptics such as paranormal investigator Joe Nickell looked into the stories and concluded that it was only a common barn owl that was witnessed numerous times. Whatever the Mothman was, it terrified the townspeople for almost a year and suddenly left. Mr. Wamsley was asked what his personal take on the story was. He simply replied, “I have no real explanations to what this thing was, but I can tell you that these people saw something that really shook them up…over 100 reported sightings in a thirteen month time frame…all the descriptions matched…no doubt they saw something they had never seen before.”

Source and rest of article here:

http://appindie.org/index.php/appalachian-culture/55-culture/980-remembering-the-mothman

So was it a bird or an unknown creature or someone in a suit? If it appears again perhaps we may find out. There are stories from all over the world of similar creatures being seen, winged humanoids. Some say they are giant bats, others something from another realm. My feet are firmly in this realm and I would love it to be giant bats.

The Elizabeth Lake story - myth or monster?

Elizabeth Lake is located on the San Andreas Fault in the Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County. There have been lots of stories about a monster which attacks people and livestock.

In the 1830s Don Pedro Carrillo abandoned his ranch on the lakeshore after a fire. He complained of the La Laguna del Diablo, the lake of the devil and said it has caused the fire . In 1855, Americans settlers tried moving into the area but later abandoned it claiming that it was haunted. In the 1880’s Don Chico Lopez and two other men claimed to witness the a monster with bat-like wings rise from the lake going on to say that it had wings and flippers. Workers reported seeing ominous shadows over the lake cast by the demon and the disappearance of livestock was recorded. In 1886 a Don Felipe Rivera said that forty-feet long creature , with six legs and two leathery wings had eaten some of his cattle. Some others claim that the beast was a giant snake. Basque immigrant Miguel Leonis purchased the ranch next and the story goes that after losing several of his animals, Leonis hunted the creature and attacked it one night, causing injury to its eye after bullets seemed to bounce off its tough skin. The wounded creature then apparently hid in the lake and then allegedly fled the area , but rumour was rife that many settlers, ranchers and the likes avoided the area for years.
The main source of the stories seem to come from a book called “On the Old West Coast,” author of Horace Bell, a California lawman, newspaperman and attorney, published in 1918.Bell said he heard the story of the monster from the great-grandson of an early Spanish settler named Guillermo Embustero y Mentiroso. Don Guillermo IV said he and Lopez, along with Lopez’ range boss Chico Vasquez, brother of bandit Tiburcio Vasquez, saw “a huge monster, larger than the greatest whale, with enormous bat-like wings …. It would roar and splash the water with what appeared to be great flippers or legs,” Bell also recounted that the original Guillermo Embustero y Mentiroso left behind a manuscript that told how Lake Elizabeth was created by the devil. .
In S.E. Schlosser’s book 2005 “Spooky California,” the story is that Leonis , known as “El Basque Grande,” bought the land around the lake from another rancher, who sold out because the monster had been raiding his cattle and scaring off his workers. When Leonis’ ranch hands reported the monster was stealing cattle, he camped beside the lake and waited for it to emerge from the water, Schlosser wrote.
“Berserk with rage, the mighty Leonis ran straight for the monster’s head, roaring louder than any lion and letting off random shots with his rifle,” Schlosser wrote. “Leonis leapt right into its face, smashing the butt of his rifle against the beast’s nose and forehead, and putting a fist into its right eye. ”Intimidated by the rancher’s attack, Schlosser wrote, the wounded monster retreated into the water and hid for months. A ranch worker later saw the creature flap away eastward, apparently to Arizona, where according to and April 1890 article in the Tombstone Epithaph two cowboys shot to death a creature like a giant crocodile with wings that stretched 160 feet.

Then there is this article from April 2009

It was once named La Laguna de Diablo because early settlers thought a monster lurked inside its watery depths. But Los Angeles County's largest natural lake, Elizabeth Lake in the Antelope Valley, is now considered heaven by nature lovers, who are attracted by its inherent beauty and its scores of animal and bird species. And now, many worry about its future, after its owner recently put much of the lake and its surrounding acreage up for sale at $19.5 million. The lake’s modern history dates back to the early days of California’s founding .In 1780, Father Junipero Serra named it La Laguna de Diablo because those who lived near the lake formed by the San Andreas Fault believed it contained the devil’s pet. In the late 1800s, Tiburcio Vasquez and other Banditos used the lake as a hideout for their stolen cattle and horses. It was later named Elizabeth Lake for a young girl who lived nearby and slipped in to the water. She wasn’t hurt, but friends dubbed it in her honor as a joke and the name stuck. And just in case the legend of the Elizabeth Lake monster might scare away any potential buyers, Walker said the last reports of the monster’s appearance were in the late 1800s, when several men claimed they witnessed the ascension of a huge monster with bat-like wings from the lake. “Of course, this is all legend and folklore,” Walker said. “Here, we don’t think about it. Most people don’t even know about it. It’s just an old story.”

Source and rest of article:http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_12069280

So was it just legend and folklore or was it a Thunderbird? Interesting thought isn’t it?

Not amused at the cryptozoological community

It has come to my notice that some unscrupulous people have been using my name "Tabitca" to try and join cryptozoological sites they are barred from. Firstly they should know I sometimes write under that name and it is copyrighted to me and secondly I believe it is a criminal offence to use someone elses name / identity for you own gain and their detriment. What appalls me the most is that people would stoop this low to access a website. It's just defies belief that some boards in the community contain people that would behave in this manner and it basically defines what is wrong with the cryptozoological community. Nothing will ever be achieved if people don't work together and stop this underhand despicable behaviour. Academics argue all the time but it is the only community I know that includes personal attack in it's discussion. The people I am talking about know who they are and which website/ board they belong to and which website they tried to infiltrate. I hope you are ashamed of yourselves but be aware I do know who you are and if you try to use my name again without permission, I will take action against you. Some one has to stand up to these cryptozoological hooligans. It is probably the same people who post crude and nasty anonymous remarks that I have to delete. Children access cryptozoological sites as they love reading about monsters etc. What sort of example are you setting them and if you have children do they know how you behave online?
Grow up and show some decorum and stop this stupid sniping and bad behaviour. If the community is to be taken seriously you have to learn to behave with some manners and professionalism.

Llangorse Lake -home to a lake monster or a monster fish?

Llangorse Lake in Wales is a glacial lake about a mile (1.6 km) long and fairly shallow in parts about 10 feet (3 meters ) deep on average but up 29 feet (8.5 metres) at it’s deepest point. It is said in folklore to be the home of monster , the Afanc of Llangorse Lake. The modern nickname for this creature is Gorsey,

The earliest known literary reference to the afanc is in a poem by the 15th century Welsh poet, Lewys Glyn Cothi. An extract reads:

Yr avanc er ei ovyn- The afanc am I, who, sought for, bides

Wyv yn llech ar vin y llyn;- In hiding on the edge of the lake;

O don Llyn Syfaddon vo- Out of the waters of Syfaddon Mere

Ni thynwyd ban aeth yno:- Was be not drawn, once he got there.

There have been sightings of the Afanc in the last century.

In 1987, caravan park owner Mark Tunnicliffe reported seeing the Afanc. He had his two dogs with him , which both started barking at the water. One dog, Iggy, jumped in, and landed on a massive pike. Waterfowl had been e seen being taken by something beneath the water.

Then in 1999, Darren Blake was attacked by a 5-6 foot long pike, which resulted in hospital treatment. See the following article:

Terror from the deep as huge pike takes a bite of water skier

The Birmingham Post Sept 1st, 1999

It was no fishy story for water skier Darren Blake as he found himself under attack from a monster pike. The 31-year-old, from Lichfield, Staffordshire, was on Llangorse Lake, in the Brecon Beacons, south Wales, and taking a break from the skiing when the 5ft fish struck "It was horrifying. I felt these huge teeth sinking into my foot and pulling me down. I was just so glad to get out of the water in one piece," he said. "I dropped into the water and kicked off my skis. I was treading water when suddenly I felt these teeth bite into me. "I was yanked down and just pulled my foot up. It was really frightening and I shouted 'Get me out of here'. "The water was too dark to see down but everyone told me there were big pike living in the waters. When I got out my foot was in a real mess and there was blood everywhere. "Mr Blake needed stitches to an inch-long gash on the ball of his foot and six V-shaped toothmarks on his sole. "Looking at the size of its bite some fishermen up there think it could have been 5ft or more long," he said. Mr Mike Tunnicliffe, the 30-year-old manager of Lakeside Caravan Park where Mr Blake was staying, said it was the first time he had heard of the fish attacking a person. And Mr Ron Cousins, of the Welsh Federation of Coarse Anglers, said it was rare for such an incident but he added the fish are "killing machines" and will skulk around the water like sharks.

COPYRIGHT 1999 Birmingham Post & Mail Ltd

Pike can live about 30 years and are predatory carnivorous fish which will eat just about anything. They don’t normally attack people but a fish that large may not see people as a threat or could simply have mistaken the movement for a fish or bird.The largest pike caught by rod in the UK was caught in Llangorse Lake in 1846 by O.Owen and weighed 68lbs. Angling Times has the largest pike on record as being 60lb, but in 2004 a pike mask (skull) of 18 inches was found , estimated to belong to a pike of over 90lb.

So is Gorsey the Afranc a large predatory fish.? The recent encounters would say so. I know Oll Lewis at CFZ has done some research into this. It may be the lake has always been home to various giant pike over the years. There is abundant fish in the lake and it is well known to anglers. I would be wary of having a paddle there in future!

Another bigfoot sighting report in Georgia

Uh oh, Bigfoot roaming in north Fayette?

Tue, 12/08/2009 By: Ben Nelms

Reports of the sightings of large primates, usually referred to as “Bigfoot,” are not uncommon across the United States. But they are uncommon in Fayette County. At least until this past summer. A story posted on the Georgia Mysteries website on Dec. 5 changed all that with its report of a north Fayette County woman who said she encountered a large hairy creature on Lee’s Mill Road in mid-July. The Citizen was unable to contact the Bigfoot Field Research Organization (BFRO), its investigator or the Georgia Mysteries website contributor to obtain additional information on the incident described on the website. The unnamed woman who reported the July 17 incident, according to the Georgia Mysteries story, was rounding a curve on Lee’s Mill Road as she drove home from work on a clear night at approximately 11 p.m. The woman described the creature in her headlights as being approximately 6 feet to 7 feet in height, hairy with a medium build and with a loping gait. “As I rounded a curve I saw something walking across the road in front of me. It was tall, not slim but not thick and covered in grayish-brownish hair. It never turned to look at me and just loped across the road and off in the dark. I was traveling about 40 mph and slowed quite a bit to ensure it would make it across without me hitting it,” the website report said. The creature did not turn towards the vehicle at all, just continued across the road to the other tree line, according to the unverified report. The sighting lasted 10-15 seconds. At the closest point the woman said she was approximately 10 feet from the creature, according to the report. A follow-up report was done by BFRO investigator Mary Snyder. In her statement Snyder said the witness had been sincere in her report of the incident. “I could hear in her voice that she was still very upset about the encounter,” Snyder said.

The woman is reported to have said that subsequent to the event she learned that sightings had occurred a few years ago in Coweta County. There were several sightings of the “Happy Valley Horror” in 2005 in the Happy Valley Circle area of north Coweta, as reported in the local media. Source: http://www.thecitizen.com/~citizen0/node/40990