In Search of the Unknown - Cryptozoology

I am among those who believe there are creatures in this world that, according to mainstream biology, do not exist. Cryptozoology is the title given to the study of legendary or otherwise unknown creatures. These may include animals thought to be extinct such as dinosaurs, or legendary creatures such as Bigfoot or El Chupacabra. These animals are sometimes referred to as 'cryptids'.

Although I have never personally encountered anything that could qualify as a cryptid, I am an avid believer in the theories behind many lengendary creatures, and I consider myself an amateur cryptozoologist. In the interest of others who share my interests, I am collecting some basic information on some well-known cryptids. I plan to eventually write whole hubs dedicated to individual creatures, but for now I'll just give an overview of some of the most well-known ones.

If anyone on Hubpages has encountered a cryptid, write a hub about it and I'll link to you here.

Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, is a legendary creature believed to exist somewhere in the forests of North America, mainly the Pacific Northwest. It is described as a large (over 7 feet tall), hairy, bipedal humanoid or ape that walks like a human being. In other parts of the world, legends exist of similar creatures, though these are referred to as Yeti or the Abominable Snowman.

A few scientists and Bigfoot believers have theorized that the creature is some kind of missing link between prehistoric creatures and modern man. This theory is primarily speculative, as there have never been any fossils or other concrete evidence recovered to confirm it. Many hopeful cryptozoologists have recovered alleged Bigfoot footprints, but none substantial enough to definitely prove the existence of an unknown bipedal humanoid in the Pacific Northwest.

Bigfoot is a staple of American folklore. Most have heard of it; few believe it really exists. Although contemporary scientists doubt that such a creature could exist in secret in America's forests, numerous reports of Bigfoot sightings have been generated over the years, some as far back as the mid-1800s, and as recently as the 21st century. While many of these are obvious hoaxes or misidentification of other species, a great many eyewitness accounts remain unexplained, and the legend continues to exist to this day.

In Spanish, 'el chupacabra' literally means 'the goatsucker.' The creature allegedly survives by killing livestock like goats and draining their blood from their necks. The legend of this creature is relatively new. Reports of the creature only go back as far as 1995, but attacks are reported with great frequency every year, primarily in Puerto Rico, Mexico, and other Latin American nations, but the creature has been reported as far north as Maine, and as far south as the nation of Chile.

Physical descriptions of the creature seem to vary. It is supposedly a large creature, roughly the size of a small bear or mountain lion, with a row of spines down its back to the base of the tail. Other than that, it's appearance varies from witness to witness. The primary reason for this seems to be that relatively few people reporting the creature have actually seen it. Most of the time, reports occur the morning after the alleged creature has attacked. Latin American farmers wake up one morning to find one or more of their goats or sheep dead, each with two to three puncture wounds on their neck or chest, and the blood almost completely drained from their bodies.

The credibility of this creature has come into question in recent years after it was allegedly captured on several different occasions. Most notably, a woman in Texas found several strange animal carcasses. After closer examination, the bodies were confirmed by scientists to be those of wild coyotes. However, the bodies in question had greyish hairless skin and large fang-like teeth, which could not be explained.

In some ways, the discovery of the coyotes raised more questions than it answered. Are these strange mutated coyotes really the chupacabras? Could they be responsible for all the livestock mutilations that have occurred since the 1990's? If so, what could have caused the mutation and their strange behavior? And if they're not the real chupacabra, if there even is one, then where is it? Despite the vigilant efforts of people all across North and Central America, this creature still remains a mystery.

Nicknamed 'Nessie' after the body of water it allegedly lives in, the Loch Ness Monster is a huge plesiosaur-like creature that is reported to live in the Loch Ness of Scotland. Originally sighted in the 1930's, the legend of this beast has turned the Scottish loch into a tourist trap, as stories of the creature have spread across the globe.

Most reputable scientists dismiss this creature as mere folklore. Sightings of the creature can often be explained by misidentification of other aquatic creatures, fallen trees and branches in the water, boat wakes, and other optical illusions. The pattern of a saurian shape is known to many people, so it's easy to see how someone could mistakenly see this pattern in nature and mistake it for an actual prehistoric creature.

Credibility of the creature is also hurt by the abundance of hoaxes that exist. One of the very earliest and most iconic alleged photographs of the creature is the Surgeon's Photograph (shown below). However, it was confirmed many years later to be nothing more than a clever hoax.