Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience that believes in anecdotal stories and all the other claims rejected by the scientific community.
The study of the cryptozoologists focuses on the entities mentioned in the folklore records and rumors. The cryptozoologists claim that the cryptids include Bigfoot, Yeti, Jersey Devil, Loch Ness monster, etc.
A. What is Cryptozoology?
Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that studies the legendary and extinct animals for which the presence is disputed and unsure. The cryptids are famous in folklore and stories; they include Bigfoot, the Jersey Devil, the Abominable Snowman, the Chinese Wildman, the Loch Ness Monster, and many more. The entities are claimed to be subcultures because it does not follow the scientific method.
Cryptozoology is neither a branch of folklore studies nor zoology; it is considered a pseudoscience by mainstream science, initially discovered by the zoologists Ivan T, Sanderson, and Bernard Heuvelmans.
The scholars of this stream have noted that the subculture’s mainstream approaches are rejected as they mainly adhere to expressing hostility to mainstream science. Therefore, scholars have also studied cryptozoologists and the influence of pseudoscience association with the Young Earth creationism. There are also noted parallels between cryptozoology and pseudosciences like the ufology, ghost hunting, and critical media propagation in many cases.
1. Cadborosaurus
Cadborosaurus is a serpent-like creature with vertical coils or humps in tandem and also has a long horse-like head and neck, which is claimed as Cadborosaurus. It also resembles a pair of large webbed hind flippers that form a sizeable fan-like tail region.
Also, Dr. Paul LeBlond, the director of Earth and Ocean Sciences at UBC, and Dr. Edward Blousfield, a retired zoologist of the Canadian Museum of Nature, have stated every elongated animal to be put forward as the explanation for Caddy.
The Cadborosaurus isn’t a new thing in the Pacific Northwest. It includes the local folklore of the region and has possibly more than 300 eyewitnesses in the last 200 years. The reports about Cadborosaurus attained great heights around the year 1930s as the clerk in the British Columbia Legislature confirmed with the Victoria Daily Times of seeing something in the sea while sailing.
He confirmed seeing something green-brownish colored around his boat. Therefore, this was the first encounter and also inspired many eyewitnesses to come forward in the future, confirming the cryptid.
The most exciting part of the cryptid’s existence was when in 2009, the Alaskan fisherman claimed the Cadbosaurous existence in actual footage. Still, the stills of the footage were rather shabby, making the claims quite questionable.
2. Champ
Another important cryptid that tops is American folklore; it is said to be a sea monster that lives in Lake Champlain. The monster’s legend draws tourism to New York, Plattsburgh, Vermont, and Burlington.
In one such instance, Sandra Mansi is said to have photographed one such species coming out of the lake. The lake where the photograph was taken reportedly had shallow waters and was no deeper than 14 feet. Therefore, according to Joe Nickell, any giant creature is unlikely to swim in such shallow waters, and possibly it could be a trunk or a log floating.
The book by Robert E Bartholomew, ‘The Untold Book of Champ,’ revealed that the original book was sent to Philip Reines, a nautical expert at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh so that the cryptid could be examined and authenticated.
3. Bigfoot
Yet another famous cryptid among the list is the Bigfoot, which is also referred to as Sasquatch, an ape-like creature seen in and around the forests of North America. The folklore record of this mystical creature has been recorded; there are numerous mythologies of the indigenous people that include hairy humanoids and tales about the creature. They mostly appear in the folklore of North America. Bigfoot is also considered a vital cryptozoology subculture.
Bigfoot tops for being folklore, a hoax, a misidentification, and a living animal as told by the indigenous population. Others resembling the bigfoot remain worldwide; they are the Almas, Yeren, and Yeti in Asia; the Skunk ape of Southeastern United States, and the Yowie of Australia. These two, just like bigfoot, are ingrained in the cultures of other religions.
The 1924 story, “Battle of Ape Canyon‘, refers to the ‘ape-men’ attacking the miners, throwing rocks at their cabin. Alleged vocalizations experienced include screams, grunts, moans, howls, and a distinct language claimed not to be of human origin but something that cannot be faked. Also, one of the miners shot one with a rifle.
4. Mapinguari
Adding up to the list is Mapinguari-an ape-like creature that lives on the border of Bolivia and Brazil. Many folklore records say that the Mapinguari stands tough with scales on its back with thick red fur on its head and belly; it is also said to be 8 feet tall, with long and curved claws. One story about the cryptid also claims it to have a second mouth present in the center of its stomach.
The most recent sighting of the species was recorded in The New York Times in 2007. The creature is said to be reared up on its hind legs; when approached by humans, it also produces a foul smell to keep the potential hunters of the region at bay.
5. Chupacabra
We cannot forget about the chupacabra. This famous cryptid is said to be seen and reported in Puerto Rico. Chupacabras are translated as ‘goat-sucker.’ The first reported attack of this cryptid was possibly around March 1995.
Eight of the sheep were discovered dead, and each of the sheep was dry dead with a puncture around the chest area. About eight months later, a woman named Madelyne Tolentino reported sightings of the creature in the Puerto Rican town of Canovanas, where nearly 150 farm animals were killed in the same way as before.
The most common description of the chupacabra includes bringing a strange wild dog-looking breed that is mostly hairless, with a spinal ridge, a reptile-like creature with leathery or scaly greenish-gray skin with sharp spines or quills on its back. It also has unusually pronounced eye sockets, claws, and fangs approximately 3-4 feet high and hops in the same manner as a kangaroo. It is comparatively much more dangerous than other predators as this predator drains out all the blood from the animal’s body.
6. Emela-Ntouka
An enormous semi-aquatic creature in the swamps of the Congo Basin of South America named Emela-Ntouka. Its physical features are compared to that of a hippopotamus, with a single-armed horn or long bony tusk in the center of its forehead.
It is herbivorous when it comes to its diet. Yet, it has a dangerous reputation for killing even larger animals than itself. Therefore, it has also got its name ‘elephant killer.’
7. Momo
Yet another one is Momo, the Missouri Monster, a mysterious apeman who is very similar to the Bigfoot. This cryptid is said to have resided in the forests alongside the Mississippi River that passes through Missouri. Its physique is described to be 7-8 feet tall, which has a broad pumpkin-shaped head covered with dark, thick fur from head to toe.
Most studies suggest this animal is exceptionally aggressive, which produces a foul smell, even worse than that of a skunk, to keep the predators and hunters away.
8. Jersey Devil
The Jersey Devil makes it to the list for being unique and for its folklore stories. According to the legend, the creature is believed to be the unwanted thirteenth son of New Jersey’s earliest state settlers. Mother Leeds offered her son to the devil upon his birth in 1735 because they could not raise this child independently.
Only after this did there were reported sightings of this two-legged, hooved monster, with a sheep-like head and scaly wings reported to be seen mainly in Pine-Barrens. One particular sighting was when in the winter of 1909, there was a long trail of hooved footprints under the fences over the rooftops, and on the walls that appeared in the snow one night mysteriously.
As the hype about cryptids possibly increases, cryptid tourism is gaining considerable growth. It simply dedicates the vacation to finding or possibly seeing creatures that are not proven by science. Scotland alone earns about £60 million from the Loch Ness monster tourism.
So, if you are looking for your next crypto tourism destination, you can follow this list to get the experience out of your experience.
Last Updated on by Sathi Chakraborty, MSc Biology
