Post by Joanna on May 3, 2016 21:08:17 GMT -5
Tahoe Tessie (Photo by Chris C. Grinder)
Nine US Cryptids You've Probably Never Heard Of
You've likely heard of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster. Perhaps you're even familiar with tales of blood-sucking chupacabras and West Virginia's Mothman. But there are numerous other creepy creatures and mythical monsters throughout the world that cryptozoologists and thrill-seekers are eager to find. Here's a look at nine lesser-known cryptids right here in the United States.
Tahoe Tessie (California and Nevada). Stories of an aquatic creature in Lake Tahoe can be traced back to members of the Washoe and Paiute tribes in the mid-19th century, who said the cryptid lived in an underwater tunnel beneath Cave Rock. Sightings of Tessie – who got her nickname from the famous Nessie of Loch Ness fame – continue to this day, with witnesses describing the monster as between 10 and 80 feet long, with a serpentine body and coloration ranging from black to turquoise. The most recent reported sighting occurred last year.
There are several theories concerning Tessie, the most popular being that the animal is a Plesiosaur, Icthyosaur or Mosasaur because fossils of these creatures have been found in the surrounding Sierra Nevada Mountains. However, scientists say this is unlikely because the lake formed in the last Ice Age, long after these animals became extinct. Other Tessie theories say she could simply be a large sturgeon or an unidentified species of freshwater eel, but believers cite a quotation from undersea explorer Jacques Cousteau who allegedly emerged from a submarine expedition in Lake Tahoe and said, "The world isn’t ready for what’s down there.”
Skunk Ape (Florida). This large, hairy bipedal mammal is said to inhabit the Southern United States, but it's most often spotted in Florida. It gets its name from its unpleasant odor, which is said to be similar to that of rotten eggs or methane. Although reports of the creature were most common in the 1960s and 70s, sightings continue to this day, but the most famous took place in 2000. That year, two photographs of an animal alleged to be the Skunk Ape were mailed to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Department, along with a letter from a woman who said she’d photographed the creature in her backyard. She claimed the cryptid had entered her yard for three nights and taken apples from her porch. She was convinced the animal was an escaped orangutan, but law enforcement officers dispatched to her home several times never saw the creature. The National Park Service says the Skunk Ape is a myth that developed from American Indian legends, but according to the Skunk Ape Research Headquarters, the creature might be part of the same species as Bigfoot. What is believed to be a Skunk Ape was filmed in Hillsborough County last year.
Pope Lick Monster (Kentucky). This legendary human-goat hybrid has a deformed human torso, goat legs and a horned head, and is said to haunt the railway trestle over Pope Lick Creek in Louisville. Numerous urban legends exist concerning the creature’s origins. Some say the monster is a circus freak who vowed revenge because of mistreatment, while others claim it is a reincarnated farmer who sacrificed goats in exchange for Satanic powers. Tales of how the monsters claims its victims are equally diverse. Many believers insist it uses voice mimicry to lure trespassers to their deaths before oncoming trains. Some say it slays its victims with an axe, while others say the very sight of the Pope Lick Monster (above) is so terrifying that people jump to their deaths. These legends have turned the Pope Lick Train Trestle into a destination for thrill-seekers, and there have been a number of deaths at the location despite the 8-foot fence intended to deter visitors.
Iliamna Lake Monster (Alaska). The locals call her Illie, and reports of the cryptid have been around since the indigenous Aleut people lived on the shores of Alaska’s Iliamna Lake. However, the lake monster wasn’t brought into the public eye until the 1940s when pilots reported seeing a large fish swimming in the waters below. By the 1950s, there were consistent reports of large, aluminum-colored fish in the lake, and in 1979, the Anchorage Daily News offered $100,000 to anyone who could provide conclusive evidence of Illie’s existence. So far, no evidence has been found, but sightings of the creature continue and Illie was even featured on Animal Planet’s show “River Monsters.” But scientists say there’s no monster in Lake Iliamna – many have suggested what people are seeing are actually sleeper sharks. These fish can exceed 20 feet in length and swim into rivers and lakes to find food and scientists say that Illie sightings are often consistent with the shape and color of sharks.
Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp (South Carolina). This reptilian humanoid cryptid is described as being 7-feet-tall, bipedal and having scaly lizard skin and is said to live in the swamplands in Lee County. The first reported sighting of the creature was in 1988 when 17-year-old Christopher Davis saw the creature running toward him while he was changing a tire in Scape Ore Swamp. Davis got into his car to escape, but the Lizard Man jumped onto the roof and clung to it as the teen tried to throw it off. When he reached home, Davis found that his side-view mirror was damaged and there were deep scratch marks across the car’s roof.
For the next month, there were further reports of an aggressive lizard-like creature and additional reports of unusual scratches and bite marks on cars parked near the swamp. Police were skeptical, but said a sufficient number of sightings by reliable people led them to believe that something was out there, although they thought it was likely a bear. The sheriff’s department made plaster casts of what appeared to be large three-toed footprints to send to the FBI, but decided against sending them after the South Carolina Marine Resources Department said the prints were unclassifiable. Reports of the Lizard Man declined over the next few years, but in 2011 a couple reported their car had been mauled and the former Lee County sheriff said the damage was similar to the 1988 incidents. The most recent Lizard Man sighting occurred in August 2015.
Ozark Howler (Ozark Mountains). While most dismiss this alleged howling monster (above) as the creation of a cryptozoologist, others insist it is real. Witnesses describe the monster as a large black feline-type animal with horns and glowing eyes, and its name comes from the loud, eerie howl it emits throughout the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. Some experts on cryptids have suggested the creature could be an unrecognized big cat, while anthropologists have speculated the stories of the cryptid are simply inspired by the black dogs of death of British folklore. However, evolutionists who believe in the Ozark Howler believe it could be a mutated mountain lion breed or hybrid of a mountain lion and another animal. There was an Ozark Howler sighting as recently as December 2015.
Altamaha-ha (Georgia). Although no physical evidence of this aquatic creature exists, stories of a large snake-like animal swimming in the waters of Georgia’s Altamaha River date to the 18th century. The Tama Indian tribe has legends of such a creature and alleged sightings of Altamaha-ha continue, with most reports involving swimmers bumping into the creature. It has been described as looking like a sturgeon, but with the head of a crocodile and cryptozoologists have speculated Altamaha-ha may be an ocean cryptid that spawns in the fresh waters at the mouth of the river.
Loveland Frog (Ohio). This humanoid creature with the face of a frog was first spotted in Loveland in 1955. A businessman said he saw several creatures with green skin, webbed hands and wide mouths squatting under a bridge and one of the creatures reportedly held up a bar-like device that emitted sparks, leaving a strong odor of alfalfa and almonds behind. There were no further sightings of the Loveland Frog until 1972 when police, including Officer Mark Matthews, said they saw a frog-faced man jump a rail and into the Little Miami River. Weeks later, a farmer reported seeing the creature riding a bicycle and then Officer Matthews saw the Loveland Frog for a second time. This time, it was lying in the road and Matthews shot at it, but it escaped. However, in 2001, Matthews retracted his story, saying it wasn’t a monster and was probably just a pet lizard that got too large for its aquarium.
Chessie (Maryland and Virginia). Chessie is another sea monster named in the style of legendary Nessie and lives in the waters of Chesapeake Bay. There have been numerous sightings of the creature, which witnesses describe as 25-to 40-feet-long, serpent-like and finned. There were a rash of Chessie sightings in the 1970s and 80s, but an alleged photograph of the creature turned out to be a manatee. A 1982 videotape shows a brownish object moving from side to side like a snake, but the video hasn’t been authenticated. The last notable sighting of Chessie was in 1997.
Source: Laura Moss, Mother Nature Network, October 18, 2012, WJBF News, KHBS/KHOG News, The Tahoe Journal, and Bigfoot Evidence.
