Page 90 - Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained Vol. 3

70 Mysterious Creatures

M Delving Deeper pointed ears on its reptilianlike head, but all
Bord, Janet, and Colin Bord. Unexplained Mysteries of who have seen the Chupacabra after dark state
the 20th Century. Chicago: Contemporary Books, that they will never forget its red eyes that glow
1989. menacingly in the shadows. Although its arms
Clark, Jerome, and Loren Coleman. The Unidentified. are thin, they are extremely powerful, ending in
New York: Warner Paperback Library, 1975. three-clawed paws.
Coleman, Loren. Curious Encounters. Boston and A most unusual attribute of the Chu-
London: Faber & Faber, 1985. pacabra is its chameleonlike ability to change
Gordon, Stuart. The Encyclopedia of Myths and Leg- colors even though it appears to have a strong,
ends. London: Headline Books, 1994. coarse black hair that covers its torso. Some-
Jones, Alison, ed. Larousse Dictionary of World Folk- how, the creature is able to alter its coloration
lore. New York: Larousse, 1995. from green to grayish and from light brown to
Keel, John A. Strange Creatures from Time and Space. black, depending upon the vegetation that
Greenwich, Conn.: Fawcett Publications, 1970. surrounds it. Another peculiarity of the beast
is the row of quill-like appendages that runs
down its spine and the fleshly membrane that
Chupacabra
extends between these projections, which can
Named for its seeming penchant for attacking
flare or contract and also change color from
goats and sucking their blood, the Chupacabra
blue to green or from red to purple.
(“goat sucker”) both terrified and fascinated
the public at large when it first burst upon the Some witnesses have claimed that the
scene in Puerto Rico in the summer of 1995. Chupacabra can fly, but others state that it is
From August of 1995 to the present, the mon- the beast’s powerful hindlegs that merely cata-
ster has been credited with the vampirelike pult it over walls, small trees, and one-story
deaths of thousands of animals, ranging from barns or outbuildings. It is those same strong
goats, rabbits, and birds to horses, cattle, and legs that enable the creature to run at
deer. While some argue that the creature is a extremely fast speeds to escape its pursuers.
new monster, others point out that such enti- It wasn’t long after the night terrors began
ties have always existed and been reported by in Puerto Rico before reports of Chupacabra
farmers and villagers in Puerto Rico and Cen- began appearing in Florida, Texas, Mexico,
tral and South America. and among the ranchers in Brazil’s southern
states of Sao Paulo and Parana. In Brazil, the
ranchers called the monster “O Bicho,” the
Beast, but there was no mistaking the brutal
FROM August of 1995 to the present, the signature of the Chupacabra on the mutilated
corpses of sheep and other livestock. And the
Chupacabra has been credited with the vampirelike
description provided by frightened eyewit-
deaths of thousands of animals. nesses was also the same—a reptilian creature
with thin arms, long claws, powerful hind legs,
and dark gray in color.
The beast has been observed by numerous On May 11, 1997, the newspaper Folha de
eyewitnesses as it attacked their livestock, and Londrina in Parana State, Brazil, published the
they have described it as nightmarish in appear- account of a slaughter that had occurred at a
ance. Standing erect on powerful goatlike legs ranch near Campina Grande do Sul when in a
with three-clawed feet, the monster is generally single corral 12 sheep were found dead and
described as slightly over five feet in height, another 11 were horribly mutilated. While
though some reports list it as over six and a half some authorities attributed the attacks to wild
feet. Its head is oval in shape and it has an elon- dogs or cougars, those who had been eyewit-
gated jaw with a small, slit mouth and fangs that nesses to the appearance of the beast argued
protrude both upward and downward. A few that the creature that they had seen walking
witnesses have claimed to have seen small, on its hind legs and seizing livestock by the

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