List of cryptids explained

Cryptids are animals that cryptozoologists believe may exist somewhere in the wild, but whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated by science. Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience, which primarily looks at anecdotal stories, and other claims rejected by the scientific community. While biologists regularly identify new species following established scientific methodology, cryptozoologists focus on entities mentioned in the folklore record and rumor. Entities that may be considered cryptids by cryptozoologists include Bigfoot, Yeti, the chupacabra, the Jersey Devil, the Loch Ness Monster, and the Mokele-mbembe.

Scholars have noted that the cryptozoology subculture rejected mainstream approaches from an early date, and that adherents often express hostility to mainstream science. Scholars have studied cryptozoologists and their influence (including the pseudoscience's association with Young Earth creationism),^{[1] [2]} noted parallels in cryptozoology and other pseudosciences such as ghost hunting and ufology, and highlighted uncritical media propagation of cryptozoologist claims.

List

Aquatic or semi-aquatic

See also: List of lake monsters.

Name	Other Names	Description	Purported Location	Depiction
	Caddy	Sea animal	Pacific Coast of North America
Champ^[3]	Champy	Lake monster	Lake Champlain, North America
Cryptid Whales^[4] ^[5]	Giglioli's Whale, Rhinoceros dolphin, High-finned sperm whale, Alula whale, Unidentified beaked whales	Sea animal	Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean
Dobhar-chú^[6]	Water Hound, King Otter	Extra-large otter-like carnivorous aquatic mammal	Ireland
Gloucester sea serpent^[7]		Large serpent	Gloucester, Cape Ann
Iemisch^[8]	Iemisch Listai	Mix of a jaguar and otter	Patagonia
Igopogo	Kempenfelt Kelly	Lake monster	Lake Simcoe, Ontario (Canada)
Isshii	Issie	Lake monster	Japan
Labynkyr Devil^[9] ^[10] ^[11]	Labynkyrsky Chert	Lake monster	Oymyakonsky Ulus, Sakha Republic, Russia
Loch Ness Monster	Nessie	Lake monster	Loch Ness, Scotland
Loveland Frog	Loveland frogman, Loveland lizard	Humanoid frog	Loveland, Ohio
Lusca^[12]		Giant Octopus	Blue holes in the Bahamas
Mamlambo		Lake monster	South Africa
Manipogo^[13]	Winnipogo	Lake monster	Lake Manitoba, Canada
Megalodon	Otodus megalodon	Giant Shark	Oceans
Mokele-mbembe		Dinosaur (lake, river and/or swamp monster)	Republic of the Congo
Ogopogo	N'ha•a•itk, Naitaka	Lake monster	Lake Okanagan, Canada
Sea serpents		Sea animals, dinosaurs	All bodies of water
Selma^[14]	Seljordsormen	Lake monster	Lake Seljord, Telemark, Norway
Steller's sea ape^[15]		Sea animal	Pacific Ocean

Terrestrial

Name	Other names	Description	Purported location	Depiction
British big cats^[16]	Alien big cats (ABCs), phantom cats, mystery cats, English lions, Beast of Bodmin, Beast of Exmoor	Carnivorous mammal	Great Britain
Bukit Timah Monkey Man^[17]	BTM, BTMM	Forest-dwelling hominid or other primate	Singapore
Capelobo^[18]		Humanoid anteater monster	Brazil
Chupacabra^[19]	Chupacabras (Spanish for goat-sucker)		Puerto Rico (originally), South and Central America, Southern North America
Dover Demon^[20]			Dover, Massachusetts
Eastern Cougar^[21]			Eastern United States
Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp^[22]	Lizard Man of Lee County	Bipedal	South Carolina, United States
Malagasy hippo^[23]	Malagasy pygmy hippopotamus, Madagascan pygmy hippopotamus, kilopilopitsofy, tsy-aomby-aomby, omby-rano, laloumena, mangarsahoc	Hippo	Madagascar
Mapinguari^[24]	Mapinguary	Giant Ground Sloth or primate	Amazons
Michigan Dogman		Humanoid dog	Wexford County, Michigan
Minhocão	Big Earthworm	Caecilian	South America
Moa^[25]		Flightless bird	New Zealand
Mongolian death worm^[26]	Allghoi (or orghoi) khorkhoi	Worm-like animal	Gobi Desert (Asia)
Nandi bear^[27]	Chemosit, Kerit, Koddoelo, Ngoelo, Ngoloko, Duba	Large carnivore	Eastern Africa
Queensland Tiger^[28]	Yarri	Large feline	Queensland
Thylacine^[29]	Tasmanian Tiger, Tasmanian Wolf	Marsupial	Australia, New Guinea
Zanzibar leopard^[30]		Large feline	Zanzibar

Hominid

See also: Wild man.

Name	Other names	Description	Purported location	Depiction
Almas	Abnauayu, almasty, albasty, bekk-bok, biabin-guli, golub-yavan, gul-biavan, auli-avan, kaptar, kra-dhun, ksy-giik, ksy-gyik, ochokochi, mirygdy, mulen, voita, wind-man, Zana	Non-human ape or hominid	Asia/Caucasus
Amomongo^[31]	Orang Mawas, Impakta	Ape or hominid	Negros Occidental, Philippines
Barmanou	Barmanu, Big Hairy One	Ape or hominid	Middle East/Asia
Bigfoot	Sasquatch	Large and hairy ape-like creature	United States and Canada
Chuchunya^[32]		Large hominid	Russia
Fouke Monster	Jonesville Monster, Southern Sasquatch, Boggy Creek Monster	Hominid or other primate	Arkansas, United States
Honey Island Swamp monster^[33]	Letiche, Tainted Keitre	Hominid or other primate	Louisiana, United States
Orang Pendek		Small hominid	Sumatra
Nittaewo	Nittevo	Small hominids	Sri Lanka
Skunk ape	Stink Ape, Myakka Ape, Myakka Skunk Ape	Primate	Florida, United States
Yeren^[34] ^[35]	Yiren, Yeh Ren, Chinese Wildman	Primate (possible hominin)	China
Yeti	Abominable Snowman	Large and hairy human-like entity, various other descriptions	Himalayas (Asia)
Yowie^[36]		Large and hairy human-like entity, various other descriptions	Australia

Flying

Name	Other names	Description	width=300	Purported location	Depiction
Jersey Devil^[37]	Leeds Devil	Winged bipedal horse	United States, mainly the South Jersey Pine Barrens, as well as other parts of New Jersey and southeastern Pennsylvania
Mothman^[38]	Winged Man, Bird Man, UFO-Bird, Mason Bird Monster	Winged bipedal	Mason County, West Virginia, United States
Rod^[39]	Skyfish, Air Rod, Solar Entity	Small flying stick-like creatures	Worldwide
Ropen^[40]		Large bat-like creature or pterosaur	New Guinea
Thunderbird^[41] ^[42]		Giant bird	North America

See also

• Animalia Paradoxa
• Fearsome critters
• Legendary creature
• List of cryptozoologists
• Lists of legendary creatures
• List of megafauna discovered in modern times
• List of urban legends

References

Bibliography

• Book: Loxton . Daniel . Abominable Science: Origins of Yeti, Nessie, and other Famous Cryptids . Prothero . Donald . . 2013 . 978-0-231-52681-4.

Notes and References

1. Book: Hill, Sharon A. . 2017 . Scientifical Americans: The Culture of Amateur Paranormal Researchers . 66 . . 9781476630823 .
2. Book: Card, Jeb J. . 2016 . Steampunk Inquiry: A Comparative Vivisection of Discovery Pseudoscience . Card . Jeb J. . Anderson . David S. . Lost City, Found Pyramid: Understanding Alternative Archaeologies and Pseudoscientific Practices . 32 . . 9780817319113 . Creationists have embraced cryptozoology and some cryptozoological expeditions are funded by and conducted by creationists hoping to disprove evolution. .
3. Book: Michael . Shermer . Pat . Linse . The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience . 1 . November 2002 . 72 . . 9781576076538.
4. Mörzer Bruyns, W. F. J. (1971). Field guide of whales and dolphins. Rivonverhandeling. Tor. pp. 124–125.
5. Web site: Cetaceans with two dorsal fins . 7 January 2023 . 13 April 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230413102436/https://www.aquaticmammalsjournal.org/share/AquaticMammalsIssueArchives/1991/Aquatic_Mammals_17_1/17.1Raynal.pdf . dead .
6. Web site: Ireland's hound of deep - Dobhar Chu . . 19 December 2018.
7. Web site: Nicaise . Alexander . 2019-09-05 . Gloucester Sea-Serpent Mystery: Solved after Two Centuries Skeptical Inquirer . 2023-09-25 . en-US.
8. Book: Gilmore, David D. . Monsters : evil beings, mythical beasts, and all manner of imaginary terrors . 2003 . University of Pennsylvania Press . 978-0-8122-0322-6 . Philadelphia . 802059457.
9. Web site: Lallanilla . Marc . Reports Surface of Monster Lurking in Russian Lake . livescience.com . . 21 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210929190942/https://www.livescience.com/26836-lake-labynkyr-devil-vorota-monster.html . 29 September 2021 . 4 February 2013.
10. Web site: Divers preparing for icy waters of Russia's 'Loch Ness' . siberiantimes.com . . 21 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210128145319/https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/features/divers-preparing-for-icy-waters-of-russias-loch-ness/ . 28 January 2021 . 5 March 2014.
11. Web site: Meet the creature found by divers in Russia's Loch Ness, famed for legends of monsters . siberiantimes.com . . 21 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211108191737/https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/features/meet-the-creature-found-by-divers-in-russias-loch-ness-famed-for-legends-of-monsters/ . 8 November 2021 . 21 April 2014.
12. Guimont . Edward . 2021-10-05 . The Megalodon: A Monster of the New Mythology . M/C Journal . en . 24 . 5 . 10.5204/mcj.2793 . 241813307 . 1441-2616. free .
13. News: Bernhardt . Darren . Keep your camera handy: Stories of Manitoba lake monsters told for centuries but proof remains elusive . live . June 29, 2024 . Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
14. News: Botsford . Flora . 1999-08-31 . Secret life of the Norwegian Nessie . 2024-06-30 . The Guardian . en-GB . 0261-3077.
15. Nickell . Joe . Winter 2016–2017 . Steller's Sea Ape: Identifying an Eighteenth-Century Cryptid . Skeptical Briefs . Committee for Skeptical Inquiry . 26 . 4.
16. Web site: Fantastic Cryptids And Where To Find Them . . 18 December 2018.
17. Web site: On the hunt for the elusive Bukit Timah Monkey Man . . 18 December 2018 . 30 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181030131239/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/lifestyle/on-the-hunt-for-the-elusive-bukit-timah-monkey-man-9816486 . dead .
18. Web site: 2016-08-11 . Capelobo . 2023-10-21 . Portal São Francisco . pt-BR.
19. Book: Regal, Brian . Pseudoscience: A Critical Encyclopedia: A Critical Encyclopedia . 15 October 2009 . . 978-0-313-35508-0.
20. News: Sullivan . Mark . Decades later, the Dover Demon still haunts . 6 August 2021 . . 29 October 2006.
21. Web site: Skeptoid: Anatomy of a Real Cryptid Case . 2023-09-25 . Skeptoid.
22. Web site: Laycock . Joseph P. . A Search for Mysteries and Monsters in Small Town America . . 18 March 2021 . en . 11 July 2018.
23. Burney . David A. . Ramilisonina . December 1998 . The Kilopilopitsofy, Kidoky, and Bokyboky: Accounts of Strange Animals from Belo-sur-mer, Madagascar, and the Megafaunal "Extinction Window" . American Anthropologist . en . 100 . 4 . 957–966 . 10.1525/aa.1998.100.4.957 . 0002-7294.
24. 2006-04-01 . Twilight of the mammoths: Ice Age extinctions and the rewilding of America . Choice Reviews Online . 43 . 8 . 43–4679-43-4679 . 10.5860/choice.43-4679 . 0009-4978.
25. Web site: kreidler . Marc . 2017-05-26 . The New Zealand Moa: From Extinct Bird to Cryptid Skeptical Inquirer . 2023-02-09 . en-US.
26. Web site: Benjamin Radford . 2014-06-21 . Mongolian Death Worm: Elusive Legend of the Gobi Desert . 2023-10-22 . livescience.com . en.
27. Simpson . George Gaylord . 1984 . Mammals and Cryptozoology . Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society . 128 . 1 . 1–19 . 986487 . 0003-049X.
28. Book: Smith, Malcolm . Bunyips & bigfoots : in search of Australia's mystery animals . 1996 . Millennium Books . 1-86429-081-1 . Alexandria, NSW . 36719441.
29. Book: Loxton, Daniel . Abominable science! : origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and other famous cryptids . 2013 . Donald R. Prothero . 978-0-231-52681-4 . New York . 854902238.
30. Web site: The Zanzibar Leopard Between Science and Cryptozoology PDF Panthera Organisms . 2023-02-11 . Scribd . en.
31. Web site: 'Amomongo' frightens villagers in Negros . ABS-CBN News. https://web.archive.org/web/20170227150037/http://news.abs-cbn.com/classified-odd/06/16/08/amomongo-frightens-villagers-negros . 27 February 2017 .
32. News: O'Carroll . Eoin . 28 September 2018 . Bigfoot and beyond: Why tales of wild men endure . . 11 December 2018.
33. Web site: Frances . Leary . The Honey Island Swamp Monster: The Development and Maintenance of Folk and Commodified Belief Tradition . December 2003 . . 4–6 . 18 March 2021.
34. Web site: It's the monstrous new trend sweeping travel – what is cryptid-tourism? . . 13 December 2018 . 4 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181004225011/https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews//lifestyle/its-the-monstrous-new-trend-sweeping-travel-what-is-cryptid-tourism-873583.html . dead .
35. Book: Caleb W. . Lack . Jacques . Rousseau . Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience: Why We Can't Trust Our Brains . 8 March 2016 . . 978-0-8261-9426-8 . 170.
36. Book: Caleb W. . Lack . Jacques . Rousseau . Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience: Why We Can't Trust Our Brains . 8 March 2016 . Springer Publishing Company . 978-0-8261-9426-8 . 154.
37. Web site: The monster you should never find . S.J. . Velasquez . 31 October 2015 . . . 11 August 2018.
38. Web site: Kantrowitz . Lia . Fitzmaurice . Larry . Terry . Josh . People Keep Seeing the Mothman in Chicago . . 26 April 2019 . 16 January 2018.
39. Web site: rods - The Skeptic's Dictionary - Skepdic.com . 2023-09-20 . www.skepdic.com.
40. Web site: Don't Get Strung Along by the "Ropen" Myth .
41. Web site: Thunderbirds . Noah . Nez . 18 July 2012 . Skeptical Inquirer . 1 September 2021.
42. Web site: The mythic child-stealing Thunderbirds of Illinois . 5 August 2015 . . 11 December 2018.