Thursday 17 May 2012

EL CHUPACABRA




Even though some sightings date back to the
1970s, El Chupacabra - "the goat sucker" -
is primarily a phenomenon of the 1990s, and
its fame has largely been spread by the
Internet. The sightings started in earnest in
1995 with reports coming out of Puerto Rico
of a strange creature that was killing
farmers' livestock - chickens, ducks, turkeys,
rabbits and, of course, goats - sometimes
hundreds of animals in one evening. The
farmers, who were familiar with the killing
practices of wild dogs and other predators,
claimed that the methods of this unknown
beast were different. It didn't try to eat the
animals it killed, for example; nor did it drag
them away to be devoured elsewhere.
Instead, the creature killed by draining its
victims of blood, usually through small
incisions.

Then came the bizarre eyewitness
descriptions:
about the size of a chimpanzee
hops about like a kangaroo
large glowing red eyes
grayish skin and hairy arms
long snake-like tongue
sharp fangs
quills running along its spine that seem to
open and close like a fan
some believe it may even have wings
Toward the end of the '90s, the sightings of
Chupacabra began to spread. The creature
was blamed for animal killings in Mexico,
southern Texas and several South American
countries. In May and June of 2000, a rash
of incidents took place in Chile, according to
certain newspapers there. In fact, some of
the most incredible claims yet came out of
those sightings: that at least one of the
creatures was caught alive by local
authorities, then handed over to official
agencies of the US government.
What is it? Theories abound, including: an
unknown but natural species of predator;
misidentified known predators; the result of
genetic experimentation; an alien. Most
serious researchers consider Chupacabra
merely folklore, perpetuated by over-
enthusiastic locals immersed in superstition or
a penchant for telling tall, exaggerated tales.
Yet you can be sure that we haven't seen or
heard the last of Chupacabra


                Onoharigho rukevwe  (Silhouette) 

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1 comment:

  1. I love these old folk tales and superstitions. Great fodder for fiction!

    ReplyDelete