Cryptids

[Hobbs]

As a historian, there are some facets of culture and history I particularly enjoy. One of which is folklore. A part of that folklore are the legends of Cryptids, that is, animals/creatures unknown to science but believed to exist. These include the Sasquatch, Yowie, Almas, Yeti, El Chupacabra, Ogopogo, Mokole-mbembe, Nessie, etc. I catch the History Channel's Monster Quest whenever I can due to my interest.

Now then, I approach this with the skepticism of a researcher, like I've been taught to do as a historian. However, historically, folklore has never been without some hint of truth. After all, the mountain gorilla was folklore until they were "discovered" by Western science. The same with the okampi. And if you put into account all of the sightings, even if a good 80% or so can be relegated to hoaxes or misunderstandings of familiar wildlife (bears etc) there's still a good number of unexplainable sightings and evidence.

I suppose then, my purpose for this thread is, what's the deal? Do these exist? Is there validity to the sightings, or are the witnesses and researchers just buying into a big hoax?

[crashhelmet]

It's a combination of a lot of things. But most are either creatures that are figments of the imagination or creatures that are over-exaggerated. Sometimes it's a combination of the two.

Creatures like Nessie and El Chupacabra are clearly works of the imagination. People either see what they think they see or create the creature based on what they've found. Like UFOs, if they existed, we'd have a hell of a lot more evidence of them in this day and age.

Dragons are creatures that are over-exaggerated. Depending on the myth and the region, they could've been alligator/crocodiles, gila monsters, or any other lizard-type reptile. Add in the blemishing of stories and exploits and all of a sudden they're 20 feet tall, with wings, and breathe fire. Sasquatch and other Yeti-type creatures can be the same. They could've been apes or humans that hadn't shaved in a while. The Kraken was probably a giant squid/octopus. In Boulder City, NV (20 minutes outside Las Vegas) they have the legend of the Sand Yeti.

CH

[Racket_Man]

then there are "creatures" such as the Griffon (an animal with the head of a bird and the body of a winged lion) that the Greeks created/imagined after possibly observing an almost complete fossil (possibly a Triseritops) in a rock formation.

sometimes there is more than a gain of truth behind the legends. it just may not be what you expect.

[Ginger Tea]

the U in UFO stands for unidentified, the ammount of sightings of the blackbird and stealth bombers before their official unveiling, would have been classed as unknown flying object

I was told that horses were not indigionus to America, so when the first horseback spaniards arrived on shore the natives might have seen them as the centar of old, one being not someone like themselves on an animal.
the same could be said for flint lock pistols
"he pointed his hand, there was a boom and reggie fell"