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Chupacabra

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The chupacabra (or chupacabras) is a creature said to inhabit parts of the Americas. It is associated particularly with Puerto Rico (where it was first reported), Mexico, and the United States, especially in the latter's Latin American communities.

The name translates literally from Spanish as "goat-sucker". It comes from the creature's reported habit of attacking and drinking the blood of livestock. Physical descriptions of the creature vary. Sightings began in Puerto Rico in the early 1990s, and have since been reported as far north as the Carolinas, and as far south as Chile.

Though some argue that the chupacabras may be real creatures, mainstream scientists and experts generally contend that the chupacabra is a legendary creature, or a type of urban legend.

Contents

History

The legend of el chupacabra began in about 1992, when Puerto Rican newspapers El Vocero and El Nuevo Dia began reporting the killings of many different types of animals, such as birds, horses, and as its name implies, goats. However, it is predated by El Vampiro de Moca (The Vampire of Moca), a creature blamed for similar killings that occurred in the small town of Moca in the 1970s. While at first it was suspected that the killings were done randomly by some members of a Satanic cult, eventually these killings spread around the island, and many farms reported loss of animal life. The killings had one pattern in common: Each of the animals found dead had two punctured holes around its neck.

Soon after the animal deaths in Puerto Rico, other animal deaths were reported in other countries, such as the Dominican Republic, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Panama, Peru, Brazil, the United States and, most notably, Mexico.

Both in Puerto Rico and Mexico, "el chupacabra" gained urban legend status. Chupacabra stories began to be released several times in American and Hispanic newscasts across the United States, and chupacabra merchandise, such as T-shirts and baseball caps, were sold.

The chupacabra is generally treated as a product of mass hysteria, though the animal mutilations are sometimes real. Like many cases of such mutilations, however, it has been argued that they are often not as mysterious as they might first appear, and in fact, a series of tests showcased by the National Geographic Channel in a show about the chupacabra pointed to the obvious conclusion that every single "animal mutilation" can be explained by either people killing them or, more likely, other animals eating them. The loss of blood may be explained by insects drinking it.

Sightings

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Certain South American rain forest natives believe in the "mosquito-man", a mythical creature of their folklore that pre-dates modern chupacabra sightings. The mosquito-man sucks the blood from animals through his long nose, like a big mosquito. Some say mosquito-man and the chupacabra are one and the same.#redirect

Notable sightings in the United States include one reported by multiple eye-witnesses in Calaveras County, California, and at a recent birthday celebration of a Development Team member of a local charity in Houston, Texas.#redirect According to these reports, the creature was sighted for the first time in the early to mid 1990s, harming animals of different species. However, it is now thought that the people did this themselves.#redirect

In July of 2004, a rancher near San Antonio, Texas, killed a hairless, dog-like creature which was attacking his livestock. This creature is now known as the Elmendorf Creature. It was later determined to be a canine of some sort, most likely a coyote, with demodectic mange. In October of 2004, two animals which closely resemble the Elmendorf Creature were observed in the same area. The first was dead, and a local zoologist who was called to identify the animal noticed the second while she was travelling to the location where the first was found. Specimens were studied by biologists in Texas. The creatures are thought to have been canines of undetermined species with skin problems and facial deformities. ['' Chupacabra? or Armorless Armadillo?]

The chupacabra has often been spotted in Michigan. A recent sighting occurred in Grand Haven, when a 42-year-old man claimed he saw it suck the blood out of a cat.#redirect

A famous appearance in the city of Varginha, Brazil, (the "Varginha incident") is sometimes attributed to the chupacabra, although cryptozoologists more frequently associate the incident with extraterrestrials. In 1997, an explosion of chupacabra sightings in Brazil was reported in Brazilian newspapers. One report came from a police officer, who claimed to get a nauseous feeling when he saw a dog-like chupacabra in a tree.#redirect

Recently, there has been a surge of chupacabra sightings in the United States, specifically in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., and outside of the Philadelphia area. However, controversy exists whether these chupacabra sightings are legitimate. Some contend that this chupacabra is simply a beagle named Sophie Peanuts.[Washington Post][Philadelphia Inquirer]

In Coleman, Texas, farmer Reggie Lagow may have found what some would call the legendary "chupacabra," a legendary animal known for sucking the blood out of goats. Lagow set a trap after a number of his chickens and turkeys were killed. What he found in his trap was a mix between a hairless dog, a rat and a kangaroo. The mystery animal was sent to Texas Parks and Wildlife in hopes of determining what it is.[Texas Farmer Claims He Caught Legendary 'Chupacabra'], KNBC Los Angeles, August 25, 2005

In April of 2006, MosNews reported that the chupacabra was spotted in Russia for the first time. Reports from Central Russia beginning in March 2005 tell of a beast that kills animals and sucks out their blood. Thirty-two turkeys were killed and drained overnight. Reports later came from neighboring villages when 30 sheep were killed and had their blood drained. Finally eyewitnesses were able to describe the chupacabra. In May of 2006, experts were determined to track the animal down.[Chupacabra the Goatsucker Vampire Sightings Reported in Central Russia], MosNews, April 27, 2006

On July 9, 2006, a sighting on farmland outside of Thermal, California, occurred in the twilight hours. A woman simply known as Odette reported seeing a number of her farm dogs, among them a sprightly older dog named Tuff and a Chihuahua named Maisey, chase a gargoyle-like animal from her farm. When asked to elaborate on the description, her only comment was, "It was a full moon."#redirect

Supposed appearances

Descriptions of the physical appearance of each specimen can resemble descriptions of other reports, or be completely different from other chupacabra descriptions. Differences in descriptions are too wide to be attributed to differences in the perceptions of the observers, causing cryptozoologists to speculate that chupacabra reports may in fact be attributable to several species. Although they have different appearances, chupacabra descriptions have several common traits. They are typically described as being 3 ft. (1 m) or taller, and roughly humanoid in shape.

Usually, chupacabras are said to appear in three specific forms:

Some reports claim the chupacabra's red eyes have the ability to hypnotize and paralyze their prey—leaving the prey animal mentally stunned, allowing the chupacabra to suck the animal's blood at its leisure. The effect is similar to the bite of the vampire bat, or of certain snakes or spiders that stun their prey with venom. Unlike conventional predators, the chupacabras sucks all the animal's blood (and sometimes organs) through a single hole or two holes.

Many residents of South America have reported sightings of La Chupacabra, and although various, the descriptions share some significant likenesses. In many reports, accounts include the visible inflation of the stomach region, after La Chupacabra has been feeding. The appearance of the animal changes when an internal bladder-like organ fills with the blood of its prey. Furthermore, with almost all the reported sightings witnesses have reported large portruding fangs. These fangs are suspected to be hollow and be the vehicles for the blood on which it feeds.

Theories

In fiction

Naming convention

"Chupacabra" can be roughly translated as "goat-sucker." It is known as both "chupacabras" and "chupacabra" throughout the Americas, with the former probably being the original word, and the latter a better regularization of it. The name can be preceded by the masculine definite article ("el chupacabras"), or the plural masculine article ("los chupacabras").

The term was supposedly coined by Puerto Rican television personality Silverio Pérez, who intended the name to be a joke. This claim is doubtful, since the word had already been used in Michael Crichton's 1990 novel Jurassic Park, making an earlier origin more likely.

Hoaxed Chupacabras photo

The hoaxed chupacabra museum photo.
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The hoaxed chupacabra museum photo.

At the height of the chupacabra craze, there were many "Goatsucker Home Pages" on the Internet. The web site of radio host Art Bell posted an alleged photograph of a living chupacabra, depicting a creature later exposed as a statue from a museum exhibit.

See also

Similar creatures include:

External links

References

 

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