The field of cryptozoology has few truly iconic creatures more interesting than the incredibly exotic and possibly paranormal chupacabra. The creature has been a symbol both within the cryptozoology community and in folklore and mythology as quite possibly the strangest creature ever to be seen by so many people and yet never be proven to be real. But now as the new year is fast approaching and we say goodbye to the first decade of the millennium, are we about to face a world where Chupacabra sightings are quickly replaced by something else?
Big Cats are a phenomenon where large black cats are seen loping through areas where panthers could not feasibly exist. Leaving behind such telltale clues as massive paw prints, clumps of fur, and a slew of frightened witnesses, these creatures are now being widely blamed for a number of livestock deaths striking farmers and others in the United States and the world. The US and UK are quite possibly the hardest hit by this new and mysterious phenomenon, but could they soon be followed by more?
Pembrokshire’s recent string of sightings has caused the Welsh government, for example, to begin assembling a team to discover if these mysterious sightings coupled with the deaths of livestock are somehow related. Massive black cats have been reportedly stalking the streets as well as the wooded areas on the edges of communities and frightened several farmers. And the reports are not only coming out through the traditional paranormal rumor mills, but also a farming news website, suggesting these creatures are very real and not necessarily supernatural, although a massive problem in themselves.
So as more livestock deaths are attributed to these big black cats, it seems the chupacabra is taking a temporary hiatus. Perhaps it’s too early to tell, but news of the legendary creature has been slow to come about. And as news outlets continue to show more reports of these big black cats coming about, we can only ask ourselves, “Where have all the chupacabra reports gone?”
Earlier this year it was reported on several occasions that a chupacabra had been not only discovered, but captured and was undergoing study by veterinarians. Although a few of the creatures died before they could be positively identified, a large number of them would subsequently turn out to be an ordinary animal suffering from the advanced stages of mange making the unidentifiable by ordinary untrained witnesses and without proper testing.
And yet we still occasionally see that the chupacabra is appearing every now and again in its more traditional form – more reptilian than mammal, and more alien looking than anything the frightened witnesses claim they had ever seen before. Are we about to see the last of this legendary creature? Or will it, like Nessie, rise up once again?
It’s interesting how, after writing about these creatures for so long they seem to adopt their own identity that goes far beyond the sightings themselves. Perhaps this is part of why it is desirable for so many of us to never see them disappear entirely.