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Xuangui
Variations: Twisting-Turtle, Round-Turtle, Xuan-Turtle Xuangui, or Twisting-Turtles, are found in the Strange River, east of the Niu-Trees Mountain. They are black turtles with a bird’s head and a...
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Araǵanaqlta’a
Variations: AraGanaqlta’a, AraGanaGalta’a; AraGanaqlate’e, AraGanaGalate’e; Owner of the Snakes, Father of the Snakes Araǵanaqlta’a is the father or owner of the snakes in Argentinian Toba folklore. It...
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Orabou
Variations: Orobon (erroneously) Mount Marzouan, once known as Mount Orabou, was described by Thevet in his Cosmographie. It is home to a small population of Arabs, and the waters of the sea there...
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Isiququmadevu
Variations: Usiququmadevu (flattering); Isikqukqumadevu, Usikqukqumadevu; Unomabunge; O’gaul’-iminga; O-nsiba-zimakqembe When Untombinde, the king’s daughter, set out for the mythical Ilulange River,...
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Númhyalikyu
Variations: Númhyělekum Númhyalikyu, “one chief one”, is an enormous, monstrous halibut of Pacific Northwest Kwakwaka’wakw folklore. Its back looks like a beach, complete with ripples left behind by...
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Vouivre
Variations: Vaivre, Givre, Guivre, Wivre Vouivres, the great fiery serpents of France, have been reported primarily from remote, mountainous regions, where they haunt springs, wells, caves, deep ponds,...
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Skeljúngur
Variations: Skieliungur; Svarfhvalur, Suarfhualur (Iron Whale); Skútuhvalur (Schooner Whale); Tigrishvalur (Tiger Whale); Hnúfubakur, Humpback Whale The Skeljúngur, or “shell whale” is one of the many...
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Khodumodumo
Variations: Kholomodumo, Modumo o Moholo, Khamapa, Kammapa, Khanyapa The swallowing monster of the Basuto people of South Africa and Lesotho is called Khodumodumo. The name of Khodumodumo is an archaic...
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Vodyanoi
Variations: Vodianoi, Vodyanik, Vodnik, Vodeni Moz, Deduska Vodyanoy (Water-Grandfather), Vodianoi-chert (Water Devil), Vodianikha (female), Topielec (Drowner, Polish), Vodyany-ye (pl.); Bolotnyi...
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Holiday Hiatus
A Book of Creatures will be going on a brief hiatus for the holiday season, and will be back in January 2016. There may or may not be some extra doodles and digressions between now and then, but no...
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Thanks for 2015!
A huge thank you to all ABC readers! ABC has had over 100,000 pageviews since it started, and it wouldn’t have been possible without you. Yes, you. Let’s see what can happen in 2016!
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Happy Newt Year
Happy Newt Year! May 2016 bring you peace, joy, and ample amphibians. ABC will be resuming operations soon…
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Monday Mailbox – Travel Advice
Part of my job in curating ABC involves responding to email. While this can mostly be done from the safety of my email application, every now and then I get correspondence that requires a broader...
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Stray Sod
Variations: Ar Iotan, Egaire, Fairy Grass, Faud Shaughran, Fair-Gortha (potentially), Herb of Distraction, Herbe à Adirer, Herbe d’Egarement, Herbe d’Engaire, Herbe de Fourvoiement, Herbe Maudite,...
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Yuanat
The Yuanat is a type of serpent reported by Thevet from the island of Hispaniola, or Cuba. It lives in trees, on land, and in the water, making it fish, fowl, and land beast. This greatly terrifying...
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Lyngbakur
Variations: Lyng-bakur, Lyngbakr, Ling-back, Heather-back; Jasconius, Iascanus; Hólma-fiskur, Hólmafiskur (Island Fish) The Lyngbakur is the largest of all the illhveli, the largest of the whales,...
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Yedua
Variations: Jeduah, Jidoa, Feduah, Fedoui, Fadua, Adne Hasadeh, Adnei Ha-sadeh, Adne Sadeh, Abne Hasadeh, Avnei Ha-sadeh, Bar Nash D’tur, Jidra (erroneously) The Talmudic equivalent of the Barometz,...
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Cherruve
Variations: Cheruvoe, Cheurvoe, Cheurvue, Cherufe The Cherruve is the Chilean spirit of comets and asteroids. Originally no more than the Araucanian meteorite, the cherruve’s role has since expanded to...
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Brethmechin
Variations: Arabian Breth-mechin, Whale Panther Gessner describes the Brethmechin as an amphibious beast found near the island of Java. He gives the name as being of Arabic etymology, although it is...
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