List of cryptids
Updated: 11/5/2025, 10:42:01 PM Wikipedia source
Cryptids are animals or other beings whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated by science. Cryptozoology, the study of cryptids, is a pseudoscience claiming that such beings may exist somewhere in the wild; it has been widely critiqued by scientists. The subculture is regularly criticized for reliance on anecdotal information and because in the course of investigating animals that most scientists believe are unlikely to have existed, cryptozoologists do not follow the scientific method. Many scientists have criticized the plausibility of cryptids due to lack of physical evidence, likely misidentifications and misinterpretation of stories from folklore. While biologists regularly identify new species following established scientific methodology, cryptozoologists focus on entities mentioned in the folklore record and rumor.
Tables
| Name | Other names | Description | Purported location | Depiction |
| Anguila peluda | Hairy Eel | Pond animal | Pamital ravine, Canary Islands | |
| Bunyip | Bahnyip | Amphibious creature | Australia | |
| Cadborosaurus | Caddy | Sea animal | Pacific Coast of North America | |
| Champ | Champy | Lake monster | Lake Champlain, North America | |
| Cryptid Whales | Giglioli's Whale, Rhinoceros dolphin, High-finned sperm whale, Alula whale, Unidentified beaked whales | Sea animal | Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean | |
| Dobhar-chú | Water Hound, King Otter | Extra-large otter-like carnivorous aquatic mammal | Ireland | |
| Gloucester sea serpent | Large serpent | Gloucester, Cape Ann | | |
| Great auk (surviving populations) | Pinguinus impennis, garefowl | Aquatic flightless bird | Northern Atlantic | |
| Iemisch | Iemisch Listai | Mix of a jaguar and otter | Patagonia | |
| Igopogo | Kempenfelt Kelly | Lake monster | Lake Simcoe, Ontario (Canada) | |
| Labynkyr Devil | Labynkyrsky Chert[citation needed] | Lake monster | Oymyakonsky Ulus, Sakha Republic, Russia | |
| Loch Ness Monster | Nessie | Lake monster | Loch Ness, Scotland | |
| Loveland Frog | Loveland frogman, Loveland lizard | Humanoid frog | Loveland, Ohio | |
| Manipogo | Winnipogo | Lake monster | Lake Manitoba, Canada | |
| Megalodon (surviving populations) | Otodus megalodon | Giant prehistoric shark | Oceans | |
| Mokele-mbembe | Dinosaur (lake, river and/or swamp monster) | Republic of the Congo | | |
| Morgawr | Sea serpent | Falmouth Bay | ||
| Ogopogo | N'ha•a•itk, Naitaka | Lake monster | Lake Okanagan, Canada | |
| Sea serpents | Sea animals, dinosaurs | All bodies of water | | |
| Selma | Seljordsormen | Lake monster | Lake Seljord, Telemark, Norway | |
| Steller's sea ape | Sea animal | Pacific Ocean | |
| Name | Other names | Description | Purported location | Depiction |
| British big cats | Alien big cats (ABCs), phantom cats, mystery cats, English lions,Beast of Bodmin, Beast of Exmoor | Carnivorous mammal | Great Britain | |
| Chupacabra | Chupacabras (Spanish for goat-sucker) | Puerto Rico (originally),South and Central America,Southern North America | | |
| Dover Demon | Dover, Massachusetts | | ||
| Fresno nightcrawler | Long white legs with no torso | Fresno, California | ||
| Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp | Lizard Man of Lee County | Bipedal | South Carolina, United States | |
| Mapinguari | Mapinguary | Giant Ground Sloth or primate | Amazons | |
| Michigan Dogman | Humanoid dog | Wexford County, Michigan | ||
| Moa (surviving original populations) | Dinornis robustus (South Island giant moa), Dinornis novaezelandiae (North Island giant moa), Anomalopteryx didiformis (Bush moa, little bush moa, or lesser moa) | Medium to large flightless birds | New Zealand | |
| Mongolian death worm | Allghoi (or orghoi) khorkhoi | Worm-like animal | Gobi Desert (Asia) | |
| Nandi bear | Chemosit, Kerit, Koddoelo, Ngoelo, Ngoloko, Duba | Large carnivore | Eastern Africa | |
| Not-deer | Not deer | White-tailed deer with unnatural characteristics | Appalachia | |
| Queensland Tiger | Yarri | Large feline | Queensland | |
| Thylacine (surviving original populations) | Tasmanian tiger. Tasmanian wolf, Thylacinus cynocephalus | Carnivorous marsupial | Australia Papua New Guinea | |
| Name | Other names | Description | Purported location | Depiction |
| Almas | Abnauayu, almasty, albasty, bekk-bok,biabin-guli, golub-yavan, gul-biavan, auli-avan,kaptar, kra-dhun, ksy-giik, ksy-gyik, ochokochi,mirygdy, mulen, voita, wind-man, Zana | Non-human ape or hominid | Asia/Caucasus | |
| Amomongo | Orang Mawas, Impakta | Ape or hominid | Negros Occidental, Philippines | |
| Bigfoot | Sasquatch | Large and hairy ape-like creature | United States and Canada | |
| Bukit Timah Monkey Man | BTM, BTMM | Forest-dwelling hominid or other primate | Singapore | |
| Chatawa Monster | Large ape-like creature | Mississippi, United States | ||
| Chuchunya | Large hominid | Russia | ||
| Fouke Monster | Jonesville Monster, Southern Sasquatch, Boggy Creek Monster | Hominid or other primate | Arkansas, United States | |
| Honey Island Swamp monster | Letiche, Tainted Keitre | Hominid or other primate | Louisiana, United States | |
| Orang Pendek | Small hominid | Sumatra | | |
| Nittaewo | Nittevo | Small hominids | Sri Lanka | |
| Skunk ape | Stink Ape, Myakka Ape, Myakka Skunk Ape | Primate | Florida, United States | |
| Yeren | Yiren, Yeh Ren, Chinese Wildman | Primate (possible hominin) | China | |
| Yeti | Abominable Snowman | Large and hairy human-like entity, various other descriptions | Himalayas (Asia) | |
| Yowie | Large and hairy human-like entity, various other descriptions | Australia | |
| Name | Other names | Description | Purported location | Depiction |
| Jersey Devil | Leeds Devil | Winged bipedal horse | United States, mainly the South Jersey Pine Barrens, as well as other parts of New Jersey and southeastern Pennsylvania | |
| Mothman | Winged Man, Bird Man, UFO-Bird, Mason Bird Monster | Winged bipedal | Mason County, West Virginia, United States | |
References
- Otodus is the currently accepted genus name for megalodon. Older sources refer to the genus as Carcharodon, Carcharocles
- There is an ongoing de-extinction project to revive the bush moa through genome editing, this entry refers to the possib
- There is an ongoing de-extinction project to revive the species through genome editing, this entry refers to the unconfi
- Mullis (2021: 185): "Eschewing the rigors of science, cryptozoologists publish for a popular audience rather than for ex
- Loxton & Prothero (2013: 332): "Whatever the romantic appeal of monster mysteries, cryptozoology as it exists today is u
- Church (2009: 251–252): "Cryptozoology has acquired a bad reputation as a pseudoscience [...] Until detailed, methodical
- Roesch & Moore (2002: 71–78): "Pointing to this rampant speculation and ignorance of established scientific theories in
- Scientific Americanhttps://michaelshermer.com/sciam-columns/show-me-the-body/
- Borderlandshttps://books.google.com/books?id=g9UtPwAACAAJ
- Simpson, George Gaylord (1984). "Mammals and Cryptozoology". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. Vol. 128
- ScienceAlerthttps://www.sciencealert.com/bigfoot-has-a-very-simple-explanation-scientist-says
- Loxton & Prothero (2013: 31-32)
- ABChttps://web.archive.org/web/20241211193359/https://www.abc.es/espana/
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- "Ireland's hound of deep - Dobhar Chu"https://www.irishcentral.com/irelands-hound-of-the-deep-dobhar-chu
- "Gloucester Sea-Serpent Mystery: Solved after Two Centuries | Skeptical Inquirer"https://skepticalinquirer.org/2019/09/gloucester-sea-serpent-mystery-solved-after-two-centuries/
- Fuller, Errol (1999). The Great Auk. Southborough, Kent, UK: Privately Published. ISBN 0-9533553-0-6 pp. 404-413
- Monsters : evil beings, mythical beasts, and all manner of imaginary terrorshttps://search.worldcat.org/oclc/802059457
- epe.lac-bac.gc.cahttps://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/205/301/ic/cdc/ogopogo/lake_creature/igopogo.html
- livescience.comhttps://web.archive.org/web/20210929190942/https://www.livescience.com/26836-lake-labynkyr-devil-vorota-monster.html
- siberiantimes.comhttps://web.archive.org/web/20210128145319/https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/features/divers-preparing-for-icy-waters-of-russias-loch-ness/
- siberiantimes.comhttps://web.archive.org/web/20211108191737/https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/features/meet-the-creature-found-by-divers-in-russias-loch-ness-famed-for-legends-of-monsters/
- BBC Onlinehttps://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20151029-the-monster-you-should-never-find
- Skeptoidhttps://skeptoid.com/episodes/4473
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporationhttps://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/lake-monster-manipogo-winnipogo-1.4681105
- M/C Journalhttps://journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/view/2793
- Houston Presshttps://www.houstonpress.com/arts/prominent-cryptozoologists-denounce-megalodon-the-monster-shark-lives-6363740?showFullText=true
- How Stuff Workshttps://animals.howstuffworks.com/extinct-animals/megalodon.htm
- Loxton & Prothero 2013, pp. 187–188.
- James, R. M. (2022). MORGAWR AND THE FOLKLORESQUE: (A study of a whopping fish tale). Shima, 16(2), 160–172. https://doi
- Loxton & Prothero 2013, pp. 228–326.
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/sep/01/4
- Skeptical Briefshttps://www.csicop.org/sb/show/stellers_sea_ape_identifying_an_eighteenth-century_cryptid
- Forbeshttps://www.forbes.com/sites/duncanmadden/2018/11/16/fantastic-cryptids-and-where-to-find-them/#6b1949ed1d99
- Pseudoscience: A Critical Encyclopedia: A Critical Encyclopediahttps://books.google.com/books?id=c6PACQAAQBAJ
- The Boston Globehttp://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/10/29/decades_later_the_dover_demon_still_haunts
- The Fresno Beehttps://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article219755195.html
- Smithsonian Magazinehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/monster-festival-pilgrimage-small-town-america-180969568/
- Choice Reviews Onlinehttps://doi.org/10.5860%2Fchoice.43-4679
- Skeptoidhttps://skeptoid.com/episodes/4477
- "Fringe Zoology: The (In)Convenience of Disappearing Evidence | Skeptical Inquirer"https://skepticalinquirer.org/2024/12/fringe-zoology-the-inconvenience-of-disappearing-evidence/
- livescience.comhttps://www.livescience.com/46450-mongolian-death-worm.html
- Proceedings of the American Philosophical Societyhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/986487
- "Not Deer, or a Deer? | Skeptical Inquirer"https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/not-deer-or-a-deer/
- Bunyips & bigfoots : in search of Australia's mystery animalshttps://search.worldcat.org/oclc/36719441
- Nickell, J., & RANDI, J. (2004). Cryptids “Down Under.” In The Mystery Chronicles: More Real-Life X-Files (pp. 289–295).
- Crane, K. (2012). Myths of wilderness in contemporary narratives : Environmental postcolonialism in australia and canada
- ABS-CBN Newshttps://www.abs-cbn.com/classified-odd/06/16/08/amomongo-frightens-villagers-negros
- Loxton & Prothero 2013, pp. 29–70.
- "On the hunt for the elusive Bukit Timah Monkey Man"https://web.archive.org/web/20181030131239/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/lifestyle/on-the-hunt-for-the-elusive-bukit-timah-monkey-man-9816486
- Enterprise-Journalhttps://www.newspapers.com/article/enterprise-journal-1985-article-on-cha/14157972/?locale=en-US
- WJTVhttps://www.wjtv.com/living-local/focused-on-mississippi/focused-on-mississippi-chatawa-monster/
- The Christian Science Monitorhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2018/0928/Bigfoot-and-beyond-Why-tales-of-wild-men-endure
- Skeptoidhttps://skeptoid.com/episodes/4404
- Texarkana Gazettehttps://web.archive.org/web/20030803215531/http://texarkanagazette.com/articles/2001/06/24/export15709.txt
- "The Honey Island Swamp Monster: The Development and Maintenance of Folk and Commodified Belief Tradition"https://research.library.mun.ca/10863/1/Leary_Frances.pdf
- Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience: Why We Can't Trust Our Brainshttps://books.google.com/books?id=Miy2CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA154
- Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience: Why We Can't Trust Our Brainshttps://books.google.com/books?id=Miy2CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA170
- "It's the monstrous new trend sweeping travel – what is cryptid-tourism?"https://web.archive.org/web/20181004225011/https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews//lifestyle/its-the-monstrous-new-trend-sweeping-travel-what-is-cryptid-tourism-873583.html
- Loxton & Prothero 2013, p. 73.
- Vicehttps://www.vice.com/en/article/mothman-sightings-in-chicago/