Mysterious Creatures : A Guide to Cryptozoology

ings at Mootwingee, New South Wales. Aboriginal
legends tell of giant birds that were still alive
when volcanos were erupting in the Western
District of Victoria, most recently in approximately
3000–2000 b.c.
Possible explanations:
(1) Aboriginal memories of the recently
extinct Genyornis newtoni, a Late Pleistocene
species of dromornithid bird related to
ducks and geese that stood about 6 feet 7
inches tall and survived at least as recently as
26,000 years ago. Known from complete
skeletons near Lake Callabonna in South
Australia and isolated bones elsewhere.
(2) Aboriginal memories of Dromornis
stirtoni, one of the largest flightless birds
that ever lived, known from fossils in the
Northern Territory dating from the Late
Miocene to the Pleistocene, 15
million–30,000 years ago. Also a
dromornithid, it weighed more than 1,300
pounds, stood 9 feet tall, and had a huge
beak and jaw.
Sources: James Dawson, Australian
Aborigines: The Languages and Customs of
Several Tribes of Aborigines in the Western
District of Victoria, Australia (Melbourne,
Australia: G. Robertson, 1881), pp. 92–93;
Patricia Vickers-Rich and Gerard Van Tets,
eds., Kadimakara: Extinct Vertebrates of
Australia (Lilydale, Vic., Australia: Pioneer
Design Studio, 1985), pp. 17, 188–194.
Miitiipi
Cannib al G iant of the southwestern United
States.
Etymology: Kawaiisu (Uto-Aztecan), “bad
luck” or “disaster.”
Distribution: Mojave Desert, California.
Source: Kyle Mizokami, Bigfoot-Like Figures
in North American Folklore and Tradition,
http://www.rain.org/campinternet/bigfoot/
bigfoot-folklore.html.
Milne
Unknown Bear of South America.
Etymology: Ashéninca (Arawakan) word.
336 MIITIIPI
Physical description: Large bear. All-black
color. Powerful claws.
Behavior: Eats ants.
Distribution: Gran Pajonal Range, Ucayli Department,
Peru.
Significant sighting: Leonard Clark came
across a large, black bear tearing apart an ants’
nest in a decaying tree in northern Peru. It dived
into the river ahead of his raft. He was able to
shoot and kill it, but piranhas got to the body
before he could retrieve it.
Possible explanation: The Spectacled bear
(Tremarctos ornatus), South America’s only bear,
is smaller and has distinctive white markings on
its face.
Source: Leonard Clark, The Rivers Ran East
(New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1953).
Mindi
Giant Snake of Australia.
Etymology: From the Wemba (Australian)
mirndayi.
Variant names: Mallee snake, Mindai,
Mindyè, Myndie.
Physical description: Length, 18–30 feet.
Hairy scales. Large head. Tongue with three
points. Black mane.
Behavior: Hangs on tree branches. Lies in
wait at water holes. Feeds on emus. Gives off a
disgusting smell and leaves smallpox in its wake.
Able to kill with its glance. Oviparous. Not poisonous.
Habitat: Eucalyptus scrub.
Distribution: Lower Murray River, South
Australia; the Grampians, Victoria.
Possible explanations:
(1) Distorted memory of the Diamond
python (Morelia spilota spilota), found only
on the coast of New South Wales. It grows
to 15 feet long and has olive-black scales
with cream or yellow spots.
(2) A surviving Pleistocene madtsoiid snake,
the Giant Australian python (Wonambi
naracoortensis), known from fossil deposits
in South Australia. It ranged from 10 to 20
feet in length.
Sources: J. C. Byrne, Twelve Years’
Wanderings in the British Colonies (London: