Cryptids are animals with anecdotal evidence but no solid proof. Some, like the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot, are likely fictional, but others, such as the giant squid, platypus, and okapi, were once considered cryptids but are now known to exist. The giant squid was first encountered in 1861, and the okapi was discovered in 1902. The platypus, with its unique features and venomous spur, was initially thought to be a hoax in 1789, but was later accepted as real.
Cryptids are animals whose existence is implied by eyewitness accounts or anecdotal evidence, but for which solid evidence is lacking. The most commonly heard of cryptids are the Loch Ness Mostnter and the Bigfoot, but it seems highly probable that these animals are purely fictional and their skeletons will not be seen in museums. Other animals were once thought to be cryptids, but are now known to exist. These include the giant squid, platypus, okapi, grizzly polar bear hybrid, and Komodo dragon. Similar cases include animals thought to be extinct that were later found to exist, such as the coelacanth (a fish), or animals that mythologically exist and similar fossils were later found, such as the “Hobbit”, Homo floresiensis, which is thought to have become extinct. only 13,000 years ago.
The giant squid is probably the most famous cryptid found to exist. Giant squid have been mentioned in natural history books since ancient times, and both Aristotle and Pliny the Elder described the beast, which was said to have tentacles up to 9m (30ft) long. Giant squid tales had long been shared among sailors, but no conclusive evidence was produced until 1861, when the French gunboat Alecton encountered a giant squid and tried to capture it, coming away with nothing but a tentacle. But the tentacle was enough for the cryptic to arouse the interest of the scientific community, which gave it the scientific denomination of Architeuthis, which in Latin means “large squid”. Throughout the late 1800s, many giant squids washed up on the shores of Newfoundland and New Zealand, and it was only recently, in 2004, that a giant squid was filmed in its natural habitat, miles deep below the ocean’s surface.
Another animal once considered to be among the cryptids whose existence has been confirmed is the okapi, an animal that has what appears to be the legs of a zebra, a body covered in reddish-brown hair, and a dark tongue like a giraffe’s. Living in the dense rainforest of Ituri in northeastern Congo, Europeans had only heard of the okapi through native stories and came to call it the “African unicorn” due to its elusiveness. In 1902, Sir Harry Johnston, an Englishman, accidentally found a skull and a patch of striped skin, which scientists used to classify the animal (correctly) as a relative of the giraffe. The first live specimen was not brought to Europe until 1918.
Another of the famous historical cryptids is the platypus. This Australian mammal is a monotreme, a type of mammal that was once abundant (in Australia) but today includes only the platypus and echidna. The platypus has been described as having the “bill of a duck, tail of a beaver, and legs of an otter”. Instead of giving birth to live young like virtually every other mammal, it lays eggs. It also has one of the most heinous venoms of any animal in the world, injecting it into attackers with a spur on its hind leg. In 1789, English sailor Captain John Hunter sent a platypus skin to England as proof of the animal’s existence. Thinking the leather was a taxidermist hoax, scientists at first strongly doubted its veracity. But over the course of two years, encouraged by further eyewitness accounts, scientists began to accept the animal as a biological reality. They even cut the first skin to check for stitch marks.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
