Whimsical cryptids from tall tales

I have been collecting tales of cryptids and paranormals from my local area. Some are the result of tales from the mining or logging days, when people sat around the evening fire and entertained themselves with stories.
Here are a few of my favorites.

Cactus cat of the Mojave Desert — large cat (~2 ft at shoulder) with porcupine or cactus-like spines. Uses its claws to rip open cactus and eat the flesh.

The Whintosser. Really Central America to Mexico. Reportedly seen in extreme southern California. Hunts in packs, has 10 legs that can be shifted around its body. Sharp claws that enable it to climb trees and cliffs. Very aggressive hunter, with the pack known to attack humans for fun. Found in Mexican folklore.

Rebobs — Flying monkeys in the Napa/Clearlake area. Not known to attack humans. One version has them as a military experiment gone awry — a bat/monkey hybrid.

Riverside lizard monster — lived in the hills around Riverside. First report in 1958. 6–7 feet tall, humanoid, skin is either lizard like scales or small feathers. This one is believed as a fictional creation by Charles Wetzel, who has reported discovering several cryptid creatures and monsters while hiking in the hills and woods.

The Tripodero is an odd creature, 1 or 2 feet high, pale white, gray, or cream colored body. An elephant like head with a long trunk. 2 legs that the creature can shorten or elongate at will, from withdrawing the legs completely within its body to long stork-like legs for fast running. Harmless to humans, it emits a shrill high-pitch whistle when startled or agitated, then will form mud into small balls and hurl them at you with its trunk as it flees. Lives in the central valley and Sierra foothills. This creature has no origin in native folklore. It mades its first appearance in the mining camps.

Dingmauls are a very large (horse sized) cat-wolf hybrid with a spiny spiked tail. Not known as a human predator. Lives in rocky high mountain areas. Native legend.

The Billiwhack lives in the Santa Paula/Simi Valley area. Half man/half goat. The legend has its origins as a World War II experiment by the OSS (which allegedly had a secret laboratory in the area). Enough of the 'secret military experiment' trope! C'mon hoaxers, get some new material.

The Roperite is a human sized bird like creature, similar in appearance to a large roadrunner. Except it has a long flexible appendage on its forehead that is similar to a rope. It will tie the appendage into a loop, run down, then lasso its prey. Generally regarded as a whimsical tall tale.

The Terrashot is a 6 legged herbivore with a body described as ‘casket-shaped’. It sways side to side as it walks, due to its gait of moving all the legs on one side of its body at once. Lines in the higher peaks and crags of the southern California desert ranges. Exists in native lore and journals of 19th century settlers.

An urban legend, not a cryptid, is Penelope. A tall naked woman, with long matted and tangled blonde hair. Basically a feral woman. Lives in the Sierra Nevada mountains, with sightings ranging from the Grass Valley area to Sonora, and east to Bridgeport. So she really gets around. One version of the story has her a survivor of a car wreck, where she crawled to safety, and took shelter in an old chemical drum from the mining days. The toxic residue turned her into a crazed flesh eating monster. That is one version. Tracking down the story to its earliest forms has no toxic waste (an overused trope), and she is not a vicious cannibal at all. Rather, she lives in the forest, foraging for food, and avoids people. There are credible sightings, and reportedly some video from wildlife cameras (unable to confirm). The first report has her as a young woman in 1960 and the most recent sighting is an old woman in 2014. That timeline fits.

Not all cryptids are predators that hunt humans. Many are quite benign and avoid people when possible. The Dark Watchers of the California coastal ridges are a good omen in native folklore and protect travelers.

Culverin; mouth like an anteater, spits pebbles at you.

Hoop Snake; bites its tail to make itself a hoop so it can roll away.

Hide-behind; follow you but you can't see it till its too late.

Splinter Cat; so mean it rams trees headfirst to knock out animals hiding up top.

can't remember the name but one critter has legs longer on one side so it can roam steep hills.

Maryland has stories of 'Goatman', the result of, guess what, military experiments.

The Cactus Cat is very cool







This here is a very rare photo. Supposebly someone hiking and doing photography in the Mojave was able to catch a REAL photo of the Cactus Cat with a Telescopic lens as the creature is very elusive.

THIS is the only known photograph of the Cactus Cat..

a reply to: TheMisguidedAngel

The second photo the only 'real' photo of this cactus cat.

To me that just looks like a cactus coloured cat sitting amongst cactii.
I dont see any cactus on the cat, part of the cat.

This is not a cryptid cat, its a very normal looking cat sitting comfortable among cactii

a reply to: Coelacanth55

can't remember the name but one critter has legs longer on one side so it can roam steep hills.

Those are Side Hill Cattle; they're all over the rolling hills of Idaho.

P.S. Love your thread, dave5426!

There are stories of mutant deer around the open air nuclear reactor site in Dawsonville, Georgia. The government experiments were real. That is the inspiration for Squidbillies.

They tested the affects of radiation on military exuipment and various material there. They also tested atomic jet engines at the same site.

It is no now a nature park with hiking and horse trails.

a reply to: BeyondKnowledge3

Many years ago, the California Dept of Fish and Wildlife relocated a number of eastern Whitetail Deer to Modoc County, in the NE corner of the state. The intent was an experiment to improve hunting, as the smaller blacktail and mule deer are the only native deer to the area.

It didn't work. A whitetail population never developed and are believed to have died out without establishing a breeding herd. However, to this day there are occasional unusual-looking deer harvested with characteristics of both whitetail and blacktail species.

and then there are the not-deer...

Another one I forgot about.
Not a cryptid, but a ghost.

Unlike most ghosts, this one is not in an old hotel or mansion. He is in the Caribou Wilderness of northeastern California, next to Lassen Volcanic National Park.
He is an old cowboy or rancher that wanders about the area looking for lost cattle. He and his horse (a ghost horse, too?) is dressed in late 19th century clothing and gear. Spotted many times by locals and some Forest Service workers, always in the distance through the trees or partially obscured in the dappled forest shadows. When anyone tries to approach he disappears. Reports go back many decades, to the 1940s or earlier, although I have not heard of any recent ones, last 20 years or so.

The weird part of the story is there really was a ranch hand in the 1890s that disappeared without a trace while looking for stray cattle in the area.