Chupacabra? Mysterious Corpse That Washed Up In Paraguay Spreads Fear Among Locals — But Experts Say It Could Be A Monkey
A video clip has emerged online purportedly showing the corpse of the mythical cryptic creature, the blood-sucking Chupacabra, that recently washed up in a stream in southern Paraguay.
Locals filmed the decomposed humanoid corpse with hauntingly human-like hands and fingers as it was being recovered from a shallow section of a river near the town of Carmen del Parana in the Itapua region of southern Paraguay.
The video showing the mysterious creature floating in the stream has gone viral online. It is causing a sensation and spreading fear among locals following rumors that a strange corpse recovered from a local stream had been confirmed to be the elusive Chupacabra, a mythical vampire-like creature believed to roam the wild in parts of Latin America, including Puerto Rico. Locals claim that it kills and drinks the blood of livestock.
Chupacabras appear to have a special taste for goat blood but strangely eschew the flesh. The name “Chupacabra,” means “goat sucker.”
They are described widely as being about the size of a small bear with rows of spines running from the back of the head to the tip of the tail.
After the discovery spread terror among locals, experts have tried to calm fears, saying that the “little hands and feet” of the creature suggest it could be a species of monkey. But experts admit that because the corpse is so badly decomposed and bloated it is difficult to identify the creature with certainty.
According to the Huffington Post, Javier Medina, chief of the Carmen del Parana fire department, sent his men to recover the corpse from the water for expert examination.
He later told the Paraguayan news site 780 AM that experts believe the creature could be a species of monkey because it has humanoid hands and feet.
“Given its traits, we believe it is a species of monkey because of the hands and legs. But in reality no one can say what exactly the creature is as it was found in an advanced state of decomposition,” he said.
“But in reality no one can say what exactly the creature is as it was found in an advanced state of decomposition.”
Pablo Lemir, a forensic expert, also drew attention to the fact that the creature appears to have a tail.
“It looks like an ape with humanoid features,” he said. “It has a tail and that makes me think it’s a monkey, but the fact it was partially decomposed modifies its physical traits.”
“The fact it was partially decomposed modifies its physical traits.”
Ron Pine, an expert with the Smithsonian, suggested the creature could be a black howler or a capuchin monkey, according to Doubtful News.
“In that part of extreme southern Paraguay, there are only two possible species, and with its having no head and no fur, I can’t tell which one it is. One is [the] Black Howler Monkey and the other is a kind of ‘robust’ capuchin monkey, known as Azara’s Capuchin.”
But terrified locals, who insist that it is a Chupacabra, appear to suspect that the authorities are trying to cover up the truth about the discovery of the elusive legendary creature. According to some locals, the characteristics listed by experts as evidence that the corpse is a monkey are shared by the mythical beast.
Scientists have always dismissed claims of existence of the Chupacabra, but rural folk in parts of Latin America and North America cling to belief that the creature exists. Many farmers in remote rural areas swear that they have seen the corpse of a Chupacabra or sighted a living one.
While in some cases creatures believed to be the Chupacabra were later shown to be raccoons, monkeys and coyotes, believers claim that there are scores of authenticated sightings and corpses of animals believed to be the Chupacabra that have stumped experts.
However, experts claim that some of the recent alleged “authentic sightings” were likely dog-like animals — such as the coyote — suffering from severe mange. For instance, a strange hairless creature killed on a ranch near San Antonia, Texas, in 2004, widely rumored to be a Chupacabra, was determined through DNA analysis to be a coyote afflicted with sarcoptic mange.
[Image via YouTube Screengrab]