This long report was assembled by a chap who calls himself the cryptozoologist. It includes material from others attributed in the text. I stripped out a huge amount of visual material in order to have a compact text reference that one can work with. The actual report is broken up into three separate articles on the my space blog. The imagery makes it a bit of a chore to wade through. I would advise scan reading this text first in order to locate the area most of interest and then go to the source blog for the visuals.
This report is a natural follow up on my posts that I have already made on the subject. It captures a great deal more data and pretty well makes a case for the global distribution of a swamp dwelling large amphibian reptiles.
I spelled out the likely constraints in past posts in which I observed that these animals were aquatic, nocturnal and likely capable of breathing underwater when resting. Occasional forays in daylight have given us the observational intersect that has given us the odd report. These are swamp dwellers sharing their niche with crocodiles and alligators.
This report shows just how much more extensive the reportage actually is as compared to my past digging. One report is at best a warning to open your eyes. With several one can begin fleshing out the observed animal. Thus the story has become much better substantiated and larger than previously suspected.
Also an eyewitness report of a theropod is far less easy to ridicule than a report about bigfoot duly dismissed as a man in a monkey suit. In fact, that is perhaps why the few sightings are been taken straight to the press. The only rebuff to a legitimate report is to yell hoax and in some cases that will be true. However cases will arise in which we have several witnesses and that ends that objection.
In my prior post we decided that the swamp niche was the proper niche. We recognized that the aquatic branch of the reptile group would have continued to prosper in that niche along with the crocodiles. This was not true at all for warm blooded reptiles operating on the open plains. But the swamps have never changed at all.
It is noteworthy that the one story here about the kasai rex is almost certainly a hoax. It describes behavior taking place in daylight and against prey other than crocs. If that were in fact common, then this creature would infest every river in
Similar tales of the Burrunjor remind me of young adults hunting outside their home territory.
This article captures everything that I have dug up date and put some to rest.
Once one understands its niche and its adaptations, it is no longer plausible to argue extinction at all. They can live in our tropical swamps and oceans without ever crossing our paths. They can hunt and feed nocturnally to avoid daytime heat and they can rest in any deep swamp pool for days. To find them we have to invade their unique ecological niche.
The sightings generate the following conforming evidence:
1 The animals observed are all part of the known dawn age reptile assemblage that was clearly aquatic, cold blooded and nocturnal. The nocturnal part goes with been coldblooded and large. They would be better described as dependent on water for temperature stability just as fish are.
2 They are able to absorb sufficient oxygen to stay underwater for long periods. This means that they can feed and then hide in deep water. Alternatively they burrow into mud and create a lair as do crocodiles. In any event they have ample ability to operate underwater and certainly the plesiosaur must remain underwater.
3 For whatever reason, they remain rare in terms of human observation and possible discovery, suggesting a small population remnant. This is certainly true in the case of
4 No one has ever been properly equipped to penetrate their niche and this has led to few sightings. On top of that specimen collection is almost impossible. There are still hundreds of thousands of whales in existence today and we can count them. Now imagine that they never had to surface at all. Our evidence would be the handful that washes on shore. The giant squid has only been accepted in my lifetime and no one has really caught one (with what?), yet their population should be in the tens of thousands. The point I am making is that there could be thousands of plesiosaurs and we would get only an occasional clue.
5 The case of the plesiosaur reminds us that these are aquatic animals operating at water temperatures that can range to near freezing up to our body temperature. That means a plesiosaur can operate from the North Sea to the swamps of the
6 The swamps provide ample fodder for any vegetarian reptiles and ample prey crocodiles for carnivores.
For the record, what has certainly gone extinct are ground based dinosaurs adapted for the open country with a warm blooded metabolism. They were replaced by improved adaptations that included mammals, marsupials and birds now recognized as their direct descendents.
KASAI REX, BURRUNJOR, AND MINI-T-REX: EVIDENCE OF SURVIVING CARNIVOROUS DINOSAURS? PART 1
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KASAI REX, BURRUNJOR, AND MINI-T-REX: EVIDENCE OF SURVIVING CARNIVOROUS DINOSAURS? PART 1
INTRODUCTION: DO LIVING DINOSAURS STILL EXIST?
According to mainstream science, the dinosaurs died out about 65 million years ago. According to cryptozoology and certain other branches of periphery science, a few dinosaurs might have survived much longer, or could even be around today. The most famous dinosaur of cryptozoology is the mokele-mbembe of Africa, but there are many lesser-known examples. Every continent has some legendary creature that has been labeled a living dinosaur by someone, at some point. For example, some people interpret all dragon sightings and legends as being evidence of surviving dinosaurs.
There is not just one species of dinosaur that is supposed to exist. Nearly every imaginable type of dinosaur has found its way into the records of cryptozoology. At one time, the most popular explanation for lake monsters and sea serpents was that these creatures were plesiosaurs (now that theory is being questioned). Reports of huge flying creatures with leathery wings have often been interpreted as pterosaurs and pterodactyls, though today many of these sightings are dismissed as most likely being giant bats. In addition, there are many things that sound like giant lizards that just might, if they turned out to be real, be living dinosaurs.
In Australia, Aborigines living in the northernmost fringes of the Northern Territories have legends of a supposedly real animal called the burrunjor. It is described as a giant bipedal lizard that looks much like a carnivorous dinosaur. The Chinese have reported a creature like a dinosaur or a new species of rhinoceros, from Sichuan Province. Papua New Guinea, a place with many recent discoveries of new animals, is supposedly home to a gray 10-foot-tall predatory dinosaur. As recently as 2004, this animal was so strongly believed in that police were sent into the forest to kill it. The most remote areas of the South American rainforest are also sources of persistent dinosaur reports, made by many white explorers since the earliest time these areas were penetrated.
Living dinosaurs are also sighted in places that seem quite odd, such as North America. In dry, remote regions of the American West, such as Utah, there are persistent reports of animals described as miniature examples of Tyrannosaurus rex that stand about three feet tall. This animal sometimes crosses roads in front of cars, and is generally said to run away from people. Witnesses are quite flabbergasted by the experience and often state that they doubt their own sanity. These reports come from enough people who apparently have no connection to each other and no knowledge of the miniature T-rex myth that some researchers think there must be a real animal behind the legends. Whether such a real animal would prove to be a very odd lizard or an actual dinosaur is impossible to prove unless someone brought in a body.
A larger version of Tyrannosaurus rex has been reported from Kasai Valley in Africa. This creature is called the Kasai Rex, and was thought to be a very large lizard by some cryptozoologists.
PART 1: CARNIVOROUS DINOSAUR CRYPTIDS
THE SUSPECTS
TYRANNOSAURUS REX
Tyrannosaurus rex ("king of the tyrannical lizards"), also known colloquially as "The King of the Dinosaurs," was a giant carnivorous theropod dinosaur from the distant past. The first discovered specimens played an important role in the "Bone Wars".
Tyrannosaurus Rex is widely regarded as the most famous dinosaur. This is partly because it was the first very large carnivorous dinosaur to be discovered, and it was long believed to have been the largest that ever lived. It was also one of the fiercest meat-eaters that ever lived. At more than 40 feet tall, it was huge and had one of the most powerful heads of any dinosaur. It also had some of the biggest teeth of any dinosaur—teeth that were not only sharp and serrated, but also thick and strong, capable of crushing bones. T-rex had about 50 teeth, as large as 8 inches. It could grow a new tooth in 2 years or less anytime it lost one.
[Cryptozoologist's Note: Only over the last decade have people become increasingly aware of a group of gigantic meat-eating dinosaurs called carcharodontosaurids. These animals include Giganotosaurus, which was larger than the largest known specimen of Tyrannosaurus rex. Four years of work in a dinosaur quarry in Argentina have led to the discovery of a new species of carcharodontosaurid that has been named Mapusaurus roseae. The Mapusaurus individuals found ranged in size from slender juveniles 5.5 meters (18 feet) long to a robust adult that exceeded 12.5 meters (40 feet) in length. The fossils include the longest known fibula (shin) bone for any meat-eating dinosaur, slightly longer though less robust than that of its close cousin, Giganotosaurus. The skull of Mapusaurus is lower and lighter than that of its older sister genus, Giganotosaurus, with similar sharp, blade-shaped teeth.]
T-rex may have struggled to chase down speeding vehicles, as portrayed in the movie Jurassic Park, but new research suggests that it was certainly no slouch. The University of Manchester study used a powerful supercomputer to calculate the running speeds of five meat-eating dinosaurs that varied in size from a 3kg Compsognathus to a six-ton Tyrannosaurus. The study—believed to be the most accurate ever produced—puts the T-rex at speeds of up to 18 mph, fractionally quicker than a sportsman such as a professional soccer player. The bipedal Compsognathus, by comparison, could reach speeds of almost 40 mph—that's 5 mph faster than the computer's estimate for the fastest living animal on two legs, the ostrich. Previous research relied from extant bipedal models to provide clues as to how fast dinosaurs could run. While such calculations can accurately predict the top speed of a six-ton chicken, dinosaurs are not built like chickens and nor do they run like them.
It had large feet to help it maneuver through the swampy environment in which it lived. Although it had very short arms, they were very strong. But it didn't need its arms to be an effective and efficient killer. It had enormous strength in its jaws; it could bite right through the frill of a Triceratops or into the back of a hadrosaur. In fact, the only thing that a T-rex had to fear was another T-rex. Most of the scars and wounds found on fossil bones of these great creatures seem to come from others of its kind.
Species
Three dinosaurs have at various times been labeled as tyrannosaurs. Tyrannosaurus rex, the species type, was the first. Tyrannosaurus bataar is now recognized as being in a separate genus, Tarbosaurus, as has Tyrannosaurus torosus which is now classified as Daspletosaurus. Nonetheless, Daspletosaurus, Tarbosaurus and Tyrannosaurus are very closely related, and belong to the tribe Tyrannosaurini.
ALLOSAURUS
Allosaurus (meaning "Different Lizard") was so named because its vertebrae were different from those of all other dinosaurs. It has also been called Antrodemus.
One of the largest Jurassic carnosaurs of
Like all theropods, Allosaurus walked on two legs with its heavy tail stretched out behind for balance. Its strong legs were built for speed; they had powerful muscles and heavy bones. Although its arms were short, each finger on its three-fingered hands was armed with a sharp claw that could be up to 6 inches (15 cm) long. The three long toes on its feet were equipped with eagle-like talons.
This meat eater had a strong neck. Its huge 3-foot (90 cm) long head had heavy bony knobs, or ridges, above its eyes; its enormously powerful jaws were filled with saber-like teeth 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 cm) long. The jaws were hinged like those of a snake, so Allosaurus would have been able to swallow huge hunks of meat whole. Scientists have found Apatosaurus vertebrae with Allosaurus tooth marks on them, evidence of a Jurassic feast!
Allosaurus remains have been found in North America; fossils found in Africa and Asia may also be those of Allosaurus. It is one of the best-known carnosaurs. Sixty individuals—From juveniles to adults—were found at one site in
THE "RAPTORS"
The term "raptors" (made popular by movies such as Jurassic Park) actually refers to a group of fascinating creatures called dromaeosaurs. "Raptor" is not a technical term favored by scientists to describe these animals; there is already a group of birds called the raptors (it includes the eagles and other hunters). The name of the clade, Dromaeosauridae, is favored over "raptors." The dromaeosaurs were small (wolf-sized) to large (up to 30 feet long!) theropods which had specialized features such as a well-developed slashing talon on their second pedal phalanx (toe), a stiffened tail which possibly functioned as a dynamic stabilizer, and large grasping manus (hands). They were well-equipped with claws, muscular toothy jaws, and agile bodies. These dromaeosaurs have been assumed to have been active, fierce predators since their discovery, and have been influential in the revolution in modern paleontologists' views of dinosaur metabolism and bird origins.
Deinonychus antirrhopus
Arguably the most important dinosaur fossil ever discovered, Dr. J.H. Ostrom's (of Yale University) 1969 and 1976 descriptions of Deinonychus ("terrible claw") were a major contributor to the re-evaluation of dinosaur activity levels. Ostrom saw the strikingly specialized adaptations present in Deinonychus and proposed that this was no "sluggish lizard," but an active, agile predator that used all four limbs and its jaws to subdue prey. Deinonychus also has been found as fossils in small groups which seem to have been killed while attacking Tenontosaurus tilletti, a larger ornithischian dinosaur. This is considered possible evidence of pack-oriented predatory behavior; leading to speculation that these dinosaurs were fairly intelligent, social animals as well. Deinonychus antirrhopus was about 10 feet (3 m) long and weighed maybe 180 pounds (80 kg); about the size of a jaguar or mountain lion. It has been found in deposits in North America.
Velociraptor mongoliensis
Velociraptor ("swift seizer") is known from a few well-preserved remains from formations in Mongolia, one of which was fossilized in the act of killing Protoceratops andrewsi, a small ceratopsian dinosaur. It appears that a freak sandstorm in the Mongolian desert buried the two dinosaurs; the Velociraptor had killed the Protoceratops with its slashing talons, but its forelimb was trapped in the latter's beaked jaws, so it could not escape and was suffocated. One of the most amazing and dramatic fossil finds ever discovered. Contrary to Jurassic Park, Velociraptor was not a large animal; it was about 6 feet (1.8 m) long and weighed maybe 100 pounds (45 kg); about the size of a large dog or wolf.
Utahraptor kirklandi
However, during the filming of the movie Jurassic Park, fragments of a large dromaeosaur skeleton were found in Utah. A study proclaimed that the giant raptor (Utahraptor kirklandi) from the movie had been found; this animal seemed to be the perfect size for such a creature. Giant dromaeosaurs have been recently found in Argentina, Japan, and elsewhere in Asia, proof that there were probably several types of dromaeosaurs about the size of the Jurassic Park villains, and even larger!
The Terrible Claw
The "killing claw" of dromaeosaurs is an incredible structure useful for just that: killing. It was normally held off of the ground during locomotion, but when the muscles of the toe were contracted, the claw swept down quickly. The claw base-to-tip angle maximized the transmission of forces from the leg to the tip of the claw, providing for a powerful slash that may have been able to disembowel prey swiftly. The stiffened tail would have been good to stabilize the body while the grasping arms and jaws held onto the prey for balance.
Although there is no conclusive evidence for this, it has been suggested that dromaeosaurs could have performed leaps onto large prey and used all four limbs to rip wounds in them. Dromaeosaurs were probably not the fastest of dinosaurs, since dromaeosaurs have fairly large femora (thigh bones); ornithomimids probably were fastest, but persuasive evidence in any case is lacking. It has been argued that dromaeosaurs were similar to lions in predatory behavior, preferring ambushes, quick chases using their high maneuverability, and pack tactics. This is speculation of course; paleontologists can't really know what dromaeosaurs were like.
KASAI REX
The great Tyrannosaurus, the most feared member of the dinosaur kingdom...to think that this creature of such renown, such awe, and such sheer terror could possibly still be alive today simply baffles the human mind. Though seemingly ludicrous, could a living Tyrannosaurus, or quite possibly, a close relative of the Tyrannosaur, really be alive today? Is it scientifically possible?
In the heart of Africa, to the amazement of many, there have been reported sightings of Tyrannosaur-like creatures—one, in particular, by a plantation owner, John Johnson (sometimes spelled Johanson), and his servant. As the report goes, Mr. Johnson and his African servant were traveling through a swampy marsh in the Kasai valley of the Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) in 1932. Abruptly, they came across a rhinoceros, and being cautious not to disturb it, attempted to pass it without detection. Suddenly, they were surprised by a large, 42-foot (13 meter) long "lizard-like" creature rushing out of the undergrowth and attacking the rhinoceros. As the creature began to feed on the dead rhino, the African servant fled in panic, while the Swede literally fainted, falling to the ground. When he awoke, he found the creature still feeding and had the opportunity to carefully observe it:
"It was a large beast, at least 12-13 meters long. It was reddish in coloration, with brackish-colored stripes going down. The legs were thick; it reminded me of a lion, built for speed. It had a long snout and numerous teeth. It gorged itself on the rhinoceros, which twitched with life still in it. (Note: the rhino was probably dead, but the Swede may not have known about involuntary muscle spasms.) After the creature had eaten its fill, it returned to the jungle slowly, its belly full of flesh."
A Similar Report
There is a similar story in an edition of the Rhodesia Herald, also from 1932:
On February 16 last I went on a shooting trip, accompanied by my gunbearer. I had only a Winchester for small game, not expecting anything big. At 2 p.m. I had reached the Kasai valley. No game was in sight. As we were going down to the water, the boy suddenly called out "elephants". It appeared that two giant bulls were almost hidden by the jungle. About 50 yards away from them I saw something incredible—a monster, about 16 yards in length, with a lizard's head and tail. I closed my eyes and reopened them. There could be no doubt about it, the animal was still there. My boy cowered in the grass whimpering. I was shaken by the hunting-fever. My teeth rattled with fear. Three times I snapped; only one attempt came out well. Suddenly the monster vanished, with a remarkably rapid movement. It took me some time to recover. Alongside me the boy prayed and cried. I lifted him up, pushed him along and made him follow me home.
On the way we had to transverse a big swamp. Progress was slow, for my limbs were still half-paralyzed with fear. There in the swamp, the huge lizard appeared once more, tearing lumps from a dead rhino. It was covered in ooze. I was only about 25 yards away. It was simply terrifying. The boy had taken French leave, carrying the rifle with him. At first I was careful not to stir, then I thought of my camera. I could hear the crunching of rhino bones in the lizard's mouth. Just as I clicked, it jumped into deep water. The experience was too much for my nervous system. Completely exhausted, I sank down behind the bush that had given me shelter. Blackness reigned before my eyes. The animal's phenomenally rapid motion was the most awe-inspiring thing I have ever seen. I must have looked like one demented, when at last I regained camp. Metcalfe, who is the boss there, said I approached him, waving the camera about in a silly way and emitting unintelligible sounds. I dare say I did. For eight days I lay in a fever, unconscious nearly all the time.
In reality, very few people have reported seeing what has been labeled the "Kasai Rex", but the reports of those who have are all strikingly similar; the size differs slightly, but the color of the creature remains the same,,,a dark red. It has been suggested that it may not be a Tyrannosaurus, but rather a Tarbosaurus, a close relative to the Tyrannosaurus. It fits the description of the Kasai Rex very well. If these animals do exist, it is believed that they live very deep within the Congo jungles, only venturing out when food is scarce. In brief, the Tarbosaurus was a slightly larger specimen than the Tyrannosaur. Roughly the size of a school bus, it possessed powerful jaws and long, serrated teeth. If the report were of a true specimen, it would bring vital, unparalleled information to the scientific community regarding the dinosaur kingdom itself.
To begin with, it would reveal that dinosaurs were creatures of remarkable color. Rather than being plain, rather bland, dusty-colored animals—such as the elephant or hippopotamus—several species perhaps possessed a magnificently colorful design. Again, every description of a Kasai Rex has been in agreement with one another...a dark shade of red with black stripes running vertically. Coincidence? From a logical standpoint, no.
Secondly, it would bring conclusive evidence that Tarbosaurs and their various close relatives were hunters. Though thought to be the case by the majority of scientists, some skeletal evidence has suggested otherwise. Using the T-Rex as an example, one strength-indicator test conducted years ago on a femur revealed a strength indicator of only 9 units, which indicated that it could not have been very fast, contrary to movie depictions of a sprinting T-Rex. By comparison, a female African elephant on the same test showed a strength indicator of 6-14 units. A Tyrannosaur could simply not hunt in the manner long conjectured at such a slow speed.
However, the plantation owner reported that the creature leaped on the rhinoceros out of nearby dense foliage, conducting a "surprise attack" method, rather than a "chasing down" method: "The legs were thick; it reminded me of a lion, built for speed." Such a contrasting and vivid physical description, coupled with the reported hunting technique, would suggest that, rather than being a Tyrannosaur or Tarbosaur, the beast might be a species of giant raptor, such as the recently discovered Utahraptor.
Standing nearly six feet tall and weighing in at more than 1,500 pounds, the Utahraptor was the largest known deinonychosaur (popularly known as raptor dinosaurs). Its powerful forelimbs ended in three curved, blade-like claws, and it walked on two short, sturdy legs with sharp, sickle-like claws at their ends. Fast-moving and agile, with excellent vision, the Utahraptor was nonetheless slower than its smaller relatives such as Deinonychus or Velociraptor. According to paleontologists, it would probably have lain in wait, then pounced on the back of its victim, slashing and tearing apart its flesh with its sharp claws.
Lastly, if more information were discovered about the encounter, it could reveal whether it was a warm or cold blooded animal, a subject still hotly debated among scientists and paleontologists.
Credibility Issues
Unfortunately, as exciting as all this sounds, The credibility of the Kasai Rex accounts has been called into serious question, with most of the critical evidence suggesting that the reports are nothing but a hoax.
First of all, since there was an abundance of game in this valley, why didn't the hunter expect to encounter something big? Wouldn't an experienced hunter carry a rifle powerful enough to serve for both hunting and protection in the African bush? And if so, there would be no excuse for him not to shoot the beast, since otherwise he would not have any physical evidence.
In the second story, the hunter claims that "giant bull" elephants were in the jungle—yet the only elephants that live in the forest are the aptly named forest elephants, Loxodonta cyclotis, and they can hardly be considered giants. As a matter of fact, they are much smaller than the familiar elephant L. africana of the plains. A large bull L. africana would have great difficulty in jungle terrain, not only because of its size, but also because of its large tusks.
The behavior of the main character in the second account also seems very odd. No other cryptid report mentions a man going into a comatose state for over a week just from seeing a monster, one that he apparently saw with few ill effects on an earlier occasion. And, since when are hunters so terrified of an animal just because it is fast?
There is also the similarity between many aspects of these two stories: the single servant runs off; the creature eats a rhino; and both Johanson and Johnson faint. This suggests a single source for both stories.
It is perhaps notable that, of all cryptids reported from Africa, Kasai Rex is the only one without a name in a local language—and yet a carnivorous animal of this size would not have escaped attention by the local population.
The whole report is stated in sensationalistic terms, rather than being a neutrally-termed account; this would appear to indicate that the story was meant to entertain.
While the second account provides a good background to the first story, it also provides more evidence for it being a hoax. The most obvious error, is the fact that the name of the Swede changes; first it is Johnson and later it is Johanson. That very fact brings the authenticity of the story into question, but not as much as the photos.
This story seems to be redundant as well. It appears that the passage "Three times I snapped; only one attempt came out well" is in reference to his camera, but according to him he took pictures on the second encounter as well. It seems that the writer attempted to explain the hoaxed photograph more than one time. It is this photograph (as well as the one accompanying the other story) that clearly gives this account away as a hoax.
The Photographs
Two photographs exist, purportedly taken on the first two sightings, and each exhibiting radical differences from the other. One shows a creature resembling a large monitor lizard. ..but on further examination, a white line can be seen surrounding the creature. It appears to be a cutout from another source—possibly a magazine like National Geographic—pasted onto a background which included a picture of a boulder, but is apparently being represented as the "rhino". It is such an obvious photographic hoax that it is a shame it was even included as proof of the truth of the story to the newspaper's readers. The other photograph depicts a Tyrannosaurus-like creature eating a rhinoceros.
A Second Life on the Internet
Even though the story itself was very bad, some people did believe it (Arthur C. Clarke's mysterious world accepted it as fact), and more than one version surfaced. Bernard Heuvelmans searched through the magazine in which it was originally published, but the original never showed up. All of the reports are therefore second hand at least, and like a game of "telephone", things will be changed around. The version that appeared on the internet had a much more specific physical description, but it is likely that it was all made up when being passed along.
This is the story that spawned the internet hoax. The interesting thing is that this story is itself a hoax. Here is what was printed in the Rhodesia Herald:
....A Swede, J.C. Johnson, who is an overseer in a Belgian rubber plantation in the Congo, wrote to the Cologne Gazette from Mai Muene, Kassai district, enclosing photographs purporting to establish the existence of the animal in question. The photos, so the journal says, were anything but clear, yet they revealed a discovery of great importance. Johanson stumbled on a unique specimen of a dinosaur familiy that must have lived milleniums ago.
Unfortunatly, the story surrounding the second account is even more bizarre. Apparently, the second story was reported by a man named Grobler who had an interesting past of his own. He went on an expedition in the same area looking for a four ton "iguana" called the chepekwe. The expedition, which was about a year long, was a failure. Several years later, in 1932, Grobler gave both the photo of the monster and it's story to the press, representing the creature as the same animal he had previously been looking for. Basically, Grobler is believed to have invented this poorly told story as a sort of last ditch effort for credit in it's "discovery".
The most complete re-telling on the internet has been posted on the website "trueauthority.com". Although it would appear that this would be the origin of the story, the website claims that they got the story from "cryptozoology.com". Their story is different and similar in some ways to the Rhodesia Herald version, which is presumably second-hand. Johanson/Johnson has the same name, and his servant is said to be a slave in this account. The two encounters in the first have been somewhat confused. In this story "The Swede" watches the monsterous 42-foot-long lizard attack and eat the rhino. The slave then flees and the cowardly Swede faints. Upon awakening, he gives a very detailed description of the beast, lacking in the Rhodesia Herald version. He says that the beast was reddish in coloration with brackish stripes down it's back. It had huge, powerful legs and a long snout filled with teeth. The website then makes the claim that there were different encounters with the Kasai Rex, and the only thing differing was the size. It is interesting to note that this monsterous lizard is in fact, somewhat smaller than the first one. In a previous article on a giant anaconda, the length varied from newspaper to newspaper on the exact same case. There is no real reason to presume that there are other cases out there, just the same one told by different newspapers, possibly being altered due to translation. The author apparently doesn't see this fact (and doesn't list sources or give examples either), and claims that it is impossible for the reports to be a coincidence.
The main difference between the two accounts is the fact that the modern day reports regard it as some sort of Tyrannosaurid (Tarbosaurus, Tyrannosaurus, Allosaurus, ect.). This is very hard to comprehend, because nowhere in any of the accounts does it mention any sort of bipedalism. Grobler did call it a "dinosaur", but the term was widely (and often incorrectly) used at that time in history, and even to some extent today.
Subsequently, the author repeats the mantra used by all the dino fans—how great it would be to discover a dinosaur and so forth, and how most of the Congo is unexplored. Just how this report got to be a report of a dinosaur is one of the most puzzling elements. Perhaps some of the Dino fans were so eager to find a report, that they overlooked the fact that monitors also match the description rather well. The faked picture of the monitor on the rock also proves that the story was not intended to be a dinosaur. On a sidenote, it appears that most, if not all, of the things written about Kasai Rex came from "cryptozoology.com". There were pictures in the gallery, and before it was banned, some person, who kept on changing his name, posted the same Kasai Rex story over and over again.
A search of the Internet not long ago on Google.com revealed as many as 18 manifestations of the Kasai Rex story. This is a rather pathetic showing compared to other cryptids such as Sasquatch (88,000), Nessie (98,000), and even a lesser known one like Octopus giganteus, which has almost 500. Among those websites are some that are skeptical of the matter. Unfortunatly, some other websites still present the whole matter as if it were fact. There apparently used to be more websites on the matter, but they have now gone belly up.
Conclusion
It is hoped that the extensive information presented here, has been useful in combating the myth of the beast called Kasai Rex living in the African Congo. However, presenting evidence against this one particular case, is not intended to entirely rule out the possiblilty of the existence of other such relics from the past. Instead, it is provided to demonstrate how misleading information (especially on the internet) can be. When Grobler made this hoax, he did not pull it out of thin air; he based it on rumors of a reptillian beast living in the Congo. Although Kasai Rex itself apparently does not exist out there in the Congo, it doesn't mean that there still aren't other wondrous creatures waiting to be discovered.
[Cryptozoologist's Note: Belief in the existence of Kasai Rex is left up to the reader. One region in central Africa, the Likouala Swamp, covers an area the size of Florida, yet still remains 80% unexplored. Reports of dinosaurs continue to pour out from these locations, and until we have adequately searched throughout this land of the unknown, this land located on the "Dark Continent," we may never know if the dinosaur world's most popular figure still walks that area of the earth today. In the meantime, it should be noted that the source for the Kasai Rex incident is unverifiable, and therefore remains extremely questionable.]
[Arcleins’s Note: This tales suffers from been too good to be true. What has been described is an animal able to spread throughout the riverine system of Africa and happily hunt in broad daylight. If that were the case, we would not be having this discussion. Instead I retreat to the position that if it exists it is aquatic, nocturnal and eats crocodiles for which it is admirably designed.]
KASAI REX, BURRUNJOR, AND MINI-T-REX: EVIDENCE OF SURVIVING CARNIVOROUS DINOSAURS? PART 2
BEWARE OF BURRUNJORS IN THE BUSH
By Rex Gilroy
(This article is composed of excerpts from Rex and Heather Gilroy's new Book Out of the Dreamtime—The Search for
Since long before the coming of White Men, traditions have persisted among the Aboriginal tribes of Australia's 'Red Centre' to the Gulf Country and Kimberley region, of a ferocious giant reptilian carnivore that roams the landscape day and night in search of food, both animal and human.
Known as "Burrunjor", the mere mention of its name is often guaranteed to send a shiver down the spine of any Aboriginal. Yet it is not only Aborigines who claim to have seen these monsters, but also many Europeans, stockmen, residents of remote cattle stations and 4-wheel drive travellers.
Burrunjor can best be described as a huge, bipedal-walking reptilian monster. Tyrannosaurus comes to mind, although some suggest a species of Iguanodon, due to the description of long arms. Whatever Burrunjor is, it leaves huge three-toed tracks behind it wherever it strides. This is significant, because there have been suggestions that Burrunjor could be based upon the "extinct" giant Australian monitor Lizard, Megalania prisca, which reached up to 30ft (9.14m) and which was almost the height reached by the Burrunjors claimed to be seen by both Aborigines and Europeans.
Out of the Dreamtime—The Search for Australasia's Unknown Animals contains three chapters on the subject of giant monitor lizards, not just in
If indeed Burrunjor is a surviving form of dinosaur, it belongs to the Theropods, a group of reptilian bipeds that became extinct either millions or at least thousands of years ago, depending on your scientific view of origins. Perhaps Burrunjor is a "neodinosaur", that is a latter-day offshoot from this group.
The sandhills and mesa country of Queensland's north-west, south of the Gulf forestlands, which extends into the Northern Territory, is fabled "Burrunjor land" to the Aboriginal tribes.
Yet it is only fair to point out that, while Burrunjor appears to prefer the open spaces of Australia's interior, none of these reptilian nightmares has ever been reported to have harassed remote towns and villages. Why hasn't someone shot one of these monsters by now?
Some believe these monsters are from earth's geological past, periodically entering our present-day through so-called "time windows". This problematic theory could be used to explain all kinds of "extinct" animals, both terrestrial and marine-dwellers, from Scotland's "Nessie" to the Congo's Mokele mbembe, and other mysterious creatures seen all over the world but never caught. However, I propose to treat Burrunjor as a living "unknown" animal of the Australian bush. Consider the following case-histories from the Gilroys' new book…
Campfire stories substantiating Aboriginal claims are commonplace across the far north. Back in 1978, a Northern Territory bushman and explorer, Bryan Clark, related a story that had taken place some years before. While mustering cattle in the Urapunji area, he became lost in the remote wilderness of that part of Arnhem Land. It took him three days to find his way out of the region and back to the homestead from where he originally set out.
He had not known at the time, but his footprints had been picked up and followed by two Aboriginal trackers and a mounted policeman. On the first night of their search they camped on the outskirts of the Burrunjor scrub, even though the two trackers protested strongly against doing so. The policeman hobbled his horse, cooked their meal, then climbed into his swag and went to sleep.
Old stories of the mesa country say that one or more Burrunjor reptilian monsters would emerge from this particular area as darkness fell, to raid cattle stations, dragging off stock in their powerful jaws to devour, leaving the remains scattered about the area of their huge tracks as they returned to their lair. It is a region to avoid for Aborigines.
Later that night the two Aborigines, shouting unintelligibly and grasping for their packs and saddles, suddenly woke him up. The policeman also realized at this moment that the ground appeared to be shaking. Hurriedly getting to his feet, he too gathered up his belongings, and shortly afterwards, the three galloped away. As he told Bryan Clark later at the Urapunji homestead, he had also heard a sound, somewhat like a loud puffing or grunting noise, certainly loud enough to be coming from some large animal. When asked if he intended to include this incident in his report, he replied he would not because he feared no one would believe him.
The policeman warned Bryan never again to return to that area, because if he got lost there again he'd be "on his own", as no one would come looking for him! The region's cave art, thousands of years old, depicts these monstrous animals. Many Aborigines believe these monsters wander back and forth across the Gulf country and Cape York to this day.
Back in 1950, cattlemen lost stock to some mysterious beast that left the mutilated, half-eaten remains of cows and bulls in its wake over a wide area, stretching between the border country and Burketown. Searchers on horseback found huge reptilian tracks of some bipedal-walking beast. They followed these three-toed tracks with their cattle dogs through some rough jungle terrain until they entered swampland beyond which was more dense scrub.
It was at this point that the cattle dogs became uneasy and ran off. The horses were also uneasy and obviously did not want to cross the swamp. While most of the cattlemen decided their animals knew best, two men set off on foot with their carbines.
The story goes that they soon came across further tracks in an open area beyond the swamp. While his mate searched about, the other man briefly spotted the dark form of an enormous creature, perhaps 30-feet in height, farther off in dense timber. The men left the scene in haste.
Johnny Mathews, a part-Aboriginal tracker, claimed to have seen a 25-foot tall bipedal reptilian monster, moving through scrub near lagoon Creek on the Gulf coast one day in 1961. "Hardly anyone outside my own people believes my story, but I known what I saw", he said in 1970.
In 1985 a 4-wheel drive vehicle and its cargo of family travellers, the Askeys, heading for Roper River Mission, happened to take a back road for some sightseeing. Just as they were about to pull up and turn around to resume their journey to the mission, they all saw, moving together across an open plain some distance away, two bipedal-walking reptilian creatures a good 20-feet tall respectively.
"The monsters were a greyish-brown colour and dinosaur-like in appearance. We didn't wait around", said the father, Mr Greg Askey.
During their recent (July-August 2006) Central Australian investigation, Rex and Heather Gilroy picked up a number of ancient Aboriginal myths and legends concerning these reptilian monsters, but they also obtained many claims of sightings made within the last few years by people over a wide area of the interior.
AUSTRALIA'S ABORIGINES...DID THEY SEE DINOSAURS?
by Rebecca Driver
Africa's Congo jungle is becoming increasingly known as the reputed refuge of a mysterious creature called Mokele-Mbembe. The locals appear familiar with this creature, which they readily identify from drawings of fossil reconstructions as being like one of the dinosaurs. Few realize, however, that similar accounts occur in other parts of the world. Australian Aborigines have stories of encounters with huge, sometimes frightening monsters which range from what sound like dinosaurs to giant marsupials, also believed to have long become extinct.
The Aboriginal People
The term 'Aboriginal' is loosely applied to the people who were living in Australia at the time of European settlement 200 years ago. There were hundreds of different tribes scattered across the continent, varying in their language and customs.
Dreamtime Monsters
The myths and legends of the Aboriginal people, including their accounts of the creation of the world, are known as the Dreamtime. Such stories feature monsters, of whom many are mythological. Others, however, may have reference to real creatures, the Aborigines even insisting on their past 'flesh-and-blood' existence. Some of them are reminiscent of animals regarded as prehistoric, which supposedly became extinct tens of thousands, or even millions of years ago.
Aborigines did not keep written records—their knowledge and traditions were passed orally from one generation to the next. Such oral traditions tend not to last more than a few hundred years without being distorted out of recognition. This would suggest that some of these animals may have still been living in Australia some two to three hundred years ago, or even more recently.
Such a conclusion may surprise many, but it would explain why documented encounters with similar monsters post-date the time of European settlement.
The Geelong Bunyip
For instance, the Geelong Advertiser, of Victoria, Australia, reported in July 1845 about the finding of unfossilized bone forming part of the knee joint of some gigantic animal. The paper reported showing it to an Aboriginal they regarded as particularly intelligent. He identified it immediately as a "bunyip" bone, and a lithograph drawing of the creature was produced. In 1990, for a commemorative 150th anniversary issue of the Advertiser, the graphic artist Kevin McNulty sketched the picture reproduced below, based on the text from the original newspaper report.
When the bone was shown to other Aboriginal people who "had no opportunity of communicating with each other," they all instantly recognized the bone and the picture as being of a "bunyip", a common word in some Aboriginal languages for a frightening monster. They gave detailed, consistent accounts of where a few people they knew had been killed by one of these. The creature was said to be amphibious, laid eggs, and from the descriptions, appeared to combine 'the characteristics of a bird and an alligator"—i.e. a bipedal reptile. (Note that no crocodiles or alligators are found in Australia except in its far north—Geelong is deep in the south). One of the Aboriginals, named Mumbowran, showed "several deep wounds on his breast made by the claws of the animal." The description and sketch certainly fits well with some form of bipedal dinosaur.
A large number of Aboriginal stories of creatures of possible dinosaurian origin have been collected by Rex Gilroy, a cryptozoologist. Two of these, Burrunjor and Kulta, the accounts of which appear below, are also featured in a book by zoologist Karl Shuker.
BURRUNJOR
Extending from the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land east through the Gulf of Carpentaria to Queensland's Cape York district is the story of "Burrunjor." The description is reminiscent of an Allosaurus, a smaller version of the well-known Tyrannosaurus (or the recently discovered Utahraptor). In 1950, cattlemen on the border between the Northern Territory and Queensland claimed losing stock to a strange beast which left mutilated, half-eaten corpses in its destructive wake. A part-Aboriginal tracker also claimed to have seen a bipedal reptile, 7–8 metres (25 feet) tall, moving through the scrub near Lagoon Creek on the Gulf Coast in 1961. In 1984, huge three-toed footprints from a gigantic bipedal reptile were found near Narooma, New South Wales. Rex Gilroy confirmed the find and made a plaster cast of one of the tracks. The track was approximately 2 feet wide and 2 1/2 feet long.
Some parts of northern Australia's vastness are still little explored, and large areas of it are closed to public access. Perhaps some creatures unknown to science are still to be found there. That this is possible was shown a few years back when a tree, the Wollemi Pine, was found in a national park in New South Wales. Scientists said it was "like finding a small dinosaur." The tree is known from its fossils in "dinosaur age" rock, but these are not found in any of the layers in between. Unlike an animal, a tree cannot run away and hide, yet this tree was completely unknown to science till recently.
IN CONCLUSION
Australia's Aboriginal heritage is rapidly being lost. Many of the Dreamtime stories still recall events from their history, such as a great flood similar to the one described in the Bible and in the writings of many other ancient cultures. There are several traditions which suggest that the ancestors of today's Aborigines may have had contact with the last few dinosaurian survivors of a rapidly drying continent. The details in the newspaper report of what seems to have been a bipedal dinosaur at Geelong last century seems hard to discount.
The many Aboriginal accounts—even if only a portion of them have a basis in fact—together with the photographic evidence of ancient rock drawings and carvings of what are obviously dinosaurs, contradict the conventional mainstream belief system, which insists that no man has ever seen anything like a dinosaur, since these supposedly died out millions of years before man appeared.
DINOSAUR SIGHTINGS IN CORTEZ
November 4, 2002
News Specialist John Hollenhorst reporting
It's astounding -- if it's true. But, is it true?
Recently, reports have surfaced of several strange sightings of a bizarre "mystery lizard." Witnesses in Colorado, near the Utah border, say believe it or not, it looks like a small dinosaur!
Eyewitness reports can be be problematic. Sometimes fraudulent. Often deeply mistaken. ALWAYS incomplete. But, you simply have to hear what witnesses around Cortez, Colorado are saying about the mystery lizard. Is something out there? Is there something bizarre that shows itself only once in a while to a few astounded human beings?
"It was a Jurassic Park flashback. I mean I was—I couldn't believe it," says Shannon Ystesund.
Ystesund and a girlfriend were driving down this road the night of July 5. She says a creature ran in front of the headlights, a very big lizard, nearly vertical, running on its hind legs.
"We were, you know, freaked out. Immediately we thought it was some kind of dinosaur or a huge lizard. So we came home," she says.
"They just walked in and they were real excited and they said, 'we just saw a little dinosaur run across the road,'" says Ystesund's husband, Keith.
"Looked like the little dinosaurs in Jurassic Park that surrounded everybody in the tall grass fields," says Shannon.
Another lady gives only her first name, Bea, because she's been reluctant to go public with her story.
"Yes, I have, because people think you're nuts," Bea says. "Like a miniature dinosaur, you know. That would be as close as I can come to describing it. And I've never seen anything like it."
Independent researcher Nick Sucik says he's collected eight such stories in the Four Corners area. A mother and daughter told him they were driving down this road a couple of years ago and saw a creature run through their headlights.
"They were both stunned, and I asked 'how did you feel about it?' They said they just burst out laughing hysterically because it was the most absurd thing they'd ever seen," Sucik said.
It's tempting to give it a cutesy name, like the "Rock Ness Monster", or the "Lizard of Oz-some Proportions". But that's a little off-target. It doesn't seem to be all that big. Three to three-and-a-half feet high, witnesses say. Roughly five feet long measured nose to tail. Sucik avoids using the d-word: "Dinosaur".
"I'm sure there's got to be some sort of more plausible explanation for something like this, and yet at the same time we're stumped as to what it could be," he says. "Sightings like this almost always turn out to be something other than what folks think they are," says Scott Sampson with the Utah Museum of Natural History.
Dinosaur expert Sampson says there is something easily mistaken for a dinosaur. "Birds are dinosaurs in the truest sense of the word." Imagine a bigger version of this: perhaps an escaped Ostrich or Emu, seen suddenly and briefly under poor viewing conditions.
"It could well be a road-runner or some other kind of bird, and it could be a perception, a distance problem making them look a little bit bigger than they are," says Sampson.
Witnesses are emphatic they didn't see a bird. Or feathers.
Jeff Thulin runs a tourist stop called Reptile Reserve. He says he's heard the baby dinosaur stories for years. He's skeptical but not ruling it out.
"I'd like to be associated with a dinosaur. If someone could catch something, I'd pay good money for it," Thulin says. The description does fit foreign critters like the Monitor Lizard. And locally, the Collared Lizard, although that's only just over a foot high.
The sightings date back to the 1930s.
REPTOIDS SPOTTED IN NORTHERN CHILE?
The Star (Iquique) 4 August 2004
Translation; Scott Corrales
Strange creatures described as "dinosaur-like" and standing 2 meters (6 feet, 6 inches) tall have been seen in recent weeks in Pampa Acha, a small town 17 kilometers (10 miles) from the city of Arica in northern Chile.
The two strange creatures, described as small dinosaurs and with a physical appearance similar to that of a kangaroo, were reported by the occupants of a Terrano pickup truck between Iquique and Arica on Thursday night, July 30, 2004.
The vehicle's driver, Dario Riquelme, was traveling in the company of (Chilean) Army official Hernan Cuevas, his wife and two young children. According to his account, the situation which left the family rather nervous and confused, took place at 9:30 p.m. that evening. It happened in the Pampa Acha sector, only a few moments before passing the barrio Presencias Tutelares, 17 kilometers south of Arica.
Riquelme and his party left Iquique, just south of Chile's border with Peru, at 6 p.m. They were only a few minutes away from Arica and were holding a normal conversation when something strange darted in front of the vehicle.
"'My companion said, 'Look at that tremendous beast!' and I managed to hit the brakes. Then, after a few minutes, the second one ambled past, and it was even more startling because it was just like a dinosaur, walking on two legs. It had very noticeable thighs," Riquelme said.
According to the driver's description, the figures were grey and hairless. The second one, which crossed a few minutes later, was clearly seen by Riquelme, Hernan Cuevas and his 12-year-old daughter, Tania. They estimated the first creature's height at 2 meters (6 feet, 6 inches), thanks to the fact that the beast's distance from the vehicle at the moment it crossed was not more than 4 meters (13 feet). In the case of the second "animal", they said it was smaller. but they were able to see it clearly because it was a clear night and there was moonlight. However, what was most remarkable about both creatures was the speed at which they crossed the road and the strides they took.
Riquelme and Cuevas had gone to Arica to purchase a vehicle...But the strange event caused nervousness among Sr. Cuevas's wife and daughter. "The good thing is that when they started screaming, my companion and I didn't lose control and kept calm. Later we stopped to smoke a cigarette and walked around. From there I descended (drove) calmly to Arica, but I'm still nervous," explains the driver, who contacted (the Chilean newspaper) La Estrella (The Star) immediately after reaching the city.
Riquelme's account coincides with that of Hernan Cuevas, who is a recruiting officer with the Army.
"'When the first crossing occurred, I asked Dario if he had seen it, and he said yes. Then we started making comments as to what it might have been. Shortly after, another one walked by, shorter, but very similar to a dinosaur or a lizard running on two legs. Even my eldest daughter saw it and let out a scream," Cuevas said.
Twelve-year-old Tania stated that the creatures were very similar to a dinosaur and had small hands. Meanwhile, Sra. Cuevas almost didn't realize what was going on because she was paying attention to the couple's younger child, who was asleep.
Neither Riquelme nor Cuevas had ever experienced a similar situation and would not even compare it with descriptions of other creatures, such as the alleged Chupacabras that attack and exsanguinate (drain of blood) animals in their fields. But they still have not managed to find an explanation for what they saw Thursday night.
A new report involving the sighting of strange animals in the Pampa Acha sector was made known Monday, August 2, 2004, and coincides almost exactly with the one described Thursday by driver Dario Riquelme. The case involves the six members of the Abett de la Torre Diaz family, who live at Fuerte Baquedano, in the community of Pozo Almonte. All of them were traveling from their home to Arica two weeks ago, and, as they crossed the Pampa Acha sector, less than 20 kilometers (13 miles) from the city, near Presencias Tutelares, they were faced with four creatures they described at first as "dog- faced kangaroos" that moved slowly through the air. The event occurred at approximately 9 p.m. and left almost all of the family's members traumatized. The family consisted of Carlos Abett de la Torre, a (Chilean) Army non-commissioned officer, his wife Teresa (Diaz), their three children and a three-year-old nephew.
"I was traveling in the back seat with my brothers, talking, and suddenly everything went dark. Then I told my brother what I was seeing, and he told me to keep quiet because Mom gets nervous. Later I looked through the window and saw more things that looked like birds, with dogs' heads and backswept wings. My father said they were like gargoyles," explained Carmen Abett de la Torre, the couple's daughter.
Carmen added that she wasn't sure if the creatures had wings or legs, but then they moved them toward the rear. The height of the animals was calculated at 2 meters. Two of the beings "flew" over the vehicle; another two appeared, but this time darting in front of the vehicle.
'We were speechless for some 10 minutes, and my Mom told us to react, and then we started discussing what we had seen."
Teresa Diaz, Carmen's mother, was traveling in the front passenger seat beside her husband and was the one who saw the creature the clearest. Her impression was that these animals were moving slowly over the car first and then in front of it. However, they appeared to match the vehicle's speed, which was 100 kilometers per hour (60 miles per hour). The situation caused such nervousness among the whole family that all they wanted to do was get to Arica and forget the traumatic incident. Once in the city, they told their relatives what had happened.
"'Then we were terrified to go back," Teresa added, with regard to the day they were getting ready to return to their home in Fuerte Baquedano.
At the time of the strange encounter, the moonlight provided certain visibility, which as well as the similar (Riquelme) case made known last week, enabled the beast to be clearly seen. Furthermore, the animals did not go any further than 20 meters (66 feet) from the car in which the Abett de la Torre family was driving.
All of the family members agreed as to what they had seen. They were startled and nervous as a result of the sighting. None of them went public for fear of ridicule and mockery.
Carabinero (Chilean national police) members of the Cuya barracks stated that until now no one had approached them to report a similar event. However, they had heard of strange creatures being witnessed in the Pampa Acha sector from third parties. In any event, they added that they constantly patrol the road near the sector where the incident occurred. (See the Chilean newspaper La Estrella of Arica for August 1, 2004, "Strange creatures reported in Pampa Acha," and for August 3, 2004, "More strange creatures reported in Acha." Muchas gracias a Scott Corrales, Claudio Ojeda y Liliana Nunez para estos articulos de diario.)
COLORADO RIVER DINOSAUR / MINI T-REX
Eyewitness Account
I live in Pueblo, Colorado. I moved out here when I was six and have since heard stories of the praire devil, the pig man and the mini-rex….
Me and my friend were riding dirt bikes….when we observed something move across the clearing in front of us. It was three to four feet long, greenish with black markings on its back, and a yellowish-orange underbelly. It walked on its hind legs, never dragging its tail. Its front limbs (I call them limbs because they were more like arms than anything) were smaller in comparison to the back ones, and it had four or three claws....It also had some kind of lump or horn over each eye. When it noticed our presence, it let out a high pitched screech…Immediately, we rode back to my house for a camera….We took a picture of its tracks…one of my other friends said he had a few pictures of the creature, so I took a look at them, and to my surprise, I saw pictures of the exact same thing I saw... North American Bio Fortean Review
Newspaper Account
Colorado's Mystery Reptile Could Be Mini Dinosaur [Original headline: Mystery Reptile Loose in County?]
Could the Southwest be home to a mysterious new species of reptile? Nick Sucik, a private researcher from Minnesota, thinks it's possible. Sucik has been tracking sightings of an elusive lizard-like creature ever since hearing tales of "river dinosaurs" from those involved in the legally sketchy "reptile trade." The "dino" is said to walk exclusively on its hind legs; to stand about 3 feet tall; and to have armlike appendages instead of forelegs. The reptile usually is seen near a wet environment and moves swiftly, with grace, Sucik said.
Reports of sightings trickled in, first in Pagosa Springs in 1982, then in
An Unsolved Mysteries episode had featured the story of a Cortez couple who had been visiting in Arizona. While there, the couple apparently saw the body of a reptile unlike any they had ever seen before. "It looked like a toy to them," Sucik said, and when they told their tale, "No one took them seriously." Except, perhaps, for Sucik himself.
In an attempt to follow up on the story, Sucik wrote the Journal and later placed a classified ad, seeking communication from anyone who might have seen the enigmatic reptile. The letter netted a response from Northern California, but the ad brought results from closer to home. According to Sucik, a woman and her daughter emailed him details of a similar sighting that took place in 2001 as they were driving in the Yellow Jacket area.
"Suddenly, this thing runs out. At first, they thought it was a young deer, because of its size," Sucik said.
The women described it as having a long neck and skinny legs like a bird. However, it had no feathers and its "arms" seemed to go out of its upright neck rather than its body. The women estimated that the creature would measure about 5 feet, if stretched from neck to tail.
"It looked to them like a cross between a bird and a dinosaur." When they got home, each drew a picture of the creature and realized they had each seen exactly the same thing, he said.
The description matched that of other sightings, and the women happened to have been near an irrigation creek. "Every reference we've heard usually affiliates them with water," Sucik said. "That's where the term 'River Dino' comes from."
Sucik discovered it wasn't the first sighting in the area. In March or April 1996, a local woman said she saw something similar near her home at the Kampark outside Mesa Verde.
"I was sitting on the couch, and looked out the front door," the woman, who did not wish to be identified, told the Journal. "I saw something, not a lizard, really, about 3 1/2 feet long and 3 1/2 feet high. It moved very fast. As far as I remember, there were only two legs that seemed to balance it."
She said the creature moved very swiftly, and had a cone-shaped nose and a tail that extended about 2 feet out from its body. It had come from a pond area.
"It was kind of unusual," she said "I didn't know if I was seeing things, or what. I never had anything like that happen before. "I thought, 'Maybe it's someone's pet', I wasn't frightened; I just thought it was unusual."
She checked reference books, but could not find anything similar to what she'd seen. Jeff Thulin of the Reptile Reserve told her it might have been a monitor lizard, however, monitors could not live throughout the winter locally.
Thulin said others have since mentioned that they have seen "a large lizard running around. I don't know any specifics at all except that it's large and looks out of place."
"It doesn't match anything," he said of the description. The woman said she has tried to put it out of her mind. "Some people think you're nuts."
Sucik isn't sure what people have seen. A lizard, he said, "is a reptile on four legs. These reptiles are always on their hind legs. The only reptile to fit that morphology is a dinosaur—that kind of creates extra interest. It's not strange. It's like a new species that hasn't been classified in the area."
Sucik said it's possible the reptile is an escapee from trade in exotic pets. Even so, the description doesn't match anything known, he said. He welcomes reports of sightings at nicksucik@hotmail.com or 22969 Old Gov Trail, Nisswa, MN 56468, and also suggests checking www.herper.com/nabr/nabr4.pdf
(Story originally published by: Cortez Journal / CO Katharhynn Heidelberg - July 30.02)
UPRIGHT MYSTERY CREATURE
Mystery upright creature allegedly photographed on a Florida Farm. The individual only noticed the "creature" after the film was developed. Is it a bipedal lizard (little T-rex), a tall squirrel, a talented dog or was it photo shopped? (Sent in to Coast to Coast.)
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
"The eastern half of the island of New Guinea—second largest in the world—was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997, after claiming some 20,000 lives."—CIA World Factbook
"Papua New Guinea is a raw land, remarkably untamed and as variegated as swamp and jagged limestone; mud and moss forest; suffocating heat and Highland chill; plumed, pearl-shelled villagers and prosaic hill people; tiny tree kangaroos and enormous Queen Alexandra Birdwing butterflies"....Source: LonelyPlanet.com
Police Hunt 'Dinosaur' in Papua New Guinea
March 12, 2004 - 12:38PM
Reports that a live dinosaur had been sighted on a volcanic island of Papua New Guinea prompted the deployment of heavily-armed police in search of the mystery creature. Villagers in the superstitious island province of East New Britain this week said they fled in terror after seeing a three-metre tall, grey-coloured creature with a head like a dog and a tail like a crocodile. They said the creature was living among thick green plants in a mosquito-ridden marsh just outside the provincial capital Kokopo, near the devastated town of Rabaul which was buried by a volcanic eruption in 1994. Kokopo's Mayor Albert Buanga said the dinosaur would make a great a tourist attraction, if it existed.
A government official today confirmed police carrying M-16s and shotguns searched the area but found no trace of the creature. Eyewitness Christine Samei told reporters she ran for her life after seeing a three-metre tall (10 feet), grey creature with a head like a dog and a tail like a crocodile which was as fat as a 900-litre water tank.
"It's a very huge and ugly looking animal," Samei told local media.
A government official said the villagers had identified the creature from books and movies about dinosaurs.
"They told us it was a dinosaur," the official told AAP.
Although police found no trace of the creature, Senior Sergeant Leuth Nidung warned villagers to take extra precautions when going about their daily business, amid reports it had eaten three dogs. Villagers were told to report any further sightings immediately to police, who were already organizing a more thorough search of the area.
Black magic and other superstitions are common in many parts of PNG's predominantly village-based society.
Each year large numbers of foreigners visit the area to see World War II relics as well as the devastated town of Rabaul - the only urban centre in the world built inside the crater of a giant volcano.
Associated Press
Dinosaur-like creature spotted in Papua New Guinea
Ananova:
Police in Papua New Guinea have been ordered to search part of a remote island after locals reported seeing a giant dinosaur-like creature roaming the area.
Villagers on the island of New Britain reported seeing a 3-meter-tall (Approx. 10 feet), grey-coloured animal with a head like a dog and a tail like a crocodile.
One woman said she saw the creature in a marsh just outside the provincial capital Kokopo on the eastern end of New Britain. "I heard the people talking about it and went there to see for myself. Its very huge and ugly looking animal," she said.
A local councilor told The National newspaper that villagers said the creature had been seen by women on several occasions and had reportedly eaten three dogs.
Armed police and villagers carrying bush knives searched the marsh but found no trace of the creature, the newspaper said.
500 MILES AWAY AND 5 YEARS EARLIER
Dinosaur-like Reptile Sighted at Lake Murray
December 11, 1999
A DINOSAUR-like reptile has reportedly been seen by villagers in the Lake Murray area recently. Boboa station councillor, Sangame Sangame told The Independent that villagers on two separate occasions saw the creature on December 11 and again on December 12.
Councillor Sangame said that villagers travelling in a canoe saw the reptile wading in shallow water near Boboa, in the first sighting. He said that a Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) pastor and church elder saw the creature on the second occasion not far from the first sighting.
Mr. Sangame said that the animal has a body as long as a dump truck and nearly two metres wide (6.5 feet). It has a long slender tail and a long neck. The head is shaped like a cow's, has large eyes with sharp teeth as long as fingers. The reptile walks on two hind legs which are as thick as coconut palm tree trunks. It has two smaller forelegs. The skin is similar to a crocodile's and has largish triangular scoops on the back. Mr Sangame said that he reported the sightings to the Lake Murray police.
Many people from the savannah grasslands of the South Fly district claim that they have seen large lizards similar to the Komodo dragons of Indonesia. There have also been reports of large lizards up to 1.7 metres living in tree tops.
KASAI REX, BURRUNJOR, AND MINI-T-REX: EVIDENCE OF SURVIVING CARNIVOROUS DINOSAURS? PART 3
IS THERE ANY HARD SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT DINOSAURS MAY HAVE EXISTED MORE RECENTLY THAN MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO?
Red Blood Cells Found in Dinosaur Fossils
Actual red blood cells in fossil bones from a Tyrannosaurus rex? With traces of the blood protein hemoglobin (which makes blood red and carries oxygen)? It sounds preposterous—to those who believe that these dinosaur remains are at least 65 million years old.
It is of course much less of a surprise to those who believe in a young earth, in which case dinosaur remains are at most only a few thousand years old.
In a recent article, scientists from Montana State University, seemingly struggling to allow professional caution to restrain their obvious excitement at the findings, report on the evidence which seems to strongly suggest that traces of real blood from a T-rex have actually been found.
The story starts with a beautifully preserved T-rex skeleton unearthed in the United States in 1990. When the bones were brought to the Montana State University's lab, it was noticed that "some parts deep inside the long bone of the leg had not completely fossilized." To find unfossilized dinosaur bone is already an indication more consistent with a young age for the fossils.
The Report
Let Mary Schweitzer, the scientist most involved with this find, take up the story of when her co-workers took turns looking through a microscope at a thin section of this T-rex bone, complete with blood vessel channels.
The lab filled with murmurs of amazement, for I had focused on something inside the vessels that none of us had ever noticed before: tiny round objects, translucent red with a dark center. Then a colleague took one look at them and shouted, "You've got red blood cells. You've got red blood cells!".
Schweitzer confronted her boss, famous paleontologist "Dinosaur" Jack Horner, with her doubts about how these could really be blood cells. Horner suggested she try to prove they were not red blood cells, and she says, "So far, we haven't been able to."
Looking for dinosaur DNA in such a specimen was obviously tempting. However, fragments of DNA can be found almost everywhere—from fungi, bacteria, human fingerprints—and so it is hard to be sure that one has DNA from the specimen. The Montana team did find, along with DNA from fungi, insects and bacteria, unidentifiable DNA sequences, but could not say that these could not have been jumbled sequences from present-day organisms. However, the same problem would not be there for hemoglobin, the protein which makes blood red and carries oxygen, so they looked for this substance in the fossil bone.
The Evidence
The evidence that hemoglobin has indeed survived in this dinosaur bone (which casts immense doubt upon the "millions of years" idea) is, to date, as follows:
The tissue was colored reddish brown, the color of hemoglobin, as was liquid extracted from the dinosaur tissue.
Hemoglobin contains heme units. Chemical signatures unique to heme were found in the specimens when certain wavelengths of laser light were applied.
Because it contains iron, heme reacts to magnetic fields differently from other proteins—extracts from this specimen reacted in the same way as modern heme compounds.
To ensure that the samples had not been contaminated with certain bacteria which have heme (but never the protein hemoglobin), extracts of the dinosaur fossil were injected over several weeks into rats. If there was even a minute amount of hemoglobin present in the T-rex sample, the rats' immune system should build up detectable antibodies against this compound. This is exactly what happened in carefully controlled experiments.
Evidence of hemoglobin, and the still-recognizable shapes of red blood cells, in unfossilized dinosaur bone is powerful testimony against the whole idea of dinosaurs living millions of years ago.
[Cryptozoologist's Note: To claim that bone could remain intact for millions of years without being fossilized (mineralized) stretches credibility. The report here of red blood cells in an unfossilized section of dinosaur bone is NOT the first time such bone has been found. Biologist Dr. Margaret Helder reported documented finds of "fresh", unfossilized dinosaur bone as far back as 1992. More recently, based on these reports, a team associated with Buddy Davis from Northern Kentucky, retrieved similarly unfossilized dinosaur bone from Alaska.]
A mummified dinosaur fossil was found by amateur researchers in 2000 in Malta, Montana. Due to the mummification process it underwent, it retained original skin impressions with possibly some of the original tissue still intact. Dubbed "Leonardo," this hadrosaur is "the most complete dinosaur fossil ever discovered," and even has a mummified stomach containing magnolia, fern, and conifer vegetation. The Discovery Channel aired a program about Leonardo on September 15, 2008.
The scientists who have analyzed the specimen say its body was subjected to a natural but extremely unusual mummification process after it died, preserving not just bones but skin and soft tissues.
"When you get up close and look at the skin envelope it's beautiful. This is not a skin impression, it's fossilized skin. That's very, very different," said Dr Phil Manning, the palaeontologist at Manchester University who has led the investigation.
The "dinosaur mummy" is a 3,600 kilogram (4 ton) hadrosaur, or duck-billed dinosaur, that evolutionists believe died 65 to 67 million years ago—shortly before evolutionary theory proposes that all the other dinosaurs went extinct, possibly due to a massive meteorite impact.
What makes this fossil unique was what happened next. Skin and soft tissues are not usually present in fossils because they rot down quickly before fossilization takes place. But in this case, one of just a handful of such specimens ever found, something unusual about the chemistry of the mud the beast ended up in meant that didn't happen.
"You've got a chemical reaction going on where minerals are forming more rapidly than the microbes are decaying the soft tissues—so you are left with soft tissue structures preserved," said Manning.
Leonardo has puzzled researchers for years, and paleopathologist Arthur Aufderheide of the University of Minnesota at Duluth, an expert in mummified remains, was called in to help answer some important questions about the fossil, including: "Why did nothing eat him? Why did his flesh and internal structures not rot away like virtually every other fossil ever found up until Leonardo?"
This might mystify old earth adherents, but Leonardo's uniquely preserved remains do not surprise young earth scientists. Their model, which factors in the probable violent effects of a worldwide Flood, seems to provide a better explanatory paradigm than a slow-and-gradual evolutionary view.
Young earth scientists have proposed that one of the Flood's effects could have been "hypercanes," or mega-hurricanes that were unchecked by land masses. This seems to match a current evolutionary theory regarding the fossils found near Leonardo:
Dr. David Eberth of the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Canada has said that a massive extinction occurred when hurricanes, starting in what was then the Gulf of Mexico, traveled through a shallow ocean….They grew stronger and created storm surges, including in what is now Montana, which created massive flooding that would have killed everything, Iacuzzo said…."That's one theory on why you find so many complete skeletons in that area."
This evidence in Montana of super-sized hurricanes and catastrophic burial could well be a local manifestation of a global catastrophic event like the Flood.
WOULD A SURVIVING TYRANNOSAURUS BE AS LARGE AS THE FOSSILIZED SPECIMENS THAT HAVE BEEN RECOVERED?
Catastrophists are scientists who believe that the earth has not always been the same, but has changed dramatically over time as the result of global catastrophes, (such as the worldwide Flood mentioned in the Bible and other ancient texts). They believe that the ancient world was once surrounded by a large vapor canopy, which later collapsed, contributing to a global flood that destroyed most of the life on earth. Such a vapor canopy would have shielded the earth from harmful radiation from the sun and spread incoming solar heat with a greenhouse effect, providing a constant spring-like climate for the entire earth, including the polar regions. It is postulated that this large water vapor canopy would have caused about double the present atmospheric pressure making it easier to breathe, easier for birds to fly and providing for extremely lush vegetation. It would also have provided an environment in which everything (animals, plants and people) would have grown to a larger size.
Evidence of this is found in the fossil record with fossil dragon flies having 30-inch wingspans, fossil cockroaches 14 inches long, and fossil cattails 60 feet tall. Reptiles are peculiar in that they never stop growing as long as they live. Alligators, for example, are reptiles and grow larger until they die. How large might an alligator become today if raised in an environment of double atmospheric pressure, no radiation, and a super abundance of food? Even animals and plants that only grow for a limited portion of their lives could have grown much larger and lived much longer in such an atmosphere. Tomato plants, grown in Japan under double atmospheric pressure and shielded from radiation, have reached 30 feet in height and produced 3,000 tomatoes on each plant. They also became perennial, meaning they never needed to be replanted.
Consequently, surviving descendants of the dinosaurs (or any other species for that matter) would not necessarily be as large as their ancient ancestors. This seems to be born out by the eyewitness descriptions of such cryptids as Mokele-mbembe and the so-called "Mini T-rex's" which have been the topic of this posting.
Mokele-mbembe (Mokèlé-mbèmbé) meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" in the Lingala language, is the name given to a large water-dwelling cryptid found in the legends and folklore of the Congo River basin. According to the traditions of the Congo River basin the Mokele-mbembe is a large territorial herbivore, approximately the size of a small elephant or a large hippopotamus. It dwells in the
SOURCES:
www.newanimal.org/dinosaurs.htm
www.trueauthority.com/cryptozoology/kasai.htm
Clarke, Arthur C., and Fairley, John, and Welfare, Simon. Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World. Galahad Books, 1982.
Heuvelmans, Bernard. On the Track of Unknown Animals. Kegan Paul, 1995.
www.crypozoology.com (Glossary, Gallery, and Forum sections)
www.google.com (search engine)
www.trueauthority.com/cryptozoology/kasai.htm
www.webspawner.com/users/shadowems7111
http://www.unmuseum.org/soearch/over0803.htm
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