Australia & the Pacific

Namadgi Big Cat On the record

Beast · Namadgi National Park and the ranges south of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory · first reported 2010s · also called Canberra panther

Even the national capital has a big cat story. The bush-covered ranges of Namadgi National Park cover much of the ACT's south. A Burra man named Garry Gowen told the Canberra Times he saw a large cat in Namadgi, which he guessed at two metres long including its tail. When he reported it to ACT Wildlife, he was told sightings were regularly reported in neighbouring Pearce's Creek. Over the border in NSW, his relative Shane Gowen photographed a very large cat crossing Captains Flat Road in Tallaganda State Forest in 2016. A Goulburn couple also reported seeing a large cat-like figure from their kitchen window in 2014. Namadgi's park manager Brett MacNamara said there is something mysterious about the idea of a panther in the mountains. But in 30 years with National Parks he has never seen one, and he believes most people are seeing very large feral cats.

• Before 2018On the record Garry Gowen, of Burra, said he saw a long cat-like animal in Namadgi National Park, about a kilometre away at first. He put its length at about two metres including the tail. ACT Wildlife told him sightings were regularly reported in neighbouring Pearce's Creek. Source: canberratimes.com.au
• June 2016On the record Shane Gowen and his cousin saw a large cat about 100 metres ahead on Captains Flat Road in Tallaganda State Forest, NSW, near Braidwood, and photographed it. He guessed its weight at 35 kg and said it was three or four times bigger than any cat he had seen. It ran into the bush when they got within about ten metres. Source: braidwoodtimes.com.au

Visiting: Namadgi National Park visitor centre is just south of Tharwa, ACT.

Dakuwaqa Told story

Water monster · Buca village and river, Natewa, Cakaudrove, Fiji · first reported Fijian tradition · also called Dakuwaqa the shark god

Dakuwaqa is the great shark god of Fijian tradition, revered as a protector at sea. He is a spiritual being rather than a cryptid in the usual sense, and this entry keeps to stories published in the Fiji Times. Several places claim him. One version, from Buca village in the Natewa district of Cakaudrove, says he began as an unborn child lost by a woman fishing near Navai. Clinging to a floating log, it drifted down the Buca River and grew up. His home was an underwater cave called Qarani'anaca, near the old village bridge. He could take any form, from a man or shark to a log or stone, and he warned villagers of raids by warriors from Somosomo. Other traditions say he lost battles to the octopus gods of Cikobia and Kadavu and promised in return to protect their people at sea.

• Traditional (published 2022)Told story Writer John Mitchell recorded the Buca tradition that Dakuwaqa lived in a cave called Qarani'anaca in the Buca River near the village bridge. In this telling he could take over a person's body to deliver warnings to the village, including warnings of attacks by warriors from Somosomo. He is remembered as a protector of the community. Source: fijitimes.com.fj

Visiting: Buca village is a living community; visitors should ask permission and follow local custom.

Veli Told story

Humanoid · Mount Uluiqalau, Taveuni, and other districts of Fiji · first reported Recorded by 1862; modern reports to the 1970s · also called Leka, little people of Fiji

Fijians tell of the veli, small hairy people of the forest and mountains. In some districts they are called leka. Accounts describe them as about two feet to a metre tall, with long, fuzzy hair, black or red, sometimes hanging to the waist. Some say their eyes gleam white or glow like fire, and that they give off a dreadful stench. Naturalist Berthold Seemann wrote of them in 1862, describing small beings dressed in white tapa who sang sweetly. Stories come from Serua, Cakaudrove, Kadavu, Bua and Taveuni. Writer Daryl Tarte tells of a guide who saw one at dawn while pig hunting. A Fiji Times feature in 2026 retold a 1975 report of eight figures near a Lautoka school and a taxi driver who fled his cab in Suva. Australian researcher Tony Healy looked into the stories in 1977-78.

• July 1975Told story Students at the Lautoka Methodist Mission School reported eight small hairy figures in nearby forest in July 1975. A Fiji Times feature retold the event alongside other sightings. In another account, schoolchildren chased a veli into a cane field near Tavua. Tony Healy later interviewed one witness, David Keshwan, then 17. Source: fijitimes.com.fj
• UndatedTold story Writer Daryl Tarte tells that his guide, Laisiasa, woke at dawn on a pig hunt to see a small, naked, hairy man with waist-length hair and glowing eyes. Tarte's father once saw one drop from a frangipani tree and scamper off, trailing long red hair. He recalled a dreadful stench. Source: press-files.anu.edu.au

New Caledonian Giant Lizard Told story

Beast · Grande Terre and offshore islets, New Caledonia · first reported About 1963 (account); reported in print 1984 · also called New Caledonian monitor

Some islanders in New Caledonia say a large monitor-type lizard lives on Grande Terre and its offshore islets. Reports come especially from the north-east and south-west coasts and from interior forests such as the Hienghène Valley and Sarraméa. One account says a hunter from Boulouparis killed one about a metre long near the La Foa River around 1963. French palaeontologist Jean-Christophe Balouet looked into sightings while studying fossil reptiles, herpetologist Aaron Bauer recorded them and argued survival was plausible, and entomologist Jean Chazeau gathered reports from offshore islands. Holocene fossils from the Pindaï Caves and Boulouparis show New Caledonia once had a monitor-like lizard, resembling the mangrove monitor but different in its jaws and teeth. Some writers think the reports reflect a surviving native form or a mangrove monitor variant. Others suggest some sightings were introduced Fijian banded iguanas.

• About 1963Told story A hunter from Boulouparis is said to have killed a large lizard about one metre long near the La Foa River around 1963. The animal was eaten, and only its jawbone was kept, which was later lost or thrown away, so the find cannot now be tested. Source: cryptidarchives.fandom.com

Blue Mountains Panther On the record

Beast · Grose Vale, Kurrajong, Bilpin and Lithgow, Blue Mountains, New South Wales · first reported Early 1900s; heavy reporting since the 1990s · also called Lithgow Panther, Hawkesbury Black Panther, Grose Vale panther

For more than a century people west of Sydney have reported a large black cat in the Blue Mountains. It goes by the Lithgow Panther or the Blue Mountains Panther. A local group in Grose Vale says it has logged 20 to 30 reports a year since 1998. Witnesses are said to include a police detective, an agriculture department officer, fire service staff and pilots. The NSW government has commissioned several reports. A 2003 report concluded a big cat was more likely than not, and a district vet who studied scat and hair samples thought one probably lived in the area. A later report was allegedly edited before release, and a 2009 Department of Primary Industries report found nothing conclusive. Proposed origins include escaped wartime mascots of US servicemen and circus animals. Skeptics say large feral cats in thick winter coats explain most sightings.

• 2002 or March 2003On the record A teenager named Luke Walker, from Kenthurst, was reported to have suffered deep cuts after an encounter with a panther-like cat. News of his injuries led the NSW government to reopen its inquiry into the sightings. Sources differ on whether this happened in 2002 or March 2003. Source: scepticsbook.com
• 2011On the record A pet alpaca at Bilpin was found mauled, with puncture wounds about 7 cm deep in its skull. A ranger suggested that the wounds could indicate an attack by a large cat. The case is listed on Wikipedia among the physical evidence connected with the panther. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 2008On the record NSW Premier Nathan Rees said there were too many people reporting sightings to brush them aside. He spoke after a western Sydney woman sent him about 600 testimonials, and he raised worries about children's safety. Opposition leader Barry O'Farrell mocked the idea. Skeptics noted that only one grainy piece of video had surfaced despite hundreds of reports. Source: scepticsbook.com

Visiting: The towns of Lithgow, Bilpin and Kurrajong sit on public roads through the Blue Mountains; bushwalks are open year round.

Hawkesbury River Monster On the record

Water monster · Hawkesbury River, from Windsor to Brooklyn, New South Wales · first reported Aboriginal tradition; settler reports from 1912 · also called Moolyewonk, Mirreeulla, Mooney Mooney Monster

The lower Hawkesbury River, north of Sydney, has its own water monster. It is known as the Moolyewonk or Mireeulla. Hawkesbury City Council describes it as a water serpent with a long neck, flippers and a grey colour. Local legend blames it for several capsized boats and missing fishermen. The council and the RACV say Aboriginal rock and cave paintings in remote parts of the area show a plesiosaur-like animal, though no study of the art was checked. Old newspapers carry a handful of settler reports. In 1912 the Evening News described an alligator-like animal about four feet long seen by a boating party in South Creek. In 1924 W.J. Riley and his brother reported a sandy-coloured creature five or six feet long. Canberra investigator Tony Healy, who has looked into the legend, said it might all be misread sightings of ordinary animals, or simply a tall story.

• 1912On the record According to a summary of old newspapers in the Hawkesbury Gazette, the Evening News ran a story headed 'Was it the bunyip?' It described an animal about four feet long that looked like an alligator, seen by a boating party in South Creek, a tributary of the Hawkesbury. Source: hawkesburygazette.com.au
• 1924On the record The Windsor and Richmond Gazette carried an account from W.J. Riley and his brother. Watching from The Terrace for about 15 minutes, they saw a yellowish or sandy creature five or six feet long and two and a half to three feet deep, with a square-looking fish tail. Source: hawkesburygazette.com.au

Visiting: The river is public water; the stories are set along the lower Hawkesbury.

Illawarra Panther On the record

Beast · Escarpment suburbs from Austinmer to Coalcliff, Illawarra, New South Wales · first reported About 80 years of reports, per a 2017 news story · also called Austinmer panther

The steep, forested escarpment above Wollongong has its own black panther story. Residents of the northern beach suburbs, between Austinmer and Coalcliff near the Sea Cliff Bridge, have reported a large black cat for decades. A 2017 report said the sightings went back about 80 years. On Easter Monday 2017 John Geragotellis, from Appin, found a paw print about eight centimetres wide off Buttonshaw Drive in Austinmer. Vaughan King, a former Australia Zoo big cat handler who founded a big cat research group, came to search for signs but found nothing, and said he would return with cameras. Wollongong councillor Bede Crasnich then offered $5,000 for a live exotic cat, caught unharmed, if genetic tests showed it was not a feral cat. He asked why 80 years of sightings had produced no physical evidence, and said he believed people were seeing large feral cats.

• Easter Monday 2017On the record On Easter Monday, John Geragotellis from Appin found a large paw print, about 8 cm across, off Buttonshaw Drive in Austinmer. Vaughan King, a former Australia Zoo big cat handler, came to the Illawarra to search for signs. He found nothing but said he would come back with cameras. Source: canberratimes.com.au
• April 2017On the record Wollongong councillor Bede Crasnich publicly offered a $5,000 reward for proof of a live jungle cat, captured unharmed. He said genetic testing would be needed before he paid, to rule out a big feral cat. He pointed to 80 years of reports with no physical proof, and said he expected the culprit to be an oversized feral cat. Source: canberratimes.com.au

Mount Sugarloaf Black Panther On the record

Beast · Mount Sugarloaf and the western edge of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie (Minmi, Wallsend, Swansea), New South Wales · first reported Reports said to span over 100 years · also called Lake Macquarie panther, Minmi panther

The bush around Mount Sugarloaf, on the western edge of Newcastle, is a regular spot for black panther stories. Local press lists earlier reports from Minmi, Wallsend, Munmorah, Swansea, Morisset and Wyee. Coverage in 2019 said more than 500 panther accounts had been logged across New South Wales in recent times. The most vivid local report came from a mountain bike rider. He said a big black cat dropped out of a red gum tree onto the range road about 25 m in front of him. He described it as the size of a rottweiler, with a cat-shaped head and a big, bushy black tail. He was too frightened to move or take a photo. Suggested origins include wartime mascots of American soldiers, pets of 1850s gold miners and circus escapes. A 2002 state inquiry called a colony of big cats more likely than not, but a 2009 report found nothing conclusive.

• June 21, 2019On the record Chris Trees, a 35-year-old rider from Macquarie Hills, said a large black animal dropped from a red gum on Sugarloaf Range Road, past the first small aerial tower. It faced him for about five seconds, then bolted into the scrub. He put its size near that of a rottweiler. Source: northerndailyleader.com.au

Visiting: Mount Sugarloaf has a public lookout road and is popular with mountain bikers.

The Flabbit Proven hoax

Winged · Colo wilderness, Hawkesbury district, New South Wales · first reported 1985 · also called flying rabbit of the Colo

The Flabbit is a known hoax, and the Hawkesbury is fond of it. Hawkesbury City Council says the story began in 1985, when a local resident reported a strange creature in the rugged Colo wilderness. It was later exposed as a hoax masterminded by then councillor Roy Rotherham. He had used his taxidermy skills to build a winged rabbit from real animal parts and staged photographs of it. The joke was exposed, but the creature stuck. It inspired T-shirts, posters, stuffed toys and even a song. It also has its own event, the traditional 'throwing of the flabbit' at the Colo Wilderness Area Family Picnic Day. The council now includes it in its list of local creatures of myth and legend, alongside the Hawkesbury River Monster.

• 1985Proven hoax A Hawkesbury resident reported a strange creature in the Colo wilderness. It was later exposed as a hoax by councillor Roy Rotherham, who built a winged rabbit by taxidermy and staged photos. It became a community mascot with T-shirts, toys, a song and a 'throwing of the flabbit' picnic day event. Source: hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au

Woodenbong Yowie Told story

Ape-like · Woodenbong, Upper Clarence / Kyogle area, New South Wales · first reported 1890s

Woodenbong is a small town in far northern New South Wales, near the Queensland border. Ecologist Bill Laurance, writing in October 2013, noted that people in and around the town have been reporting yowie sightings since the 1890s. He added that two alleged sightings in the 1970s led scientists to investigate. The women who made those reports were mocked, he wrote, and since then there have been only whispers of further sightings. For the wider yowie story, including the main sightings and the arguments for and against, see the main Yowie dossier. This short entry marks Woodenbong on the map as one of the older named yowie places in New South Wales, with a history of reports that stretches back more than a century.

Full story: Yowie →

• 1970sTold story Bill Laurance writes that two alleged yowie sightings near Woodenbong in the 1970s prompted scientists to investigate. The women who made the claims were mocked, and since then there have been only whispers of further sightings. He does not name the witnesses, the researchers or what they found. Source: researchonline.jcu.edu.au

Yowie Told story

Ape-like · Blue Mountains, New South Wales, and eastern Australia

Australia's hairy giant of the bush, reported up and down the east coast. Full story in the main Yowie dossier.

Full story: Yowie →

Craigieburn Moa On the record

Beast · Craigieburn Range near Arthur's Pass, Canterbury, New Zealand · first reported January 1993 · also called 1993 moa sighting

Moa were giant flightless birds of New Zealand. According to Te Ara, there is no convincing evidence that moa have existed since about 1550. Even so, people have claimed to see them many times since Europeans arrived. The most famous modern claim came in January 1993. Paddy Freaney, a publican from Arthur's Pass, said that he and two companions saw a moa in the Craigieburn Range in Canterbury. The others were Rochelle Rafferty and Sam Waby, a deer stalker with 30 years in the Southern Alps. Freaney strongly denied it was a hoax. In February 1994 the three met the Canterbury Skeptics, who found them coherent, consistent and sincere, and few left thinking it was a deliberate hoax. The skeptics still saw big problems, such as no droppings, the unlikeliness of a large bird going unseen, and the chance it was a deer.

• January 1993On the record Paddy Freaney, Rochelle Rafferty and Sam Waby said they saw a large moa-like bird in the Craigieburn Range in Canterbury. Freaney, a publican from Arthur's Pass, strongly denied that it was a hoax. Te Ara mentions the claim among many alleged moa sightings since Europeans arrived. Source: teara.govt.nz
• February 1, 1994On the record The three witnesses presented their case to the Canterbury Skeptics. Members found them coherent and sincere, and few left believing it was a deliberate hoax. Even so, they listed problems, including the lack of droppings, how unlikely it was that such a big bird went unseen, and the chance it was a deer. Source: articles.skeptics.nz

Visiting: Arthur's Pass village and Craigieburn Forest Park are on State Highway 73 between Christchurch and the West Coast.

Fiordland Moose Investigated report

Beast · Dusky Sound and surrounding forest, Fiordland National Park, Southland, New Zealand · first reported Released 1910; last confirmed 1952 · also called phantom moose

This is an odd case: a real animal that may or may not still survive where it was put. In 1910 ten moose calves from Saskatchewan, Canada, were released at Supper Cove in Dusky Sound, Fiordland. A small herd lived on in the rain-soaked forest, and hunters took around a dozen over the years. The last confirmed photo, of a cow on a riverbank, dates from 1952. Since then the moose has been a phantom. Researcher Ken Tustin, known as the Moose Man, has searched for more than 40 years. In 2001 or 2002 he collected coarse dark grey hair that DNA tests confirmed came from a moose. Later reports include a 1995 video frame and a 2020 sighting by a helicopter pilot. The odds are against the moose: nearly 23 feet of rain a year, dense forest and competition from red deer. In 2011 a $100,000 reward was offered for a photo of a living moose.

• 2001 or 2002Investigated report Ken Tustin, known as the Moose Man, found coarse dark grey hair in the Fiordland bush, and DNA testing confirmed it came from a moose. At the time he estimated a remnant of perhaps 20 to 40 animals might survive. Sources differ on whether the hair was found in 2001 or 2002. Source: themeateater.com
• March 2020On the record Helicopter pilot Ben Young, aged 24, said he saw a cow moose standing in a clearing in Fiordland. He described its big, long face and large, floppy ears, features he said set it apart from a red deer. Newstalk ZB reported that Ken Tustin, searching since the early 1970s, believes moose still survive there. Source: newstalkzb.co.nz

Visiting: Dusky Sound is remote and reached only by boat, floatplane or long tramps; Te Anau is the nearest town.

Karu Tahi On the record

Water monster · Swamp beside State Highway 1 near Meremere, Waikato, New Zealand · first reported Māori tradition; national news 2002-2003 · also called the one-eyed taniwha

Taniwha are powerful beings of Māori tradition linked to rivers, lakes, swamps and the sea. To many iwi they are guardians, and they remain a living part of culture rather than a monster story. This entry sticks to what was publicly reported. Karu Tahi, the one-eyed taniwha, is said by Ngāti Naho, a hapū of the Waikato, to live in a swamp beside State Highway 1. In the early 2000s Transit New Zealand planned motorway works whose route went over the swamp home of the taniwha, and Ngāti Naho objected. The story made national news. In January 2003 TVNZ reported that Transit had reached a compromise with the hapū that allowed construction to continue. According to Te Ara, Transit agreed to reroute the highway, and Rima Herbert of Ngāti Naho called the result a win-win solution that protected the taniwha's lair.

• 9 January 2003On the record TVNZ's One News reported that Transit New Zealand had reached a compromise with Ngāti Naho so motorway construction on State Highway 1 in the Waikato could continue. The hapū had complained that the new route went over the swamp home of Karu Tahi, the one-eyed taniwha. Source: ngataonga.org.nz

Visiting: The site lies along the Waikato Expressway near Meremere; it is a cultural site, not a visitor attraction.

Kawekaweau On the record

Beast · Urewera country near Whakatane, Bay of Plenty, and Northland, New Zealand · first reported Māori tradition; recorded 1870s · also called Delcourt's giant gecko, Hoplodactylus delcourti, Gigarcanum delcourti

The kawekaweau is a large forest lizard from Māori tradition, reported from northern New Zealand. Naturalist Walter Buller described it in 1871 as a striped lizard about two feet long, living in forests north of Auckland. In 1873 Gilbert Mair reported that a specimen had been killed near Whakatane. He said it was about two feet long and as thick as a man's wrist, brown with dull red stripes along its body. By the mid-20th century no museum held a specimen, and many doubted it had ever existed. Then in 1979 curator Alain Delcourt found an old stuffed gecko in the natural history museum in Marseille, France. It measured 62 cm, far bigger than any known gecko. Aaron Bauer and Tony Russell placed it in a New Zealand genus and named it Hoplodactylus delcourti in 1986. Its size, colour and tree-dwelling build match the kawekaweau accounts, but its origin is unproven.

• 1873On the record Gilbert Mair wrote that a kawekaweau was killed near Whakatane. He described it as about two feet long and as thick as a man's wrist, brown, with dull red stripes running along its body. His description is often compared with the giant gecko later found in Marseille. Source: nzgeo.com
• 1979On the record Curator Alain Delcourt found a 62 cm mounted gecko at the natural history museum in Marseille. Aaron Bauer and Tony Russell placed it in the New Zealand genus Hoplodactylus and in 1986 named it Hoplodactylus delcourti. It had been in the museum by 1902, but where it was collected is unknown. Source: nzgeo.com

Maero of the Tararua Range Told story

Ape-like · Tararua Range, lower North Island, New Zealand · first reported Māori tradition; recorded from 1848 · also called Mohoao, maero

In Māori tradition the maero, or mohoao, are wild beings of the deep forest and mountains. Retellings describe them as tall, with dark hair over the body, long bony fingers and sharp nails. They carry stone clubs and are said to attack people. In some stories they resent the newcomers from Hawaiki, who took over the sacred forests that had been theirs. The Tararua Range, north of Wellington, is one of the places named in published sources, along with the Whanganui area and parts of the South Island. A Whanganui tale tells of a man named Tukoio who cut a maero to pieces, only for it to pull itself back together and go back into the forest. Writers on cryptids sometimes link the maero to the Moehau hairy-man reports. That link is modern speculation, not part of the tradition.

• TraditionalTold story In a story from the Whanganui district, a man named Tukoio fought a maero and cut it to pieces. The creature pulled itself back together and returned to the bush, according to published retellings. The tale shows the maero as a being of the forest that ordinary weapons could not easily destroy. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Visiting: The Tararua Forest Park has many tramping tracks, with access from Ōtaki Forks and Holdsworth.

Moehau Monster Told story

Ape-like · Moehau Range, Coromandel Peninsula, New Zealand · first reported 1960s-1970 newspaper debate · also called Moehau

The Moehau Monster is a wild man said to roam the rugged Moehau Range at the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula on New Zealand's North Island. Some Māori link it to the maero, the wild giants of the forest in older tradition. In 1969 and 1970 the creature sparked a lively debate in the press. One seafarer suggested it was a baboon that had escaped from a ship and fled into the hills. Auckland Zoo's director rejected that, saying a baboon could not survive the climate and food supply. A county councillor called the whole thing a practical joke. Another local thought the name came from an American steam hauler used in logging.

• 1969On the record A seafarer at Kikowhakarere proposed that the 'monster' was a baboon that escaped from a ship. Auckland Zoo director George Dean rejected the idea. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1970On the record County councillor Jim Reedy said the story began as a practical joke, while Bob Grey suggested the name came from a steam hauler used in logging. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Visiting: The Moehau Range sits within Coromandel Forest Park at the peninsula's northern tip.

Waitoreke On the record

Beast · South Island, New Zealand (Southland and Canterbury) · first reported 1772 · also called New Zealand otter

The Waitoreke is New Zealand's mystery mammal, a small otter-like animal reported from the South Island. New Zealand has no native land mammals apart from bats, which is why reports caught naturalists' eyes. Witnesses describe a brown, furry animal the size of a cat or a hare, with short legs and a long tapering tail. Some say it whistled. Captain Cook's crew noted a cat-sized, mouse-colored animal at Dusky Sound in 1772. In 1861 geologist Julius von Haast found tracks high on the Ashburton River and heard farmers' descriptions. A pelt he later examined looked more like a quoll than an otter. Explanations include escaped pets, introduced possums or quolls, seals and misidentified birds.

• 1772On the record Captain James Cook's crew at Dusky Sound saw a four-footed animal about the size of a cat, with short legs and mouse-colored fur. Georg Forster thought it was probably one of the ship's cats. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1840sOn the record Walter Mantell recorded a Māori informant's description of an animal about two feet long with grizzled brown fur, like an otter or badger. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1861On the record Julius von Haast found tracks at 3,500 feet near the Ashburton River. Farmers described a dark brown animal the size of a big rabbit that whistled. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1868On the record A pelt examined by Haast was brown with white spots and had no webbing between the toes, closer to a quoll than an otter. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Burrunjor Told story

Beast · Gulf country and Arnhem Land, McArthur River area, Northern Territory · first reported 1950s (modern reports); older Aboriginal tradition claimed · also called Old Three Toes

The Burrunjor is northern Australia's 'dinosaur' story. Writers describe a huge predator, 20 to 25 feet long, that walks on two legs with small clawed arms, much like a tyrannosaur. Popular articles say it appears in Aboriginal stories and cave paintings, but no traditional owner group or rock art study confirming this was found, so the claim should be treated with care. The modern tales come mostly from cattle country. One popular account says that in 1957 ranchers near the McArthur River heard loud grunting, saw about 50 cattle flee in panic and next morning found several dead and half-eaten. Another tells of a search party in Arnhem Land that heard loud grunting and puffing at night. The RACV notes that no sightings have been documented in almost 40 years. Writers suggest the perentie, a monitor lizard up to three metres long, may lie behind the stories.

• 1957Told story According to a popular retelling, ranchers near the McArthur River heard loud grunting noises one night as about 50 cattle panicked and fled toward the river. Next morning several cattle were found mutilated, some half-eaten. No names, police report or photographs are given for the event. Source: historicmysteries.com
• UndatedTold story The same source says that when explorer Bryan Clark was lost for three days in the Arnhem Land wilderness, the search party, two Aboriginal guides and a local policeman, heard loud grunting and puffing noises near their camp at night. Nothing was seen. Source: historicmysteries.com

Migo On the record

Water monster · Lake Dakataua, Willaumez Peninsula, West New Britain, Papua New Guinea · first reported Local tradition; filmed early 1990s · also called Masali, Migaua, Lake Dakataua monster

Lake Dakataua is a caldera lake on the Willaumez Peninsula of New Britain, about 120 m deep at its deepest. Local people tell of a creature in the lake called the Migo, also known as Masali or Migaua. In 1993 a Japanese television crew led by Tetsuo Nagata went to the lake to film it, with cryptozoologist Roy Mackal along; Mackal said he saw the animal himself. The program aired on NHK on 13 February 1994. It showed about five minutes of a large dark animal swimming at the surface. Witnesses described a long-snouted animal with a ridged, serrated tail, around 4 m long. Mackal later suggested the footage showed two crocodiles mating. Zoologist Darren Naish studied it closely and concluded it shows a lone saltwater crocodile, judging by the bony plates on its neck. The lake is often said to hold no fish, though Naish questioned that claim.

• 1993, aired 13 Feb 1994On the record A Japanese TV team travelled to Lake Dakataua to film the creature, with cryptozoologist Roy Mackal on the trip; he said he saw it himself. Their footage showed a large dark animal swimming at the surface for about five minutes. It was broadcast on NHK on 13 February 1994. Source: tetzoo.com
• 2021On the record Zoologist Darren Naish reviewed the film closely and concluded it shows a lone saltwater crocodile, judging by the prominent bony plates on its neck. He found its build matched the saltwater crocodile rather than the New Guinea species, and questioned the claim that the lake holds no fish. Source: tetzoo.com

New Guinea Thylacine Told story

Beast · Bulolo-Wau road, Morobe Province, and highland forests such as Mount Giluwe, Papua New Guinea · first reported 1875 · also called dobsegna

Thylacines lived in New Guinea long ago, and fossils show it. Some people think they never fully vanished there. A 2013 article reported that tribal groups on the Indonesian side of the island describe a dog-like animal called the dobsegna, with a huge mouth and a long stiff tail. Writers such as Karl Shuker have suggested searching forests including Mount Giluwe in Papua New Guinea. One compiled list of reports includes an American zoologist who saw an animal cross the Bulolo-Wau road at night in 1973. The list also has a striped animal described by Lieutenant Robert Armit on the north-east coast in 1875. Skeptics note that no body, photo or sample exists, and that the New Guinea singing dog may explain some reports. For the wider thylacine story see the main Thylacine Sightings dossier.

Full story: Thylacine Sightings (Tasmanian Tiger) →

• 1973Told story According to a compiled sightings list, an American zoologist saw a thylacine-like animal crossing the Bulolo-Wau road at night. The same list includes reports from the highlands of Papua New Guinea, such as a woman who saw a strange animal in her youth. No names or further details are given, and none of these reports has been confirmed. Source: recentlyextinctspecies.com

Ropen On the record

Winged · Umboi Island, Papua New Guinea · first reported 1990s Western expeditions; local tradition

The Ropen is a night-flying creature reported from Umboi Island in Papua New Guinea. It is described as featherless, bat-like or pterosaur-like, with a long tail, and some say it glows. Local stories have it eating fish or even raiding graves. The Ropen became known abroad mainly through American young-earth creationists, who hoped a living pterosaur would challenge evolution. Jonathan Whitcomb, Carl Baugh, Paul Nation, David Woetzel and Garth Guessman all mounted trips or published claims. TV shows followed. Destination Truth filmed unexplained lights in 2007, and MonsterQuest found no creature in 2009. Skeptics suggest frigatebirds, large fruit bats and glowing insects or other natural lights.

• 2007Investigated report The Destination Truth TV team, led by Josh Gates, filmed lights they could not explain on the island. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 2009Investigated report MonsterQuest investigated the Ropen and found no evidence of a creature. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• VariousOn the record A forensic video analyst who reviewed footage of the lights ruled out vehicles and campfires, and suggested a pair of glowing creatures perched in a tree. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Kilcoy Yowie Told story

Ape-like · Kilcoy, Somerset region, south-east Queensland · first reported Local tradition (date unknown)

Kilcoy is a small farming town north-west of Brisbane. Locals say a yowie lives in the mountains around town, and they have made the most of it. Ecologist Bill Laurance noted in 2013 that the town has a wooden yowie statue and its own Yowie Park. Laurance used the town as an example in a 2013 article on wild-man legends such as the yeti and the yowie. The surrounding ranges of the Somerset region are steep and forested. For the full yowie story, including major sightings and the arguments for and against, see the main Yowie dossier. This short entry marks Kilcoy as a place a road-tripper can actually visit.

Full story: Yowie →

Visiting: Yowie Park in Kilcoy has a yowie statue, on the D'Aguilar Highway.

Maalan Monster Told story

Ape-like · Maalan rainforest, near Millaa Millaa, Atherton Tableland, far north Queensland · first reported Heard 1980s (tale set decades earlier)

The Maalan Monster is a little-known local tale from the rainforest of the southern Atherton Tableland in far north Queensland. Ecologist Bill Laurance did his PhD fieldwork in these forests in the 1980s and heard yowie stories while he was there. Writing in 2013, he said a local woman told him of a giant ape-like creature that, decades earlier, had chased a logger in the rainforest of the nearby Maalan area. The logger, she said, was so frightened that he never set foot in the rainforest again. Laurance spent a lot of time in the Maalan forest himself, often spotlighting alone at night. He never saw any monster, though he startled a number of Lumholtz's tree-kangaroos. Few other details of the story have been published, and no date or name for the logger is given.

• UndatedTold story Bill Laurance was told by a local woman that, decades earlier, a giant ape-like creature had chased a logger in the Maalan rainforest. The logger was so frightened that he never went into the rainforest again. No name, date or newspaper report is given, so it stands as local tradition. Source: researchonline.jcu.edu.au

Min Min Light On the record

Lights · Boulia, Channel Country, western Queensland, Australia · first reported 1918 (named sighting) · also called Min Min lights

The Min Min Light is a glowing light seen across the flat Channel Country of outback Queensland, most famously near Boulia. Aboriginal people knew of such lights long before Europeans came, and some say sightings rose as settlers spread inland. The name comes from the Min Min Hotel, a small outback stop where a stockman reported the light in 1918. Similar lights have been reported in New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia. In 2003 scientist Jack Pettigrew proposed a natural answer: a kind of mirage that lifts lights from beyond the horizon into view.

• 1918On the record A stockman reported seeing the light near the Min Min Hotel, the settlement that gave the phenomenon its name. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 2003On the record Jack Pettigrew proposed that the lights are a Fata Morgana, a mirage caused by sharp temperature layers that make distant lights appear above the horizon. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Visiting: Boulia, western Queensland, is the heart of Min Min country.

Queensland Tiger On the record

Beast · North Queensland (Atherton Tableland, Herbert River, Cape York), Australia · first reported 1871 · also called Yarri, Striped marsupial cat

The Queensland Tiger is a striped, cat-like predator reported from the forests of north Queensland. Aboriginal people called it yarri. Witnesses describe an animal about the size of a dingo, with shorter legs and a long tail. Reports go back to 1871. In the late 1870s Norwegian explorer Carl Lumholtz recorded yarri descriptions from Aboriginal people. In 1926 a naturalist's book on Australian wildlife listed a 'striped marsupial cat'. Sightings dropped off after the 1950s, though one naturalist collected over 100 reports in the 1970s. Ideas range from a surviving marsupial lion, Thylacoleo, which died out long ago, to a mainland thylacine, feral cats, tree kangaroos or escaped pumas.

• 1871On the record The earliest documented witness reports of a striped, cat-like animal in Queensland date from this year. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1878On the record Carl Lumholtz recorded Aboriginal descriptions of the yarri: about the size of a dingo, with shorter legs and a long tail. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1926On the record A. S. Le Souef described a 'striped marsupial cat' in The Wild Animals of Australasia. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1970sInvestigated report Naturalist Janeice Plunkett gathered more than 100 sighting reports. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Sina's Eel Told story

Water monster · Mata o le Alelo pool, Matavai village, Safune, Savai'i, Samoa · first reported Samoan tradition · also called Tuna, Sina and the Eel

Samoa's best known creature story is that of Sina and the eel. In the version on record, the Tui Fiti, a king of Fiji, used magic to turn himself into an eel so he could see the famously beautiful Sina. At first she was repelled, but in time she befriended the creature. When the eel revealed who he was, he asked her to bury his head after his death. From that spot grew the first coconut tree. The three round marks on a coconut are said to be the eel's face, so drinking from a coconut is kissing the eel. The story is tied to a real place, the Mata o le Alelo pool at Matavai village on Savai'i. Its name is said to come from Sina's words to the eel. Another version places Sina at Laloata on Upolu. This is a creation story rather than a sighting.

Visiting: Mata o le Alelo pool at Matavai, Safune, on Savai'i is open to visitors.

Guadalcanal Giants Told story

Ape-like · Interior mountains of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands · first reported Popularised from 2010 · also called Solomon Islands giants

Stories of giants in the mountains of Guadalcanal reached a wider audience through Marius Boirayon, an Australian living in the Solomon Islands who describes himself as research director of a Solomon Islands anthropological expedition trust. His 2010 book Solomon Island Mysteries collects accounts he says he gathered locally. They describe beings more than three metres tall, some said to reach over four and a half metres, covered in long black, brown or reddish hair, with protruding double brows, bulging red eyes, flat noses and wide mouths. The best-known story concerns a woman called Mango, said to have been taken by giants about fifty years before he wrote, held for some 25 years and later found on the north-east coast. Other accounts mention huge footprints around construction sites. The main online summary of these claims is a fan-run wiki, and the witnesses have not been independently checked.

• Published 2010Told story Marius Boirayon reported the story of a woman, Mango, said to have been taken by giants about fifty years before he wrote and held for around 25 years before she was found on the north-east coast of Guadalcanal. He also wrote of large footprints left around construction sites. Source: cryptidz.fandom.com

Kakamora Told story

Humanoid · Interior mountains of Makira (San Cristobal), Solomon Islands · first reported Early 20th century (recorded by missionaries) · also called mumu, dodore, kalibohibohi, tutulangi

The kakamora are the little people of Solomon Islands lore, best known from Makira. The Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia describes them as half a metre to a metre tall, with long black hair and long fingernails. They are said to hide in the mountains, live in caves, eat wild bush foods and never use fire. Missionary Charles Fox wrote that they build no houses, have no tools and make no fires, but are strong and live in holes or caves; he later titled his autobiography Kakamora. Similar beings go by other names: mumu in south Malaita, dodore in north Malaita, kalibohibohi on Guadalcanal and nopitu in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu. District officer Dick Horton said he met very short people at Veramakuru village on Guadalcanal in the 1930s. The encyclopaedia adds that the discovery of an early human relative on Flores has lent the story some plausibility.

• 1930sTold story District officer Dick Horton wrote that he had met very short people at Veramakuru village on Guadalcanal during the 1930s. He described them in his book The Happy Isles: A Diary of the Solomons (1965). Some writers link this meeting to the kakamora stories. Source: solomonencyclopaedia.net
• Early 20th centuryTold story Rev. Charles Fox, a long-serving missionary in the Solomons, described the kakamora as beings that build no houses, have no tools and make no fires, but are strong and live in holes or caves. He later gave his 1962 autobiography the title Kakamora. Source: solomonencyclopaedia.net

Kadimakara Told story

Beast · Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre basin, South Australia · first reported Aboriginal tradition, recorded in the late 1800s to early 1900s · also called Kardimarkara

The Kadimakara belong to desert traditions from the Lake Eyre region. They are part of living Aboriginal culture, and this entry sticks to the publicly published version. As retold in popular sources, the Kadimakara were monsters who lived in a sky world held up by tall gum trees. They climbed down to feed when the land below was green. Once, while they were feeding, the trees holding up the sky fell, and they could not get home. They roamed the land and wallowed in the marshes of Lake Eyre until they died. The Dieri people were reported to hold rituals at Kadimakara bones in droughts, asking for rain. Writers since J.W. Gregory in 1906 have read the story as a memory of a wetter past. Archaeologist M.A. Smith argued in 2019 that this is a misreading of a typical Dreaming narrative.

• Recorded traditionTold story Popular retellings say the Dieri people held rituals at the bones of the kadimakara in times of drought, asking them to help bring clouds and rain. The source cites Scott Cane, who suggests the story could be recent enough to interpret fossils or old enough to recall a wetter land. Source: austhrutime.com

Visiting: Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre National Park can be reached by four-wheel drive from William Creek or Marree; check access and permits first.

Tantanoola Tiger On the record

Beast · Tantanoola, Limestone Coast, South Australia · first reported 1880s

In the 1880s and 1890s farmers around Tantanoola, in South Australia's south-east, lost sheep to something they could not catch. Word spread of a tiger, said to have escaped from a travelling circus. In 1895 a man named Tom Donovan shot an animal he believed was the culprit. When it was looked at closely it was not a tiger at all. It turned out to be a European wolf, an animal with no business being in Australia. How it got there has never been fully explained. The stuffed wolf is still on show at the Tantanoola Hotel, and the town has embraced the story. The case is unusual among Australian big cat tales because there is an actual body. It also shows how an unknown predator can be named wrongly for years before anyone sees it up close.

• 1895On the record After years of sheep losses blamed on an escaped tiger, Tom Donovan shot the animal thought to be responsible. On examination it was identified as a European wolf rather than any kind of cat. The body was preserved and later put on display at the local hotel, where it became the town's best known attraction. Source: samemory.sa.gov.au

Visiting: The stuffed 'tiger' (a wolf) is displayed at the Tantanoola Tiger Hotel; a centenary monument marks the 1895 shooting.

Tasmanian Globster On the record

Water monster · Beach north of the Interview River, west coast of Tasmania · first reported 1960 · also called West coast monster, Sea Santa

In the winter of 1960 two stockmen came across a huge, shapeless mass on a remote beach on Tasmania's wild west coast, about two miles north of the Interview River. It was about 20 feet long and 18 feet wide and was guessed to weigh five to ten tons. Reports said it had no eyes, stiff white bristles over its body and soft, tusk-like lumps where a mouth might be. A team from the CSIRO, the University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian Museum later went to collect samples. In 1962 writer Ivan Sanderson used it to coin a new word for such things: globster. Tests pointed to whale blubber, perhaps lost from a whaling ship, and a 1981 paper by L.E. Wall identified it as whale remains. A 2004 study of several globsters found they were all decayed great whales. In 1989 a creek near the site was named Monster Creek.

• August 1960On the record Two stockmen came across the mass on a beach about two miles north of the Interview River. It measured roughly 20 by 18 feet and was covered in stiff white bristles. Reports said it had no eyes and soft, tusk-like lumps where a mouth would be, and was guessed to weigh five to ten tons. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 1960s-2004On the record A team from the CSIRO, the University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian Museum took samples, and tests suggested whale blubber, perhaps lost from a whaling ship. In 1981 L.E. Wall identified the carcass as a whale in the Tasmanian Naturalist. A 2004 study found such blobs were decomposed great whales. Source: australiangeographic.com.au

Visiting: A tissue sample labelled 'west coast monster' has been displayed at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) in Hobart.

Thylacine sightings Told story

Beast · Tasmania and mainland Australia · also called Tasmanian tiger

The Tasmanian tiger was declared extinct after the last captive animal died in 1936, yet reports continue. See the main Thylacine Sightings dossier.

Full story: Thylacine Sightings (Tasmanian Tiger) →

Nopitu (Banks Islands little people) Told story

Humanoid · Banks Islands, Torba Province, northern Vanuatu · first reported Traditional (date unknown) · also called Vanuatu kakamora

The Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia notes that folklore much like the kakamora of Makira is also found in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, where the little people are called nopitu. In the Solomons version, these are small forest people about half a metre to a metre tall, with long black hair and long fingernails. They are said to hide in the mountains, live in caves, eat wild bush foods and never use fire. They have a mischievous reputation and are said to turn aggressive when cornered. The encyclopaedia lists other regional names too, such as mumu and dodore on Malaita and kalibohibohi on Guadalcanal. Few details of the Banks Islands nopitu stories have been published in English. This entry marks the place on the map so readers can see how far the little-people tradition spreads. For the fuller story, see the Kakamora entry under the Solomon Islands.

Bunyip Told story

Water monster · Billabongs and swamps of southeastern Australia

A water creature from Aboriginal tradition that colonial newspapers turned into a monster story. Many Aboriginal communities hold their own understandings of it. See the main Bunyip dossier.

Full story: Bunyip →

Gippsland Phantom Cat On the record

Beast · Gippsland, eastern Victoria, Australia · first reported 20th century · also called Gippsland big cat, Gippsland puma

Gippsland in eastern Victoria is one of several parts of Australia where people report big, black or tawny cats far larger than any house cat. Australia has no native big cats, so the reports are puzzling. Supporters point out that big cats have escaped in Australia before. In 1924 a puma and a jaguar got loose from the Perry Brothers circus. In 2003 a New South Wales government report said it was 'more likely than not' that exotic big cats lived in the bush west of Sydney. Explanations offered include escaped circus animals, pets brought home by soldiers and misidentification.

• 1924On the record A puma and a jaguar escaped from the Perry Brothers circus, a case often cited as proof that big cats have been loose in Australia. Source: en.wikipedia.org
• 2003On the record A New South Wales government report judged it 'more likely than not' that exotic big cats lived in Sydney-area bushland. Source: en.wikipedia.org

Grampians Puma On the record

Beast · Grampians (Gariwerd), Halls Gap and Stawell, western Victoria · first reported 1942 (per Deakin study); circus escape 1924 · also called Grampians big cat

Western Victoria's best known big cat story centres on the Grampians ranges. Local history gives two origin tales. One says a puma and a jaguar got loose in 1924 when a circus cage broke on the road near St Arnaud. The more famous one says American servicemen in the area during World War II kept mountain lions as mascots. Locals say cubs were let go near the Myrtle Bank guest house when the soldiers left. In the late 1970s a Deakin University study by Dr John Henry concluded that a big cat population had lived in western Victoria since about 1942. Sightings are still reported around the Grampians, Halls Gap and Horsham. Some local enthusiasts link the reports to the extinct marsupial lion. Skeptics note that no captured animal has been produced to settle the question.

• 21 June 1924On the record A 1924 Ballarat Star report, quoted in later press coverage, said Perry Brothers Circus lost a puma and a jaguar near St Arnaud when a cage broke while the show was moving to Dunolly. A member of the circus family also said another cat may have escaped near Inverell in NSW. Whether the 1924 animals were ever recaptured is not stated. Source: bendigoadvertiser.com.au
• 1940sTold story A man named Dennis told reporters that his father, an American soldier stationed at Horsham during the war, saw mascot cubs set free when the troops left. A Halls Gap history teacher explained that a mountain lion would have been a natural American mascot. The story is family memory and cannot be checked against military records. Source: bendigoadvertiser.com.au
• Late 1970sOn the record Dr John Henry of Deakin University studied reports from the region and wrote that there was enough evidence from several sources to affirm, beyond reasonable doubt, a big cat population in western Victoria. He dated it to March 1942 in the Grampians. Source: bendigoadvertiser.com.au

Visiting: Halls Gap is the gateway to Grampians National Park, with walking tracks and lookouts.

Otway Panther On the record

Beast · Great Otway National Park, Lorne, Apollo Bay and Mount Sabine, Victoria · first reported Reports said to date from the 1830s · also called Otways phantom cat

The wet forests of the Otway Ranges, behind the Great Ocean Road, are home to another black cat legend. The RACV says sightings go back to the 1830s, around Lorne and Apollo Bay. Witnesses describe a large, black, four-legged animal shaped like a panther. A CD-ROM held by the Federation University Historical Collection gathers emails and photos compiled by researchers Simon Townsend and John Turner. It covers sightings, footprints and alleged stock killings from the Otways, Anglesea, Toolangi and further afield, mostly describing black or tan cats the size of a leopard or puma. In June 2020 a local photographer shared telephoto shots of a big black cat near Mount Sabine. She stressed she was not claiming it was the Otway panther, only showing what she saw, and allowed that it could be an unusually large feral or domestic cat.

• June 2020On the record Photographer Amber O'Meara Noseda said she saw a big black cat about 30 metres away near Mount Sabine and photographed it with a 560mm lens. She first thought it was a wallaby or a dog. She said it was larger than feral cats she had seen, but did not claim it was a panther. Source: 10.com.au

Visiting: The Great Ocean Road towns of Lorne and Apollo Bay give access to Great Otway National Park.

Lancelin Black Cat On the record

Beast · Near Lancelin, north of Perth, Western Australia · first reported 2022 (wider Perth reports earlier) · also called WA black panther

Big black cat stories are scattered all around Perth. Local media lists reports from Toodyay, Dwellingup, Jarrahdale, Capel, Kojonup and Yanchep. The best documented recent case came from near Lancelin, about 90 minutes north of Perth. In October 2022 a retired couple found a large black cat on their security camera. It walked calmly across their land, stopped to look at the man, then carried on up the hill. They photographed its paw prints in the sand. The ABC asked Judy Dunlop of the WA Feral Cat Working Group to review the film. She said it was very likely a larger than normal feral cat, not an exotic species. She added that she was happy to be wrong. The usual explanations offered in WA are wartime mascots, circus escapes, surviving thylacines or very large feral cats.

• October 2022On the record Wayne and Helen Gardiner's security camera caught a big black cat walking calmly across their property near Lancelin. It paused, looked at Wayne, and walked on up the hill. Wayne photographed its prints in the sand. An expert who reviewed the film judged it most likely an oversized feral cat, and the couple said there was no reason for alarm. Source: abc.net.au

Nannup Tiger Investigated report

Beast · Nannup, Busselton and Margaret River, South West, Western Australia · first reported Sightings database goes back to 1890

In Western Australia's South West, the thylacine has a local name: the Nannup Tiger. The timber town of Nannup has a tiger sculpture, made by Flint Edwards in 2003, and reports come in from Busselton, Yoongarillup and Margaret River too. Tarnee Rutherford of the Thylacine Awareness Group keeps a West Australian sightings list that she says goes back to 1890. In 2016 she counted 50 reports from around Busselton alone, on roads such as the Vasse Highway and Queen Elizabeth Drive. She says the animals in these reports tend to stop and watch people or cars rather than run, and seem smaller than the Tasmanian tiger. Thylacines are thought to have died out on the mainland thousands of years ago. For the full thylacine story see the main Thylacine Sightings dossier.

Full story: Thylacine Sightings (Tasmanian Tiger) →

• 2016Investigated report Thylacine Awareness Group researcher Tarnee Rutherford told the Busselton Mail she had recorded about 50 sightings around Busselton, with hot spots along the Vasse Highway, Queen Elizabeth Drive and at Jindong. She said the animals described seemed to wait and watch cars or people rather than flee. She also said WA reports describe an animal smaller than the Tasmanian tiger. Source: busseltonmail.com.au

Visiting: A Nannup Tiger sculpture by Flint Edwards (2003) stands on Brockman Street in Nannup.