chupacabras

Latin American cryptid

Chupacabras is a creature from Latin American folklore, supposedly responsible for killing livestock by draining their blood.

The name is Spanish for "goat-sucker." Sightings began in Puerto Rico in the 1990s and spread throughout the Americas.

Like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster, chupacabras occupies the space between cryptozoology and urban legend: They blamed the dead chickens on el chupacabras.

cryptid

goatsucker

Nocturnal insect-catching bird

cryptozoologyPursuit of unproven creatures
sightingInstance of perceiving something
creatureLiving, sentient entity

monster · legend · unknown · beast · nocturnal · predator · mystery · paranormal · unexplained · eyewitness

folklore

Puerto Rico

American Caribbean territory

Latin AmericaRomance-speaking Western Hemisphere
MexicoNorth American southern nation
TexasSecond-largest American state

legend · myth · rural · campesino · oral tradition · superstition · fear · storytelling · cautionary tale · cultural

attacks

goat

Horned, bearded livestock

livestockDomesticated farm animals
bloodBody's oxygen carrier
punctureHole from penetration

drained · cattle · sheep · chicken · victim · carcass · wounds · neck · exsanguination · predation

appearance

spines

Stiff, pointed projections

red eyesIrritated, pinkish scleras
gray skinPallid, colorless flesh tone
alienNon-native being

hairless · scaly · claws · fangs · leathery · hunched · forked tongue · wings · skeletal · grotesque

Opposites

ontological status

chupacabraswhite-tailed deer

Common American cervid species

creature type

chupacabrasguardian angel

Protective spirit assigned individually

protector · caretaker · nurturer · fairy godmother · shepherd

cultural register

chupacabrasguardian spirit

Protective supernatural being

fairy godmother · good fairy · angel · unicorn · phoenix

Family

chupacabra

Familiarity: Top 500,000
Profile: Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated PG