The myth of the CHUPACABRA originated in 1995. Literally translated from the Spanish, chupacabra means “goat sucker,” and the name refers to the creature’s reported vampire-like attacks on farm animals and personal pets. In many descriptions, it is either a dog-like creature with large fangs or a reptile with dorsal spines extending from head to tail. The first reported sighting of a Chupacabra was in Puerto Rico, but others have been noted in other locations from the northeastern U.S. to Chile. Latin American popular legends describe the beast as a monstrous creature that attacks animals and consumes their blood, and it has been characterized as the southern equivalent of the Sasquatch. The chupacabra only recently joined the vampire in the bestiary of bloodsucking creatures. In Puerto Rico, they were blamed for attacks on goats, sheep, and other domestic animals, supposedly leaving uneaten carcasses that were drained of blood. Early reports described a creature that stood upright and resembled a large reptilian kangaroo with huge red eyes. No actual specimens were found, and skeptics suggested that “witnesses” may have been influenced by the Hollywood science-fiction horror film Species (1995), which features a monster of similar appearance. Other sightings have been reported throughout the Americas and as far north as the United States. A different type of chupacabra was also reported in many of the same places. These chupacabras were smaller and stood upon four feet. They were generally canine in appearance, but hairless. Actual specimens were produced, but they were identified by biologists as coyotes, dogs, or canine hybrids that owed their strange appearance to hair loss resulting from mange. True believers were not dissuaded by this conclusion, and sightings continue.
