The Paranormal Database

Beast of Bodalog

Location: Rhayader (Powys) - Area around Bodalog Farm
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: September 1988 to December 1988
Further Comments: Thirty five sheep were killed over several months by an unknown creature which dispatched livestock with a bite just below the neck. It was speculated that the creature came from the nearby river at night. Due to flattened grass around the kills, some speculated it was the work of a large snake.

Mermaid

Location: Rinns of Islay (Argyll and Bute) - Small island off Rinns of Islay
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: There are several entities said to haunt this small island, including a mermaid, the sound of rattling chains, and water horses. A woman supervising cattle on the island was attacked by something tall and hairy, with no skin upon its face. She managed to survive by throwing boiling water over the entity and creating a magic circle, remaining inside it.

Afanc

Location: River Conwy (Clwyd) - Llyn yr Afranc (aka Beaver Pool)
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Afanc was a monster, thought to resemble a beaver, which attacked locals and dragged them to the bottom of the river. The beast was defeated after being tricked into sleeping by a fair maiden.

River Gipping, Suffolk.

Gipping Girl

Location: River Gipping (Suffolk) - General area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The mermaid that frequented the Gipping would prey on children who played near the deeper waters of the river.

Strange Animals

Location: Rochester (Kent) - Blue Bell Hill, near Rochester
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: An ostrich was seen by a driver during the 1990s near the haunted hill, but when he stopped to investigate, the creature had changed into a large black cat which ran away. The cat (or a similar one) had been previously seen in the area, as has a large hairy beast, thought by the witness to be a gorilla.

Howard Pyle, The Mermaid, 1910.

Mermaid

Location: Rostherne Mere (Cheshire) - General area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Easter Sunday (reoccurring)
Further Comments: Her reasons unknown, this mermaid returns once a year to ring a bell hidden deep underwater and sing.

Rothesay

Location: Rothesay (Argyll and Bute) - Shoreline within a mile of town
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 19 (or 12) July 1826
Further Comments: Three men spotted a mermaid carefully combing her long black hair along the shoreline. One of the witnesses also reported a large sea monster nearby, which had the body of a man 'but with the head of a brute'.

Horse o' Hillaroo

Location: Rothiesholm, Stronsay (Orkney) - Mound of Hillaroo
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A winged horse was said to be found atop of the mound of Hillaroo. The horse would swoop down on unlucky travellers, favouring children, and carry them off to an unknown fate.

Nuggle

Location: Rousay (Orkney) - Loch of Knitchen
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Appearing as a beautiful black horse, this creature would hide amongst 'real' horses near the water's edge. True to water horse form, if anyone mounted the beast it would head straight for the water to drown the unsuspecting rider.

Kentish Apeman

Location: Royal Tunbridge Wells (Kent) - Tunbridge Wells Common
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 1940s onwards, last seen October 2012
Further Comments: A two and a half metre tall hairy hominid with glowing red eyes has periodically been reported in this area since the Second World War.

Lizard

Location: Rufford (Lancashire) - Woods around the area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: It has been reported that woodland around this area is home of a green and red lizard the size of a large dog. The creature is also said to have been seen digging in the parish church...

Water Horse

Location: Rysa (Orkney) - General area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Legend says this island was home to a water horse, although nothing more is known.

Cockatrice

Location: Saffron Walden (Essex) - Exact location unknown
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This medieval creature which killed people with its eyes took up residence near the town, only to be defeated by a man wearing mirrored armour.

Barking Beast

Location: Salcombe (Devon) - Off coast
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: August 1970
Further Comments: A serpent like creature which was reported in the area was claimed to be a large conger eel, though this would not explain the strange barking sounds that were also accredited to the sea monster.

Catgarookey

Location: Salisbury (Wiltshire) - Laverstock area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: June 2005
Further Comments: This sixty centimetre tall creature, christened 'Catgarookey' because it looks like a cat-kangaroo-monkey hybrid, was spotted several times in the region. The fact that the animal possessed a black and yellow tail with a white tip suggests the 'beast' is little more than an escaped racoon family member.

An old woodcut of a hairy man.

Wild Man of the Woods

Location: Salisbury (Wiltshire) - Woodland near the town
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 1877
Further Comments: A wild man who lived in the woods was shot at when he attacked and tried to kidnap a local farmer's wife. The creature was never seen again.

Naked Man

Location: Sandford Orcas (Dorset) - Woodland
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Pre-twentieth century?
Further Comments: A naked figure reputed to lurk within forested areas was said to be a 'wild man of the woods'.

Green Fish

Location: Sannox, Isle of Arran (Ayrshire) - Sea around the area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: September 1877
Further Comments: The yacht Valetta reported encountering a long green fish. While the creature's full length is undocumented, the tail was said to be eighteen foot (5.5 metres) in length. Local fishermen blamed the creature for the destruction of their nets.

Emu

Location: Saxmundham (Suffolk) - Railway Line
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 09 July 2012, 11:20h
Further Comments: A train driver reported spotting an emu crossing the Ipswich to Lowestoft track.

Remains in the Bay

Location: Scalloway (Shetland) - Bay
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 1810
Further Comments: The remains of a large mystery sea creature drifted into Scalloway Bay. Described as a looking like an upturned vessel, it remained in the bay for two weeks before disappearing - during this time, no one was brave enough to approach it for a closer look.

Kelpies

Location: Scalloway (Shetland) - Waters around the area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This area was thought to be home to humanoid sea creatures that drowned their victims before partaking of the deceased flesh.

Humped Creature

Location: Scalpay Island (Highland) - Waters off the island
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Late nineteenth century
Further Comments: Four witnesses in a yacht reported seeing two humped creatures swimming off the coast of the island. One witness estimated the length of the serpents to be at least forty feet (twelve metres).

Kangaroo

Location: SE13 (Greater London) - Beckenham Place Park, Lewisham
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 2000
Further Comments: Footprints resembling those of a kangaroo were reported in the park, while another witness reported the creature had kicked her dog. No sightings of the roo have been reported since.

Pterodactyl

Location: Seaton Burn (Tyne and Wear) - Skies over the area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Circa 1990
Further Comments: A Pterodactyl-shaped creature with a six metre wingspan flew around six metres over the top of houses. The creature moved at around 30mph and made absolutely no sound.

The Deaf Adder

Location: Sevenoaks (Kent) - Woodland in the area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: This terminator-like serpent was said to be completely deaf, but if the snake spotted anyone, it would pursue its victim, never giving up the chase until it had bitten its prey. The bite was always fatal.