The Crocotta

The Crocotta is a strange type of canine that resembles a wolf. It is also called a Corocotta, a crocuta and a leucrocotta. Some other name is yena. Supposedly as a large as a horse, bull or mule, it appears to be a reddish brown or yellow colour with spots and/or stripes. While it's supposed to have fangs, it's often described as being without visible teeth, just bone, or even perhaps with gingival hyperplasia. This bizarre animal can be found in hot, arid and tropical climates, from India to Ethiopia. What is also a trait associated with the crocotta is its ability to mimic sounds! It's their way of attracting victims, by using voices to lure them to their trap. Crocotta eats all type of meat and hunts anything, including humans. 

It's believed that the Roman emperor Antonius Pius presented a crocotta beast at an arena in AD 148, during his decennalia celebration. That was mentioned in the Augustan History (Pius X.9.). Another historian named Cassius Dio mentioned that the Roman emperor Septimius Severus mentioned the crocotta being brought to Rome from India. The emperor had said of the crocotta: 

"It has the colour of a lioness and a tiger combined and the general appearance of those animals, as also of a dog or a fox, curiously blended." 

Pliny the Elder and his work "Naturalis Historia" described the crocotta as between looking like a dog and wolf, a hyena and a lion. Pliny wrote that the crocotta was able to change its genders, and it could become pregnant without a male. He said that the shepherds found the crocotta mimicking human speech to draw in prey. Crocotta also makes sounds of a sickened human to attract hungry dogs. These creatures dig up corpses. 

The Byzantine scholar Photius summarised work by the Greek writer Ctesias: 

"In Ethiopia there is an animal called crocottas, vulgarly kynolykos (dog-wolf) of amazing strength. It is said to imitate the human voice, to call men by name at night, and devour those who approach it."

 What is even more is that the crocotta can't be harmed by weapons made of steel. Many more scholars and historians including Strabo all mentioned the crocotta as though it were a very actual real creature. 

Besides the mention of it throughout ancient times, the Middle Ages, and some sightings in the United States, there is no evidence the crocotta is real. But what is mentioned is the scientific name for hyena is Crocuta crocuta as named after the legendary animal. Hyenas do have similar traits to the descriptions of the crocotta, as well as digging up corpses and being very strong, they can also make humanlike sounds too. A lot of modern researchers believe that the crocotta was probably a hyena after all.  

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Mosquitoes and vampires

One of the members of She Wolf Night gang recently posted on Quora and we want to share that. It's all about mosquitoes and if they're little vampire creatures. Luna (also named Wolf Girl Night) has made the link with mosquitoes and vampires. It's an unpleasant insect of the Culicidae group, mosquitoes love warm weather and feeding on blood. They're picky eaters so they have favourite types of hosts. Vampires are undead creatures of folklore and they drink blood to survive. So are mosquitoes like vampires?  

Yes. What's more interesting is that female mosquitoes are the ones who suck blood! It's said that the females feed on blood itself to make them more fertile and desirable to the males! So it is the females who are blood sucking vampires. And male mosquitoes are all vegetarians! It is nature's bizarre way of coupling vampire women and their salad munching boyfriends!  

On a much more darker note, mosquitoes are the biggest killers of humans every year: List of deadliest animals to humans

This was edited and paraphrased by Luna and Belladonna. Posted during a heat wave. PLEASE use insect repellent and avoid getting bitten. Enjoy your week!

She Wolf Night team

An ancient witch jar

An ancient Greek object was found in an excavation of the archaeological site of Agora in Athens. It was a ceramic jar containing bones of a chicken and a nail. On the jar's surface were writings of 55 people's names and the phrase that is understood to mean: "we bind". This is believed to have been a witchcraft jar, used to cast a magic spells on many individuals. The tell-tale signs are the bones of the chicken, the nail, the words and names. It was quite common for cursing rituals to go on like this back in ancient times. The names of the individuals on the jar reveal that they were the victims of the binding curse. This jar was found in 2006 alongside a coin beneath a craft worker's section in Agora but they have just cracked the code for understanding the writing on the jar. 

Source page on Live Science Magic Jar...     

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A mystery guest

Imagine waking up first thing in the morning to see a wild predator in your room! This is what happened to a woman named Kristine Frank from Atlanta, Georgia. She woke up in the morning to see an African serval cat on her bed. She and her husband then managed to send the wild cat outside of the house. The couple quickly contacted some authorities on animals, the Department of Natural Resources, who deal with issues about wildlife. The keeping of exotic animals is the likely reason for it being in the neighbourhood, according to The Animal Legal Defence Fund. The State of Georgia doesn't allow such animals as pets. The serval cat was eventually found in the local area and was gently taken to a caring animal sanctuary. 

The mystery is where did she come from and how did she appear in someone's house? Kristine Frank believed that it might've been during the night when she opened the back door to let the dog go outside. When the door was opened, it was possible the serval cat sneaked into the house. The serval's presence in the area could've been explained easily by the ALDF:

 "the wild cat is likely in the Atlanta area because someone is keeping the feline as a pet" they said. 

The woman Kristine Frank has also asked questions:

 "I just think if my dog would have been in the house, what would have happened to my dog? If I had small children, what would have happened to them?" 

It's just very lucky the dog wasn't there in the room with the cat. Although some people do keep serval cats as pets in States and countries where it's not illegal, there is still a risk. It's not safe to keep a serval at all in a family house with children and other animals. This touches on a very slippery debate about keeping exotic pets, and wild animals as pets including wolf hybrids. But serval cats are not domestic animals and they've certainly attacked children before. Anyone with kids should never consider adopting a serval cat.  

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Deer woman

 

This is a legendary spirit or cryptid from America, about deer women or deer ladies. These are often in Native American stories concerning a shape shifter who can turn into a deer or a beautiful woman. Some tales describe deer women as having the upper bodies of women but the legs and tails of deer. Other times deer women have bodies of women but they have hooves instead of feet, and the eyes of deer. 

The deer women have been said to enchant weary travellers, summoning men from the woods. They often are told of being dancers, who draw a number of victims by the hypnotic movements. Some men have managed to flee, while it is said these deer women have killed men who were not able to get away. It's said that the smell of tobacco repels deer women. 

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