The Emela-ntouka is an African legendary creature in the mythology of the Pygmy tribes, and a cryptid purported to live in Central Africa. Pygmies (singular Pygmy) refers to a member of any human group whose adult males grow to less than 150 cm (4 feet 11 inches in average height or less than 155 cm Cryptid is a term used in the study of Cryptozoology to refer to a creature whose existence has been suggested but not demonstrated scientifically Central Africa is a core Region of the African Continent often considered to include Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad Its name is claimed to mean "killer of the elephants" in the Lingala language. In other languages it is allegedly known as the Aseka-moke, Njago-gunda, Ngamba-namae, Chipekwe or Irizima. [1] [2]
Contents |
Description
The Emela-ntouka is claimed to be around the size of an African Bush Elephant, brownish to gray in colour, with a heavy tail, and with a body of similar shape and appearance to a rhinoceros, including one long horn on its snout. The African Bush Elephant ( Loxodonta africana) is the larger of the two Species of African elephant. Rhinoceros (raɪˈnɒsərəs often colloquially abbreviated rhino, is a name used to group five extant species of Odd-toed ungulates in the family Keeping its massive bulky body above ground level supposedly requires four short, stump-like legs. It is described as having no frills or ridges along the neck. The animal is alleged to be semi-aquatic and feed on Malombo and other leafy plants. The Emela-ntouka is claimed to utter a vocalization, described as a snort, rumble or growl.
Horn
The structure of its horn is debated among writers on the subject. If the "horn" was ivory, then it would be a tusk (tooth) and not a horn at all. Some rhinoceroses do have tusks, especially the Asiatic one-horned kinds; yet these are not known to inhabit Africa. If the horn is made of bone, then the creature is a reptile, as many fossil reptile groups, such as the ceratopsians, had horns made of bone. Reptiles, or members of the class Reptilia are air-breathing Cold-blooded Vertebrates that have skin covered in scales as opposed to hair or feathers Finally, the horn could be made of keratin, as are the horns of African rhinos. Keratins are a family of fibrous structural proteins; tough and insoluble they form the hard but nonmineralized structures found in Reptiles Birds
Home
This cryptid is alleged to mainly inhabit the vast shallow waters in the swamps and lakes of the Congo River basin, especially in the Likouala swamps in the Republic of the Congo, and possibly Cameroon. Cryptid is a term used in the study of Cryptozoology to refer to a creature whose existence has been suggested but not demonstrated scientifically The Congo River (for a time known as the Zaire River) is the largest River in Western Central Africa. The Republic of the Congo (République du Congo Kongo: Repubilika ya Kongo; Lingala: Republiki ya Kongó) also known as Congo-Brazzaville The Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic of central and western Africa. It is also said to inhabit Lake Bangweulu in Zambia. Bangweulu — 'where the water sky meets the sky' — is one of the world's great wetland systems comprising Lake Bangweulu, the Bangweulu Swamps The Republic of Zambia (ˈzæmbɪə is a Landlocked country in Southern Africa. They are claimed to be solitary, herbivorous animals. The inhabitants of the area are alleged to treat the creature with great fear.
History
J. E. Hughes published his book Eighteen Years on Lake Bangweulu in 1933, in which he reported that an animal that fits the description of an Emela-Ntouka (although not referred to by this name) was slaughtered by Wa-Ushi tribesmen, along the shores of the Luapula River, which connects Lake Bangweulu to Lake Mweru.
The Emela-Ntouka was mentioned by name for the first time in 1954, in an article in the journal Mammalia, authored by former Likouala game inspector Lucien Blancou. He stated the Emela-Ntouka was "larger than a buffalo" and dwelled throughout the Likouala swamps. It was also Blancou who first mentioned the fact that an Emela-Ntouka kills elephants, buffalos or hippos when disturbed[3], much like the Mokele-mbembe's allegedly renowned hatred for hippos. For information on the African political theorist see Achille Mbembe Mokèlé-mbèmbé: meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" While both animals are both supposedly herbivorous, they also supposed to share a fierce sense of territoriality, and it is for this that the pygmies are claimed to "fear it more than any other dangerous animal". At about 1930, an Emela-Ntouka was supposedly killed near Dongou.
Later evidence was contributed by Dr. Roy P. Mackal, who led to expeditions into the Congo in 1980 and 1981. Dr Roy P Mackal (sometimes credited as R P Mackal) is a retired University of Chicago biologist best known to the general public for his interest in He gathered details on various other cryptids. 1987 saw the publication of Mackal’s book, A Living Dinosaur, wherein he summarized the expeditions. [4]
Possible Explanations
A popular speculation is that the mythical monster is in fact a relict ceratopsian. The term relict is used to refer to surviving remnants of natural phenomena Ceratopsia or Ceratopia (ˌsɛrəˈtɒpsiə/ /ˌsɛrəˈtoʊpiə Greek: "horned faces" is a group of herbivorous, beaked Dinosaurs Proponents of this idea believe that the Republic of the Congo is home to many prehistoric animals such as living dinosaurs, including the Mokele mbembe and Mbielu-Mbielu-Mbielu (possibly sauropod or stegosaur dinosaurs). The Republic of the Congo (République du Congo Kongo: Repubilika ya Kongo; Lingala: Republiki ya Kongó) also known as Congo-Brazzaville Stone Age Paleolithic See also Paleolithic, Recent African Origin, Early Homo sapiens, Early human migrations "Paleolithic" For information on the African political theorist see Achille Mbembe Mokèlé-mbèmbé: meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" The Mbielu-Mbielu-Mbielu is a Cryptid reported from the Likouala Region of the Republic of the Congo. Sauropoda (sɔˈrɒpədə or the sauropods (/ˈsɔroʊpɒd/ are a suborder or infraorder of the Saurischian ("lizard-hipped" Known colloquially as stegosaurs the Stegosauria are a group of herbivorous Dinosaurs of the Jurassic and Early Cretaceous Periods In 1981, Dr. Roy Mackal while searching the Congo for the Mokele-mbembe, collected accounts of the Emela-ntouka. Mackal initially considered that Emela-ntouka might be a Monoclonius, or a Centrosaurus, both ceratopsians. Monoclonius (meaning "single stem" referring to the teeth which have a single root Cope 1876 was a Ceratopsian Dinosaur from the Centrosaurus (ˌsɛtroʊˈsɔrəs SEN-tro-SAW-rus, meaning "pointed lizard" (from Greek kentron/κεντρον = "point or Ceratopsidae (sometimes spelled Ceratopidae) is a speciose group of Marginocephalian Dinosaurs including Triceratops and Styracosaurus As such, it might be related to the Ngoubou, which might be a six-horned Styracosaurus. The Ngoubou is a purportedly surviving Ceratopsian like Cryptid in the savanna region of Cameroon. Styracosaurus (stɪˌrækəˈsɔrəs meaning "spiked lizard" from Greek styrax/στυραξ 'spike at the butt-end of a spear-shaft' However, Mackal also noted the pygmies did not report a neck frill, which he would have expected on a ceratopsian. [5] Furthermore, the Ceratopsia are absent from Africa's fossil record. Author Loren Coleman suggested that the Emela-Ntouka is not saurian, but a new sub-species of semi-aquatic rhinoceros. Loren Coleman, MSW, is an author of books on wide-ranging topics including Sociology and Cryptozoology. [6]
See also
References
- ^ The Cryptid Zoo: Emela-ntouka (or "Killer of Elephants")
- ^ Emela-Ntouka
- ^ American Monsters
- ^ Roy P. The Ngoubou is a purportedly surviving Ceratopsian like Cryptid in the savanna region of Cameroon. For information on the African political theorist see Achille Mbembe Mokèlé-mbèmbé: meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" The Mbielu-Mbielu-Mbielu is a Cryptid reported from the Likouala Region of the Republic of the Congo. Nguma-monene (" large python " in Lingala language) is a Cryptid supposedly living in the Republic of Congo, described as being like Cryptid is a term used in the study of Cryptozoology to refer to a creature whose existence has been suggested but not demonstrated scientifically Mackal (1987). A Living Dinosaur? In Search of Mokele-Mbembe. E. J. Brill, Leiden.
- ^ Cryptomundo.com » Emela-Ntouka: Africa’s Killer of Elephants
- ^ Loren Coleman & Jerome Clark. Cryptozoology A-Z. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. Page 83
- Karl Shuker (1995). Dr Karl P N Shuker (born 1959) is a British Zoologist living in the West Midlands, England. In Search of Prehistoric Survivors. Blandford, London. ISBN 0-7137-2469-2
External links
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic