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Kongamato |
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In the sub-saharan region of Africa there are rumors of a flying cryptid whoms name means "overwhelmer of boats". This nocturnal cryptid is said to ressemble a giant bat or pterosaur, it flies through the night skies on leathery wings and is said to emit a cackle like noise. Among the Kaonde tribe of zambia the creatures are blamed for floods and their name is in a spell to protect travelers from floods: muchi wa kongamata. The Kongamato first came to the world's attention when the book Witchbound Africa was published by Frank H. Melland in 1923. While in Africa, Melland asked the locals about the creature. They told him it was a huge flying animal with membranes on it's wings instead of feathers, teeth in it's mouth, usually 4-7 feet across the wings and generally red in colour. When he showed them an illustration of a prehistoric Pterodactyl they imediatly recognized it as Kongamato. More modern acounts of the animal have taken place in Namibia, which brought up the attention of the University of Chicago biologist Roy Mackal. In 1988 He sent of to Namibia to investigate these sightings. Mackal manage to collect several acounts of the flying creature, but never saw one himself. It has been theorized to be either a Pterodactyle, or possibly a large Hammerhead bat. - entry provided by Chris Eye, dinohunter@adelphia.net
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