Here be monsters: The search for Africas mythical beasts
In September, it was a giant squid found in the Antarctic that some believed would reveal the secrets of the deep and the legendary kraken.Come October, a new infrared image of the Loch Ness Monster had cryptozoologists -- those who specialize in searching for large, unproven species -- in a tizzy.
Every so often, a new sighting or development in the search for these long-standing legends grabs our attention and fuels our imaginations.
It's a theme common the world over.
In North America, the elusive Bigfoot and other creatures are the stuff of mountaineering legend. Across the mountainous terrain of Tibet and Nepal, meanwhile, it's all about the legendary Yeti or Abominable Snowman.
Yet perhaps no continent has more history of folkloric myths, monsters and demons than Africa.
This is where the human story began, after all, and it remains home to tales of giant reptiles, lost plesiosaurs and snakes with the head of an elephant.
Few of these creatures are as well known as the Loch Ness Monster or the ape-men-type creatures of the mountains in Asia and the U.S.
To set the record straight, we decided to highlight ten examples of African legends that can compare to anything the Scottish lochs or Himalayas have to offer.
by Eoghan Macguire, for CNN
Illustrations by Inez Torre, CNN
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLrNZ5qopV9nfXKAjmppaGlpZK6nvsicmGifkaG5pr7YaKSopqOpsrO%2FjKidZpmWp7akrY6ipZ2dqGO1tbnL