Extinct Sea Creatures Rumored To Still Be Alive
From Mermaids to The Kraken, from Sirens to The Loch Ness Monster, here are some of the mythical creatures that are rumored to be alive.
1. Jormungandr
The Jormungandr, or the Midgard Serpent, is the middle child of giantess Angrboda and Loki. Odin, god of gods, took Loki’s three children, the wolf Fenrir, Hel and Jormungand and threw the serpent in the great ocean that surrounds Midgard. It grew so large that it managed to surround the earth and grab it’s own tail. Thor, the thunder-god, is the arch-enemy of Jormungand and it is said that when the serpent releases it’s tail, Ragnarok, or the end of the world, will begin.
2. Sirens
Not exactly a water creature, but it was a deadly threat to those travelling at sea. Sirens were dangerous monsters that lured sailor and ships with their enchanting voices, causing them to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their Island. The greeks and romans were terrified of them. Part woman, part bird, they played a variety of musical instruments, especially the harp.
It is said that Ulysses was so curious as to what exactly made the siren’s song so enchanting, so he ordered his sailor to plug their ears with beeswax,tie him to the ship’s mast and leave him there, no matter how much he begged.
Upon hearing their beautiful song, Ulysses went mad and screamed to be released. His men tied him even tighter until they passed out of earshot and their song could no longer be heard. It is said that the sirens were fated to die if any anybody listened to their song and escaped, and after Ulysses left, they flung themselves into the ocean and perished.
3. Yacuruna
The indigenous people of the Amazon tell tales of the Yacuruna, water people, similar to human beings, that live in beautiful underwater cities, often at the mouths of rivers. They are described as hairy beings, with their heads turned backwards and having deformed feet.
During the day, they sleep on the bottom of the rivers and lakes, and at night they roam the amazon riding a crocodile as a canoe and using a boa snake as a necklace. The Yacuruna can communicate and have control over the animals of the rainforest and it is said that they can transform into the Amazon River Dolphin, which is attracted by the blood in menstruating women.
Once the woman is found, it transforms into a handsome man and seduces the woman, using aphordisiacs to kidnapp her and bring her to his underwater kingdom. With time, she gradually starts resembling her captor.
Once the transformation of a human into a Yacuruna is complete, it is irreversible and they can never go back home.
4. Loch Ness Monster
The Loch Ness Monster, or Nessie, is a creature inhabiting the Loch Ness lake in the Scottish Highlands. It is probably one of the most famous lake monster, and it is reported as being very large in size, with a long neck and humps protruding out of the water.
The first sighting was in the 6th century AD, when Irish saint Columba met with a group of people burying a man near River Ness. One of the men was swimming and a water beast grabbed him and dragged him underwater.
When the beast returned for one of Saint Columba’s men, he drove the creature away by making the sign of the cross and commanding the creature to leave.
As the years passed, many more people reported seeing a strange creature in the lake, and The Loch Ness monster first gained worldwide attention with the now famous “surgeon’s photograph”, that shows a serpent-like creature sticking it’s head out of the water.
Some say the Loch Ness monster is either a myth or just a hoax. Others say that Nessie is in fact an ancient Plesiosaurus.
5. Nymph
Nymphs are divine spirits, often found in forests and mountains, near the placed they are bound to, like rivers or lakes. They look like very beautiful women, but are in fact deities
6. Kraken
Near the coast of Norway and Greenland lives a giant monster that has been the stuff of nightmares for anybody who dared venture out to sea. For centuries, the Kraken has been one of the most terrifying creatures that inhabit the ocean.
It is a huge, octopus like creature. It attacks anyone who disturbs its waters, from fishing boats to large ships. There is no way to escape it’s tentacles, which they use to embrace a whole ship, crushing it, and pulling it deep underwater.
7. Mermaid/Merman
Of course you’ve heard of Mermaids, or their male counterparts, the Mermen. They have the upper body of a human, and the tail of a fish. They have been sighted since the times of the Assyrians, even Christopher Columbus saw them during his exploration of the Caribbean!
Mermaids are associated with floods, drownings and shipwrecks, although they are not necessarily evil, sometimes they do good, blessing the fortunate, teaching them hidden knowledge, or falling in love with humans.
Some say they are just manatees or stingrays. Until we actually find one, there’s plenty of stories about mermaid to read.
