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a research + reflection by Karina Pawlun

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The name 'chupa-cabra' means 'goat sucker', which has spanish roots. Described as a hairless dog like creature, the chupacabra is said to kill animals and suck their blood, leaving them dry and dead. One reason for belief in this legend could be perception and observation, linking to how the believer interprets the situation and evidence. In this case, there are several pictures and accounts of sightings/encounters.

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As seen in the picture below, there are believers in the chupacabra. Although this specific person disproves theories of origin surrounding the creature, they speak as if they know for a fact about the animal and have knowledge on the habits/diets of a chupacabra.

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As seen below, there are also dis believers in the chupacabra. In this case, the disbeliever is not skeptical about the facts or history, but more so treating it as a light topic, with humor involved. Almost like a joke and disproving the creature without any evidence.

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On this web page, we are introduced to a lengthy overview of the chupacabra. This page described the creature, gives its history, origin, sightings, and goes into more detail about the theories surrounding it. Critically speaking, the information on the page is non bias and forms some open ideas about the creature, leading me to believe that the source is reputable.

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The chupacabras (Spanish chupar "to suck" and cabra "goat", literally "goat sucker") is a legendary cryptid rumored to inhabit parts of the Americas. It is associated more recently with sightings of an allegedly unknown animal in Puerto Rico (where these sightings were first reported), Mexico, and the United States, especially in the latter's Latin American communities.

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In this article, we see that there is definitely a belief to the creature, and pointed out close to the end that there could be some other explanation for the sightings, leaving room for ideas to form. From a neighbors perspective and description, they mention that there is no way it could be a coyote, and that the animal was allegedly hunting his/her cat. Based mostly on perception and observation, this source leaves me skeptical for the lack of sure knowledge.

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If some residents are to be believed, the supernatural has been stalking Box Springs Mountain this summer.

According to a Southern California News Group yarn, a few Riverside County residents have seen a mysterious, hairless creature eying their pets recently.

"It was hunting my cat," local Cary Shuker told SCNG. "This wasn't no coyote, by any means."

It's been described it as having the "ears of a deer, long snout, no hair" and a "tail like a rat," characteristics that may sound familiar to cryptozoology fans.

Although a well-established legend, the chupacabra only got its name in the mid-90s when farmers in Puerto Rico reported a creature was killing their livestock and draining it of blood. The media soon dubbed the hairless, dog-like creature a "chupacabra," or goat-sucker. Over the years, sightings have been reported all over the Caribbean and South and Central America, with occasional chupacabras spotted as far north as the U.S.

Riverside-area resident Tom Brundige theorized to SCNG that the chupacabra he saw migrated from Mexico.

"It has a body like a Chihuahua, stretched out, with a large thoracic cavity," resident Tom Brundige told SCNG. "And it has huge hind legs. It has a very narrow, ratlike face, with undulations in it, more like a marsupial."

The real explanation for the Riverside creature is, as you might imagine, probably less folkloric in nature. Hungry coyotes could be coming down into residential areas, looking for small pets to snatch up as food. And if one is particularly mange-stricken, it could look a bit other-worldly.

"I don't think we need to look any further or to think that there's yet some other explanation for these observations," University of Michigan entomologist Barry OConnor told National Geographic in 2010.

Severe cases of mange, which is caused by a parasite, can cause hair loss, shriveled and infected skin and a generally pitiful appearance. It does not, however, cause the famed blood-sucking, which is almost certainly legend rather than fact.

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California neighborhood claims a chupacabra has been stalking its pets

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California neighborhood claims a chupacabra has been stalking its pets. According to a Southern California News Group yarn, a few Riverside County residents have seen a mysterious, hairless creature eying their pets recently. Hungry coyotes could be coming down into residential areas, looking for small pets to snatch up as food.

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https://www.livescience.com/13356-el-chupacabra-mystery-solved.html

In this article, the author states that author Benjamin Radford, who has written several book about paranormal sightings and creatures has mentioned that the chupacabra sightings are a hoax and that there is actually professionals who said they are coyotes with a severe case of mange, a skin disease common in dogs. Another theory is that of the look a like from an alien creature in a science fiction movie called "species" from the mid 90's

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This video shows a semi-believer of the chupacabra. Phillis Cannion, a chupacabra researcher and enthusiast keeps in contact with people all over the world, sending her their sighting videos and stories. and even asking for the latest information on these creatures. Phillis doesn't willingly admit what is in the video (or on a statue in her living room) as a chupacabra, although, doesn't deny it. In my perspective, a reason for belief in the chupacabra could very possibly be paternity, because there are multiple 'sightings', it must be real. This is illogical because our perception is all different and most of the time, skewed.

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This video, being more of an informative instead of bias source, explains the chupacabra history and suggests some theories surrounding the creature. It suggests theories such as the chupacabra was brought by the Spaniards to the Americas by ship early on, the chupacabra being a relative of aliens (with reports of UFO sightings near attacks), and even the chupacabra being a science experiment gone wrong, and escaped from the lab facility. I believe a red flag present is suppression by authorities mentioned in theory 3, that a government science experiment hidden from the public, was only found out because of the alleged escape. Another red flag found here is confusion of correlation with causation (that because the live stock has been found dead, drained of blood, that the chupacabra caused it, when there is other, more logical answers to be researched and investigated)

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As seen in this video, a mother and daughter are running from a strange sound heard in the background, with screams and fear in their voices. As they are taped running, they're moving fast, when the camera drops and basically running away for their lives. I am skeptical of this video after watching it for the 3rd to 4th time,because of some apparent red flags seen and limitations. To start, I can speak to the fact that although the screams sound real, there is no actual footage of any animal/creature, leading me to believe that the noise heard was photo shopped into the audio. Another thing, the video is very shaky and its not indicative of the location/time/surroundings of the encounter. A red flag i believe is at play here would be proof by verbosity, in the fact that if the video claims it, and several people claim the sightings, it must be true. This could also be a perfect piece of evidence for urban legend brewing, having the appearance of reality but could be staged.

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Lost Tapes - Rare, first-ever audio of chupacabra howl*