The Minhocao - A Giant Worm By Any Other Name

The name 揗inhocao?is a Portuguese word for 搘orm? Aside from the word 揗inhocao? the natives of South America refer to the giant serpent by many names such as Batat鉶, Biatat? M'boigua鐄 Mboitat? Mboi-assu, Boitat? Baitat? Batat? Bitat? and Mba?Tata.

There have been many reports of sightings of a giant worm in the forests and fields of South America. As an amphibian creature whose appearance is akin to that of a giant earthworm, the Minhocao is said to be filled with scaly black skin. Instead of a mouth with sharp fangs like many other serpent beasts, the Minhocao has pair of tentacle-like structures that stick out of its head.

According to witnesses, the giant earthworm抯 body extends to as much as twenty five meters or more than eighty feet while its diameter is about three to four feet wide. Based on the stories, the Minhocao feeds on livestock and other large animals.

Because of its size and strength, the worm beast is said to be capable of capturing and dragging its prey with a single whisk of its body. It is also capable of digging subterranean trenches and overturning boats. As a result, the beast is often blamed whenever there are collapsed houses and trenches, and overturned vehicles in the forests and waters of South America.

The first recorded sighting to the giant earthworm appeared in the write up of Auguste de Saint-Hilaire. Published in the American Journal of Science, he noted that the beast was seen in the 'S鉶 Francisco' river region.

The said report was followed by an article written by zoologist Fritz M黮ler in 1877. In his article published in the Zoologische Garten, M黮ler stated accounts of actual sightings of the Minhocao.

In the article, M黮ler stated that a woman who was fetching water from the river saw a large animal as huge as a house. In the same area of the Parania State, the author also noted a testimonial of a lad who stated that he saw a huge worm-like beast about twenty-five meters in length. The boy said that as the worm beast moved along the ground, the surrounding earth shook as well and trees were overturned.

There is a website that describes the Minhocao and numerous other creatures of Cryptozoology in detail, this website is called: Unknown Creatures and it may be found at this url: http://www.unknown-creatures.com

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