Bunyip - The extinct monster in Australia

With Australian Aborigines, their legendary Bunyip monsters represent both good and evil, the incarnations of both demons and angels. Is the Bunyip monster a creature that once existed or was just a product of imagination?

Location appears

According to the Australian Aborigines, Bunyip lives in lakes, rivers and nearly all Australian reservoirs, mainly in Victoria and New South Wales. People who visit Tasmania also talk about this dog-like creature. Most reports of Bunyip are from the 19th century.

Appearence

Picture 1 of Bunyip - The extinct monster in Australia
According to legend, Bunyip can hunt both women and children.

The appearance of Bunyip is unclear, as there are reports of underwater creatures like a dog or a seal. Many also describe a creature that has long necks and small heads. Bunyip is like a seal or dog that is 1.2-1.8m long, it is covered with long brown or black fur. On the other hand, 1.5-40m long necks often have dark hair.

Bunyip has a head like a bull's head. There are very large canines in the jaw and ears. They have no tail, but have long beards and fins. Bunyips with long necks have small fangs, their ears and heads look more like a horse or emu than a dog. The neck is about 1m long, slender and has mane. There are also skin folds around the neck and tail like a horse.

Life style

Picture 2 of Bunyip - The extinct monster in Australia
The shape of Bunyip is quite similar to that of mammals.

Aboriginal describes Bunyip as an active amphibian at night. Their houses are lakes, rivers, streams and prison ponds. They have great swimming skills, can move in the water very quickly thanks to fins or feet. Bunyip also likes to create many sounds like a loud roar.

According to many legends, Bunyip are dangerous creatures for humans, like eating meat and women. However, usually, they eat crabs and eggs in the cave.

Bunyip and interesting facts

Picture 3 of Bunyip - The extinct monster in Australia
Bunyip is the devil or angel in the mind of Australian aborigines.

  1. The word 'bunyip' can be derived from Aboriginal language but the word cannot be translated. It seems to mean "devil", "angel" or "god". Aboriginal Australians use this word to describe something mysterious, dangerous and scary. It is also often used to describe great and even funny things.
  2. The word bunyip first appeared in the Sydney Gazette in 1812.
  3. Since there were no reports of Bunyip for many years, biologists feared that it was extinct.
  4. According to various Aboriginal descriptions of Bunyip, it seems that this creature can be covered not only with feathers, but also with feathers or even scales like crocodiles.

Currently, some researchers believe that aboriginal stories about creatures can be factual and describe an extinct species about 50,000 years ago.