– – A recent episode of Monsters & Mysteries in America as viewed on the Destination America channel lured viewers in with the assorted collection of paranormal and unexplained curiosities listed in our post title, unified only by their Texas location. The segments were entertaining with content mostly seen elsewhere but mounted differently here, and healthy scientific skepticism is encouraged due to the speculative nature of the topics. Their appearance in this blog does not mean personal endorsement of the viewpoints or explanations given by such programs.
The Goat Man segment concerned reported appearances of a large, hair-covered cryptic creature six to seven feet tall estimated to weigh 300 to 400 pounds in the Lake Worth area of Fort Worth, Texas. In some accounts, the beast is reported to have scales on its face and horns on its head about six to eight inches long. Also known as the Mud Man, appearances of the creature were multiple in the summer of 1969, after which time it seemed to go into hiding until being seen again in summer of 1990. In one encounter portrayed, the Goat Man came out of trees to land on top of a car parked in a lover’s lane in the Lake Worth area, trying to grab the arm of the woman within.
A second segment of the hour episode concerned the chupacabra sightings in the Cuero, Texas area. Some reported footage of an unidentified beast with a massive head and ears was presented that was filmed from a pursuing sheriff’s car in 2008; canid-like, this creature escaped further pursuit and identification by running off the road. A nutritionist, Dr. Phylis Canion, was then portrayed whose ranch had experienced chicken slaughter incidents. A deceased specimen of the beast was found on a nearby road, and actually maintained by the woman in a home freezer before being sent out for testing; DNA results did not match the creature with known animals such as dogs or coyotes, with the conclusion made that it was an unknown species. Some have concluded that the Cuero chupacabra is a hybrid creature, possibly with a skin condition such as mange. The segment differentiated the Cuero sightings from those associated with chupacabra sightings and encounters in Puerto Rico, where the creature is more alien in appearance and apparently capable of at least some degree of bipedalism.
Lastly and perhaps with least credibility was a report of “zombie soldiers” in the Brownsville area of southern Texas, with the suggestion made that such appearances are associated with fighting in the area which occurred in the Mexican-American or Civil War. The shorter segment detailed an incident in summer of 1985 when a young couple in a truck pulled off on a side road at night to pursue some sleep. A knock came at the truck door with the couple exiting the truck cab to investigate, following a light seen ahead, and subsequently being encircled by zombie-like individuals attired in similar fashion, as in “Walking Dead”episodes. The couple managed to make their way back to the safety of their truck, and gunning the vehicle escaped in it back to the main road. Handprints were later discovered all over the truck’s exterior. A bloody battle of the American Civil War had supposedly taken place on the grounds of their encampment in 1865.
Hinging just on the account of the couple involved, the third segment had the flavor of an urban myth, although the area involved has a history supportive of ghostly encounter tales…pleasant screams!
– – I’m thankful for hairy hominids, without which this blog might soon expire from starvation. And so, good readers, if you can suffer one more yeti theory, we offer yet another explanation being advanced: the yeti is a type of previously-unknown, hybrid bear.
– – A Texas-based research group led by veterinarian Dr. Melba Ketchum, The Sasquatch Genome Project, is claiming that Bigfoot is real, and that they have tissue samples and video evidence to support their claim. A report by the group claims that Sasquatch is a relatively new species arising from a female Homo sapiens and an unknown male primate that linked up about 15,000 years ago.
– – It’s a smart, slick, and stylish show that parallels the Marvel cinematic universe with elements of the Men In Black movies and echoes of The X-Files thrown in for good measure; I’m speaking of the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. series which debuted on the ABC network on September 24th. Television has had shows somewhat similar to this before, but the small screen has been devoid of them for some time, so it’s good to see this new and promising entry, especially one with such a rich heritage and ambitious aspirations.
– – Hellhounds as profiled on Syfy’s “Haunted Highway” show in a 2012 episode are supposedly the spirits of vicious dogs that were once abused by miners in the El Dorado Canyon in Nevada; attributed to be horse-high and razor-fanged, they were sought by investigators Jack Osbourne and Dana Workman in the vicinity of the abandoned Knob Hill mine. 
– – Pity or perhaps envy William Shatner, who just can’t seem to get away from aliens and other unexplained phenomena; on the new Syfy show Weird or What?, the man best known for playing James T. Kirk on the original 
– – Mysterious shadows, screams in the night, hairy hominids, and a hair-raising sense that something is watching me…these are a few of my favorite things! Few cryptic creatures are as laughably strange, however, as is the Sheepsquatch, a crossover between mutton and man reported throughout West Virginia and in the southwestern region of Virginia. 
– – To me, they looked more demonic than simian, but that was perhaps the point. The Flying Monkeys on the Syfy movie of the same name which aired on March 9th were evil, shape-shifting monsters, pets by day and killers by night. Unrelated but with a number of shameless nods to the Oz saga (the movie’s even set in Gale, Kansas), these are nasty, flying beasties that swoop down to shred and tear…something to “get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!” – -Shameless but captivating low-budget entertainment, and as much fun as a barrel of flying monkeys! Just click your heels together while repeating, “There’s no place like the Syfy Channel!
FOXSYLVANIA 
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