UMA!

 I was very pleased yesterday to complete a series that I'd been collecting whenever I could find them. This particular choco-egg has been sold out for ages yet at a nutty shop (Nut's World), I found some remainders. So here is UMA!

UMA 未確認生物 (mikakunin seibutsu) translates as Uncomfirmed and Mysterious Animals. Here's the lineup.

Click on that if you'd like to Krakensize it or look here:

I was missing #9, now I have the entire set except for one more elusive "Secret".

#1 is サンドドラゴン (Sand-Dragon) from America, which I imagine is a Dragon that lives in the sand (NOT a Sand-Worm!) 

Not as dramatic looking as the photo, is it? Here is a rare photo of it in the wild.

#2 is a イエティ (Yeti) from Nepal, Tibet.

Here's a close up.

#3 is our favourite X-Files escapee from El Mundo Gira, the goat blood sucker the チュパカブラ (Chupacabra). 

#4 is our favourite gal from Scotland's Loch Ness, ネッシー (Nessie).

This fuzzy photo of mine sums up Nessie's mythos, does it not?

The following is a Sea Serpent from the UMA producers.

Is Nessie a relative of the eel? This should clear things up.

#5 is ダッシュルヴルム  (Dashruvroom??) I cannot decipher nor find any other info on this, except that it's from Austria and it appears to be a cross between a Wolf and a Snake.

#6 is ツチノコ (Tsuchinoko). Scammed from Wikipedia: In Japanese folklore, the tsuchinoko, literally translating to "child of hammer", is a snake-like being. The name tsuchinoko is prevalent in Western Japan, including Kansai and Shikoku; the creature is known as bachi hebi in Northeastern Japan. 

I have some anecdotal evidence about the Tsuchinoko. It can speak Japanese and will bite its own tail and roll away when threatened.

I'm a big fan of the Tsuchinoko and managed to snag this guy from UFO Catcher a while back.

#7 is バウォコジ (Bauokoji?). This is another one that I'm having a hard time finding any info on it. Some kind of vampire from Africa perhaps?

#8 is my favourite of these green guys, クラーケン (The Kraken). 

I took all the photos except the one above under a strong light (while doing laundry). I took the bluish one at my desk. Weird...

#9 is the スカイフィッシュ (Skyfish) and eluded me for ages. Yesterday, I picked up two!

Here's an artist's impression...

Finally is #10, フロッグマン the (Frogman). Presumably from America it's some kind of Frog-Man, not a frogman.

There is apparently a movie about the guy.

I managed to snag 2/3 of the "Secret" ones, a couple of ドーバーデーモン (Dover Demons), from Dover, Massachusetts. They look like your typical Area 51 aliens up for some probing.

Here's one I scammed from the net. (It appears a little more threatening then those guys.)

Whew, that entry took a lot out of me (which is why it's a day late), so just a couple of Yokai today. Surprisingly, none of the above were included in this book.

First is ビーテル (Biteru), some demon dude from the former USSR.

On the left is a tantalising マーメイド (Mermaid) from the Mediterranean Sea. Her siren song can drive men crazy. (Note: no relation to Ariel.)

The other fellow on the right is a ゴーレム (Golem) who will seek vengeance on tormentors when summoned.

No treat today, rather some signs of Halloween around the Aeon Mall.

At the bookstore...

Why can't they make these socks in adult sizes?

More Yokai tomorrow...