- [Dr. Zarka] Deep within the Amazon rainforest
a mysterious creature lurks.
Notoriously elusive,
this cave-dwelling giant hairy monster
leaves a trail of broken trees
and trampled ferns in its wake.
With no predators to speak of,
the Mapinguari's fearsome strength is matched
by its pungent odor.
Appearing predominantly in the traditions
of the peoples of Brazil,
the Mapinguari seeks vengeance against those who hunt
and harvest the flora and fauna of its home,
those it deems violators
of the sacred spaces of the rainforest.
The Amazon claims unparalleled biodiversity
on our globe,
and demands a heightened level of protection.
So is the Mapinguari real, mythical,
or somewhere in between?
I'm Dr. Emily Zarka.
And this is Monstrum.
Of massive size, great strength,
and possessing a distinctive foul smell,
the hairy creature roars
with great ferocity from its shortened horse-like muzzle.
The Mapinguari may have two eyes
or only one in the center of its forehead,
and a mouth in the center of its stomach.
It usually roams the rainforest on all fours,
but eyewitnesses also claim that it can walk bipedally.
When standing on its hind legs,
the Mapinguari can reach anywhere
between three to six meters in height.
Adorning all four giant anteater-like paws
are large hooked claws like those of a giant armadillo,
that curl inwards or backward.
It also has some pretty impressive chompers,
including four huge canine teeth protruding from its mouth.
Color variations range from reddish, to brown, to black,
and it has a short tail.
While the Mapinguari prefers a vegetarian diet,
it will feast on livestock
and humans that violate its habitat.
It kills by ripping the legs
and arms off its prey before eating them.
For the particularly bad offenders that pillage the forest
with greed, in the most brutal accounts
the creature devours the victim slowly,
starting with the head and proceeding leisurely.
The hard skin of the Mapinguari may resemble
the skin of an alligator or a turtle's shell.
But regardless of appearance,
it's virtually impenetrable to weapons.
Another weak point, it's belly button.
If you get the chance to try to kill the monster,
depending on the source,
it's horrific odor or supernatural abilities
disorient would-be hunters.
Those that might get a lucky shot off may not
even be able to get near enough to verify the kill
because the smell emanating from the remains is so foul,
it cannot be tolerated by even those
with the strongest stomachs.
The first tales of the Mapinguari come
from the indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin,
where legends of forest creatures abound.
In the Amazon, across the states of Rondonia, Amazonas,
Acre and Para, the Mapinguari is part of folklore
and reported in eyewitness accounts alike.
Brazil is home to more than about 300 indigenous groups
with great linguistic diversity.
With upwards of 150 languages across so many communities,
it's typical to find variations
in this monster's name or story.
- That's Dr. Andriolli Costa,
folklore researcher and consultant.
He's an expert in Brazilian folklore,
and a great storyteller to boot.
- Other monsters share characteristics
with the Mapinguari, like the Segamai,
an herbivore about the size of a cow, with matted fur,
who can walk on all fours or it's back two legs,
emits a blood curdling roar,
and cannot be harmed by regular weapons,
but has a snout more like that of a giant anteater.
Then there's the protective Curupira.
- It's tempting to use the similarities
of the Mapinguari myth across regional traditions
to connect the creature to an animal.
One that lived not so long ago
or even one still alive today.
This is where the most popular
and notorious rationalization
for the Mapinguari comes into play.
The giant sloth theory, which claims the Mapinguari
and other similar creatures are folkloric interpretations
of a real but long-extinct animal.
Though, in the spirit of other elusive monsters,
there are some people who chase legends
to prove their existence.
In the 19th century, written claims emerged
from South America, proclaiming that members
of the Mylodontidae ground sloth family,
believed to be extinct, were actually alive and well.
Argentinian paleontologist Florentino Ameghino
publicly asserted he believed giant ground sloths
still lived in the Patagonia region.
Even in the 21st century,
the "Mapinguari is a Ground Sloth theory"
is enthusiastically supported.
Perhaps no more publicly than biologist
and ornithologist Dr. David Oren.
Oren has dedicated a large portion of his life
to proving the continued existence
of prehistoric ground sloths.
He asserts that the monster is the result
of cultural memories combined
with present day living ground sloth encounters,
most likely a relative of the Mylodontidae family.
Some of the hunters Oren talked
to said they had even killed members
of this subset of the Xenarthan clade species themselves.
On one of Oren's excursions,
a dung sample thought to be evidence
of the creature was collected.
Using DNA analysis, a lab proved the true owner
of the scat, an arboreal anteater.
Science doesn't necessarily explain all
of the firsthand accounts
or hundreds of years of narratives.
- Like the European colonizers and travelers
who once influenced these stories,
Western audiences and internet folklore sleuths today
have blurred the lines between these supernatural monsters
and their indigenous symbolism.
While not necessarily done with ill intent,
it's important to keep in mind
that the original Mapinguari tales hold
the greatest significance.
- If we take a close look at all of the Mapinguari stories
from various indigenous communities in Brazil
there is a consistent theme.
The creature's purpose is to protect the rainforest.
For thousands of years, the abundance of riches
within this natural resource has sustained
the people of the region.
The existence of a scary monster
set out to protect it makes sense.
The Mapinguari avenges its home
from trespassers, hunters and greedy consumers alike.
And if the Mapinguari's fearsome presence
can help save this significant resource,
another monster has served its purpose.
Mylodontidae.
Tidae?
Mylodontidae.
Oh yeah, duh.
Mylodontidae.
Good enough.
Yeah.