In the folklore of the Mura Indians of Brazil and Guyana's Tumucumaque Mountains, the cãoera is a giant bat the size of an urubu vulture, which has a wingspan of up to 66''. It is said to be a blood-sucker capable of entirely draining a sleeping person, and supposedly lives in holes in the ground, coming out when it smells burning, or when people go to the river to wash or wander into the forest.[1]
Cryptozoologist Angel Morant Forés writes that the cãoera may be connected with the supposedly-extinct giant vampire bat, but feels that it is more likely based on a large carnivorous or frugivorous bat, or a regular vampire bat exaggerated by oral tradition.[1]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Forés, Angel Morant "Desmodus draculae: la chauve-souris vampire géante est-elle vraiment éteinte?," Institut Virtuel de Cryptozoologie cryptozoo.pagesperso-orange.fr [Accessed 27 June 2019]