Leave it to the internet to provide another tantalizing clue to the possible existence of a new animal, and possible cryptid! I recently heard of vampire monkeys and was intrigued. Are these animals real, and do we have anything to fear from them? Come along as CryptoVille investigates!

The legend of the vampire monkey dates back to 13^th Century China. A band of highly regarded Samurai warriors who lived during the Yuan Dynasty set forth to explore a section of China, a forested area that was believed to be haunted. (Hang on, I think Samurai live in Japan! Anyway …)

The men never returned so a group of 1000 Samurai left to find out what happened to them. They were able to follow their freshly made tracks, but were horrified to find them all dead on the ground in a jungle glade. It’s said their eyes were still open with shock, and their bodies drained of blood. It was finally decided that the remaining Samurai would burn down that jungle hopefully eradicating the evil that caused the first group’s deaths.

Pseudoscience

After that, there doesn’t seem to be much said about the vampire monkey until recent years. What is said sounds like the notes from a scientific journal as though some scientists have been studying these animals in their natural environment.

Where did this information come from? I don’t know. But what they say is interesting and some of it seems plausible. Yet some of it sounds downright suspicious.

• Vampire monkeys are an extremely rare species of monkey that feeds on blood. They are native to China and there are three species:
  • Common Vampire Monkey (Demosndulus Rotundidus)
  • Hairy-Tailed Vampire Monkey (Dilphyllas Equicaudata)
  • Long-Tailed Vampire Monkey (Demoniaemus Youngidus)
• These animals live far from urban centers but they supposedly prefer the taste of human blood. They’re described as highly intelligent, able to use simple tools, have unique vocal communications, and have a more complex social arrangement than most monkeys.
• They have tiny ears, long tails, and their faces resemble the little squished faces of vampire bats.
• Like snakes, they supposedly have infrared sensors in their nose which makes them super sensitive to their environment.
• Vampire bats, I mean monkeys, feed mostly on mammals and birds. Their front teeth are razor sharp and perfect for cutting into soft flesh.
• They’re unable to eat solid food, so they must have blood.
• It’s also said their saliva contains Draculin which causes the victim’s blood to become runny and unable to clot. (Draculin? Really?!)
• The story goes on to say the monkeys hunt together looking for a large animal that they could share.
• They need to eat at least once a week. If they don’t, they will sometimes share blood from another vampire monkey in an act that looks very much like kissing.
• Vampire monkeys even make nests. They are made of mud, twigs, and saliva which they hang from trees.
• Finally, it’s said they can live for 22 years in the wild, and up to 38 years in captivity. Except no one has any real photos of any so I’m not sure how they know how long they can live in captivity.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

My friends, this whole vampire monkey thing is a hoax, at least as far as this “scientific analysis” baloney goes.  They were clever, whoever made it up. It sounds plausible on several levels, but it doesn’t stand up to real scientific scrutiny.

Here’s an example of a cute little Vampire Monkey on some lady’s finger. However, that’s actually based on a Pygmy Marmoset – a REAL animal known to science.

The Draculin they mention that thins the blood of the victim? In the real world, it’s called desmoteplase, or DSPA for short.

The scientific name of the common vampire bat is Desmodus rotundus. Compare that to the name made up for the common vampire monkey: Demosndulus Rotundidus. Someone is clearly having some fun.

There may have once been a legend about vampire monkeys in China, who knows. The point is, today’s tantalizing tale about these animals, masquerading as a scientific explanation is clearly a hoax. And there’s one more thing, I think I found the hoaxer who is actually an artist.

Meet Takeshi Yamada

Takeshi Yamada is an American artist and craftsman, also known as a Rogue Taxidermist because he takes stuffed animals and creates extinct creatures, mythical creatures, as well as some things he just seems to make up himself.

He seems like a fun guy, certainly an accomplished artist if you read his bio. I don’t think he means any harm. He certainly doesn’t hide his creations! He seems to enjoy showing them!

As you can see from the photo of the vampire monkey nest and the one of the vampire monkey on the lady’s finger, he owns the copyright to both.  So he definitely created the “nest” for the vampire monkey legend and the creature on the finger.

So They Don’t Exist?

Well, your intrepid CryptoVille Curator found a very interesting snippet of information that I’ll share with you now.

Travel channel has a newish show running called Extinct or Alive? Host Forrest Galante travels to exotic and remote places around the globe looking for creatures that either once existed, or perhaps only exist in legend.

He’s had at least one success. He found a Fernandina Tortoise that hadn’t been seen since 1906.  He found it on a remote Galapagos Island.

The other night I overheard a promo for his upcoming show and they were talking about a Dracula Monkey. In fact, that’s the first time I ever heard of the animal. He was saying it’s a slim chance, but he wanted to go see if these creatures could possibly exist.

Could it be related to the vampire monkeys? We’ll have to tune in and see.

Who knows what he’ll find? Probably nothing, but you never know. He found the missing tortoise.

Interesting side note: Galante’s grandfather, Gerald Summerfield, played a role in proving that the coelacanth isn’t extinct.

 

So what do you think about the possibility of monkeys living on this planet that would like to suck your blood? (Oh kitty!! Will you please cut it out!!)

 

Please also stop by our Facebook page, CryptoVille, where we share all manner of strange, beautiful, and sometimes silly things related to all things cryptid! Please Like our page while you’re there.

 

References

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQjOow2RmIQ

https://www.flickr.com/photos/museumofworldwonders/5446786632

https://www.thewrap.com/extinct-or-alive-fernandina-tortoise-forrest-galante-animal-planet/

https://asknature.org/strategy/saliva-breaks-down-blood-clots/

https://takeshiyamada.weebly.com/rogue-taxidermy.html

https://nypost.com/2019/10/29/extinct-or-alive-host-forrest-galante-discovers-rare-monkey/