Mythological creatures are a worldwide mystery. Many different cultures have their own fairy tales, legends, and stories about different types of creatures that come in all shapes and sizes. Big, or small, mortal, or immortal, each has their own meaning and moral to them. Some mythological creatures are even said to have been real at some point during the many years earth has existed.  

In the many hundreds of thousands of years earth has stood, many mythical creatures have set their paws, wings, and tails on the planet. This topic is a very big mystery because some don’t even know if they were or are real. Perhaps they were just stories parents have told us to get us to go to sleep, or maybe even hundreds of years ago these creatures roamed the earth. Many people like them for various reasons. There are different types of mythical creatures, such as unicorns, Pegasus, medusa, dragons, leprechauns, mermaids, ghosts, giant squids, and even pixies. 

Lately, AI has had an impact and sometimes creates confusion about what is and isn’t real. For example, AI has brought to life mermaids, which originated in the mythology of Assyria. All over social media, videos were posted about mermaids on many platforms which caused a worldwide suspicion, and many believed it, because many people have caught live videos or photos of them swimming in our great oceans. This insighted confusion, and many questioned the existence of these creatures and our government. Sightings of many different types of creatures have been reported, even though they may or may not be real.  

These creatures could be real, and I think this because there has been evidence all over the world of remains of different and unidentified creatures that are what seem to be “mythical creatures.” At one point, there was a peak in “The Giant Squid Investigation” where some believed they were real. This incident happened in 2006 when a group of fishermen off the coast of Ogasawara islands caught a 7-meter squid. This was a big find for them and to many people, brought back to life the mythical creature “The Giant Squid.” These creatures were known in the 1900’s to drown ships and boats by wrapping their humongous tentacles around them.

This topic is an intriguing topic and there have been many books written about creatures like these. One of the most popular books written about mythical creatures is Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts, by Zayden Stone. This book was written to inform its readers about the different types of mythical creatures and discusses certain creatures and where they came from. For example, the book wrote about a creature known as “The Erymanthian Boar” which originated from Greek mythology and was said to be a bear that has sharp razor teeth with giant tusks, which were used to impale its victims.

I interviewed and surveyed my fellow friends and peers here at Crownpoint high school. First, I asked about their opinions on mythical creatures. Some said they were “cool,” “nice,” “interesting,” but the responses that I found most unique were “magical” and “enjoyable.” This was fascinating to me because mythical creatures can be magical depending on the type, but either way, each of them has their own special traits.   

My second interview question was “Why do you like mythical creatures?”. One response caught my eye because someone said that mythical creatures were interesting to them because “It was a comfort thing” because, “When life gets stressful, just learning about the different types of creatures and their abilities is cool to learn about.”

Finally, I asked my peers, “If you had a chance to see any type of creature, what would it be?” Many said the common types of creatures, but one that was different than the rest was a Wendigo.These are pretty scary creatures to look at, and are somewhat distinct from the rest.

In a survey of Crownpoint High School students, I asked if they believed mythical creatures were scary or not, and 75% of them said they are, while 25% said they aren’t. I also asked if they believed underwater creatures were real because underwater mythical creatures are somewhat underrated and are less spoken of. The responses to this question were 50/50.

I hoped this article helps to acknowledge the many mythical creatures that people may or may not have heard of. Regardless of whether you believe in mythological creatures or not, the mere possibility of these creatures’ existence always seems to keep us guessing. Afterall, you never know…