Mongolian Death worm
Trudging gingerly across the arid sands of the Gobi desert, Czech explorer Ivan Mackerle is careful not to put a foot wrong, for he knows it may be his last. He scours the land and shifting valleys for tell-tale signs of disturbance in the sands below, always ready for the unexpected lurch of an alien being said to kill in one strike with a sharp spout of acidic venom to the face. A creature so secretive that no photographic evidence yet exists, but the locals know it’s there, always waiting in silence for its prey, waiting to strike – the Mongolian Death Worm.
Reported to be between two and five feet long, the deep-red coloured worm is said to resemble the intestines of a cow and sprays a yellow acidic saliva substance at its victims, who if they’re unlucky enough to be within touching distance also receive an electric shock powerful enough to kill a camel... or them.
Death Worm Illustration
Given the Latin name Allghoi khorkhoi, the Mongolian Death Worm was first referred to by American paleontologist Professor Roy Chapman Andrews (apparently the inspiration for the Indiana Jones character) in his book On the Trail of Ancient Man, in 1926 but he didn’t appear to be entirely convinced about the whole idea. Even though locals were desperate to relay events of when the dreaded worm struck, Andrews writes: “None of those present ever had seen the creature, but they all firmly believed in its existence and described it minutely.” But it wasn’t to stop other inquisitive adventurers taking up the investigative mantle when Andrews was no longer interested, or able to pursue the matter.
Mongolian death worm illustration
Only a few years ago, in 2005, a group of English scientists and cryptozoologists spent a month in the hostile Gobi desert searching for the fabled creature, and although they spoke to a number of Mongolians in the area, all of whom regaled wondrous stories of the worm, no one could verify they had seen the creature first-hand. Even still, after four weeks the team had gathered enough verbal evidence to be convinced that the worm really does exist. Lead researcher, Richard Freeman, said: "Every eyewitness account and story we have heard describes exactly the same thing: a red-brown worm-like snake, approximately two feet long and two inches thick with no discernable head or back (tail)."
Intrepid explorer, Ivan Mackerle
Today, it is Ivan Mackerle, a self-made cryptozoologist who travels the world in search of scientific evidence that proves creatures like the Loch Ness monster and Mongolian Death Worm exist. As a boy he read the stories of the Russian paleontologist Yefremov, who wrote about a worm, which resembled a bloody intestine, that could grow to the length of a small man and mysteriously kill people at great distance, possibly with poison or electricity.
Mackerle says: “I thought it was only science fiction. But when I was in university, we had a Mongolian student in our class. I asked him, ‘Do you know what this is, the Allghoi khorkhoi?’ I was waiting for him to start laughing, to say that’s nothing. But he leaned in, like he had a secret, and said, ‘I know it. It is a very strange creature.’”
So Does the Mongolian Death Worm really exist, and what if it does?
This insistence by locals that worm is a reality will continue to fuel inquisitive minds and as long as open-mindedness remains a fair virtue, we’re prepared to wait a little longer for empirical proof of its existence.
Just remember, if you do decide to go Death Worm hunting in the Gobi desert, don’t wear yellow, seemingly that’s the color that sends our wrinkly friend into one its trademark electrifying, spitting freak outs. Don’t say we didn’t warm you.
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JVermont (not verified) says:
Uhm... is that a Mongolian Death Worm or are you just glad to see me?

Jiff Jonas (not verified) says:
Now there is a guy with clearly WAY too much spare time on his hands. Gimme a break!
Jiff
http://www.datools.net.tc



dylan (not verified) says:
Why is the guy looking towards the sky in the pic above?

Frank Herbert (not verified) says:
OGMZZZZ!!!!!! It's Shai-Hulud!!!!!


norm (not verified) says:
so its a creature that literally noone has ever seen. and the author is debating whether or nor it exists. when admittedly there is not even one witness. who is buying this crap? 9/11 was an inside job, right? read a book.

allen (not verified) says:
What's the big deal? I've been growing them in my rose bed for years. Haven't seen a squirrel, raccoon, skunk, rabbit or possum in the garden for years plus the worms taste like beer brats with just a couple of minutes of grilling.



Edward (not verified) says:
@@ "Why is the guy looking towards the sky in the pic above?"
Haha, that's great. He's looking for the even more fabled version of the worm, the Flying Mongolian Death Worm.

jello (not verified) says:
if it's not real, then what is the first picture on the top?

Edward (not verified) says:
"Why is the guy looking towards the sky in the pic above?"
Haha, that's great. He's looking for the even more fabled version of the worm, the Flying Mongolian Death Worm.

John (not verified) says:
Yes, the Mongolian Death Worm, a new paradigm of locative art.

Spookymonster (not verified) says:
Allghoi khorkhoi ain't Latin; it's what the indigenous people call it the local tongue.
And Wikipedia sez it's about as real as Bigfoot:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_Death_Worm


Globo (not verified) says:
I opened a can of peanuts with a Mongolian death worm inside it. Fucking thing almost bit my head off. I immediately returned those peanuts to the store for a full refund.

Fin (not verified) says:
The image at the top is a conch egg case and a crab claw.


joey (not verified) says:
Jackal, jackal, is it a jackal? Jackal, jackal it looks like a jackal, is it a jackal?

whatever (not verified) says:
I think you mean warn you, not warm you.

Astraldust (not verified) says:
In this time, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice Melange. The spice extends life, the spice expands consciousness, the spice is vital to space travel.

tria (not verified) says:
Only thing wrong with this is that Indiana Jones was an archaeologist, not a paleontologist. Common mixup, dinosaurs and humans...

TV Spy (not verified) says:
Cool but very much probably false. BTW the Gobi desert is mostly grass, contrary to the fact that it's called a desert and most people think that inherently means large tracts of only sand.

Tarzan (not verified) says:
You didn't warm me for sure. It's freezing here.

BOBA FETT (not verified) says:
SARLACC AINT SHIT!! Tried to eat me, put me down. Well GUESS WHAT?!? I"M BACK! motha fuckin boba fett, most bad ass bounty hunter in the galaxy. you can't touch this. mongolian death worm? thats what theyre callin you now? SARLACC GOIN DOWN!!

Deat Worm Filmed (not verified) says:
It was filmed last month see website
www.myblog.110mb.com

Maka (not verified) says:
So yellow will provoke this creatures into attacking us eh?
Well if they are so damn hard to find, why dress up some animal in yellow stick it out there and wait?

Seifer37 (not verified) says:
I give proof of further sightings.
http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Dungeon_Worm

Fluoric (not verified) says:
This sounds an awful lot like the famed "Mexican Staring Frog of Southern Sri Lanka".

massage tables (not verified) says:
Nah. Acid spitting, cow-killing electric shock? Huh uh.


C-Ham (not verified) says:
How can a worm tell if you are wearing yellow?

Moad'ib (not verified) says:
Big Foot, The Loch Ness Monster, Snorkling Jiffy-John Voyeurs, Vampires, Werewolves, and now The Death Worm.

Grey (not verified) says:
I've killed these before
...in Zelda 3...;;

Mental Origami (not verified) says:
"Today, it is Ivan Mackerle, a self-made cryptozoologist who travels the world in search of scientific evidence that proves creatures like the Loch Ness monster and Mongolian Death Worm exist."
in search of ... the Loch Ness monster.
I'm done reading.

eriberri (not verified) says:
looks like those big worm monsters you find in Final Fantasy 10 (in the desert near al bhed 'Home') & 12 (think they're called Sandworms?). Heh.. maybe they modelled them on this? :P
to those who think the picture in the article with the guy has him looking at the sky, I think he's probably looking at the top of a sand dune or something~


Le Misanthrope (not verified) says:
I was married to her and she lives in a small town in Texas

butt face micgue (not verified) says:
who the heck would even want to find this worm? i mean its not like eneyone would know they found it or somthing because once they found it it would kill them. the desert it lives in is off limits to everyone because the rumers about it got locals all upsett about.

Evan (not verified) says:
Weird! Great article. It is crazy the weird type of insects we have on this planet.

jeremy morgan (not verified) says:
This guy found some weird little monster things while in mongolia, scroll down to about the middle of the page
http://danzanravjaa.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/09/index.html
Here's another one
http://bizarrecreatures.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html
Scroll down to almost the bottom

william (not verified) says:
"Captain, they put creatures in our ears...."
"Khhhhaaaannnnnnnnn....!!!"

Pam (not verified) says:
I'm waiting to see Kevin Bacon Break into "Footloose" any moment now...

themacd (not verified) says:
That is so cool. You know I envy some guys. They get to travel and explore
things like this very very awesome.
later...

Christine (not verified) says:
watch the episode of lost tapes, the one about the death worm, you will be scared out of your mind, the mongolian death worm is no laughing matter, two men actually died because of this creature, if you want details, watch the episode, i swear, true story, i'm not even joking.

alex (not verified) says:
all of yall are so stupid this thing can KILL you
certdopnon says:
if you want to watch a video on this and more creatures like bigfoot go to animal planet dot com go to tv shows and click lost tapes and you can watch video of encounters with creatures



Allen Klosowski (not verified) says:
Is this real? It's wicked cool. I want one as a pet.