Did anyone else read this article in Metro this morning ?

http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/182_deathworm1.shtml

are they real ?

I flippin' hope not! It'll be like Dune before you know it, we'll all be addicted to spice and riding these mighty beasts to work ........ actually that sounds like quite a laugh. Bags I be Maud' Dib!!!

They do seem to be too scarey to be real.

Looks about as believable as a claim of the presence of WMD!!!

If anyone is into cryptozoology they want to have a look at this site Death Worm Pic (http://www.cfz.org.uk/)

Originally posted by Jon
If anyone is into cryptozoology they want to have a look at this site Death Worm Pic (http://www.cfz.org.uk/)

I don't know which is scaryier, the worm or those "men" that are going to look for it.

Originally posted by nick2
I don't know which is scaryier, the worm or those "men" that are going to look for it. :hihi: Very true, When i was with the Yorkshire UFO Society, Jon Downes from CFZ used to write articles for our magazine :P bet you really wanted to know that :D

From the CFZ website:

"We are just embarking on our most ambitious mission yet. The 2005 CFZ Expedition to Mongolia is searching for the semi-legendary Mongolian deathworm. The four-man team hope to bring back conclusive proof of its existence and are not rejecting the possibility that they may even manage to capture one alive."

Yeah, alright lads. You do know that even touching it makes your whole arm burn off, don't you? And the lightning thing, with the eyes? If you even so much as look at it?

I don't think that hitting it with rolled-up copies of 'White Dwarf' before trying to scoop it up with your brother's big fishing net is quite going to cut the mustard, to be brutally honest...

And what in Gobi does "semi-legendary" mean when it's at home?

I hope they do find one, I like to believe there are things out there waiting to be discovered.

Hmm, just visited www.cryptoworld.co.uk and realised I was being very harsh (in a good-natured way) in my previous post.

These guys seem like they are pretty knowledgeable and experienced at what they're doing. Good luck to them, and let's hope they bring one back. You can follow their progress on the site, as long as their blogging equipment works in the desert.

In two years time we will all have one for a pet :gag:

As if being attacked by a giant worm isn't bad enough, there is the local food to contend with :

"Mongolian food, though, we quickly, if somewhat uncharitably, decided, is best left to Mongolians: mutton for breakfast, mutton for lunch, mutton for dinner. In summer it’s washed down with airag, a fermented mare’s milk (though being in the Gobi, we primarily had camel airag) which tastes a lot like creamy, lumpy sour milk."

I feel ill.

As exciting as these stories are, they can be passed down from generation to generation, so facts can be confused with fantasy.

When I was staying in the mountains of Yemen several years ago, I was told to be wary of a fearsome reptile called a 'Hayya'.

The 'Hayya' is described as a short, wide snake of a few feet long, highly poisonous, and in various colours including silver and black.

It may or may not have legs.

The beast has very tough skin - it usually requires several bullets to kill it, after which it must be set alight to ensure it is dead.

Based on the info I had, I thought it may be a cobra, black mamba or other highly poisonous snake.

When I was told one was lurking about in the garden of the house I was staying in, I went out for a closer look but my host physically dragged me back inside :(

I'm unsure whether the beast actually does exist, as very few people I spoke to actually saw one, and the ones that did usually saw them at night. Perhaps they are nocturnal creatures.

If serpents like that do exist, then I certainly don't recommend chasing after one. More likely, it will be chasing you :suspect:

Sounds familiar nick – is it the same chef that works at Balti King?

:)