"Mokele Mbembe: But, Did It Taste Like CHICKEN???" Topic

Dinosaurs, Pygmies, and Explorers, Oh My!!!

Definitely food for thought (pardon the pun), for possible gaming scenarios.

"Was a Mokele-mbembe killed at Lake Tele?
by William Gibbons*
I can confirm that at least two of the pygmies who were directly involved in the killing of a Mokele-mbembe at Lake Tele about three decades ago were acquainted on a personal level with missionary pastor Eugene P. Thomas. I have discussed this incident with Pastor Thomas, and he was able to confirm most of the details of the story which follows.

Around 1960, the forest dwelling pygmies of the Lake Tele region (the Bangombe tribe), fished daily in the lake near the Molibos, or water channels situated at the north end of the lake. These channels merge with the swamps, and were used by Mokele-mbembes to enter the lake where they would browse on the vegetation. This daily excursion into the lake by the animals disrupted the pygmies fishing activities. Eventually, the pygmies decided to erect a stake barrier across the molibo in order to prevent the animals from entering the lake.

When two of the animals were observed attempting to break through the barrier, the pygmies speared one of the animals to death and later cut it into pieces. This task apparently took several days due to the size of the animal, which was described as being bigger than a forest elephant with a long neck, a small snake-like or lizard-like head, which was decorated with a comb-like frill. The pygmy spearmen also described a long, flexible tail, a smooth, reddish-brown skin and four stubby, but powerful legs with clawed toes. Pastor Thomas also mentioned that the two pygmies mimicked the cry of the animal as it was being attacked and speared.

Later, a victory feast was held, during which parts of the animal were cooked and eaten. However, those who participated in the feast eventually died, either from food poisoning or from natural causes. It should be noted that pygmies rarely live beyond 35, and pygmy women give birth from aged 12. I also believe that the mythification (magical powers, etc) surrounding Mokele-mbembes began with this incident.

During my first expedition in 1985, we met with several eyewitnesses who have observed Mokele-mbembes in the Sangha and Likouala aux Herbes Rivers. Our pygmy informants also mentioned that there was at least two Mokele-mbembes still living in the Lake Tele vicinity, but they were simply too afraid to take us to a precise location where we could actually film and observe a specimen of Mokele-mbembe, due to their superstitious beliefs surrounding the animals and fear of reprisals from the Boha villagers who are regarded as the owners of the lake. The Boha villagers are also familiar with areas in the river and swamps where we can observe these animals for ourselves. However, the general belief that speaking of Mokele-membes to white outsiders will result in great misfortune or death is fairly prevalent throughout the Likouala region. This presents huge problems in obtaining accurate and up-to-date information on Mokele-mbembes and other cryptids.

I should add that I am not convinced that Marcellin Agnagna, Rory Nugent, or Herman Regusters have observed Mokele-mbembes. During our two visits to the Congo, my colleagues and I were unable to locate a single one of the "dozens" of witnesses that allegedly observed Mokele-mbembes with the aforementioned explorers. Marcellin Agagna changed his story several times, and is now thought (by Roy Mackal) to have observed the giant African freshwater turtle, Trionyx triunguis. Herman Regusters and his wife Kia are the only individuals on his expedition to have observed a "long-necked member" travelling across Lake Tele, in spite of the fact that 28 other people were with them from the village of Boha. Rory Nugent's alleged Mokele-mbembe photos could be anything, although he may have seen "something" in the distance.

But Jose Bourges, the Congolese wildlife official who accompanied the 1988 Japanese expedition to the lake, reported that the entire expedition observed a large humped back of an animal, slowly moving along, as if foraging on the bottom of the lake, which is three meters deep at most. So the animals are still there, and I still want to find one!

*Bill Gibbons has conducted two major expeditions to the Congo, in 1985-6, and 1992, in search of the Mokele-mbembe. He conducted two other field investigations on the island of Mauritius in the southern Indian Ocean in 1990 and 1997, after two European visitors claimed Dodo sightings. Operation Congo III, and Project Dodo III are currently under development. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology with Warnborough College, Oxford."
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Lots of inspirational images:
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Lots of interesting articles:
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TMP link

Who needs to go off looking for Skull Island, right?

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Uh-huh. We can't even manage to find Bigfoot outside of television commercials, can we?

Allen the Skeptical

Hey Allen,

Where's the gaming spirit?

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PS. Can't believe either, as much as I would like to.

I hope it's real… as I hope Bigfoot is real as well…

Oh, interesting article Cacique Caribe.

Not a very big critter, according to Pygmy accounts:

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I think this is one of the photos taken at Lake Tele by that Japanese team in 1988 (typically unclear):

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Poor guy. He promised his wife and kids elephant for dinner and this is what he finds:

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That Lake Tele is sure circular:

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What's this???

Indiana Jones and the Mokele Mbembe? :)

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Go figure. They don't even know what animal the Mokele Mbembe is supposed be. Drama, drama, drama.

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"But, Did It Taste Like CHICKEN???"

Aw, don't. TMPers have enough weird prehistoric barbeque fetishes as it is. :P

Impact crater? That's where all the cool missing links hang out.

"Aw, don't. TMPers have enough weird prehistoric barbeque fetishes as it is. :P"

LOL. You may be right. :)

CC

Can there actually BE enough weird prehistoric BBQ fetishes?

PINK?

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Indeed, the Congolese super-ape, a grey-furred, ferocious man-eating carnivore, starred in Michael Crichton's 1980 sci-fi thriller Congo, and cryptozoologists (people who hunt for mythological beasts) also talk of Mokele-mbembe, Africa's Loch Ness monster, a pink dinosaur purported to survive in the Congolese forests.
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Maybe they had a bit too much of the sauce. Instead of Pink Elephants, they are seeing Pink Mokele Mbembes!!!! :)

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Who do you think would win here?

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It probably tasted like a black rhino…

smells like charles fort

"who do you think would win here"

My money's on the Attack Doves.

"Who do you think would win here?"

The Hippo… no doubt about it. The hippo is one of the most dangerous creatures in Africa. Tasks like chiseled shortswords, VERY territorial, & VERY short tempered.

Tha all adds up to bad news for your poor herbivor dinosaur.

Guys, check out these new 15mm fellas!

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TMP link

Dan

Holy thread necromancy, batman!

You revive your own ancient threads so often I reckon you could change your TMP name to 'Digger up of Unconsidered Trifles'

On the plus side, at least one TMP member knows how to use the search function (and compliments on your excellent memory!)

:-)

Also, the excellent Hawaiians from Bloodaxe miniatures (sold in the UK via East Ridings Miniatures) should be useful as pygmies. They are *very* true scale 15mm, so are dwarved by nearly anything else produced today.

Hmm.

These?

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Dan

sigh, when 'natives' where shown pix of dinos and present day animals when the BBC (and others since) went looking for 'Mokele-mbembe' most 'natives' identified it as this

yet the myth still lives regardless of what the people who actually live there say. I wonder why some peeps think Dinosaur type animals still exist here (which incidently also have a lot of supernatural powers too) but not of 8ft tall peeps with back to front feet that drink blood and scream in the night and go invisible at will which are also in myths in that part of Africa.

I will say though great for Wargaming!, Dinos in Africa, good stuff, in the Tibeten Book of mediciene all plants and animals are identified apart from one…..a piccy of a 'Yeti' maybe an old tribal memory like a Homo floresiensis type homonid…so much wargaming potential ^^

Well, I've nearly finished my Darkest Africa army, led by She Who Must Be Obeyed (natch)

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Mainly Copplestone DA + a few White Hunter types, also done my Valiant Warrors on Velociraptors, Light Cavalry on Zebras and Ostrichs, and about to do the Pygmies on Pteranodons

Mmm bbq saber tooth