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Science tells us that nocturnal animals don’t have self-luminous eyes. They often have eyes that are reflective, in order to help them see in the dark, but they don’t glow. So the premise of this article is that seeing glowing red eyes on an out-of-place, or highly weird animal, or entity, is most likely a sign of it being something paranormal. Some researchers also marry up sightings of such creatures with UFO events, but I’m not totally convinced about that idea - yet!

What I’m going to do in this article is to give some examples of the various types of sightings that have been catalogued, and then take a look at what might lie behind them.

Black Dogs, Shuck, Shug-Monkey

One of the most well known creatures to have been reported as having glowing red eyes occurs in the Black Dog tales. So I’ll start with those.

These Black Dogs have appeared right across the UK, in much of Europe, and in the USA and Canada. It is, naturally, known by different names in different parts of the UK, and so a list of some of those names might be helpful:

Their description is said to be that of a very large dog, far larger than any normal dog, which is usually black in colour, although they have been seen as grey, white, and yellow. The coat is normally shaggy, but sometimes said to be smooth, bristly, and gleaming, the mouth to be slavering, with fetid breath and fangs for teeth. Sometimes a grinning expression has been noted, and the sound of growling, barking, or even speaking, laughing or screaming. There are also a few rare sightings of two-headed, or even totally headless, dogs. And, naturally, they mostly have glowing red eyes.  Usually they vanish into thin air, sink into the ground, or disappear with a flash or an explosion, and there have also been some reports of them shape-shifting.

Mostly these Black Dogs are seen on roads, lanes, footpaths, at crossroads, in fields, hedges, gateways, corridors, staircases, churchyards, barrows, ancient track-ways and prehistoric earthworks, graves, gallows, and bridges. They seem to be particularly seen near bridges over rivers and streams, wells, trees next to water, ponds, and even near the sea.

Some believe that they may follow Ley Lines, Corpse Ways, and Spirit Paths, thus giving them the ability to appear and disappear at will along their various points, for example where these lines are thought to cross. Others believe that they may materialize and dematerialise due to environmental factors, such as electromagnetic and/or geomagnetic points along Ley Lines.

During the middle ages, in a church at Bungay, Essex, a Black Dog with red glowing eyes was said to have appeared during a service. It then proceeded to kill two people. This event is said to have happened during a severe thunderstorm. And having taken place in East Anglia many local people would call such an entity the Shug Monkey.

In Tring, Hertfordshire, back in the 19th Century there is a report in which two men passing a gibbet on their way home one dark night saw a Black Dog. Whilst riding past the gibbet they saw what looked like a flame of fire, and on stopping their horses a massive Black Dog appeared. It looked emaciated, with a shaggy coat, long ears, and glowing red eyes. They said that it displayed a grinning expression, and within a few minutes it sank back into the ground.

This next beast has often been seen in Rendlesham Forest, in the same place that the famous UFO event happened. But it was also seen many years, even centuries, earlier, and it is still being seen up to present day. Most of the Black Dog descriptions from this area tell of it being very large, up to ten feet long, and looking like a cross between a mastiff and a great ape. Some accounts say that it has a large neck, broad nostrils, massive jaws, and four legs with large claws protruding from its paws. The fur is black and sleek, and it has a long powerful tail. It reminded one observer of a “large male silverback gorilla” – a combination of ape, dog, lion, and rhinoceros. Another couple who encountered it said that, while they thought it was a dog, its body was far more feline in nature. During their encounter it vanished instantaneously, but a few seconds later reappeared and then flickered on and off a few times before finally disappearing; after which the air was filled with the strange smell of what they said reminded them of “burning metal.” This region of the UK is also home to a whole plethora of phantom big cats and ape-like creatures.

On Exmoor, in Somerset, there has long been a tale of what the locals call a Devil Dog. This beast disappears very slowly, leaving just a pair of glowing red eyes.

Meanwhile in Lothian, Scotland, there is a story of a Black Dog that appeared and disappeared. It was said to have been accompanied by a high-pitched screeching sound and, as we’ve come to expect, it had glowing red eyes.

Over on the Isle of Mann a legendary Black Dog is said to roam around the lonely roads. The animal is considered to be a herald of misfortune and death, and its appearance is often linked to electrical storms, and even to the lights of UFOs. Naturally, this one too has glowing red eyes.

And, from Ireland comes a report of an event that occurs around Halloween. It is a tale about a wooded hollow, in the county of Munster, that changes into a thick forest. After which it becomes populated with demonic creatures, some of whom are dogs with glowing red eyes. However, this may be just a Halloween story.

As well as Black Dogs, large cats are sometimes seen. For example, in 1985 a large cat was believed to be roaming the forest around Thetford, Norfolk. Now, that might not be unusual as many large cats are thought to be on the loose in the UK, but this one had glowing red eyes.

Giant Birds

Other famous sighting reports are those that concern giant birds, such as the famous USA Mothman, so here are a few examples of what’s reported to have been seen.

If you’re a regular reader of my intermittent articles you’ll already know that I’ve written about the Cornish Owlman of Mawnan Smith. And if not, then you can read it here:
http://kithraskrystalkave.org.uk/cryptids.htm

But, of course, the UK doesn’t seem to have very many “Winged Weirdies” so the ones I’m going to mention come from much further away.

The first two cases are celebrated reports from the USA. The Mothman event is very well documented on the Internet, and in many books. The best of which, in my opinion, is John Keel’s The Mothman Prophecies – although I wasn’t that impressed with the film version of the book.

John Keel also mentions The Mothman in another of his books: The Complete Guide to Mysterious Beings. Keel himself investigated many of these curious sightings, and tells us that in nearly all of them the “most outstanding feature seemed to be its glowing red eyes.” He goes on to state that: “Self-luminous eyes usually suggest a paraphysical entity rather than a real animal. About half of the witnesses appeared to be people with latent or active psychic abilities, prone to having accurate premonitions, prophetic dreams, extra-sensory perception (ESP), etc.” And he notes that, although few of the witnesses could describe what The Mothman’s face looked like, they were all far more frightened of those glowing red eyes than by the size of the entity itself.

Keel goes on to tell us that a similar creature was also occasionally seen during 1968/69 when there was a greatly under reported UFO flap in both the northeast of the USA and in Canada. In some of the Canadian reports UFOs were said to have actually landed, and “little men” had been seen. Interestingly, back in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, on the same night that one of those UFO flap events happened, there were over 500 reports of weird sightings. Most of those were of UFOs, and one teenager said that he’d also seen a creature in the TNT Area that was around six feet tall, and that it had red eyes. Other people also reported seeing similar beings in the same locale.

Another red-eyed monster can also be found in West Virginia, this time in Flatwoods. Again the story is very well known, and can be found all over the Internet. The Flatwoods Monster event happened in the latter part of 1952 when a burning UFO reportedly crashed. The sighting of a monster with glowing red eyes followed this.

Elsewhere in the USA a strange creature that some call Batsquatch comes from Mount St. Helens. Apparently is has leathery wings, purple skin, and blood-red eyes, with a head that resembles a cross between an ape and a bat.

And from Ohio comes a report of a two-legged entity with a very large head. This one was described as being about seven feet tall, with the head larger than the body, a fetid smell and, once again, very large red eyes. This is another tale in which the creature is said to have emitted a strident scream.

Of course, we can’t leave the USA without mentioning Thunderbird. There have been numerous sightings of these birds from around the country, so here are just a few of them.

Back in 1673 a missionary was exploring the Mississippi River, in Illinois, when he came across what he believed to be the Devil. What he found were such lifelike petroglyphs that they truly frightened him. The drawings were of a creature with deer-like horns, a hideous expression, a man-like face, a scaly body with a very long posterior appendage that ended in a fish’s tail, and red eyes. The local Native American Indians called it Piasa – meaning the bird that devours men. Their legend is very ancient, and it tells of what is now called a Thunderbird. The bird swoops down with a thundering sound, and a rush of wind, and carries people away. Many tribes have these Thunderbird myths, and numerous petroglyphs of them were found along the Mississippi.

At the beginning of January 1976 a bird was seen in the Rio Grande Valley that was described as being five feet tall, with a gorilla like face. It was black, hairless, had a six-inch long beak, and big red eyes. It seems that its wing-beats sounded like those of a bat, and it made a noisy, piercing, sound. Witnesses say that its face looked quite horrific, the eyes having an evil look to them, and also that other animals behaved oddly when the creature was in the area.

At the other end of the country there is a legend, from New England, about a huge bird-like creature, with glowing red eyes, that would carry off animals and people. The Native American Indian tribes of that area also tell the same tale. In many of these instances it was said that the bird was documented without flapping its wings. And that happened only when the glowing red eyes were seen.

Bringing the legend up to date, back in Illinois during 1977, there was a story of a ten-year old boy being taken by a giant bird while he was outside playing. Apparently he was carried for a distance of 35 feet, and a second bird also joined the fray when his mother ran out to help him. There were six witnesses to this event, and they described the birds as being very similar to giant condors. So perhaps, in that instance, it was a case of mistaken identity.

Bigfoot, Yeti, Yowie, Man-Monkey

There are reports of what in the US are called Bigfoot, although it has other names in other countries. So here are some of those accounts.

In John Keel’s book The Complete Guide to Mysterious Beings he also lists some of these strange beings.

One of the mentions he makes is about two reports from West Virginia, both taking place in 1960. In the first story some young men were out camping in local woods, and when one of them went to cut firewood he encountered what he described as a “horrible monster.” He said that it was at least eight feet tall, with a body covered by shaggy long hair. Its eyes were set far apart, very large, and shining like balls of fire even though there was no light from anywhere else at the time.

In the second tale, he notes that a man claimed to have encountered a hairy humanoid that wrecked the electrics in his car. It was eight feet tall, covered with shaggy hair, and had two big eyes that “shone like big balls of fire.” When the entity disappeared his car started normally and he continued his journey. However, a little way down the road the car malfunctioned again, and once more he became aware of the same being standing by the side of the road.

Keel also notes three further reports where the creature had red eyes. The first is from Indiana, in 1962, where a group of young people were in a graveyard when they saw a seven-foot tall creature. Apparently it was ape-like in appearance, covered in white/silver hair, stood on two feet but ran using all four feet, and it had red eyes.

The second is from Mississippi, in 1966, where people reported seeing a seven foot tall monster prowling around. One report said that it had very broad shoulders and a slender waist. It was said to be the size of a bear, covered in hair, and had bright red eyes.

And the third is from Pennsylvania where there was a sighting from 1990 of a four-foot high creature covered with hair. It gave out several piercing screams, and had glowing red eyes.

John Keel’s list of Bigfoot sightings also contains stories of creatures that had green glowing eyes. But in this article I’m concentrating only on those with glowing red eyes.

Of course, there are other reports apart from those mentioned by John Keel. For example, in Detroit there is a legend about the Nain Rouge. This entity is said to be a goblin that haunts the town. It is small, with red hair, rotten teeth, and glowing red eyes. It is also supposed to be a foreteller of doom for the city. It has been seen since at least 1710, and there have been numerous witnesses, right up to the present day.

There is a very strange report from Colorado that comes from 1973, about something called The Wazooey Man. It seems that two young men were out shooting one night when they suddenly saw two large red eyes. Unfortunately, one of them took a shot at it. Upon which both became aware that they had been picked up and thrown into a nearby ravine by some invisible energy. A timber stake then came out of the ground and hit one of them on the head. Making their way out of the area they attempted to go west, but an object that they described as being akin to a “mobile haystack,” with great red eyes, kept trying to stop them. This may well be a true report, but personally I’d treat it with caution.

In South America there are also reports of strange creatures. And, of course, this is one of the places that is famous for creatures that are now known as the Chupacabras, or Goatsuckers. There have been reports of these since the 1990s, and if you look on the Internet you will find more information about them than you can probably read in a lifetime. Basically they were first reported from Varginha, in Brazil, and then they terrified Puerto Rico and it’s neighbouring islands. More recently they have been seen in Mexico, and the most southerly states of the USA. Their description is said to be of a small reddish creature that occasionally has horns on its head, and glowing red eyes. Apparently they often exude a reek of ammonia and, as in cattle mutilations, they drain their victims of blood. Reports suggest that they are capable of great leaps and bounds, and on occasion have been seen to actually fly. Some believe they might be the result of secret biological experimentation being undertaken by the US government.

One such tale comes from Argentina, in 2002. While walking home with her dogs and animals a shepherdess encountered an entity that frightened her and her beasts. She described it as being around five and a half feet tall, half human and half animal, with pointed ears, sharp fangs, and sharp-clawed feet. Naturally, it had red eyes, and moved using rapid jumps from its powerful back legs. Some men who heard the lady shouting ran to help, they also saw the creature. All the time it was in sight the dogs refused to move, and made piteous howling sounds. The following day footprints were found in the area. The story doesn’t actually state that it was a Chupacabra, but I expect that, if true, it probably was.

A second story comes from Chile, again from 2002. In this one an entity was seen on a housing estate. It was reported as being ape-like, and jumping all over the roof making many strange noises. Here too the local dogs behaved as though they were very frightened and started to howl. Witnesses said that the being was around five feet tall, thickset, and had red eyes. Again, I would suspect that this was yet another Chupacabra.

On the other side of the world, in East Delhi, India, during 2001 there were reports of villages being terrified by a being that became known as the Monkey Man. Apparently it was four feet tall, had a face like a monkey, and was very nimble. It also had sharp claws, similar to metal, and glowing red eyes. One report said that there were green lights glowing on its upper body. Other reports said it was cat-like, had a helmet-type object on its head, and that it could jump extremely high. Quite a few of the people that it attacked displayed real bite marks, and some even died. Several researchers believe that rudiments of the Hindu legend of the monkey god, Hanuman, have crept into these tales. You can read a very good analysis of the case here:
http://paranormal.about.com/

In Australia they have a being that they call The Yowie. This is very similar to Bigfoot, and some researchers think it might be a shape-shifting phantom. The Yowie is portrayed as being yet another creature that can show phenomenal turns of speed, and then simply disappear into thin air. Those who see it say that it conjures up a terrible nameless sense of fear in them. And, as we would suspect, it too has glowing red eyes.

Back here at home the UK doesn’t have as many Bigfoot, Man-Monkey, sightings, as other parts of the world, but it does have a few from time to time.

Another famous UK case is that known as Spring Heeled Jack, and it took place back in 1838. In this incident a man encountered a being that he took to be the Devil. It was described as being a tall, slender, figure with pointed ears, and a big curved nose. It also seemed to be wearing a huge black cloak that covered its head and, from what could be seen, it was said to have a hideous face and glowing red eyes. On being cornered in front of a hedge, by a group of local people, the being displayed what looked like silvery claws. And when somebody tried to shoot it the entity apparently emitted blinding balls of blue fire from its mouth. It then turned, easily jumped over the fifteen-foot high hedge, and ran off laughing.

Over in Sherwood Forest, the home of Robin Hood, there is legend that says a tall hairy man, with glowing red eyes, haunts the forest.

While up in Scotland, in 1994, a lady reported having seen a tall man, about ten feet tall, covered in long grey hair, and with glowing red eyes.

Back in England, at Bolam Lake, in Northumberland, comes a tale from 2002. In this report a group of fishermen said they had seen an eight-foot tall creature with glowing red eyes. The Centre for Fortean Zoology investigated the sighting, and you can read their preliminary report here:
http://www.cfz.org.uk/expeditions/03bolam/index.htm

Sea Serpents & River Beasts

Of course, we mustn’t forget the sighting reports that come from the water, so here are a few cases of what people claim to have encountered.

For as long as man has been sailing the seas there have been reports of giant sea serpents, and some of these strange beasts have also been seen in rivers and lakes. Many of these may be of what are as yet unknown creatures, such as the Coelacanths once were. That fish was considered extinct for millions of years until it was rediscovered, alive and well, in the 1930s. However, some of the reports pertaining to sea serpent sightings mention those glowing red eyes again, so here are a few examples:

There is an old story from Norway about a serpent that lives in the sea-caves of Bergen. This monster is said to be two hundred feet long, and around twenty feet thick, with very long hair that hangs from its neck, and has razor-sharp black scales. Here again we are told that it has flaming red eyes. The creature is said, during the long light summer nights, to devour calves, pigs, and lambs, and to fish the ocean for seafood, such as crabs. However, the monster is also believed to attack ships and boats and, by raising itself from the water, to eat the people aboard those vessels.

A river creature named Howie, again having red eyes, is said to live under the waterfalls of the Umgeni River, in the Kazulu-Natal province of South Africa. It is described as being around twenty-four feet long, and looking like a plesiosaur with crocodile skin. In Zulu legend this entity is sacred, respected, and greatly feared. There are also images of a serpent like creature carved into the petroglyphs found in the caves of the Drakensburg Mountain. These date back at least 2,000 years, and the name of the mountain itself is synonymous with Dragons.

In the Pacific Northwest there is a story, from November 1969, about a creature seen just off Discovery Island Lighthouse. The two fishermen who reported it said that it was moving very fast and then suddenly submerged as though it had been pulled under, causing a great deal of turbulence in the water. Soon afterwards it re-emerged more than a hundred yards away, when the fishermen could see that it had short ears, and huge red eyes.

Meanwhile, back in the UK, a sea monster was reported off the coast of Filey, Yorkshire, in 1934. The report came from a coastguard who said that the animal had large glowing eyes, a body around thirty-three feet long, and a neck that stretched eight feet out of the water. Coincidentally there is also a legend about a dragon having been killed very close to this location.

Also in the UK, but this time in the River Towy, Wales, there is a tale of a water horse that used to linger on the bank of the river. It supposedly breathed fire, and had orbs of fire for its eyes. Perhaps it was a dragon, or even a Kelpie.

Finally there is, of course, our very own Morgawr here in Cornwall. But that has never been said to have glowing red eyes. If you want to know more about it you can find my article here:
http://kithraskrystalkave.org.uk/cryptids.htm

We should also not forget that on the maps of ancient times images of sea serpents meeting ships were very often seen, with the epitaph of "Here Be Dragons!"

Other Strange Entities

There are also some cases that really defy categorization. So here are a few examples of those. Some of them may be related to UFOs, but the ones I’ve noted really only have the humanoid and/or missing time elements to them.

One report comes from Russia, in January 2000. A lady travelling by train in St. Petersburg related that all the other passengers abruptly became immobile, frozen in abnormal positions, the lights became more muted, and all noise died away. Looking around she saw an enormous humanoid with a violet face and glowing red eyes. As the train stopped at a station the humanoid simply vanished, and everything became ordinary again.

Another report, from October 2000, happened in the Ukraine. A man walking home down a dark alleyway observed a previously unrecognised long fence down both sides of it, and he became fearful at finding himself in total darkness and silence. After walking for some hours he turned a bend and came upon a small, totally stationary, being, with brilliant red eyes, which looked like a dwarf. This entity had small legs and hands, but an extended body, aged skin, big ears, a bent nose, and wet-looking teeth. The man started to run away and swore he could hear footsteps following him. Eventually he reached the end of the alleyway and emerged onto the street, where everything became normal again.

During the same year, but on the other side of the world, there were also reports coming in.

From Argentina, in April 2000, there is an account of a police officer who encountered a small humanoid that he initially thought was a child. However, on getting closer to it he became aware of its flaming red eyes. Apparently other local people had also seen the entity.

Also from Argentina, in July 2000, comes a story about an elderly lady who said she met a weird dwarf-like entity hiding in some bushes. Again she mentioned its glowing red eyes, plus the fact that it wore filthy clothes and a big hat.

Another story is from a local police officer in Argentina, and happened back in March 2006. The officer suffered quite a prolonged period of missing time, around twenty hours, and after a search he was finally found around twelve and a half miles away. Apparently he had come across two small men with large heads and glowing red eyes. They communicated with him telepathically as they chased him across some fields. He added that they appeared to levitate, and that they were rather transparent.

While still in South America, but this time in Chile during 2000, there was a report from several people of a very strange creature being seen. It was described as being brown and feathered, but had brilliant red eyes. It made lizard-like movements, was very agile and swift, but it was much larger than a condor. And, even more strangely, the witnesses said that it was heard each night for two weeks making a sound like that of duck quacking.

In the USA there is a report from Maryland that comes from October 2000. Two friends were driving along a street one evening when they saw a pair of glowing red eyes gazing from a hollow tree trunk. As they drove closer the creature started to hop away like a kangaroo. However, their description belied it being such a creature as they said that it had hind legs similar to those of a kangaroo, but small front legs, the snout of an anteater, hair like a rat, and was around three feet tall.

Probably due to its immense size the USA has many very well known cases of weird entities, many with glowing red eyes, and Googling the Internet will give you lots of sites that report them.

One of the better known such entities is the New Jersey Devil. This creature is supposed to have a horse-like head and tail, wings, hooves, and a long neck. It can be anything from three to seven feet tall. It gives out a high, human-like shriek and, as you’d expect, has glowing red eyes.

Another well-known tale is that of the Dover Demon. Apparently seen by numerous witnesses in 1977 it is described as being hairless, with a big melon shaped head, a thin skinny body, long slim fingers and toes, and two red eyes.

In 1965, during a large UFO flap in Mexico, as well as other parts of the world, three women in Mexico City said they had seen a group of ten-foot tall entities, dressed in glossy grey clothes and boots, but without visible mouths or noses. All had glowing red eyes.

Back in London, at Highgate Cemetery, during 1969 and the early 1970s, David Farrant was arrested for conducting a séance. However, when taken to court he was acquitted. The media called him a vampire hunter because he was trying to investigate sightings of a tall, dark being, that had glowing red eyes.

In 2003, four people in the local churchyard at Witchling, Kent, alleged to have seen a small being with glowing red eyes. They also heard a bizarre whistling noise, and saw that cloud cover quickly swathed the area. Apparently this was not the first time that little beings had been seen by the churchyard woods

It seems that entities with glowing red eyes don’t only occur in real life but also in the myths surrounding some of our legendary figures.

In the mythology surrounding King Arthur it was said that when he finally died the ghost of a knight in black armour, and with glowing red eyes, began to haunt Glastonbury Abbey. His mission was to destroy all evidence of King Arthur’s life and death.

And, at Robin Hood’s Grave the ghost of the Prioress who is supposed to have allowed him to bleed to death, is said to haunt the site. She appears to have the qualities of a vampire, with a banshee howl and intense red eyes.

Ireland and Scotland also have similar stories of banshee-like entities. One is known as the Washer of the Ford, who appears as either a hag or a young woman, and is said to signify death. In her guise as a banshee she is said to have glowing red eyes.

Another very strange tale comes from Somerset. In this one, probably from sometime in the 1600s, a man reported seeing a very large bear with glowing red eyes. Even stranger still was that he said the bear was rotating inside an object that today we would label as a plastic ball.

In a similar vein there are many legends of what are known as Wraiths. These apparitions are said to portend misfortune, or even to foretell death. They are apt to materialize as beings wearing a hooded cloak, and very often have glowing red eyes.

Coming into the 20th Century there are a few more tales. It was reported that in 1977 a house in Shipley, Yorkshire, was haunted by a cloak-wearing figure that hid in cupboards and underneath beds. The apparition only appeared during the times of a Full Moon, but it also had red eyes.

From my own county of Cornwall, during 1990, comes a tale that took place at a traveller’s site. The person who witnessed it said they felt a weird, but benign, energy overshadowing their caravan. On going outside to tell friends, they discovered that this had also happened to other people who had parked their van on that same spot. Elsewhere on the site people reported having seen red, animal-type, eyes looking in at them through their windows. One had even seen a group of ghostly figures in a local lane.

Shadow People/Skinwalkers

And finally, two other forms of entity that also have glowing red eyes can be found in the paranormal literature. They are called Shadow People, and Skinwalkers, the latter mainly appearing in Native American Indian legends.

There are reports of Shadow People having been seen for thousands of years. And the Native American Indians, and the Aboriginal Australians, are just some of those who have legends about them.

These entities are described as taking the shape of black humanoid silhouettes, but they differ from the descriptions of ghosts. They are mostly reported as shapeless, with no eyes, mouth, nose, or facial expression being visible. And they can vary from being a two-dimensional shadow to just a mass of vapour, although some have been reported as being seen in a deformed three-dimensional shape. It seems that they are able to move as though they were dancing, but most often they simply appear as being quick and lacking in consistency. They can be either solid or transparent, with one type being seen as black in colour. Once noticed, they either fade away, or move quickly out of sight. Many people report a feeling of dread on seeing one of these Shadow People.

Another way in which they differ from ghost sightings is that they don’t appear to have any rationale for their visits. They appear to be aware of the person who is seeing them, but they seldom try to communicate, so it seems that they merely want to frighten people. 

This site has a list of the six most common types of Shadow People that have reportedly been seen:
http://the-psychic-detective.com/

And this site has a very interesting article about what might lie behind the sightings:
http://paranormal.about.com/

The other entity, with glowing red eyes, is as a Skinwalker. These are also sometimes called a Shape-Shifter, and are a belief shared by many Native American Indian tribes. In the Navajo tribe, for example, they wear animal skins and can change themselves into certain animals. They are thought to be evil, and that is how they are perceived in most tribes.

There is a very good article by Colm Kelleher and George Knapp, entitled: Skinwalkers – What Are They? at this link:
http://www.huntfortheskinwalker.com

Science

Many of these strange events start with just a light being seen, which then morphs into an actual entity. These entities are also often reported to change colour from red to indigo, or to completely vanish into thin air. This might be a sign that they are “transiting through, and then leaving, our visible-light spectrum,” as John Keel suggests. Or, as John Michell concludes, they follow Aimé Michel’s straight lines theory. He suggests that the Ley Lines may be due to them being engendered by geomagnetic origins.

Plus, there is Liminality, from the word liminal, meaning to be in a state of being neither one thing nor the other. In some ways it may be similar to the Oz Factor, and it relates to change and transition. So it may be said to have a bearing on cases where strange events take place, or weird cryptids, or ghosts, are seen. These creatures have a huge sense of ambiguity, and may be classed as being supernatural because they are fleeting, and often chaotic. It is also true that liminal events have a propensity to blur together.

John Keel, in his book entitled: The Complete Guide to Mysterious Being states that, as many monster events happen during electrical storms, some people have suggested that they can only appear during such an event because they use its energy to materialize. He also states that: “In occult lore there is considerable literature on “water elementals,” bizarre life forms which manifest themselves temporarily in and around water. The stories of “water elementals” are endless, and the theories to explain them are weird and complex. But we cannot exclude the possibility that some of our Swamp Slobs and lake creatures might be temporary psychic projections; mindless manifestations of energy. Such projections could take almost any form when viewed by limited human perception. They could appear as “little men,” as in flying saucer lore, or gruesome beasts as in the 1965 episodes around Sister Lakes in Michigan. The “reflective” factor, discussed in Chapter Fifteen, could even play a part and the entity might construct itself from images in the witnesses’ minds. Thus, when the proper witness (percipient) is in the right place (“window”) at the right time (“flap period”) almost anything could take place. If this is the case, then the percipient actually sees what he later describes. It was very real to him. But it did not really exist at all and all the bloodhounds, helicopters and sheriff’s posses in the world would not be able to find the creature.”

During these mysterious events many electromagnetic effects have been reported. For example, during a Bigfoot or UFO sighting a vehicle may suddenly loose all power. And some witnesses have said they suffered from what is known as “eyeburn” – caused by high-frequency ultra-violet (UV) radiation. In ghostly sightings it is similarly often related that electronic equipment has malfunctioned, and even compass needles have been known to fluctuate violently. Science has found that Very Low Frequency (VLF) waves can interfere with electronic instruments, and these waves are recognised as being highly dangerous by the military; for example as in the case of such waves produced by a thermonuclear detonation. However, some research has now proposed that electromagnetic effects may also produce changes in visual and auditory perception, disorientation, paralysis, and other disturbances. Electromagnetic stimulation of the temporal lobe can produce hallucinations, and various other scientists have had similar results when experimenting.

Thus, scientific research into the effects of low frequency noise on the brain has concluded that, within a specific frequency range, it can cause sensory disruption. One such study was done on a young woman with epilepsy. As a result of that test those neuroscientists who undertook it now think that they have found the cause as to why some people either say they can feel a ghostly presence, or they develop paranoia or persecution complexes. You can read all about it here:
http://www.int.iol.co.za/

A previous study, undertaken by British psychologists, found very similar results when they experimented with hundreds of volunteers. It also suggested a link between magnetic fields and ghost sightings. You can read about that one here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3046179.stm

However, on the opposite side of the coin, other scientists dispute the idea that magnetism can cause feelings of having a paranormal experience when the temporal lobe is exposed to very weak magnetic fields. And that report can be found here:
http://www.physorg.com/news2261.html

Throughout history people have believed in the power of the eyes, for example giving someone the evil eye, or the fear of being watched by something unseen.

It has been suggested that paranormal activities, such as those that I have been giving illustrations of in this article are, for the most part, tuned into the frequencies that we are unable to normally perceive.

Human eyes are only able to detect a very small part of the electromagnetic spectrum. They can only perceive the middle part of it, the waves known as visible light. Therefore, anything that is above or below the frequency that human eyes can see is not visible to us. That is one of the reasons that we invented equipment like radar – to enable us to see these things.

The electromagnetic spectrum is only visible to the human eye in the range of extreme red, 760.6 nanometres, to extreme violet, 393.4 nanometres. And electromagnetic radiation falls within this range, being called visible light. There are no precise limits to what can be seen, with wavelengths in air being seen from 400 to 700 nanometres - normal visibility, while others may be able to see from 380 to 780 nanometres. However, in water these limits are lessened to a frequency of 450 to 750 terahertz. Typically, the eyes have a maximum sensitivity of 555 nanometres, which falls in the green part of the spectrum. But, the spectrum does not encompass all the colours that we can differentiate. For example, magenta, pink, and brown don’t exist. They are actually a mix of different wavelengths, preferably the red hues.

The wavelengths that the eye can see actually go through what is called the optical window. This is a part of the electromagnetic spectrum that, without weakening, travels through the Earth’s atmosphere, and it is one of the reasons that we see the sky as being blue. These windows are defined by physical measurement, and the optical window is so named because it overlaps the visible spectrum. This means that the Near-Infrared (NIR) window is positioned just beyond the human ability to see it; the Medium Wavelength IR (MWIR) and Long Wavelength, (or Far Infrared) (LWIR or FIR), are completely beyond being visible to us.

For those with normal colour vision the colour you see depends on the wavelength of the light falling on an object, the reflection characteristics of that object, and the circumstances in which it is seen. It is these individual wavelengths that create the colours being perceived. For example, white is a mixture of all the wavelengths that we can see; whereas any main colour that we see occurs when one part of the spectrum wavelength is predominant. Basically, it is the mix of colours that gives the one we actually see, as in green and red making blue, and blue and green showing up as red. But it is down to personal perception as to what shade of any particular colour is being seen.

So, perhaps the fact that glowing red eyes are seen during these paranormal encounters is due to the way we are able to perceive colours. And, maybe, the manipulation that those entities might be able to wield over our perceptions of them. Or, perchance, it’s something quite different.

In 1982 a French physicist discovered that, under certain conditions, subatomic particles could communicate with each other on an instantaneous basis, regardless of the distance between them. That discovery, of course, discredited Einstein’s theory that nothing could move faster than the speed of light. Furthermore, a physicist at the University of London believes that it might imply that objective reality does not really exist, and that the Universe is actually a Hologram. That idea would also imply that, deep down, reality means that everything that exists in the Universe is infinitely connected.

There is also the theory of Parallel Universes. These are Universes said to be able to exist in the same space that our own Universe inhabits, but ones that do not actually touch us. It seems that this idea is all to do with waves, in that the sub-atomic particles of atoms are, at their minutest level, known as quarks. These have the characteristics of waves in that they all have diverse qualities. It is these waves that make up what we call Matter, and Matter compiled from the same characteristics create universes. However, it might be possible that when Matter from a separate Universe is in a state very similar to that of our own we are able to see the creatures of that other Universe.

In quantum mechanics there is also the idea of a Multiverse, another name for Parallel Universes. It seems that physicists are seriously considering this idea. Again, it is all related to wave functions and the inflationary idea of the cosmos. It would certainly explain the dilemma behind Schrodinger’s Cat. In this hypothesis there are many universes that all came into existence from the original Big Bang – assuming, of course, that the Big Bang really was what happened. The premise states that there are many bubbles all existing side-by side with ours, but they never interact. The proposition also includes the idea, according to some physicists, that time is not as we understand it, and that space is warped. They think that perhaps wormholes might tunnel outside normal space-time and connect black, and white, holes; and that black holes might lead to other universes. Some even posit the idea that there really are more than the Four Dimensions we are aware of, i.e. length, breadth, width, and time. In fact these known dimensions may be part of an Eleven Dimensional Universe, and that those we can’t see actually exist at the subatomic level, or even somewhere else that we can prove using mathematics.

For those who adhere to the Multiverse theory it could also mean that we live in a Matrix type simulation. And it might imply that the laws of physics, that we believe to be fundamental throughout the Universe, may not actually be so. The Universe is a vast place, and we can only see so far with our current telescopes. Personally, I’ve long been asking the question as to how we can be so sure that these laws are the same everywhere.

This Simulation theory also states that some worlds, containing intelligent people, could use computers to simulate yet more virtual worlds. And those virtual worlds could keep creating others ad infinitum. You can read much more about this idea here, in an article from 2003 entitled: Reality in the melting pot:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/

Another person who believes we might be living in a Computer Simulation is Nick Bostrom. In an Abstract from a paper that he wrote he states that: “This paper argues that at least one of the following propositions is true: (1) the human species is very likely to go extinct before reaching a “posthuman” stage; (2) any posthuman civilization is extremely unlikely to run a significant number of simulations of their evolutionary history (or variations thereof); (3) we are almost certainly living in a computer simulation. It follows that the belief that there is a significant chance that we will one day become posthumans who run ancestor-simulations is false, unless we are currently living in a simulation. A number of other consequences of this result are also discussed.”

In this paper he also says the following: “The basic idea of this paper can be expressed roughly as follows: If there were a substantial chance that our civilization will ever get to the posthuman stage and run many ancestor simulations, then how come you are not living in such a simulation? We shall develop this idea into a rigorous argument.” You can read his paper, entitled: Are You Living In a Computer Simulation? here:
http://www.simulation-argument.com/simulation.html

And, while reading it, the thought occurred to me to wonder if, just perhaps, the Grey Aliens that we keep hearing about might be Posthumans.

Or, perhaps it’s all down to the use of an invisibility cloak. According to a report in October 2007 physicists have invented a device that can hide an object within the visible spectrum. Apparently it’s all done using gold rings and, of course, so far only on a very tiny scale, but it might be an important breakthrough. You can read about the discovery here:
http://technology.newscientist.com/

Hmm! That experiment reminds me of what Zechariah Sitchin said about the Niburu aliens, the Anunnaki, altering human DNA, and then using humans to mine for gold.

Is it possible that the inhabitants of other worlds occasionally break through into ours, and are seen as the weird creatures that I’ve been discussing? And, should that be the case, do they deliberately materialize in such a way that makes us fail to believe in what we’re seeing because it’s all just too odd? On the other hand, do all of these beings simply come from our own mind? Or, is it all far more sinister than that? Perhaps there really are other beings – either “out there,” or closer to home – whose true purpose is to create such fear in us that they can feed on that emotion. I don’t have the answer, and I suspect that nobody has the real answer. But those of us who follow these events certainly have a lot of fun doing so.

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