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Description
Despite its fame, El Chupacabra (or Chupacabras) is a newcomer to the cryptozoological scene. In 1996, farmers in Puerto Rico began finding their animals dead, uneaten and seemingly drained of blood. The media labeled the mystery killer El Chupacabra, meaning “goat sucker”, and it wasn’t long before the creature revealed itself. Madelyne Tolentino reported seeing a creature resembling the classic grey alien of popular culture, but with the addition of spines in its back, red eyes, and fangs. Soon similar killings were being reported throughout South and Central America and the southern United States. Curiously, however, descriptions of the creature varied wildly. Some said it was dark and hairy, others pale and hairless, and still others green and scaly. It walked on two legs, or four, or hopped like a kangaroo, or even had wings. Most recently, sightings from the USA have described quadrupedal dog-like animals with thick, hairless grey skin. So what the hell is going on here?

Turns out, the Chupacabra’s calling card - animals drained of blood - is a non-starter. All animals that have been examined had injuries consistent with attacks by known predators, and still had most of their blood; it had simply settled in the body after death and left a bloodless scene. Likewise, no one has ever actually seen a Chupacabra attack take place; instead, dead animals are reported, and any strange creature seen in the area is labeled as a Chupacabra. The original sighting by Madelyne Tolentino has been found to have likely been either a hoax or figment of her imagination inspired by Sil, the alien creature from the movie Species, which she saw shortly before her sighting. The American Chupacabras have all turned out to be domestic dogs and coyotes with severe mange, a condition that causes animals to lose their hair. The other sightings are so varied that they are probably inspired by multiple things. Interestingly, most Chupacabra stories have spread through primarily Hispanic communities, further suggesting that it is a cultural phenomenon rather than a real animal.

In this case, I decided to root my drawing in reality by basing it off a vampire bat; these critters can actually walk very well on their folded wings, so it seemed like a good compromise for reports of wingless and winged animals.

Description
Despite its fame, El Chupacabra (or Chupacabras) is a newcomer to the cryptozoological scene. In 1996, farmers in Puerto Rico began finding their animals dead, uneaten and seemingly drained of blood. The media labeled the mystery killer El Chupacabra, meaning “goat sucker”, and it wasn’t long before the creature revealed itself. Madelyne Tolentino reported seeing a creature resembling the classic grey alien of popular culture, but with the addition of spines in its back, red eyes, and fangs. Soon similar killings were being reported throughout South and Central America and the southern United States. Curiously, however, descriptions of the creature varied wildly. Some said it was dark and hairy, others pale and hairless, and still others green and scaly. It walked on two legs, or four, or hopped like a kangaroo, or even had wings. Most recently, sightings from the USA have described quadrupedal dog-like animals with thick, hairless grey skin. So what the hell is going on here?

Turns out, the Chupacabra’s calling card - animals drained of blood - is a non-starter. All animals that have been examined had injuries consistent with attacks by known predators, and still had most of their blood; it had simply settled in the body after death and left a bloodless scene. Likewise, no one has ever actually seen a Chupacabra attack take place; instead, dead animals are reported, and any strange creature seen in the area is labeled as a Chupacabra. The original sighting by Madelyne Tolentino has been found to have likely been either a hoax or figment of her imagination inspired by Sil, the alien creature from the movie Species, which she saw shortly before her sighting. The American Chupacabras have all turned out to be domestic dogs and coyotes with severe mange, a condition that causes animals to lose their hair. The other sightings are so varied that they are probably inspired by multiple things. Interestingly, most Chupacabra stories have spread through primarily Hispanic communities, further suggesting that it is a cultural phenomenon rather than a real animal.

In this case, I decided to root my drawing in reality by basing it off a vampire bat; these critters can actually walk very well on their folded wings, so it seemed like a good compromise for reports of wingless and winged animals.