The monster detectives: on the trail of the ninki-nanka

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/article1173777.ece

As you read this, a small group of intrepid, pink-nosed Brits are creeping through the Gambian jungle, dodging crocodiles and cobras, in the hope of spotting the legendary "ninki-nanka". (OK, it sounds like a Goon Show plot, but bear with me.) This fabulously named creature is said by locals to resemble a giant reptile, up to 30 feet long and dwelling in the murk of the mangrove swamps.

The "dragon" is rumoured to look rather like a game of zoological "consequences", possessing the body of a crocodile, the neck of a giraffe and the head of a horse with three horns. Less fantastically, the team's leader, Richard Freeman of the Centre for Fortean Zoology, suspects the ninki-nanka of being a species of colossal monitor lizard. "Whatever the truth," he says, "this is the first dedicated expedition to search for this animal."

So far, the explorers' blog hasn't revealed any sightings. At a slaughterhouse, they were ceremonially presented with some ninki-nanka scales, which turned out to be pieces of rotted film - "certainly not biological", says Freeman. "However, we have acquired a sample to test when we get back to the UK, as it would be bad science not to investigate every claim."

More encouraging are the witnesses. A compelling chap called Papa Jinda had described a scene of devastation at a pumping station where, the blog gushes, "a ninki-nanka had destroyed several pipes". It continues: "The mention of a ninki-nanka had caused a panic among the workers, and they had asked for a mirror as it was thought that the only way to get rid of the animal was to show it its reflection.

I have a hunch that Papa Jinda and friends are laughing their asses off over this ninki-nanka snipe hunt.

I think Smurfette ends up befriending the ninki-nanka and everyone is happy again.

it does sound like something from the Goon Show! Well either that or Vic Reeves northern club singing in Shooting Stars. Anyway, here's a script for an old Goon Show episode, just for the heck of it! It's "The Dreaded Batter Pudding Hurler of Bexhill on Sea"

http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/scripts/batter.html

I mean, come on - doesn't that sound like a fun place to work?

My dream job is to be paid to scientifically investigate all the psuedo archaeology claims, such as the out of place artifacts, supposed evidence of mysterious higher civilizations where they shouldn't be, and so on. These guys are out there, doing science and having a good time. Sounds good to me!

It talks about people getting sick & dying after encounters with this "ninki-nanka". We know victims of komodo dragons often die days later from bacterial infections from komodo saliva. It's very possible there is a small population of similar monitor lizards in the Gambian jungle. The myth has silly aspects, but also enough going for it that there really could be something out there.

The Dragon of the Gambia
Chris Moiser

Chris Moiser, a regular visitor to the Gambia on Africa's west coast, became intrigued by a 1944 report of a shy but ferocious, 30ft (9m) long reptile known as the Ninki Nanka. The mangrove-dwelling beast is said to have the body of a crocodile, the neck of a giraffe, the head of horse and three horns, one in the middle of its head. The reclusive reptile spends most of its time submerged in the mud in the sparsely-populated and infrequently-visited regions inland and upriver. In 1935, a white doctor found a group of locals staring at a photograph of what they said was the Ninki Nanka; it proved to be of a concrete dinosaur, though the tale doesn't state which species. A 1944 survey of the Gambia and surrounding areas describes the beast as a mythical water genie associated with rains and floods, which takes the form of a giant serpent. Capturing the snake can bring great wealth and good fortune. Of the four locals approached by Moiser in his most recent expedition, one dismissed Ninki Nanka as a myth, one made silver jewellery of it, one expressed a great fear of it, and another, a Muslim school teacher, refused to talk about it, apparently afraid. Like so many cryptids, the Ninki Nanka appears to exist somewhere between flesh and blood reality, and folklore.

http://www.forteantimes.com/review/animalsandmen.shtml

Sign me up, I'm ready for an adventure! :bounce:

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Olly writes from Gambia....
http://2006-gambia.blogspot.com/2006/07/olly-writes-from-gambia.html