The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures: The Ultimate A–Z of Fantastic Beings from Myth and Magic. John Matthews
to well below her hips.
The Coeur d’Alene tribes around Spokane speak of Bigfoot as Tree Men with black faces and skin like bear’s fur. They emitted a strong odour not unlike burning horn and stood higher than a tepee. They stole fish out of traps and could transform themselves into trees when required. This is not unlike the report made in the 1930s in New Hampshire, where Bigfoot were referred to as Wood Devils, humanoid, grey-haired beings in the deep woodland who can run fast but camouflage themselves by hiding against a tree if anyone approaches.
An Appalachian settler’s story tells how a man was lost in the wilderness and crawled exhausted into a cave. He was awakened by a hairy woman eating chestnuts which she offered to the lost man. She brought him a deer, ripping through the hide with her nails and offered him some raw slices. He then made a fire to cook it, but the Bigfoot did not understand what fire was and she stepped into it. Throughout the winter, the man stayed with her and she conceived a child by him. Towards the end of his time in the wilderness, he saw a large number of Bigfoots coming towards the cave. Terrified, the man began to run away. When the female Bigfoot saw he was going, she took their child and tore it open with her nails.
(See also Boq, Seatco, Tsiatko, Yeahoh, Yeti.)
BILIKU
Among the Andamanese Islanders in the Bay of Bengal, where the weather is a predominant concern, Biliku is a female spider who represents the ferocious north-west monsoon. Biliku is married to the mild south-west monsoon, Taria.
The animal ancestors of the Andamanese were the descendants of Biliku, brought into being one stormy night when Lizard decided to hold a dancing party. He became so wild and strong that everyone grew frightened. Whenever anyone tried to catch him, Lizard threw them into the sea, turning them into all kinds of fish and turtles. The one who stopped him was Berep, a crab. Biliku’s son was the great hunting spider, Da Tengat, who brought the first cooking and who caused the first darkness.
BILLDAD
In North American lumberjack lore, the Billdad is a beaver-sized creature with large hind-legs like a kangaroo or hare, webbed feet and a hawk-like bill. It lives on fish by lurking in the reeds and leaping down on them by slapping its tail up and down until the fish is stunned. Mature Billdads could leap up to 60 ft.
BILOKO
Among the people of central Zaire in Africa, Biloko are giants with snouts like crocodiles, adapted to eat human flesh, preferring female flesh to that of the male kind. Some prefer the eyes, others the liver or heart. There are also dwarf Biloko (sometimes called Eloko) with hands like those of the gorilla.
BINAYE AHANI
Among the Navajo of the North American south-west, Binaye Ahani were limbless twins with twisted torsos. They preyed upon any living creature that came near, fixing them with a petrifying stare. They were related to Thelgeth and Tsenahale.
BIRD-MAN
This creature wearing traditional Japanese dress, has the basic appearance of a human being but has a bird-shaped head, human ears, a cockerel’s comb, beak and wattles, with human hands at the ends of its thin wings. He plays tricks on people but is not malicious in nature.
BISAN
Among the Malay people, the Bisan is a cicada spirit who guards the camphor tree. No camphor can be taken without her permission. Those who come to harvest the camphor have to approach the tree speaking in bahasa kapor (camphor tongue.) A white cockerel is offered to Bisan that she may reveal where the camphor tree may be found.
BISHOP FISH
According to medieval European legend, this great fish had claws rather than pectoral fins. It had flipper-like feet and legs, and its head was like a bishop’s mitre. It was first described by the 16th-century Swiss naturalist Konrad von Gesner, who may have been describing a squid. However, the many legends of fish-men and the fact that the bishop’s mitre actually copies the ritual headgear of Mesopotamian fish-priests, may also inform this creature’s legend. (See Oannes.)
BISIMBI BI MASA
Bisimbi (singular Kisimbi) are water nymphs in the Congo region. They live only in wells and ponds that are sources of rivers. They are so dangerous that only medicine men and herbalists go near these places in search of roots and pebbles. The Bisimbi are said to cause skin diseases, the cure for which can only be obtained in their haunts.
A Congolese story tells how the mother of many children sent her eldest daughter, of whom she was sexually jealous because of her many conquests, to the river. As the girl drew water, the Bisimbi grabbed her and pulled her under. The mother then sent her eldest son, Mengi, to see what had happened. He saw his sister’s water jar floating in the river and heard her voice calling him. The girl’s hand rose from the water holding a pearl necklace. ‘Give this to our mother,’ she cried. Mengi brought it back to the village and was accused of stealing it. The elders came to the river to see and hear for themselves. Again, Mengi called out for his sister, and her hand rose with another necklace. The elders immediately directed the able men to build a dam to divert the water. As the river bed dried up, they found the girl in a coffin. Inside she was still beautiful but her skin was blood red. Bisimbi voices sang to them, ‘Take her back, if you are strong, or leave her with us and we will keep her.’ As soon as the girl was lifted from the coffin, a terrible storm struck, breaking the dam and drowning a man. As they lifted the girl to shore, the Bisimbi cried out, ‘Take her but never let her eat pork.’ She continued to live among her people, but she had become dreamy and quiet. Her mother, still fuelled by jealousy, gave a feast for her, concealing pork in the dish. As soon as the girl tasted it, water began to swirl about her feet, ever rising until it swept her back into the river where she remained, becoming one of the Bisimbi forever.
BISON
The ancient bison of the cave paintings of Lascaux in southern France is the same animal that is misleadingly called the ‘American buffalo’. (The buffalo is a completely different bovine animal.) The bison is an immense, heavy animal which yielded much meat, a tough skin and warm hide to help our ancestors survive the rigours of the Ice Age. Immense herds of buffalo used to roam the North American Plains, amply supporting the Plains Indians in the same way. When food was short for the Mandan Indians, their warriors performed a bison dance designed to change the direction of the herds’ wanderings and bring them near to their village. The dance continued, with new dancers replacing the hunters who were fatigued, until bison were sighted.
The Blackfoot Indians tell a story that takes us back to our ancient ancestors who stampeded bison (or buffalo as they are in this story) over cliffs. (See next page.)
The legend of how the American buffalo were first released upon Earth tells how a powerful being called Humpback owned all the buffalo, keeping them in a corral in the mountains north of San Juan. Humpback refused to share any of the beasts, so Coyote called a council in which their release was planned. Scouts went out to see how this might be accomplished, but the stronghold seemed impregnable. Coyote then noticed that Humpback’s young son had no pet. Coyote turned himself into the bird that the tribes call the kill-deer. Pretending to have a broken wing, he loitered by a spring where Humpback’s son took pity upon him and led him into the stronghold. Coyote planned to fly over the corral, causing the buffalo to stampede; however Humpback said the bird was good for nothing and ordered his son to cast it out. The next morning, Coyote turned into a little dog and the boy brought him home. Humpback tested the dog to see that it was what it claimed to be, by holding a coal from the fire near the dog’s eyes. As