Witnesses say that in Africa, in the hard-to-reach mangroves, no, no, yes, and there is a huge reptile, which the locals call Ninki-nanka, which means "devil dragon".
Scary monster
The available descriptions of the dragon vary greatly. But most often he is described as looking like a nine meter crocodile. The body of the monster is covered with large scales, the neck is long, like a giraffe, and the horse's head has three horns: two on the sides and one in the forehead. Perhaps because of the long neck, which is now and then visible above the swamp, some eyewitnesses thought that Ninki-nanka looked like a huge snake. The monster is nocturnal, and during the day it completely plunges into the swamp, so rarely anyone could see it in the light of the sun. But fear has large eyes, and therefore the locals more than once dreamed that they saw a winged serpent, from whose mouth fire escaped.
The Fulbe people have a belief that the dragon is endowed with magical powers. And in the rainy season, to avoid flooding, the natives pray to him and sacrifice little pigs. They believe that if Ninki-nanka accepts the offering, then the rains, which are here in a solid wall, will quickly end.
The natives believe that the one who kills the dragon will receive strength and immortality. And so every now and then they go hunting. But if the one who risked encroaching on the life of the monster dies from its teeth or claws, then the poor man's race will soon die out, since the curse of the dragon hangs over him. Many of those who went to the swamps in search of Ninki-nanka did not return home.
Dinosaur?
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Europeans learned about the Gambian monster only in 1935. Thomas Dalrymple, one of the British doctors who came to the Gambia to fight the malaria epidemic, found himself one night with local residents on the banks of the river. He noticed that the aborigines show anxiety and anxiety, as if they are afraid of something or someone. The doctor managed to talk with the natives only in the morning. They said that they noticed the silhouette of Ninki-nank in the river. From their words, Dalrymple wrote down local legends, made sketches of the animal and found that it remarkably resembles a dinosaur, whose skeleton is installed in Central Park, New York, in the Museum of Natural History.
Loner
Almost 70 years later, in the spring of 2004, another Briton set off to find Ninki Nanka with his own funds. Scientist Chris Moiser, whose articles on Bigfoot, Jovee, the Moth Man and other unusual creatures have been repeatedly published in various publications, was considered a great authority in cryptozoology. Moiser suggested that Ninki-nanka is most likely a miraculously surviving plesiosaur. He later wrote about this in his book "Ninki-nanka - the dragon of the Gambia."
The scientist decided at all costs to see the monster with his own eyes. Having reached the capital of the country - the city of Banjul, he hired two porters and continued his journey in a jeep, and then walked another 40 kilometers. Moiser's goal was the places where in 1935 the British doctor collected information about Ninki-nanka, namely: the village of Sallo, located on the edge of a large mangrove swamp. The villagers traded in silver coinage. Tourists were especially in demand for hryvnia (neck jewelry) with the image of a devil dragon. I got myself such a souvenir and Moiser.
The natives told the traveler many funny stories about their meetings with Ninki-nanka. Many daredevils went in search of the dragon, because they wanted to gain strength and immortality. But each time their gnawed skeletons were found at the edge of the swamp. Locals believe that the killer was Ninki-nanka, and the hyenas ate what was left of the corpses.
All these stories about the monster could be considered fiction. However, among the local residents there was a man who saw the monster with his own eyes 20 years ago. True, the eyewitness was old and seriously ill. With difficulty mumbling with a toothless mouth, the old man told about his meeting with Ninki-nanka. The mangrove swamp monster, he said, was the size of an elephant, its head was the size of a hut, and its rows of teeth were each the size of a finger. He made frighteningly loud snorting sounds. The man was lucky that the dragon could not quickly get out of the quagmire, otherwise he would definitely have torn the daredevil. Surprising in this story was the fact that the decrepit and sick old man was only 40 years old. The natives had no doubt that the illness and premature old age of this man were nothing more than the curse of the devil dragon.
None of the local residents agreed to become Chris's guide to the swamp: they were afraid that any of them would die immediately as soon as they saw Ninki-nanka, but this, of course, would not threaten a person with white skin.
The scientist had to hit the road alone. However, he soon discovered that the places here are absolutely impassable. In addition, Chris was bitten by an anopheles mosquito. The disease began to progress rapidly, and the scientist had to abandon the search.
The locals were skeptical about the diagnosis of malaria, they were sure that Ninki-nanka could not do without …
Hunting of the XXI century
In 2006, a new expedition was organized in search of the Gambian dragon. The group included specialists from the Center for Fortean Zoology, who were jokingly called "dragon hunters".
The researchers had very specific goals: to carry out excavations in the place where, according to eyewitnesses, the carcass of Ninki-nank lay. In addition, the members of the expedition wanted to shoot video footage with testimonies of local residents about encounters with the dragon Ninki-nanka.
The expedition to the Gambia was named the Downs Group in honor of the outstanding scientist Downes, one of the founders of British cryptozoology. The group, in addition to Chris Moiser, who had already been in these places, was the scientist Richard Freeman, who made detailed reports on its activities. He wrote about visiting a market where local goldsmiths were selling silver Ninki Nanka figurines. One of them, Baka Samba, said that once his uncle, hunting in the mangrove, saw a monster.
But I couldn't really describe it, because I was very frightened. He only repeated all the time that Ninki-nanka is big and scary. That he had four legs, a huge tail and a mouth from which fire burst. According to the researchers, most likely, the hunter took the bright red inner surface of the mouth or an orange tongue in constant motion for fire. Samba also said that those who saw the dragon died of a serious illness within 5 years. Scientists have found out that Ninki-nanka has repeatedly appeared in the Kiang West National Park.
Many people saw a monster about 15 meters long there 10 years ago. And 3 years ago, a ranger patrolling the park ran into him. According to him, the length of the monster reached 50 meters, width - one meter. The employee had the opportunity to observe him from hiding for over an hour. And then he felt that his strength was leaving him, and he lost consciousness. The ranger had to heal for a long time from a strange ailment with the help of herbs. When Freeman invited him to look at images of various animals, including mythical ones, he chose a Chinese dragon. The scientist himself believed that Ninki-nanka is more like an anaconda or reticulated python with horn-like processes on the head.
However, not all scientists agree that Ninki-nanka actually exists. Doctor of Cambridge University K. Johnson is sure that this is just an image from Fulbe legends like our Koshchei the Immortal.