Boobrie

A generally malevolent entity, the boobrie typically preys on livestock being transported on ships, but it is also fond of otters, of which it consumes a considerable number.

The bellowing sound made by the boobrie, more like a bull than a bird, may have its origin in the strange call of the common bittern, which was a rare visitor to Scotland.

[1] Edward Dwelly, a Scottish lexicographer, lists tarbh-boidhre as "Monster, demon" and "God capable of changing himself into many forms"; tarbh-aoidhre is given as a northern counties variation.

[1] Investigation into folklore, especially Celtic oral traditions, began in the 19th century, and several "bizarre" and less familiar beasts were identified, including the boobrie.

[11] According to folklorist Campbell of Islay, a detailed account of its dimensions provided by an authoritative source claims that it is "larger than seventeen of the biggest eagles put together".

An imprint of a boobrie's foot left in some lakeside mud equalled "the span of a large wide-spreading pair of red deer's horns".

[5] The boobrie's insatiable appetite for livestock posed a threat to local farmers, as they relied on their animals as a means of providing income and food.

[15] Campbell of Islay's undated manuscript notes the boobrie had not been seen for several years probably due to the widespread burning of heather in the area of its habitat.

[16] The tale starts by detailing how a man named Eachann fed a colossal black bull when he discovered it writhing in pain and possibly close to death at the side of Loch nan Dobhran, on the west coast of Argyll.

The verse heard was in Gaelic, and translates as: I was assisted by a young man And I aided a maid in distress; Then after three hundred years of bondage Relieve me quickly.

It reacted by immediately transforming into a gigantic boobrie, giving out a loud bellow and diving into the loch, pulling the plough and the other three horses with it.

The frightened farmer and his son watched as the creature swam to the centre of the loch then dived underwater, taking the other horses and plough with it.

[16] In a story transcribed by John Campbell of Kilberry, a hunter attempted to shoot a boobrie after he spotted it in its bird-like manifestation on a sea loch one chilly February day.