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The Mongolian Death Worm


Han

piscator ψ
Here is a thread to discus the Mongolian Death Worm "MDW" for short.

Any and all contributions and criticisms extremely welcome.
If I have made any errors please point them out.
My aim is to gather and post any information regarding the MDW so this will not be the most organised of threads :)
 
The Mongolian Death Worm
My understanding is that the Mongolian Death Worm is described as: like being a gargantuan Earthworm with the ability to deliver a lethal electric shock.

There are some aquatic species that poses this ability, for example Electric Eels, Rays and Catfish.
(Bioelectrogenesis) is the zoological term for an animal that can generate Electricity internally.
I am not aware of any terrestrial animal that posses this ability aside from the alleged Mongolian Death worm.

I find it interesting that the Death Worm is endemic to Mongolia and wonder if there is not a cultural “connection”/explanation?

My understanding is that traditionally Mongolians believed that breaking the surface of the earth was “taboo” as demonstrated by the fact that they did not traditional engage in “arable” agriculture (as in plowing and planting seeds etc) but they did have a culture of animal husbandry e.g. Horses and Yaks. This “taboo” is also demonstrated by the fact that the traditional nomadic Mongolian Tent (Yurts) use no Tent Pegs, and rely on aerodynamic design and the weight of possesions and goods to keep them in place.

I think it is also important to note that they traditionally practice the ritual of “Sky burial” as in: leaving the deceased cadaver to be consumed by Birds, again I believe this is related too but not solely about a taboo regarding breaking the surface of the Earth.

My understanding is that many cultures employed “bogy men” as a way of warning or prohibting certain behaviours e.g. Don't go to far into the woods etc.

Maybe this is the case with the Death Worm?

I previously looked into the legend of the Lambton Worm (an English folk tale) and it occurred to me that the word “Worm” can and is applied to creatures that are not “true” Worms. In the case of the Lambton worm I believe it was used to describe a Lamprey (a parasitic Marine creature). We also have creatures called “Slow Worms” which are in fact legless Lizards (well they have legs but very tiny) and look more like snakes.

The word Worm itself is very interesting because many of the Scandinavian legends talk of Wyrms (a kind of Dragon).

I think that when most people are asked they would say they are not afraid of worms, because they are not aware of things like the Guinea worm, a creature that fills me with horror and dread.

In other words it is not just in Mongolia that worms are scary.
 
From the wiki entry for the MDW:

Appearance

"The worms are purportedly between two and five feet long, and thick-bodied.[2]


In On the Trail of Ancient Man, Andrews cites Mongolian Prime Minister Damdinbazar who in 1922 described the worm:


It is shaped like a sausage about two feet long, has no head nor leg and it is so poisonous that merely to touch it means instant death. It lives in the most desolate parts of the Gobi Desert.


In 1932, Andrews published this information again in the book The New Conquest of Central Asia, adding: "It is reported to live in the most arid, sandy regions of the western Gobi." Andrews, however, did not believe in the creature's existence."

&

Habitat and behavior
The worm is said to inhabit the western[3] or southern[1] Gobi. In the 1987 book Altajn Tsaadakh Govd, Ivan Mackerle described it as travelling underground, creating waves of sand on the surface which allow it to be detected.[4] The Mongolians say it can kill at a distance, either by spraying a venom at its prey or by means of electric discharge.[1][5] They say that the worm lives underground, hibernating most of the year except for June and July, when it becomes active. It is also reported that it most often comes to the surface when it rains and the ground is wet.[1][self-published source?]

The Mongolians believe that touching any part of the worm will cause almost instant death and tremendous pain.[1][self-published source?] It has been told that the worm frequently preyed on camels and laid eggs in its intestines, and eventually acquired the trait of its red-like skin. Its venom supposedly corrodes metal and local folklore tells of a predilection for the color yellow. The worm is also said to have a preference for local parasitic plants such as the goyo.


Here is an Artists impression from the same page:

Allghoikhorkhoi.jpg


By The original uploader was Pieter0024 at English Wikipedia - Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons., CC BY-SA 1.0, File:Allghoikhorkhoi.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
 
Is there any creature that looks like this that occurs in Mongolia?

in outward appearance yes, but it does not get to anywhere near the alleged size of MDW and is also aquatic (in its larval stage) so the Gobi desert would not be an ideal place for it to live, however it could occur in oases.

Here are some images of "chironomidae" larvae:

images


Chaetocladius.piger5.jpg
 
another piece of information I find relevant is:

"It has been told that the worm frequently preyed on camels and laid eggs in its intestines,"

I don't know about anybody else but parasitic worms scare the living daylights out of me.

Here is a map of Mongolia showing cases of Parasitic worm infections:

file
 
The mouth parts of some tapeworms bare a striking resemblance to the artists impression of MDW:

Artists impression:
Allghoikhorkhoi.jpg




Real Parasitic Worms:
s621259426347860403_p5_i5_w507.jpeg


Taenia%20escolex.jpg


16.jpg
 

I know that Eels can cross land when it rains, but I am unsure about electric ones because I believe that they are not true Eels and are Knife fish?

I will try and find out, but I do know that Electric eels can deliver a shock outside the water but on via direct contact, unlike underwater where they can strike from distance.

I was under the impression initially that the MDW was "electric" but I have now read that they could also be venomous.
 
The stories seem to vary in terms of electric charge vs. venom, which is no surprise when it comes to a mythical creature like this. The stories about the chula aura that I heard when I investigated the "creature" in 2005 in Puerto Rico were similarly all over the map. The key is to look for any constant threads in all narratives. Those are the ones upon which we might be able to rely.
 
Barnacle geese: I am wondering if the MDW is not similar:

Barnacle Geese are so called because people were either not able or to or couldn't see the Geese Nesting, I understand they prefer isolated and remote locations, I believe that the myth of them hatching from "Barnacles" was a direct result of people not observing or understanding their nesting behaviours.

How is the MDW similar?
Well my current feeling is that the MDW is based on large parasitic worms, firstly because their morphology seems to closely resemble the descriptions I have read of the MDW but also now because of their life cycle: I understand that they are microscopic (or very tiny at least) when they are eggs and hatchlings but grow to a much greater size once they colonise the intestine.
I also understand that they depend on fresh water to find a host (as in the animal drinks water containing the eggs) and give that the Gobi desert is on of the most arid places on Earth, I suspect that its oases were ideal homes for such parasitic creatures, because of the amount of animals that would drink from them, given that the oases must have been frequented by Herdsman and their animals.
(the situation in the Gobi desert and the tradition of animal Herding in Mongolia may explain why the problem was particularly acute in there: hence the name Mongolian death worm) I should also mention that some infestations of parasitic worms can be so severe that they are Fatal.
You would have a situation of constant infection and recontamination and without a full understanding (because they did not have powerful microscopes) the Herdsmen would only be able to guess at the source of the parasitic worms they found upon butchering their animals (or worms that emerged when the animal was still alive). I believe that is where the "striking from distance" idea came from, as in it was as good an explanation as any because they did not posses they necessary tools to provide a better explanation.

If we use cholera as an example it was not until relatively recently that it was understood, this and similar diseases in England were avoided by people drinking beer (Made with boiled water killing the "nasties") and I understand in the orient the same was true with Tea (boiling water again)

I just looked on wikipedia about Mongolian tea and found this: "An old tradition among many Mongols was to not drink water straight"*

Which I believe was similar in reason to the way Beer was preferred to water in England.




*((source)) Suutei tsai - Wikipedia
 
A few corrections/extra information:

In the post above it may appear that I thought that all parasitic worms are "water born", this is not correct. Some of this type of worm are spread via soil and plants (especially grass) that have been "fertilised" by animal droppings and are particulary prevalent in areas where mass grazing takes place.

I also should have made more clear that when I was talking about Herdsman and the Gobi desert, I should have included Caravans, and the transportation of Herds to "market", because the Gobi is not ideal pasture being that it is a desert.

I should have also mentioned that there are a some Venomous snakes that occur in Mongolia like the "Mongolian pit viper"* or the Adder (aka Common Viper)**

I have also thought about other "real" creatures that have been assigned "magic" abilities, in particular the Aye Aye:

"the aye-aye is often viewed as a harbinger of evil and killed on sight. Others believe, if one points its narrowest finger at someone, they are marked for death. Some say the appearance of an aye-aye in a village predicts the death of a villager, and the only way to prevent this is to kill it. The Sakalava people go so far as to claim aye-ayes sneak into houses through the thatched roofs and murder the sleeping occupants by using their middle finger to puncture the victim's aorta.[8]"***

I still believe that the MDW is based on large parasitic worms, but on reflection I now think that it is a confabulation of various animals including venomous snakes.
I understand that "Vipers" have been know to "Spit Venom":

"Other spitting species
Certain cobras, especially some Asian species that are not regarded as spitting cobras, do sometimes spit to some extent, though not as effectively as the spitters. Even some of the Viperidae have been reported to spit occasionally"****

(Pit vipers and Adders both belong to the Viperidae family and are present in Mongolia)

It was not until relatively recently that Whales were recognised as not being "Fish" due in part to their appearance and habitat (as in: they live in the seas like fishes).
I have to wonder if people didn't believe that Parasitic worms were not "snakes" and therefore posses some of their characteristics (in this case the ability to spit venom)




*Gloydius halys - Wikipedia

**Vipera berus - Wikipedia

***Aye-aye - Wikipedia

****Spitting cobra - Wikipedia
 
I should have also mentioned that there are a some Venomous snakes that occur in Mongolia like the "Mongolian pit viper"* or the Adder (aka Common Viper)**
I still believe that the MDW is based on large parasitic worms, but on reflection I now think that it is a confabulation of various animals including venomous snakes.

Either pure invention or due to vipers occasionally seen in unusual circumstances. I've read quite a bit about paleontological expeditions to the Gobi, by Andrews, Z.K-Jaworowska and more recently. They all mention vipers, which may be Siberian vipers in the southerly part of their range. Apparently they're so numerous certain places have been named after them like the Viper Sayr at Nemegt.
 
Either pure invention or due to vipers occasionally seen in unusual circumstances. I've read quite a bit about paleontological expeditions to the Gobi, by Andrews, Z.K-Jaworowska and more recently. They all mention vipers, which may be Siberian vipers in the southerly part of their range. Apparently they're so numerous certain places have been named after them like the Viper Sayr at Nemegt.

When you said unusual circumstances, it made me think about why a Viper would be in the ground?
Then I thought about one entering a "rodent" burrow whilst hunting....

My understanding is that snakes will generally avoid people and go the other way, but if the are cornered they will strike (or spit venom which is a purely defensive tactic).
So maybe somebody disturbed a Viper on it's way out of a burrow, and was spat at.

This could account for the alleged MDW's ability to strike from distance, but my understanding is that the MDW has a segmented body, and is also Red/Pink in colour, it also seems to lack Viper "Fangs" and scaly skin.
 
When you said unusual circumstances, it made me think about why a Viper would be in the ground?
Then I thought about one entering a "rodent" burrow whilst hunting....

They have hibernation dens.

My understanding is that snakes will generally avoid people and go the other way, but if the are cornered they will strike (or spit venom which is a purely defensive tactic).
So maybe somebody disturbed a Viper on it's way out of a burrow, and was spat at.

Sure.

This could account for the alleged MDW's ability to strike from distance, but my understanding is that the MDW has a segmented body, and is also Red/Pink in colour, it also seems to lack Viper "Fangs" and scaly skin.

Occasionally a viper might get covered in mud after a rain, or be (poorly) seen under conditions of low light. Btw much of Mongolia has reddish (or "rose" colored) geological units, slowly eroding and producing reddish sediments, so some of that might adhere to a viper occasionally.
 
I can't find anything about hibernation in Haley's pit viper at the moment, however I did find this about Himalayan vipers:
hibernate1.png


If under certain circumstances the Haley's viper displays the same behaviour, I can well understand why people thought it lived underground.
One thing is for sure, if you dug it up, you would have one extremely vexed snake on your hands...

Source:
Venomous Snakes of the World
 
I can't find anything about hibernation in Haley's pit viper at the moment,

Any Mongolian viper would have to hibernate. The latitude of Omnigovi--southern Mongolia--is similar to that of New England, where any reptile must hibernate to survive.

If under certain circumstances the Haley's viper displays the same behaviour, I can well understand why people thought it lived underground.

Sure every spring it comes out of hibernation dens.

One thing is for sure, if you dug it up, you would have one extremely vexed snake on your hands...

Assuming the weather is still cold, it would be as docile as a baby. :)
Btw as an aside, recently I discovered that one of the greatest concentrations of snakes in the world is in--of all places--Manitoba!
 
Any Mongolian viper would have to hibernate. The latitude of Omnigovi--southern Mongolia--is similar to that of New England, where any reptile must hibernate to survive.



Sure every spring it comes out of hibernation dens.



Assuming the weather is still cold, it would be as docile as a baby. :)
Btw as an aside, recently I discovered that one of the greatest concentrations of snakes in the world is in--of all places--Manitoba!

Thank you for the information re hibernation.

I think that you know a lot more than me about snakes, but i question if the snake would be a docile as a baby, because I have an intuition that if you dug it up, it would feel mortally threatened and would thus resort to using its "reserved energy" to defend itself.
 
Here is a thread to discus the Mongolian Death Worm "MDW" for short.

Any and all contributions and criticisms extremely welcome.
If I have made any errors please point them out.
My aim is to gather and post any information regarding the MDW so this will not be the most organised of threads :)

Speculating not surprised if some cases 'might' have encountered these type of creatures you mention Han. How deep underwater can the 'MDW" go, live? Also how long can they stay under fresh/salt water within structure of the cave walls? Not ignoring other hazards such as deadly snakes etc,
Experienced Cave Divers Die During Underwater Exploration
 
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