A-Z Challenge: E is for Each-uisge

I am continuing on with the AtoZ Challenge we're on the letter E! My theme is Under the Sea Myths & Legends and today I'm posting about a mysterious folklore tale about a creature that is part-horse, part sea creature and much, much more. Today's sea monster is....

Each-uisge

These sea creatures are from the Scottish and Ireland folklore tales and involve a water horse with supernatural powers. 

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The beast is a shapeshifter who, according to the tales, can shift into "pony, a handsome man or an enormous bird." And they are extremely dangerous. Not to be confused with Kelpie's these creatures can live in the sea as well as rivers and lakes. They are deadly and lure unsuspecting victims to mount them, where they return to the water and drown them.  Yikes! That's creepy. It's best described as a beautiful black horse with "with a greenish patina" and when shifted into human form, they can be recognized by the "water weeds or profuse sand and mud in its hair."

Source

The Scotts take this beast very seriously. It is said each Loch has a Each-uisge and there many stories about these creatures. According to A Book of Creatures.com, one story mentions a group of kids--all girls except for one boy who met up with an each-usiage one Sunday afternoon. It coaxed them one by one for a ride. As each girl mounted, the boy saw the beast's back grew larger to make room for the children. The boy thought it was strange. As the monster demanded he climb on too, the boy ran off.  The girls then tried to get down, but their hands were stuck to the water horse. The creature then took it's victims deep into the loch and the next morning their bodies were found at the surface. *shivers* Disturbing and creepy tale, huh? Yes, but we love it. There should be more stores written about these creatures.

They are said to be drawn to women which is quite laughable when you think about it. If this legend looks anything like the picture to the right, they Each-uisge are deadly, so watch out ladies. Don't get taken in by this sea monsters horseplay. 

Cool huh? The Each-uisge might be my favorite so far.

Mina Burrows