This article is about the legendary monster in Mongolia. For the 2010 film, see Mongolian Death Worm (film).
The Mongolian death worm (Mongolian: олгой-хорхой, olgoi-khorkhoi, "large intestine-worm") is a creature alleged to exist in the Gobi Desert, however no evidence has ever been found to support this belief.
An interpretation of the Mongolian death worm by Belgian painter Pieter Dirkx.
Tales of the creature first came to Western attention as a result of Roy Chapman Andrews's 1926 book On the Trail of Ancient Man. The American paleontologist described second-hand tales of the monster that he heard at a gathering of Mongolian officials: "None of those present ever had seen the creature, but they all firmly believed in its existence and described it minutely."[1]
In 1983 a specimen of Tartar sand boa (Eryx tataricus) was shown to locals who claimed to have seen "olgoi-khorkhoi" and they confirmed that this was the same animal.[2][3]
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.
The worm is said to inhabit the western[4] or southern[5] Gobi. In the 1987 book Altajn Tsaadakh Govd, Ivan Mackerle cites a Mongolian legend which described the creature as travelling underground, creating waves of sand on the surface which allow it to be detected.[6] It is said it can kill at a distance, either by spraying a venom at its prey or by means of electric discharge.[5][7] It primarily lives and burrows underground, only rarely coming to the surface.[5]
Investigations
The animal was the basis of a short story Olgoi-Khorkhoi [ru] (1944) by Russian paleontologist and science fiction writer Ivan Yefremov, written under the impression of Andrews's book. In 1946–49 Yefremov was studying fossils in the Gobi desert and wrote that he heard the legend of olgoi-khorkhoi many times, but nobody claimed to have seen it.[8]
In 1990 and 1992, Ivan Mackerle led small groups of companions into the Gobi Desert to search for the worm. Inspired by Frank Herbert's novel Dune, in which giant fictional sandworms could be brought to the surface by rhythmic thumping, Mackerle constructed a motor-driven "thumper" and even used small explosions to try to find it.[6]
In 2005, zoological journalist Richard Freeman of the Centre for Fortean Zoology mounted an expedition to hunt for the death worm but came up empty-handed. Freeman's conclusion was that the tales of the worm's powers had to be apocryphal, and that reported sightings likely involved an unknown species of worm lizard or amphisbaena.[9]
Reality-television series Destination Truth conducted an expedition from 2006 to 2007.
A New Zealand television entertainment reporter, David Farrier of TV3 News, took part in an expedition in August 2009[9][10][11] but came up empty-handed as well.[12] He conducted interviews with locals claiming to have seen the worm and mentioned on his website that the sightings peaked in the 1950s.
Popular culture
In the 2005 video game Shadow of the Colossus, the tenth boss Dirge is speculated to be inspired by the Mongolian death worm, due to its ability to move through sand super fast.
^Andrews, Roy Chapman (1926). On The Trail Of Ancient Man.
^"Ах, Гоби! Путешествие по Монголии в поисках легенды" [Ah, Gobi! Journey through Mongolia in search of a legend]. Novaya Gazeta (in Russian). 29 March 2012.
^Kuzmin, S.L.; Dunaev, E.A.; Munkhbayar, H.; Munkhbaatar, M.; Oyunchimeg, J.; Terbish, H. (2017). Земноводные Монголии [Amphibians of Mongolia] (PDF) (in Russian). Moscow: КМК. pp. 17–18.
^Andrews, Roy Chapman (1932). The New Conquest of Central Asia: a narrative of the explorations of the Central Asiatic expeditions in Mongolia and China, 1921–1930.
^ abcRadford, Benjamin (21 June 2014). "Mongolian Death Worm: Elusive Legend of the Gobi Desert". livescience.com. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
^ abDunning, Brian (8 January 2013). "Skeptoid #344: Olgoi-Khorkhoi: The Mongolian Death Worm". Skeptoid. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
^Harris, Daniel (2007-06-26). "The Mongolian death worm". Retrieved 2010-01-29.
^Efremov, Ivan Antonovich (1992). Собрание сочинений в шести томах : Дорога Ветров ; На краю Ойкумены [Collected Works in Six Volumes: Road of the Winds; On the edge of the ecumene.] (in Russian). p. 751.
^ abDavis, Lauren (2009-07-28). "The Hunt for the Mongolian Death Worm Begins Anew". Retrieved 2010-01-29.
^"David Farrier goes on hunt for Mongolian Death Worm" (Video). July 28, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
^"New Zealanders Embark on Hunt for Mongolian Death Worm". July 27, 2009. Retrieved January 29, 2010.
^. January 9, 2009. Archived from the original on May 26, 2010. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mongolian Death Worm.
May 14, 2023
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This article is about the legendary monster in Mongolia For the 2010 film see Mongolian Death Worm film The Mongolian death worm Mongolian olgoj horhoj olgoi khorkhoi large intestine worm is a creature alleged to exist in the Gobi Desert however no evidence has ever been found to support this belief Tartar sand boa Eryx tataricus possible prototype of the legend An interpretation of the Mongolian death worm by Belgian painter Pieter Dirkx Tales of the creature first came to Western attention as a result of Roy Chapman Andrews s 1926 book On the Trail of Ancient Man The American paleontologist described second hand tales of the monster that he heard at a gathering of Mongolian officials None of those present ever had seen the creature but they all firmly believed in its existence and described it minutely 1 In 1983 a specimen of Tartar sand boa Eryx tataricus was shown to locals who claimed to have seen olgoi khorkhoi and they confirmed that this was the same animal 2 3 Contents 1 Appearance 2 Investigations 3 Popular culture 4 See also 5 ReferencesAppearance EditIn 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 The worm is said to inhabit the western 4 or southern 5 Gobi In the 1987 book Altajn Tsaadakh Govd Ivan Mackerle cites a Mongolian legend which described the creature as travelling underground creating waves of sand on the surface which allow it to be detected 6 It is said it can kill at a distance either by spraying a venom at its prey or by means of electric discharge 5 7 It primarily lives and burrows underground only rarely coming to the surface 5 Investigations EditThe animal was the basis of a short story Olgoi Khorkhoi ru 1944 by Russian paleontologist and science fiction writer Ivan Yefremov written under the impression of Andrews s book In 1946 49 Yefremov was studying fossils in the Gobi desert and wrote that he heard the legend of olgoi khorkhoi many times but nobody claimed to have seen it 8 In 1990 and 1992 Ivan Mackerle led small groups of companions into the Gobi Desert to search for the worm Inspired by Frank Herbert s novel Dune in which giant fictional sandworms could be brought to the surface by rhythmic thumping Mackerle constructed a motor driven thumper and even used small explosions to try to find it 6 In 2005 zoological journalist Richard Freeman of the Centre for Fortean Zoology mounted an expedition to hunt for the death worm but came up empty handed Freeman s conclusion was that the tales of the worm s powers had to be apocryphal and that reported sightings likely involved an unknown species of worm lizard or amphisbaena 9 Reality television series Destination Truth conducted an expedition from 2006 to 2007 A New Zealand television entertainment reporter David Farrier of TV3 News took part in an expedition in August 2009 9 10 11 but came up empty handed as well 12 He conducted interviews with locals claiming to have seen the worm and mentioned on his website that the sightings peaked in the 1950s Popular culture EditIn the 2005 video game Shadow of the Colossus the tenth boss Dirge is speculated to be inspired by the Mongolian death worm due to its ability to move through sand super fast Mongolian Death Worm is a 2010 television film that aired on May 8 2010 on the Syfy channel See also EditGraboid Lambton Worm Sandworm Dune References Edit Andrews Roy Chapman 1926 On The Trail Of Ancient Man Ah Gobi Puteshestvie po Mongolii v poiskah legendy Ah Gobi Journey through Mongolia in search of a legend Novaya Gazeta in Russian 29 March 2012 Kuzmin S L Dunaev E A Munkhbayar H Munkhbaatar M Oyunchimeg J Terbish H 2017 Zemnovodnye Mongolii Amphibians of Mongolia PDF in Russian Moscow KMK pp 17 18 Andrews Roy Chapman 1932 The New Conquest of Central Asia a narrative of the explorations of the Central Asiatic expeditions in Mongolia and China 1921 1930 a b c Radford Benjamin 21 June 2014 Mongolian Death Worm Elusive Legend of the Gobi Desert livescience com Retrieved 2021 01 04 a b Dunning Brian 8 January 2013 Skeptoid 344 Olgoi Khorkhoi The Mongolian Death Worm Skeptoid Retrieved 10 February 2015 Harris Daniel 2007 06 26 The Mongolian death worm Retrieved 2010 01 29 Efremov Ivan Antonovich 1992 Sobranie sochinenij v shesti tomah Doroga Vetrov Na krayu Ojkumeny Collected Works in Six Volumes Road of the Winds On the edge of the ecumene in Russian p 751 a b Davis Lauren 2009 07 28 The Hunt for the Mongolian Death Worm Begins Anew Retrieved 2010 01 29 David Farrier goes on hunt for Mongolian Death Worm Video July 28 2009 Retrieved January 1 2010 New Zealanders Embark on Hunt for Mongolian Death Worm July 27 2009 Retrieved January 29 2010 Digitising the NZPA Report amp photos January 9 2009 Archived from the original on May 26 2010 Retrieved January 1 2010 Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mongolian Death Worm Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mongolian death worm amp oldid 1152874796, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
