Ozark Howler

The Ozark Howler is a cryptid from the folklore of the Ozarks, a mountainous region covering parts of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.

Natives claim the Ozark Howler is a vicious bear or cat-like creature that prowls the remote mountainous woods of the region. It has a terrifying howl and is thought to be extremely dangerous.

The people of the Ozarks have told tales and shared legends for generations. The mysterious Ozark Howler is one of the better-known cryptids from the area, and there have been stories of repeated sightings since the 1800s. One theory for the origin of the legend is that Scotch-Irish settlers to the region may have imported stories of demon dogs and cats from the old world.

Description

Descriptions of the Ozark Howler vary between narrators and between localities. The elusive beast often seems like a mix and match of various creatures, but it is generally described as a four-legged animal that resembles a bear, wolf, or large cat.

Most agree that it is large with a shaggy, dark-colored coat and a stocky or heavyset body. The majority of accounts document well-developed ram-like or stag-like horns and glowing red eyes.

And all agree that it is a particularly vicious creature that will maul and devour you at a moment’s notice.

Is the Ozark Howler part wolf, part cat, or part bear? Or none of the above?

Some locals have reported a big cat-like creature similar to a cougar, mountain lion, or panther. On these occasions, the creature had feline characteristics but was much bigger than the aforementioned animals.

Others claimed it looked like a large lynx or bobcat with ear tufts. One reporter in 2015 even described photographic evidence as looking like a German Shepherd with horns.

According to cryptid author George Eberhart, the alleged beast is 4-5 feet long and has a tail about 12-14 inches long, for a total length of about 6 feet.

Skeptics speculate it could be a big cat that escaped captivity and adapted to the forested mountains.

The Ozark Howler’s blood-curdling call

One feature of the Ozark Howler legend is the beast’s terrifying and blood-curdling call, which is the origin of its name. The creature is said to emit a noise that reduces every bird, bug, and forest critter into silence.

Early trappers who ventured into the forested region reported hearing a horrifying scream that led them to wonder if a woman, child, or animal had been horribly injured. These screams were often followed by a red-eyed beast emerging from the woods.

In later years, residents of the Dardanelle region in the Arkansas River Valley reported hearing terrifying howls at night. These sounds were reportedly accompanied by sightings of a large “stocky” cat by residents at a higher elevation.

Some compared the howls to the “laughing” or “barking” call of the hyena. Others likened it to a howls of wolves, foxes, fighting raccoons, or an elk’s call (bugle).

Sightings and Tales

There have been reports of a large black feline creature roaming the Ozarks since the early 1800s. Unfortunately, there is very little hard evidence, and most of these sightings come from word of mouth.

Daniel Boone allegedly killed an Ozark Howler

Multiple sources said that the legendary American frontiersman and folk hero Daniel Boone (1734- 1820) made the first known reference to a creature that might have been the Ozark Howler in 1810. Some legends claimed that he tracked one down and killed it in 1816.

Since then, there have been a few significant sightings with multiple witnesses, such as in 1846, when many of the inhabitants of Red Oak, Arkansas, reported seeing a Howler.

More recently, the residents of Branson, Missouri, reported large-scale sightings in 1998, as did the inhabitants near Jasper, Newton County, Arkansas, in 2011.

There have also been hundreds of accounts from small groups and individuals who have reported seeing and hearing the Howler throughout the forests of the Ozarks.

A family near Van Buren (Crawford Country), northwest Fort Smith, attempted to capture the beast on video using trail cams in the Boston Mountains (part of the Ozarks), Arkansas.

The camera appeared to show a cougar, but wildlife experts raised doubts, saying there was no breeding population of cougars in the wild in Arkansas. However, they agreed that there might be individual big cats kept as pets that have escaped into the wild.

In 2014, a resident reportedly called the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission to report a strange creature in Benton County. The resident said their vehicle nearly hit the strange animal on Pump Station Road, Springdale. Unfortunately, a search of the area failed to find anything.

Other alleged sightings occurred at Rollo (July 2018), Ginger Blue (July 2020), and Falcon (December 2022), all in Missouri.

There have also been reports of big cats on the loose in the woods of eastern Oklahoma, eastern and northern Texas, and Kansas, but the majority of sightings tend to cluster in Arkansas and Missouri.

Ozark Howler photographic evidence?

In December 2015, Ozark resident John Meyers released a series of photographs to the local media. These pics showed a small cougar-like animal with deer-like horns upon its head.

Meyers claimed to have spotted and snapped the beast on the Yellow Rock Trail at Devils Den State Park. Skeptics such as Springfield News-Leader reporter Wes Johnson argued that the images looked more like a German Shepherd with photoshopped horns.

Meyers rebutted Johnson, stating, “I take exception that you’re saying the photos were Photoshopped. I swear on the Lord, these are not Photoshopped.”

The photos were examined by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and refused to comment on their authenticity but insisted that there was no record of such a creature in the Ozarks. At the time, an expert compared the Ozark Howler to Bigfoot, declaring it an urban legend.

The Ozark Howler in TV and media

In July 2012, the SyFy Channel aired an episode of Haunted Highway that investigated reports of the Ozark Howler in Newton County.

The team left a bait and captured thermal images of animals prowling at night. They also obtained paw print casts.

Subsequent analysis showed that the thermal images were of a possum (opossum) or raccoon.

However, the paw print evidence proved more intriguing as it could not be confidently identified as belonging to a specific animal. One theory suggested they may have belonged to bobcats, which are common to the area, but expert analysis ruled out that possibility and pointed toward a bigger cat.

Explanations for the Ozark Howler

Skeptics and cryptozoologists have proposed multiple explanations for the legend. Theories about the Howler’s existence range from elaborate hoaxes to wild animals that have been let loose or escaped to an actual undiscovered creature roaming the Ozarks.

Is it a hoax?

Some researchers claim that the legend is a hoax created in the 1990s by someone who spread rumors about sightings using various pseudonyms across multiple forums and blogs. Researcher Loren Coleman claims to have found evidence that a single individual used multiple aliases to spread tales of a Howler on various websites.

Investigators identified the alleged individual as a University student. The person allegedly intended to fool cryptozoologists by inventing outlandish tales similar to chupacabra stories.

Is the Ozark Howler a big cat?

Many skeptics believe the legend may be the result of people raising big cats as pets and letting them loose when they become too big.

Some alleged eyewitness accounts suggested it was a bobcat (Lynx rufus) or a stray domestic cat (Felis catus).

However, other proposals include an unidentified species or subspecies of big cats native to the region.

Black Bear

Another candidate for the Ozark howler is the Black Bear (Ursus americanus). Black Bears are native to the Ozarks, and sightings are common.

Descriptions suggesting the Howler is a bear-like animal could mean that some eyewitnesses mistook a black bear for a cryptid. However, black bears don’t have horns.

The North American red wolf

The outdoor adventurist and TV show host Forrest Galante, best known for hosting Animal Planet’s Extinct or Alive, proposed that the Ozark Howler was the North American red wolf (Canis rufus).

Galante suggested the red wolf was the legendary creature in an episode of Mysterious Creatures. He might have believed the red wolf’s howling behavior matched the Ozark Howler.

Experts now classify the red wolf as a separate species (Canis rufus). But in the past, there was debate over whether it was a subspecies of the gray wolf (Canis lupus). Some thought it was the product of genetic mixing between coyotes and wolves (coywolf).

Red wolves previously inhabited the dense woods of the southeastern and south-central U.S. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service states that the red wolf once roamed from New York to Texas (which includes the Ozarks), but sadly, it is now confined only to eastern North Carolina.

Aggressive hunting and habitat destruction nearly brought them to extinction. They are considered an endangered species, and recent efforts have been made to restore their population.

Does the Ozark Howler have roots in British and Irish legends?

In the mid to late 1800s, countless settlers from Britain and Ireland made their home in the valleys and hills of the Ozarks. One thing they packed with them was a rich collection of stories and legends from the old countries.

One legend was the Cù Sìth, a Scottish mythical hound that roamed the Highlands and was often seen as a harbinger of death. Ireland, England, and Wales also had similar beasts, albeit the natives had different names for them, such as Bean Sidhe (Ireland), Cŵn Annwn (Wales), or Black Shuck and Hellhound (England).

These beasts were generally described as being the size of a bull but with shaggy hair that made them appear wolf-like. Sound familiar? Perhaps one of these creatures stowed away with a group of British colonists and also found a new life for itself in the Ozarks.

References

Arment, Chad. Cryptozoology: Science & Speculation, (2004).

Carroll, Cynthia McRoy. “Missouri Ozarks Legends and Lore,” Pub.: History Press (2021).

Didymus, John Thomas. “Black Shuck,” in FairytalesAndMyths.com, accessed September 26, 2024.

Eberhart, George M. Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, (2002).

Kohl, Julie. “Ozark Howler,” in OnlyinArkansas.com, accessed September 23, 2024.

Offutt, Jason. “Chasing American Monsters,” Pub.: Llewellyn Worldwide, Limited, (2019).

Stone, Lilian. “Lupine Cryptids, Tornado Alleys, and Sulfuric Demons,” in LitHub.com, accessed September 26, 2024.

UnlockTheOzarks.org, “The Ozark Howler,” accessed September 23, 2024.

https://www.4029tv.com/article/ozark-howler-sighting-at-devils-den-game-fish-say-photos-are-a-hoax/4957812, “‘Ozark Howler’ sighting at Devils Den? Game & Fish say photos are a ‘hoax’,” accessed on March 17, 2023.

https://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ozarkhowler.html, “The Ozark Howler: Arkansas, Missouri & Oklahoma,” accessed on March 17, 2023.

Johnson, Wes. “Do you believe in the Ozark Howler?” in the Springfield News-Leader, accessed September 23, 2024.

https://www.endangeredwolfcenter.org/ozarkhowler/, “Forrest Galante: Ozark Howler,” accessed on March 17, 2023.