Decemystery (2019) 22: The Creature Under the Bridge

A YouTube thumbnail of the creature.

Bridges seem to have a strange ability to attract the weirdest things. Prior to the Silver Bridge collapse in West Virginia, there were claims that the infamous Mothman was seen near it. Even nowadays, people claim to see the legendary winged cryptid perched atop bridges, though I don’t believe there have been any other bridge-related catastrophes linked to it (there have been plenty of others to make up for that though).

For today’s story, which was yet another suggestion from a friend of mine, we’re headed to Ukraine to discuss what’s commonly referred to as the Creature Under the Bridge. It’s a story that somehow managed to slip under my radar initially when I was picking out stories. It’s also quite recent compared to many other stories we’ve discussed. Anyways, without further ado, let’s begin.

Bypassing Traffic: The Mystery of the Creature Under the Bridge

Our story today takes us to Kiev, Ukraine. A video taken in 2017 was uploaded to the Internet that showed a bridge that I think led in and out of the city that clearly showed something very peculiar. Beneath the bridge was a creature that looked to be humanoid. Although its size can’t be determined, it looks to be decently large. Its features have never been discerned, but in my eyes: the shape looks humanoid.

This creature—which nobody but the person recording it seemed to be aware of—moved from one side of the bridge to the other at a remarkably quick speed. It repeats this for the entirety of the video (which you can view below) until it cuts off.

Since the video was posted, people have speculated as to what it is. It also made it onto the Travel Channel’s show Paranormal Caught On Camera. I’ve watched the show, but I can’t remember what their overall take on it was. Though should my faulty memory serves me well, they didn’t come to a concrete conclusion. This, two years later, seems to be the overall consensus on the creature. A strange little story that stumped the Internet. That said, there are a fair number of theories that exist, so let’s go over them.

Theories

1. It's an animal

First up: the weird creature is merely an animal. As for what creature specifically, a forum I found that discussed it for a whooping five posts, Paranormal Forum gave three examples.

The first is a sloth. From what I can tell: they aren’t native to Ukraine. That said, it’s possible that an exotic pet owner released one into the wild and, by some crazy chance, it ended up beneath the bridge. This has happened much more often than you’d think; owners of alligators, pythons, tigers, and lions have released their pets into the wild in places like Florida. While alligators and pythons aren’t illegal to own, tigers and lions are and with good reason. If you like having a face—at the very least—it’s probably best if you don’t own one.

The second animal is a lemur. As said before: they aren’t native to Ukraine.

The third and final one is a bat. Shock of all shocks, they are native to Ukraine, but they generally don’t grow to be the size of the entity we see in the video. That said: bats can grow to be quite large. The giant golden-crowned flying fox, which is native to the Philippines, can have a forearm length of 8.5 inches. Here are some images of it.

Like I said with the idea of it being a sloth: it’s possible that someone imported one of these majestic beasts and, somehow, it got loose. Given that this particular species of bat is a fruit bat, it’s possible that the owner was sick of it eating their apples. However, there’s no proof of this and as such: more theories have emerged over time that have become increasingly fantastical.

2. It's an alien

Aliens, man. When it doubt: are extraterrestrial brethren are behind it. In this case, it’s an alien that was either living among us, on vacation on Earth, or some aquatic-based species of human that we don’t know about. The exact purpose for them being here is as much a mystery as their own kind of alien, but one can assume they meant no harm since they were scurrying back and forth like a rabid animal.

3. It's a human

This theory posits that the creature is nothing more than a human. Be they drunk, a daredevil, or crazy is up for debate. No matter what the case: the person in question decided to climb upside-down beneath the bridge and was caught in the act. They haven’t bothered to come forward be it due to the penalties they’d face or they’re ignorant of being known on the Internet.

4. It's The Rake

Most younger readers may know what The Rake is. For those that don’t know: it’s one of the most famous creepypasta characters out there. It supposedly stands at 6 feet in height (though some say it’s shorter while others say it’s taller), has a lanky build, grey skin, and little to no hair on its body. Its eyes are black and sunken, though others claim they’re outright hollow. It has large jaws and, true to its name, it has large claws that can shred flesh from bone.

Given that The Rake is merely a creature from a creepypasta—an internet urban legend that people spread to tell to scare their friends and family—the concept of it being real is nonsensical, right? To most: yes, but there are those out there that believe the collective belief in the creature has willed it into existence. This isn’t the only time people have claimed to see The Rake in real life. You can go onto YouTube and find reports, videos, and stories of the creature allegedly having been sighted in real life. The same goes for the infamous Slender Man, which is its own can of Mongolian Death Worms.

Now granted: The Rake’s appearance is nothing exactly unique. It’s a humanoid creature with big claws. Many mutants and ghouls have been portrayed as being similar in appearance. As such, the idea that this creature is really The Rake is more than a bit presumptuous. Nonetheless, there are those who are adamant that this is proof that the legend has become a reality thanks to the collective belief of many youngsters on the Internet. Besides the aforementioned Slender Man, people also claim that this has brought characters like Ticci Toby, Jeff the Killer, and Clockwork into our world. God help us if the SCP Foundation becomes a reality.

5. It's fake

This final theory is as it advertises on the tin: the entire thing is fake. It’s some really good use of CGI that’s somehow managed to fool the Internet into thinking there’s something really on the bridge. Nothing more, nothing less.

My Take

This mystery is astoundingly weird. I looked at it from every possible angle and all but called in the NCIS crew to zoom and enhance the footage. As it stands: my absolute best guess is it's some sort of animal. What kind? I don't know. Maybe I’m wrong and it’s really a drunk person who somehow got beneath the bridge. Or perhaps it’s The Rake. That thing seems to get around like Mothman.

Conclusion

The Internet is full of weird videos that have made people question what we really know about this world of ours. From children floating in the woods to The Rake supposedly being found in an abandoned barn. As is the case with both of those videos, it’s likely this creature will be contested until the person who filmed it comes forward either confessing that it’s fake or gives additional details.