Decemystery (2019) 27: Con Rit

A rendition of the Con Rit

A quick preface: this story was a request from a friend of mine. So, thank you dear friend. I’ve also renamed the blog to Limitless Possibilities as I don’t want to appear as though I’m the only one who’ll be writing on this blog. Anyways, let’s get on with the show. 

Centipedes and millipedes belong to the Myriapod family. They’re undeniably some of the creepiest creatures on Earth. Dozens upon dozens of legs all working in unison. Odd and/or dark coloration. Prone to invading your home space.

All things considered: they’re not what I’d call the most welcome house guests. There are some benefits to have the most common of these creatures—the house centipede—inside your home however. They prey upon insects and even spiders. So if you’re arachnophobic, but don’t mind the creepy crawly with dozens of legs, it’d be highly beneficial to have one or so.

Luckily for us as a species, there’s no centipede that can eat us…

Or can they?

Today, we’ll be looking at a possible giant centipede. Known as the Con Rit, this beast is said to inhabit the coast of Vietnam. So let’s dive into the waters once more and see if we can find ourselves the truth to this nightmarish creature.

The Skittering Depths: The One-Hundred Legged Mystery of the Con Rit

Southeast Vietnam, 1833.

A man by the name of Tran Van Con was walking along the beach when he spotted something. It was 60 feet in length and 3 feet wide. It was covered in bony plates and had numerous fins—or legs—on its sides. It was brown, but had a yellow underbelly.

This was the first of a few carcasses that would wash up of a creature that would later go on to be called the Con Rit, a name that closely resembles Con Rít (which is Vietnamese for Centipede). According to the Obscurban Legend wiki, Con Rit means Millipede, but I cannot confirm this. Anyways, the next carcass that would wash up was in 1883 in Hong Gai, Vietnam. This one was missing its head—which makes me very concerned as if it was bitten off, then its predator would’ve had to be extremely large as the reported size of the Con Rit ranges from 50–135 feet in length. I digress though: this corpse gave more insight into what the Con Rit was like. When it was struck, it rang like sheet metal. It also smelled horribly and had to be towed back out to sea.

The final sighting listed on the cryptidz wiki—and to date the only one that’s been reported with the creature alive—is from 1899 and is the only one outside of Vietnam. The HMS Narcissus was out at sea near Cape Falcon, Algeria. At some point, many of the sailors that were aboard the vessel witnessed what was described as a “sea monster.” This monster was said to be a staggering 135 in length and had an “immense number of fins” which the sailors said helped it propel through the water at a great speed; enough to allow the beast to keep pace with the Narcissus. After 30 minutes of swimming alongside the vessel though, the creature sank back down into the ocean and vanished from sight.

With that, the story of the Con Rit ends. A short and sweet tale, this creature is definitely one that makes me squirm solely on the basis of what it is. Lucky for us though, there are still some theories out there, so let’s take a gander at them.

Theories

1. It’s a massive polychaete worm

These creatures reside deep, deep beneath us; some living in the Challenger Deep (the deepest part of the Earth’s oceans at 10,902 meters, or 35,768 feet). The largest of them grows to 10 feet long, so if the Con Rit is indeed a type of polychaete worm, it’s the largest by a considerable amount.

2. It’s a giant centipede

Easily the most horrifying of the theories, this theory states that the Con Rit is in fact a massive sea centipede and I can already feel my skin crawling.

There have been reports of enormous centipedes throughout time, mostly down in South America, though some have come out of the United States in states like Missouri. I’ll go over these reports in more detail one day, but these creatures are said to have extremely potent venom that can kill a grown man in mere minutes (3–5 minutes) and range in size from 2–10 feet. The 10 foot long centipede was supposedly seen in Missouri carrying a dead deer before it reared up and stared down a hunter who had a bow and arrows.

It goes without saying that if this creature is in fact real, then a fair amount of the world’s population is going to have a heart attack. One can only hope it doesn’t see humans as food like some think the giant land-based centipedes supposedly do.

3. It’s not real

This theory posits that the creature doesn’t exist; the carcasses were merely a case of the standard Globster. For those that don’t know what that is, “Globsters” are those masses of tissue that wash up that some think are remnants of sea monsters due to them appearing slender—or serpentine. However, in reality, they’re carcasses of either Basking Sharks or whales.

In this case, there are those who think the Con Rit is a similar case and that the entire creature is a case of misidentification. Could it be possible? Maybe. I guess it all depends on your perspective of the world.

4. It’s a relative of the Zeuglodon

The fourth and final theory, this is the most interesting. Some speculate that the Con Rit may be a relative to the prehistoric whale the Zeuglodon. However, it’s grown to develop the bony plates that adorn the body of the Con Rit.

While the idea of an ancient creature surviving is a long shot, the Coelacanth was thought to have been extinct for millions of years, but was later discovered to be alive and well. As such, the idea of the Zeuglodon being alive is possible. Now as for plausible, that’s another story. A creature like the Zeuglodon would’ve had to adapt considerably to survive, much in the same way the Megalodon would have had to adapt. As such, this isn’t too likely overall. Though who knows for certain.

My Take

There’s no shortage of really bizarre beasts reported to live in the sea, so the idea of the Con Rit isn’t that bizarre. Likewise, I don’t think it’s too far-fetched to believe such a creature could exist. While I’m doubtful the beast is as large as some claim it to be, I think it’s definitely possible that it is—or was—real.

Conclusion

I don’t like centipedes or millipedes, but I understand they have their place on this planet. Likewise, if the Con Rit exists, I understand it has its place on this planet. I just hope it never learns to live on land if it is indeed real or I’m reconsidering if I want to live anywhere on Earth. Hopefully Elon Musk will let me flee to Mars.