Peluda
Encyclopedia
The Peluda is a supposed dragon
or mythical beast that terrorized La Ferté-Bernard
, France
, in medieval times. It is said to have come from and lived near the Huisne
river
near the town. Despite the French origins, its more recognized name is Occitan —or any latine origin— for "hairy". Depending on the account, it had either an ox
-sized porcupine
-like body or a mess of green hair-like projections hanging from its body that were actually stinger-tipped tentacles which could erect into quill
s. Its name is derived from this shaggy appearance. Consistently, it was said to have these poisonous stingers that it could also shoot off its body, a snake
's scaly neck, head, and tail, large, tortoise
-like feet, and a green color.
The lore proposed that the beast was denied access to Noah's Ark
, yet survived the biblical flood
by seeking refuge in a cave near the Huisne River. After many years, it returned to rampage across the countryside, wilting crops with its breath and devouring both livestock and humans. It was finally defeated after it killed a man's fiancée. He tracked it down and cut off its tail. This was the only vulnerable point on the beast, and it died immediately.
The Peluda was said to be capable of the following feats, which vary between tales:
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
or mythical beast that terrorized La Ferté-Bernard
La Ferté-Bernard
La Ferté-Bernard is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.-Twin towns:It is twinned with Louth in Lincolnshire and also Laufen, Germany.-Local folklore:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, in medieval times. It is said to have come from and lived near the Huisne
Huisne
The Huisne is a river is located in France. It is a left tributary of the river Sarthe, which it meets in Le Mans. Its source is near the town Pervenchères, in the Orne department.The Huisne flows through the following départements and towns:...
river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
near the town. Despite the French origins, its more recognized name is Occitan —or any latine origin— for "hairy". Depending on the account, it had either an ox
Ox
An ox , also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable...
-sized porcupine
Porcupine
Porcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
-like body or a mess of green hair-like projections hanging from its body that were actually stinger-tipped tentacles which could erect into quill
Quill
A quill pen is a writing implement made from a flight feather of a large bird. Quills were used for writing with ink before the invention of the dip pen, metal-nibbed pens, the fountain pen, and, eventually, the ballpoint pen...
s. Its name is derived from this shaggy appearance. Consistently, it was said to have these poisonous stingers that it could also shoot off its body, a snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
's scaly neck, head, and tail, large, tortoise
Tortoise
Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
-like feet, and a green color.
The lore proposed that the beast was denied access to Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark is a vessel appearing in the Book of Genesis and the Quran . These narratives describe the construction of the ark by Noah at God's command to save himself, his family, and the world's animals from the worldwide deluge of the Great Flood.In the narrative of the ark, God sees the...
, yet survived the biblical flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
by seeking refuge in a cave near the Huisne River. After many years, it returned to rampage across the countryside, wilting crops with its breath and devouring both livestock and humans. It was finally defeated after it killed a man's fiancée. He tracked it down and cut off its tail. This was the only vulnerable point on the beast, and it died immediately.
The Peluda was said to be capable of the following feats, which vary between tales:
- Searing breath that could wither crops.
- Firing off its quills like arrows.
- Invulnerability except for its tail.
- Creating floods by stepping into rivers.
- A single strike from its tail was lethal to a full grown man.
- Breathing out fire as a typical dragon.
- Spitting out a powerful stream of water or acidAcidAn acid is a substance which reacts with a base. Commonly, acids can be identified as tasting sour, reacting with metals such as calcium, and bases like sodium carbonate. Aqueous acids have a pH of less than 7, where an acid of lower pH is typically stronger, and turn blue litmus paper red...
.
In popular culture
- The Peluda is described in Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis BorgesJorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
's Book of Imaginary BeingsBook of Imaginary BeingsJorge Luis Borges wrote and edited the Book of Imaginary Beings in 1957 as the original Spanish Manual de zoología fantástica, or Handbook of Fantastic Zoology, expanding it in 1967 and 1969 to the final El libro de los seres imaginarios...
.
- It also appears as a cryptidCryptidIn cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, a cryptid is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely. Famous examples include the Yeti in the Himalayas and the Loch Ness Monster in...
in an episode of the animated television series The Secret SaturdaysThe Secret SaturdaysThe Secret Saturdays is an American animated television series created by Canadian cartoonist Jay Stephens for Cartoon Network. It debuted on October 3, 2008, in the United States...
, although its quills are purple in the show and it is much reduced in size.
- Chrono Trigger antagonist Lavos is said to resemble a peluda.
- South Park "Pandemic 1" and "Pandemic 2" where the Peluda are depicted as Guinea Pigs.