Digs and Wolfy, I think Puddleglum was referring to that unicorn looking goat. (great pic, by the way!)

Wow, everyone's posting such interesting links! Can I say once again that this was an outstanding idea for a thread?!

Oh, Watchful One... interesting thought! I never thought of that possibility before! But it sounds like it'd make a great story. (not to mention, if it was real... wow )

I think a lot of it is just people's ways of describing things they've never seen before.

And that I believe hits the nail right on the head, Wolf.

I've always wondered if the original form that Satan took in the Garden of Eden when he tempted Eve was a Dragon. Then when God cursed him he turned into a snake.

Actually because of this I've wondered if the "Serpent" was actually a legless lizard rather than a snake... but there's no way to confirm that in this life without divine intervention

Princess Anna. Your Highness has spoken truly. Indeed I was referring to the unicorn/goat picture. Unfortunatly I was somewhat muddled in my thoughts due to lack of sleep
I must do some digging into my archive of boxed books, but I believe I have something on the original zodiacs, and how their signs, and meanings originally conformed to Biblical teaching until they were used for paganism.
That would help to explain why the early prophets were not afraid to refer to astronomical constallations.

My apologies, Puddleglum!

From what I can find about the Goaticorn ( ) it's merely a goat that has been selective bred to resemble a unicorn. The farmers bred goats that had horns that were very close together. They continued doing this, so that gradually the horns migrated to the centre of the skull and fused into one horn. They then selective bred for long hair on the neck in a similar manner, so that the end result was a mane.

Does anybody know how the Chinese Zodiac originated?

I don't know how the Zodiac itself originated, but I do know the gist of the legend behind it.
Chinese legend says that God loved the animals, and so decided to have a party. He told everybody to be there. The rat, being devious, told the cat that it was the day after the actual party. So the cat slept through the party and missed it. The animals arrived to the party one by one. The rat rode on top of the ox, and jumped off, and so arrived first. The order in which the animals arrived is the order in which the Chinese Zodiac is arranged. The cat, who missed the party, was punished and was not included in the zodiac.

At least, this is the version I know. Obviously it's not the origin of the Chinese Zodiac, but it's still a pretty cool story.

(And, yes, I did learn this story from watching Fruits Basket, so I'm not sure how accurate it is... )

EDIT: I've done a bit of research, and it turns out there are a few versions of the legend. Here's a couple of different versions:
Swimming Race
Race version 2
Time of Day
Another version (this one has a bit of historical information in it)
Historical information
Fruits Basket version
Three different versions

It seems that the great race is the most common version.

What a thoroughly fascinating story! I wonder how rats are typically viewed in chinese culture. I think cats are supposed to be good luck in China, correct?

I'm not sure, I'm not as familiar with Chinese culture as I am with Japanese culture.

1. Egyptian mythology is my most favourite but I'm most familiar with Greek mythology.

2. In some cases there are logical explanations for sightings of weird creatures. I believe some cases are people having too much to drink, or hallucinating, or just tired. Other times I think people have strong imaginations and wish for something more, sometimes people are creating hoaxes for attention. But I also believe there are some undiscovered creatures roaming the world. For one, dinosaurs have been around for 6 thousand years, surely some small ones still exist in the deepest jungles and forests.

3. Most myths and legends begin with a story based in reality. It becomes more elaborate and exaggerated as the story is passed from generation to generation.

4. My favourite myth or legend? There are too many to count.

5. My most favorite mythical character or creature is probably the Phoenix.

6. I'm not sure which cryptid is most likely to be a reality. I believe the Bunyip exists and the Bigfoot is likely a prehistoric creature (not prehistoric man - there's no such thing). The Loch Ness monster is likely a plesiosaur or something similar. I believe aliens are fallen angels in disguise (they disguised themselves as gods and goddesses in the past and then, as we approached a more scientific period in human history, they adapted to something more relevant - aliens etc.)

7. If I could see any mythical creature or cryptid, I would love to see the Loch Ness monster and the Bunyip. Also, a dinosaur or two (the Behemoth and Leviathan of the Bible).

W4J, what exactly do you believe about the bunyip? Their voices are supposed to make people sick, correct?

There have been many supposed bunyip sightings and they often vary greatly in looks. Some bunyips are really just seals that have made their way inland but I believe some of the bunyip sightings, from the early 19th century, suggest it is something like a dinosaur - perhaps a Hadrosaurid (duck-billed dinosaur) or a Diprotodon (giant prehistoric wombat). Yes, the creature was feared by Aboriginal people and they believed that even hearing the creature's wail caused great sickness and temporary paralysis.

thanks for the information about the goat DigoRyKiRke. It would be interesting if there were any connection, genetically at least, to historical unicorns?
W4J.
It is not unknown for a creature that is rarely seen, or understood to be given a bad reputation, or magical powers in local lore. If I recall there is a creature called the Aye Aye in Madagasgar. this creature is harmless, but has been labelled by locals as the harbenger of death. As such it is killed on sight.
With such a reaction, it is any wonder how many other creatures of past myth have become rare, or exctinct.

Yes, Puddleglum! The Aye-Aye has a really elongated middle finger, which is practically nothing but bone. It uses that finger to tap on tree trunks which allows them to detect insects underneath the bark. It is thought that if an Aye-Aye points that middle finger at you, that you'll die.

They are endangered. . . let's hope that future generations don't start telling legends about the Aye-Aye. . . let's hope that the animal is there to see for generations to come!

Hmm, I wonder if urban legends like snipes have any basis in reality... (I totally fell for the whole snipe hunt thing my first year of girl's camp... )

Fire Fairy, you do realise that snipes are real birds. They belong to three different genera in the family Scolopacidae. Here is the wikipedia article for them:

Click Here

I do know the prank that they play on young campers though .

Snipes are actually such excellent fliers (for wading birds at least) that it took expert marksman to be able to shoot them. These marksman were called "Snipers" which is where we get the modern term. At least, that's the story I was told.