Issie
| Grouping | Cryptid |
|---|---|
| Sub grouping | Lake monster |
| Country | Japan |
| Region | Lake Ikeda, Kagoshima, Kyushu Island |
| Habitat | Water |
Issie (イッシー Isshī?) is a Japanese lake monster; a cryptid said to lurk in Lake Ikeda, on Kyushu Island. Evidence of its existence is anecdotal. It is described as being saurian in appearance. The name is formed in analogy with "Nessie" (the Loch Ness Monster).
According to mythology, Issie was a white mare which had a little foal, and they lived together on the shore of Lake Ikeda. However, when the foal was kidnapped by a samurai, and Issie was unable to find it, she jumped into the lake, and her despair transformed her into a giant, saurian beast, which since then frequently surfaces, trying to find her lost child.
The creature was reportedly photographed in 1978, by a man who went by the name "Mr. Matsubara". Twenty other people reportedly also saw the creature in 1978, which they described as black and having two humps, each about 5 meters (16 feet) long, swimming in the lake water. In 1991, another visitor to the lake caught video footage of supposed animal movement in the lake. According to some interpretation there is a bizarre-looking creature estimated to be 9 meters (30 feet) in length, but the footage could be of surface-swimming 5-foot eels as well.
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