Vampire Vine/Devil’s Snare

The Vampire Vine is a cryptid plant from Nicaragua. According to locals they are also referred to as Devil’s Snare. They were encountered by a naturalist named Dunstan who was walking with his dog. The dog was suddenly wrapped up in vines causing it pain. Dunstan hacked away the vines and freed his dog. As he pulled loose the vines, they wrapped around his arms and gripped it strong enough to leave blisters. The vines were thin rope-like tissue similar to roots or overlapping stems like a weeping willow. They were nearly black in color and covered in a foul-smelling viscous substance. It caused serious pain and left small, puckered spots on victims, and it’s theorized to be covered in hundreds of tiny suckers. They were known to drain blood from the animals that they captured. A root sample was collected but died before it could be examined, smelling so bad it was thrown overboard on the boat ride home.

Citations:

The Eclectic Magazine of Foreign Literature, Science, and Art. United States, Leavitt, Trow, & Company, 1891.

Frank Leslie’s Popular Monthly. United States, Frank Leslie Publishing House, 1893.

Hirsch, Rebecca E.. When Plants Attack: Strange and Terrifying Plants. United States, Lerner Publishing Group, 2020.