Come inside and witness the terror of the beast that is half bear half hyaena!

[Atterton]

In the latest issue of Fortean Times, there is an article on the cryptid known as the Nandi bear. They talk about a creature that was exhibited in Mander's Royal Menagerie, which might have been a living specimen of Nandi bear. Due to people here having an interest in the victorian age, I figured some might also have information on the travelling shows back then. The show travelled around in the mid 19th century it seems, and the beast in question was called an Indian Prairie Fiend. They were described as having a head like a hippopotamus, body like a bear, claws like a tiger and ears like a horse. Has anyone come across any mention or drawings of such a beast?

[Will Howard]

I have read of the Nandi Bear, but never seen a picture or drawing.  I thought that it was a fictional animal.

[Atterton]

I just felt like resurrecting this thread, to see if anyone heard of it.

[GCCC]

This cryptid has a Wikipedia page, for what that's worth:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nandi_Bear

Some artists' interpretations:


http://www.enchantedlandscapes.com/blog/beast-call-nandi-bear-exist/


http://cryptidz.wikia.com/wiki/File:Hyena_bear_nandi_bear_or_agriotherium_by_hodarinundu-d6vegnd.jpg

[Prof Marvel]

looks like a hyena to me

yhs
prof marvel

[GCCC]

Yup; one of the "best guesses" for what this thing might be, if it exists (or ever did) is a hyena-like predecessor of the modern animal. One of those ancestral animals looks like a cross between a hyena and a giraffe.

[MWBailey]

Or, perhaps a lowyaena?

[GCCC]

Or, perhaps a lowyaena?

Comic Rimshot!

[GCCC]

Here's that giraffe/hyena looking thing (which is actually more closely related to the horse; go figure!):


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:ChalicotheriumDB1.jpg

Chalicothere went extinct (unless it's the Nandi Bear!) circa 3.5 million years ago, during the Late Pliocene.

[Will Howard]

In the latest issue of Fortean Times, there is an article on the cryptid known as the Nandi bear. They talk about a creature that was exhibited in Mander's Royal Menagerie, which might have been a living specimen of Nandi bear. Due to people here having an interest in the victorian age, I figured some might also have information on the travelling shows back then. The show travelled around in the mid 19th century it seems, and the beast in question was called an Indian Prairie Fiend. They were described as having a head like a hippopotamus, body like a bear, claws like a tiger and ears like a horse. Has anyone come across any mention or drawings of such a beast?

Mander's Royal Menagerie?  That wasn't Her Majesty Sallie Mander, by any chance?

[MWBailey]

In the latest issue of Fortean Times, there is an article on the cryptid known as the Nandi bear. They talk about a creature that was exhibited in Mander's Royal Menagerie, which might have been a living specimen of Nandi bear. Due to people here having an interest in the victorian age, I figured some might also have information on the travelling shows back then. The show travelled around in the mid 19th century it seems, and the beast in question was called an Indian Prairie Fiend. They were described as having a head like a hippopotamus, body like a bear, claws like a tiger and ears like a horse. Has anyone come across any mention or drawings of such a beast?

Mander's Royal Menagerie?  That wasn't Her Majesty Sallie Mander, by any chance?

Let us not forget her politically-inclined cousin. Yes, I refer to the famous Gerry Mander