Chupacabra? Coyote walking upright? Texas city ponders mystery creature seen near zoo

Something strange was recently seen lurking outside a Texas zoo, and while the city has several theories, its identification is still a mystery.

Security cameras at the Amarillo Zoo captured the mysterious creature “in the dark and early morning hours” of Saturday, May 21, according to a June 8 news release from the city.

A still photo from the recording shows the life form outside the zoo’s perimeter fence at 1:25 a.m. that Saturday.

“Was it a person with a strange hat who likes to walk at night?” the city asked. “A large coyote on its hind legs? A Chupacabra? It is a mystery – for Amarillo to help solve.”

As the visitor’s identity remains unknown, the Texas Panhandle city has declared it an “Unidentified Amarillo Object” — or UAO, for short.

But city officials hope someone may be able to offer a better explanation.

“We just want to let the Amarillo community have some fun with this,” Director of Parks and Recreation Michael Kashuba said in the news release. “ ... It is definitely a strange and interesting image. Maybe Amarillo can help solve the mystery of our UAO.”

The city said it does not have video footage of the encounter to share, so eager UAO detectives will have to use the still image to crack the case.

“It is important to note that this entity was outside the Amarillo Zoo,” Kashuba said. “There were no signs of attempted entry into the zoo. No animals or individuals were harmed. There were no signs of criminal activity or vandalism.”

If you have a theory as to what what this UAO really is, contact the City of Amarillo at publiccommunications@amarillo.gov or on its social media page.

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