The Crystal Brook Bunyip

The Warra Warra Waterhole, southeast of Crystal Brook.

 In 1876, the Mid North town of Crystal Brook was inundated with curious tourists trying to sight the Bunyip at the Warra Warra Waterhole (sometimes spelled Wurra Wurra or Wirra Wirra[1]) on the Broughton River.

The waterhole is located in a bend of the Rocky River, about two and a half kilometres from its junction with the Broughton River, southeast of Crystal Brook.

In August 1876, the South Australian Government offered a reward of £50 to anyone who could capture the creature, dead or alive.[2]

A reporter from the South Australian Advertiser stated:

“The hole probably covers about two acres, and the water is brackish. I have never heard of the water rising and falling with the tide, and I take the Bunyip to be no other than a dog belonging to a worthy farmer, who resides on the bank of the river near the waterhole.”[3]

The waterhole also had a reputation for drownings. In January 1878, a group of five friends left Thompson's Hotel with the intention of swimming in the Warra Warra Waterhole. A young man named Beasley was swimming when he suddenly began to struggle and then sank beneath the water. His friend, E. E. Boys, attempted to save him, but Beasley was pulled under and drowned. Thomas Wilson eventually dived down and, after three attempts, recovered Beasley’s lifeless body from the waterhole.[4]

In 1889, the Bunyip was allegedly sighted by W. A. Allen and J. Parmenter, who rode into Crystal Brook and announced their discovery. The men’s statement was initially treated as a joke, until they began paying for provisions to hunt the creature. The men described the beast as being four feet long and fifteen inches across the back; however, they could not say whether it had a head or a tail.[5]

A trap was subsequently set for the Bunyip.

During this period, there were multiple sightings of the creature. However, as a reporter for the Evening Journal pointed out, of the six different people who claimed to have seen the Bunyip, not one could provide a satisfactory description of it.[6]

The mythology surrounding the Warra Warra Waterhole Bunyip can allegedly be traced to a sly-grog shanty that once stood near the river. It is alleged that, during the 1870s, the proprietor of the grog shop told stories of the Bunyip as a real and very dangerous creature. He claimed that the waterhole had a large tunnel beneath it that extended out to sea, and that the Bunyip used it to drag its prey away.

Early settlers were apparently so convinced of the Bunyip’s existence that they often formed shooting parties and staked out the waterhole in an attempt to kill the beast.[7]

Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2020




[1] 'CRYSTAL BROOK, MAY 3.', South Australian Chronicle and Weekly Mail, (8 May 1880), p. 29., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94752008.

[2] 'Latest News.', Evening Journal, (5 August 1876), p. 2., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article197692722.

[3] 'CRYSTAL BROOK, AUGUST 16.', The South Australian Advertiser, (21 August 1876), p. 7., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article73066402.

[4] 'LOCAL TELEGRAMS.', South Australian Chronicle and Weekly Mail, (12 January 1878), p. 8., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90867715.

[5] 'The Bunyip Again.', Evening Journal, (31 January 1889), p. 2., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article199857712.

[6] Ibid.

[7] 'TOWNS, PEOPLE, AND THINGS WE OUGHT TO KNOW', Chronicle, (10 November 1932), p. 42., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90634245.

 

The Koolunga Bunyip

 

Koolunga is a small town in the Mid North. To Koolunga’s east sits White Cliffs Reserve; it was here that, in 1883, a Bunyip was allegedly witnessed.[1]

Local Ngadjuri people believed that a Bunyah Bunyah dwelled in the billabong at White Cliffs. The Broughton River flows through this park; the same river is associated with Bunyip sightings at a billabong called Warra Warra, near Crystal Brook.[2]

It was claimed that several witnesses saw the Bunyip in the billabong in 1883. A hunting party was formed, and rather than trying to trap the Bunyip or shoot it, it was decided that dynamite would be used to blast the Bunyip out of its dark, watery home.[3]

Rifles, pistols, dynamite, and soap were used to try to bring the Bunyip out of the depths of the billabong, all without success. 150 people assembled on the day of the dynamite explosion in the hope of seeing the creature. The dynamite blew up deep within the billabong and brought debris, trees, and fish to the surface, but no Bunyip![4]

You can visit the White Cliffs Campsite for yourself.

More details here: https://www.australiancampsites.com.au/white-cliffs-reserve

Researched and written by Allen Tiller ©2020

[1] 'KOOLUNGA LETTER.', Port Adelaide News, (16 February 1883), p. 8. ,http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article195870033.

[2] 'MERRITON, FEBRUARY 27.', The South Australian Advertiser, (8 March 1883), p. 7., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article33757799.

[3] 'KOOLUNGA, January 22.', South Australian Register, (25 January 1883), p. 7., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article43467030.

[4] 'FIFTY YEARS AGO', Northern Argus, (13 March 1936), p. 5., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article97771239.

South-East Tiger's

 South-East Tigers

“They had short front legs, long hind legs, and were nearly as big as a fox, with long tails like a monkey,” described Mrs G Breda in an interview with The Advertiser on August 13, 1971. Mrs Breda also described the creatures she witnessed as moving “With a loping action.”

What were these creatures that were spotted in South Australia's South-East in the late 1960s into the 1970s?
Numerous sightings of these strange “cat-like” animals were reported, with most descriptions being similar to the “Tasmanian Tiger”, or Thylacine, the last of which was shot in 1933.

The Thylacine had been extinct on the Australian mainland for over 2000 years according to scientific studies.

  In 1966, Mr C. Barker of Mt Gambier witnessed a “great overgrown cat” in his headlights as he drove a stretch of road from Keith to Naracoorte. He described it as about the same size as a sheepdog, with “black white, or black grey vertical stripes across its back”. The animal bound across the road “like a tiger” according to Mr Barker. The report reminded some people of the earlier sightings of the Tantanoola Tiger – could this be a descendent?

The animal was sighted again in 1966 by a 9-year-old boy named Richard Weckert in Kingston SE. Whilst on a hunting trip with his Father, the boy witnessed a cat-like creature in the wild, what was unusual, and stuck out most in his mind, was the very unusual tusks protruding from near its mouth.

In 1967, a sighting of the creatures happened near Naracoorte, when an animal fitting the previous description was seen “loping” across a field.

Reports followed over the years, coming from as far as Beachport, Robe and the Coorong.

The following year the creature was seen again near Naracoorte, and “Jumped onto a fence post like a cat”. It was then spotted by children on a school bus near Lucindale.

A witness described the animal after watching it through a telescope near the Coorong as; “He was a large animal, a bit like a fox and a kangaroo, but neither ... he had a dog’s head and ran with a long, loping gait. His torso was striped in grey, the rest of his body was brown.”

The last sighting of these animals was in 1971 near Mt Gambier. Did they die out, were they hunted down...or did they go further into the scrub as humans moved into their hunting grounds?

Have you seen a cat-like creature in South Australia's South-East – we would love to hear about your experience over on our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/TheHauntsOfAdelaide

The Willamulka Brute a.k.a. "The Kadina Wherwolf"

The Willamulka Brute A.K.A. The Kadina Wherwolf

The Yorke Peninsula in 1919 saw a loss of sheep occur in such a way, and in such a short time, that it drew comparisons to the Tantanoola Tiger sheep killings thirty‑odd years earlier.

For more than nine months, sheep were found slaughtered in fields near Kadina. Farmers described the beast as “wolf‑like, but immense in size.” Sydney’s The World’s News published an article on 19 June 1943 titled There Are Queer Creatures in This Australia by V. Molesworth, in which the creature was referred to as the “Kadina Wehrwolf.”

Wolf‑like howls and shrieks filled the night air, and by morning a farmer or two would discover some of his sheep torn to pieces. A reward of ten pounds was offered for the capture of the beast, which rural locals described as “big enough to devour a child.”

Farmers and hunters began lying in wait, hoping to be the one to bring the creature down. The beast was often heard but never seen—until, twenty‑one days later, Mr. D. Tully finally witnessed it.

Mr. Tully had set out to check watering holes, troughs, and dams in his area. With him were a pack of stag hounds and greyhounds. He spotted the wolf and set his dogs after it, but they refused to give chase, overcome with fear.

He next saw it while riding his horse. He pursued the beast and came within thirty yards of it before its odour overwhelmed his horse, which reared and bolted.

Determined not to give up, Mr. Tully set several rabbit traps around his property. Eventually he found the beast caught by the foot near a fence. As he approached, it snarled and gnashed at him. Tully raised his shotgun and fired into its mouth. Believing it dead, he stepped closer—only for it to rise and lunge at him again. This time he fired both barrels directly down its throat, killing it.

The “Kadina Wehrwolf” was no more. The beast weighed over 30 kilograms and measured 1.3 metres from nose to tail. It stood 68 centimetres tall. Its chest and neck were noted for their strength. The head was described as wide and short, with pricked ears. Its coat was brindle, coarse, and medium‑length, with alternating black and tan striping on the rump and forelegs.

The animal was female, and a small litter of pups was later found near a railway culvert, drowned by floodwaters they could not escape. Mr. Tully kept the hide and intended to take it to the Adelaide Museum, though whether he ever did so remains unconfirmed.

 

© 2015 Allen Tiller

The Tantanoola Tiger

In the 1880s, South-East South Australia was overrun with speculation about what could be killing so many sheep in the area. Reports of a mysterious predator with stripes on its back began to be filed with local police. Rumour had it a large Bengal Tiger was on the loose, and soon fear spread that the wild beast may soon kill a human. By 1893, reports were so common that they started to make it into local newspapers.


The Advertiser reported in 1895,

“The tiger is reported to have been seen again at Tantanoola.

An employee of Mr Wehl who was out hunting last week reported that he had seen a strange animal, but was some distance off and did not care to make a closer acquaintance. He, however, sent his dogs forward and says they returned in great fright.

He then proceeded homeward, believing that discretion is better than valour when an unknown danger is ahead.”

In August 1895, Thomas John Donovan managed to shoot and kill a beast thought to be the predator big cat. The animal upon closer inspection, appeared not to be a Bengal Tiger but resembled something closer to Tasmania's Thylacines.
The animal was inspected by a zoologist and was determined to be a wolf. This led to a lot of speculation about why, and how, an Assyrian Wolf came to be hunting in South Australia. It is thought the wolf may have been a passenger upon a ship that wrecked off the coastline of Robe many years earlier.  The wolf, somewhat of a trophy, became legend – it was duly stuffed and put on display in the Tantanoola Hotel, alongside the gun used to shoot it.

 

 

The mysterious Tantanoola Tiger was dead, but sheep in the district were still going missing. This mystery was solved however when the culprit was found. A local man, Charlie Edmondson was caught red-handed stealing 78 sheep, and upon arrest admitted to stealing over 4000 more!
You can see the Tantanoola Tiger in the Tantanoola Hotel in South Australia's South East at 265 Railway Terrace East.