Nandi Bear

The Nandi Bear is a cryptid rooted in East African folklore, reported primarily in Kenya’s Nandi region. Described as a large, heavily built carnivore with high shoulders, a sloping back, and an unusually short muzzle, it allegedly raids livestock enclosures at night, tearing through fences with powerful claws. Some explorers and colonial hunters in the early 20th century speculated it might be an undiscovered hyena species or a surviving chalicothere—an odd prehistoric mammal. Modern zoologists generally attribute reports to exaggerated sightings of known animals like hyenas seen under poor light. Yet the Nandi Bear persists in local storytelling, embodying fears of the wild and the possibility that Africa’s vast landscapes might still conceal formidable, unknown predators.