The Hidebehind is a
nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
fearsome critter
In North American folklore, fearsome critters were tall tale animals jokingly said to inhabit the wilderness in or around logging camps,Dorson, Richard M. ''Man and Beast in American Comic Legend.'' (Bloomington, IN: Indiana Univ. Press, 1982.)L ...
from American folklore that preys upon humans that wander the woods,
[Botkin, B. A. (1977). ''The American People: Stories, Legends, Tales, Traditions and Songs''. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. ] and was blamed for the disappearances of early loggers when they failed to return to camp.
[Brown, C. E. (1935). ]
Paul Bunyan Natural History
'. Madison: self-published. As its name suggests, the Hidebehind is said to be able to conceal itself. When an observer attempts to look directly at it, the creature quickly hides behind an object or behind the observer and therefore cannot be directly seen. The Hidebehind supposedly uses this ability to stalk human prey without being observed and to attack them without warning. Said victims, including
lumberjack
Lumberjacks are mostly North American workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to loggers in the era (before 1945 in the Unite ...
s and others who frequent the forests, are then dragged back to the creature's lair to be devoured.
The creature subsists chiefly upon the intestines of its victim and has a severe aversion to alcohol, which is therefore considered a sufficient repellent. Tales of the hidebehind may have been used as an explanation of strange noises in the forest at night. Early accounts describe Hidebehinds as large, powerful animals, despite the fact that no one was able to see them.
In popular culture
The Hidebehind has been featured and referenced in popular culture including games, novels, stories, and television.
* The Hidebehind is featured in the 2006 horror/suspense novel of the same name by Charles H. Snellings in which rafters on the
Middle Fork of the Salmon River in
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
are stalked by one of the creatures.
* In ''
Pecos Bill
Pecos Bill is a fictional cowboy and folk hero in stories set during American westward expansion into the Southwest of Texas, New Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona. These narratives were invented as short stories in a book by Tex O'Reill ...
Catches a Hidebehind'', a Hidebehind's capture is attempted by the cowboy, in hopes to donate it to a zoo.
* Hidebehinds are mentioned in
Diane Duane's ''Young Wizards'' series.
In the series, they are described as being mostly small creatures, with the fear they engender in those they stalk being a defense mechanism.
* In 2016, the official ''
Harry Potter
''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'' themed site
Pottermore
Wizarding World Digital is the digital publishing, e-commerce, entertainment and news company. It offers news, features, and articles as well as new and previously unreleased writing by J. K. Rowling regarding the Wizarding World. The site featu ...
by
J. K. Rowling
Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and Philanthropy, philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to ...
released a new story about the wizarding school Ilvermorny, which featured a Hidebehind. This "nocturnal, forest-dwelling spectre" preys on
humanoid
A humanoid (; from English ''human'' and ''-oid'' "resembling") is a non-human entity with human form or characteristics. The earliest recorded use of the term, in 1870, referred to indigenous peoples in areas colonized by Europeans. By the 20t ...
creatures, but a witch and
Pukwudgie A Pukwudgie, also spelled Puk-Wudjie (another spelling, ''Puck-wudj-ininee'', is translated by Henry Schoolcraft as "little wild man of the woods that vanishes"), is a human-like creature of Wampanoag folklore, found in Delaware and Prince Edward I ...
working together were able to defeat the creature. It also features in the revised edition of ''
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
''Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'' (often referred to as simply ''Fantastic Beasts'') is a 2001 guide book written by British author J. K. Rowling (under the pen name of the fictitious author Newt Scamander) about the magical creat ...
''.
*A variant of this creature called the Great Seventeen-Toed Prairie Hidebehind is featured in Sid Fleishman's ''McBroom’s Zoo'' where it is depicted as a shy, harmless creature.
* The Hidebehind appeared in the ''
Gravity Falls
''Gravity Falls'' is an American mystery comedy animated television series created by Alex Hirsch for Disney Channel and Disney XD. The series follows the adventures of Dipper Pines (Jason Ritter) and his twin sister Mabel (Kristen Schaal) wh ...
'' short "Dipper's Guide to the Unexplained: The Hide Behind".
*The Hidebehind is featured in the 2018 short horror film "The Hidebehind" directed by Parker Finn.
See also
*
Leshy (Slavic Mythology)
References
{{American tall tales
Fearsome critters
Monsters
Supernatural legends