The Wakwak is a

vampiric A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

, bird-like creature like yaya in

Philippine mythology Philippine mythology is rooted in the many indigenous Philippine folk religions. Philippine mythology exhibits influence from Hinduism, Hindu, Islam, Muslim, Buddhism, Buddhist, and Christianity, Christian traditions. Philippine mythology ...

. It is said to snatch humans at night as

prey Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not ki ...

, similar to the ''

manananggal The ''manananggal'' () is a mythical creature in the Philippines that is able to separate its upper torso from the lower part of its body. Their fangs and wings give them a vampire-like appearance. Mythology The word ''manananggál'' is deri ...

'' and the ''

Ekek In Philippine mythology, Ekek (or Ek Ek) are birdlike human creatures. They are winged-humans who search for victims at night. They hunger for flesh and blood. They are usually described as flying creatures that look like the ''Manananggal'', but ...

'' in rural areas of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The difference between the Manananggal and the Wakwak is that Wakwak cannot separate its torso from its body while the Manananggal can. Some believe the Wakwak is a form of vampire. Other people contend that a Wakwak is a Philippine night bird associated with witches. The sound of a Wakwak (Yaya) is usually associated with the presence of an ''Unglu'' (vampire) or ''Ungo'' (ghost or monster). It is also believed that this monster is called "Wakwak" due to the sound it makes when it flaps its wings while flying. This sound is only heard when the Wakwak is hunting and grows softer the closer it becomes. If the sound of the Wakwak is loud, it means it is far away – but if the sound becomes faint, the creature is close and about to attack. The Wakwak is often described as having long sharp talons and a pair of wings similar to those of a

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

. It uses its talons or claws to slash its victims and to get their heart and sometimes ripped their victims body apart. Its wings are also said to be as sharp as a knife. The sound that a ''tuko'' (

common house gecko The common house gecko (''Hemidactylus frenatus'') is a gecko native to South and Southeast Asia as well as Near Oceania. It is also known as the Asian house gecko, Pacific house gecko, wall gecko, house lizard, tiktiki, chipkali or moon lizard ...

) makes at night when out of sight was discovered by an American who spent much time in the Philippines to be attributed to a Wakwak. Other than that, many bisaya people or people living in southern part of the Philippines believed that the sound "Wak-Wak" is just a sound from a bird which only flies at night and gave terrifying sounds to anyone nearby. However, over time the idea of a terrifying "Wak-Wak" is becoming rarer amongst the Filipino population with the story becoming only told to scare children.

References

External links

Filipino Folklore:Wakwak
{{authority control Visayan mythology Philippine demons Philippine mythology Philippine legendary creatures

See also

References

External links