Ballyraven Cryptid Wildlife Protection Agency
The Ballyraven Cryptid Wildlife Protection Agency is an organization dedicated to studying cryptids, paranormal and supernatural organisms, strange phenomena, history - and nature in general! From folklore, scary stories, and sighting reports, to interviews, scientific studies, field trips, and more–the BCWPA explores the myths and real lives of our world’s rarest creatures, visitors, places, and happenings.
DISCLOSED CASES: From the BCWPA's archives, discover real stories submitted from real witnesses. From the strange, to the magical, and downright spooky, the world is brimming with tales of things we don't yet know about or understand.
IN THE FIELD: Following Ballyraven's notes and journal entries, learn about new wildlife specimens and the secrets of their lives.
This public broadcast is made possible thanks to these BCWPA Agents: Brandon Ruch, Colten Williams, Daniel Berry, Donovan Scherer, Kimberly Nichols, Layla Leutwyler, Madelynn ODell, Matthew Schang, Pyper Wilson, Lenin Roman, Ronald Miller, PHouseGames, Anthony Ferries, Dandan, Fox & Brambles, Jim Walke, Claire, Hallesy, Heather, HELGA, Kris Mitchell, Kylie Reed, Rick Belcher, Cryptid Clyde, T. Carter Ross, Agus Mercado, Ead Daniels, Elizabeth Lukjanczuk, Shelby Fulton, Veronica Mulvaney, Zodiac Gaming Industry, Mr. Blue Sky
Ballyraven Cryptid Wildlife Protection Agency
Exploring Ohio's Swamps | Popfrog #1
Ohio once was covered in more swampland - and populated by more strange and dangerous creatures within those swamps... From howling dogmen to aggressive bigfeet, gigantic snakes, and ominous, glowing orbs, Ohioan swamps remain active cryptozoological spots. Contained in diminishing biomes, the rarest of these swamp-dwelling creatures are a collection of amphibian cryptids; an oversized frog is the most endangered.
CREDITS
Nostalgia by A. Cooper is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
This public broadcast is made possible thanks to these BCWPA Agents: Brandon Ruch, Colten Williams, Daniel Berry, Donovan Scherer, Kimberly Nichols, Layla Leutwyler, Madelynn ODell, Matthew Schang, Pyper Wilson, Lenin Roman, Ronald Miller, PHouseGames, Anthony Ferries, Dandan, Fox & Brambles, Jim Walke, Claire, Hallesy, Heather, HELGA, Kris Mitchell, Kylie Reed, Rick Belcher, Cryptid Clyde, T. Carter Ross, Agus Mercado, Ead Daniels, Elizabeth Lukjanczuk, Shelby Fulton, Veronica Mulvaney, Zodiac Gaming Industry, Mr. Blue Sky
SOURCES
Ballyraven Expedition 2.04.07
NOTE
In the Field and its free, public broadcasting are fictional and for entertainment only. Real life stories and events have been altered for storytelling; real life stories, myths, and legends are well-researched for each episode.
Do you have a story, sighting, or piece of folklore to share? Visit our office.
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THOUGH THE WETLAND areas of Ohio are not numerous or vast, covering only portions of the northeast, northwest, and a splatter of the west, they are filled with life. A diminishing biome, they contain rare varieties of butterfly, turtle, snake, and vegetation. If one simply sits quietly, motionlessly, many wondrous organisms enter into plain sight. The love-flight of a brush-tip emerald dragonfly can be observed easily, as well as the ripening of wild cranberries. The water-wiggle of a springtime fairy shrimp is a bit harder to witness, as is the feasting of a summering purple pitcher plant. Every day in Ohioan swamps can be fascinating — especially for those seeking cryptids.
The highest proportion of occurrences, humanoid encounters are rampant in these environments. Unnerving hoots, howls, cries, and other, booming notes can be heard quite frequently after dark; interestingly, they are also populated by undocumented species that generate bright lights, strong, musky scents, and mysterious, slinking predators. These reports dense in the north and eastern part of the state, cryptid amphibians of all kinds were absent — but new leads were abundant.
Dominated by humanoids and reptiles, the northeast is a hot spot of cryptid activity. However, these large, intelligent hunters snuffed out the existence of smaller, simpler rarities. Possibly over hunted for their size and ample meat, or pushed out of these territories for resources, Ohio’s cryptid amphibians are confined predominantly to the south and west. There, bigfoot accounts are fewer in number — but knowledge and accounts of unusual frogs abound. And in the west, Ohio’s most endangered frog was found: a giant, carnivorous specimen capable of consuming large prey whole.
This creature, however, is completely absent in all of recorded history. This is very strange, as megafauna of any kind are always notable, especially to humans. Stories of the animal appear to only remain in verbal, local storytelling. It is possible that those who have encountered it have kept its knowledge limited to close family and friends, were not avid writers, or did not want to draw attention to themselves. Claiming to have encountered a giant amphibian would have certainly garnered ridicule without evidence. Nevertheless, small snippets of its existence remain, scattered throughout Ohioan communities. One individual divulged a poem. From their grandfather, who had recited it when near swamp lands, it was always spoken with a laugh. In it, he refers to the creature as “Popfrog.” In other recounts, the animal is called the “Bogfrog” or “Great Swamp Frog.”
While in the swamp, in the bog, and the mire,
avoid large rocks, stumps, and always greenbrier.
For there will hide the monster, old Popfrog,
looking for a fish, bird, maybe a dog.
Giant, hidden, and very hungry too,
look out! PAH-POP! His next meal could be you!
