Monsters in the Ice: The Impossible Creatures Seen by Arctic Explorers

Opinion | Cryptozoology & High Strangeness

The Ningen: The Humanoid Whale

In the 1990s and early 2000s, rumors began circulating among Japanese "research" whaling vessels of a creature that defied classification. They called it the Ningen (Japanese for "Human").

Witnesses described a massive, white, biological entity ranging from 20 to 30 meters long. Unlike a whale, it reportedly possesses distinct humanoid features:

• A blubbery, smooth white skin.
• Two arm-like appendages with five-fingered hands.
• A face with visible eyes and a slit-like mouth, but no nose.

While most sightings are reported in the Antarctic, crossover reports from the Arctic circle suggest this species—if it exists—migrates between the poles. Skeptics claim it is a misidentified albino whale or a trick of the light on an iceberg. But the consistency of the descriptions (specifically the arms) keeps the legend alive in cryptozoology circles.

The Qalupalik: More Than a Myth?

The Inuit people have lived in the Arctic for thousands of years. They know the difference between a seal, a walrus, and something else. Their oral history warns of the Qalupalik.

Described as a humanoid creature with green, scaly skin and long hair, the Qalupalik lives under the sea ice. It is said to wear an amautik (a parka for carrying children) made of eider duck feathers. While usually dismissed as a "boogeyman" story to keep children away from dangerous thin ice, some cryptozoologists argue the description matches a relict population of aquatic primates or a distinct evolutionary offshoot adapted to the cold—similar to the "Aquatic Ape" theory.

The 1920s Giant Spider Sighting

In the obscure journals of early 20th-century polar expeditions, there are scattered references to "giant crabs" that shouldn't exist. One unverified but persistent account from a 1920s British expedition describes a creature resembling a Japanese Spider Crab—but massive, spanning 12 feet—pulling itself onto an ice floe.

Biologically, this is impossible; deep-sea gigantism usually restricts such creatures to the abyss. For one to be on the surface suggests either a dying animal or a species that hunts on the ice shelf itself.

Admiral Byrd and the "Green Land"

No article on Arctic strangeness is complete without mentioning Admiral Richard E. Byrd. A decorated US Naval officer and Medal of Honor recipient, Byrd flew over both poles.

The conspiracy theory—fueled by alleged "lost diary" entries—claims that during a 1947 flight, Byrd saw a lush, green landmass beyond the pole, complete with woolly mammoths and a different sun. While likely a fabrication or a misinterpretation of mirages (fata morgana), the "Hollow Earth" theory persists because it offers an answer to where these strange creatures (like the Ningen) might hide when we aren't looking.