The BEASTIARY is a growing collection of beasts, aliens, and magical creatures. They are the children of our fantasies and, like all products of the imagination, will slowly vanish unless shared.

The images and descriptions of these beasts are private property and are protected under copyright laws. If you would like to use the image of one of the Beastiary's inhabitants, please contact its creator first.

Click here to submit a creature to the Beastiary.

NAME: Fanthru CREATOR: Karen Owens karenowens@civprod.com

Fanthru are delightful small creatures that live in the trees and jump from branch to branch. They always seem to welcome any traveler that may wander into their grove of trees. However, don't be fooled by their devious friendliness. They are, as you might say, thieves. For after you fall asleep they'll race to your stuff and steal your food. They are light eaters but usually run in packs or families.

Not only do they eat your food but they might even run off with your valuables. Fanthru are very unpopular with travelers who know about them.

In spite of the fact that it is hard for hunters to kill them Fanthru are close to becomming extinct. If you are interested in saving the Fanthru, please contact the nearest Natural History Center.

NAME: Slyyth CREATOR: Nancy Owens owens@cs.byu.edu

The villagers of Maelgreth live in fear of a gut-wrenching apparition. Each night, a dripping, half-formed creature shuffles from the swamp and peers through the window of each cottage. Two bulging eyes scrape against the glass. A raspy voice gulps and slurps, "Ssslyyth... ssslyyth..."

Slyyth is actually an intelligent pink slug. He had lived for 200 years in his enchanted swamp when humans came to Maelgreth. Eager to communicate with his new neighbors, Slyyth created a body out of moss and magic. Slipping inside the head of his mushy new body, Slyyth felt very proud of his work, and practiced pronouncing his name.

Now Slyyth goes from cottage to cottage in the evenings, testing his new vocal cords and trying to learn the humans' language. He can't understand why no one wants to talk to him...

NAME: Thingsnatcher CREATOR: Nancy Owens owens@cs.byu.edu

Missing socks, vanishing spoons, disappearing pencils... the Thingsnatchers are behind all of these mysteries. These mischievous rodents mean no harm: they are inherent kleptomaniacs, and will scamper off with any small item that is not tied down. They keep their stashes in dark corners, behind dusty dressers, and under beds.

Thingsnatchers are friendly, but timid. When contented, they make a cooing noise similar to a pigeon's. They spend most of their time in attics and beneath floorboards, and are most active early in the morning. They feed on cake crumbs, sugar cubes, and occasionally on Santa's cookies.

NAME: Vashylite CREATOR: Nancy Owens owens@cs.byu.edu

These timid and peaceful beings are parasites who use a domesticated species of canines as their hosts. Each vashylite forms a close bond with his or her canines; rearing, nuturing, protecting, and feeding off them.

The long claws on a vashylite's hands act as intravenous needles: One claw absorbs blood from the host, the other claw inserts blood into the host. A vashylite feeds by drawing nutrient-rich blood from its host and replacing it with nutrient-drained blood. This process weakens the host, but does not kill it.

Vashylites have neither mouth nor vocal cords: They communicate through an elaborate sign language utilizing the entire body. As the first human visitor to their world remarked, "They dance when they speak."