La Lechuza
In northern Mexico and Texas, people say a huge owl with a woman's face lands on roofs at night, and cries like a baby to lure people outside.
What was reported
La Lechuza, 'the owl', is a figure told about across northern Mexico and south Texas. She is said to be a witch who takes the form of a giant owl, sometimes with a woman's face, and comes at night, perching on houses or trees.
Her cry can sound like a baby or a woman weeping, to draw people out. Hearing an owl at night was a bad omen. To keep her away, people say a prayer, tie seven knots in a rope, or call out an old phrase telling her to come back tomorrow for salt.
Explanations offered
Owls have been seen as messengers of death in Mexican tradition since Aztec times. Barn owls make eerie, screaming calls at night, and land on roofs, which keeps the story alive.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
- Witnesses
- Folklore of northern Mexico and south Texas
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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