The Tik-tik
In the Philippines, people say a night bird calls 'tik-tik' outside houses. The softer the sound, the closer it is.
What was reported
The tik-tik is a night bird in Filipino folklore, the companion, or a form, of the aswang, the shape-shifting creature of Visayan legend. Its call, 'tik-tik-tik', is heard outside houses at night, especially where someone is sick or about to give birth.
Its trick is that the sound is loudest when it's far away and faintest when it's near, so people hearing it fade think it's leaving, when in fact it's on the roof.
Explanations offered
The sound may come from geckos, insects or night birds. The province of Capiz is famous in the Philippines for aswang stories, though local people often resent the reputation.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- Capiz, Western Visayas, Philippines
- Witnesses
- Filipino folklore
- 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.
More from Philippines