Case file · Cryptid
Winged serpents guarding frankincense
Herodotus (3.107) wrote about 430 BC that the frankincense trees of Arabia were guarded by small winged snakes of many colours, driven off only with the smoke of burning storax.
430 BCE · 17.02, 54.09 · status: legend
The account
He added that each spring the snakes flew toward Egypt and were killed by ibises. The frankincense lands were Dhofar and Hadramawt; traders had every reason to make the harvest sound dangerous.
The sceptical view
Proposed sources include locust swarms, flying lizards and traders' tales to protect a monopoly. Coordinates indicate Dhofar.