Case file · Folklore / legend
Pombero
The Pombero is a hairy, short night spirit of Paraguay and northeast Argentina who imitates bird calls, steals and plays tricks; offerings of tobacco, rum or honey keep him friendly.
1917 CE · -27.00, -55.50 · status: legend
The account
He is said to be able to make himself invisible or as thin as a stick, to braid horses' manes, and to be blamed for unexplained pregnancies. People avoid saying his name at night and call him 'Karai pyhare' ('lord of the night'). The year is an approximate early-print date for the Misiones folklore collected by Juan B. Ambrosetti; the pin marks Misiones.
The sceptical view
A folklore figure; stories of attacks are reported as personal experience but without evidence.