Pukwudgie — Cryptid Encyclopedia

The Wampanoag people knew them long before any colonist set foot in New England. Pukwudgies — small, grey-skinned tricksters of the deep woods with glowing eyes and an unsettling intelligence. Standing two to three feet tall, with grotesquely oversized ears, nose, and fingers, smooth gray skin that sometimes seems to glow, and the ability to appear and vanish at will.

In Wampanoag tradition, Pukwudgies were once friendly to humans but turned hostile after growing jealous of the attention given to the benevolent giant Maushop. Their methods of killing are varied and creative: they lure hikers off trails with phantom lights (similar to will-o'-the-wisps), push people from cliffs, use poison arrows, and control fire. They are not mindless monsters — they are intelligent, malicious, and patient.

Modern sightings concentrate around the Bridgewater Triangle in southeastern Massachusetts — a region already notorious for paranormal activity, UFO sightings, and unexplained phenomena. The Freetown-Fall River State Forest, which sits at the heart of the Triangle, has been the site of numerous Pukwudgie encounters from the 1990s to the present day.

Witnesses describe small, humanoid figures watching from the tree line at dusk, strange lights moving through the forest at night, and an overwhelming feeling of being followed. Several have reported the creatures attempting to lure them deeper into the woods.

"They are not to be trifled with." — Wampanoag oral tradition.