There are Dreamtime stories of frightful monsters, some mythological and some which may be real creatures. Some of them are evocative of prehistoric animals, which supposedly became extinct long ago. It's been speculated that some of these animals may have still been living in Australia a mere two hundred years ago. Perhaps they are still to be found.

The Bunyip first came to the notice of Europeans as they started moving into areas formerly occupied by Australian Aborigines. The whole continent seemed a harsh and unfriendly place to the white settlers. The sun glared on eyes used to softer, wetter climes, the colours were too bright and the native animals grotesque.

Indeed the fauna was so peculiar that the notion of a savage beast lurking underwater in wait to seize the unwary seemed perfectly reasonable. After all, Europe had plenty of phookas, nixies, dixies, kelpies, selkies, merrow, mermaids and all manner of marine boggarts, why shouldn't there be one in the Great Southern Land?

Unfamiliar with the country, the settlers regarded the Bunyip as just one more bizarre Australian animal. Indigenous legend told of him, that he was to be found in and around water, just below the surface, waiting for an unsuspecting traveller to seize and devour.

There were many attempts to capture a specimen throughout the 19th century. Sightings of a strange water creature were common near waterholes and estuaries but, although many claimed to see the creature, it was always from too far away, and it moved too fast, to accurately describe.

Also, encounters with the Bunyip were commonly at dusk, when the shadows deepened under the mangroves.

So the descriptions vary widely. Some say the Bunyip has a long neck, tusks and flippers. Or that he is scaley, with a tail like a horse and a head likea bird. One day he appears as a huge snake with a beard and a mane and the next day he looks like a brutish and furry half-human.

If you do come across the Bunyip, it will be near water. And most commonly at night. Creeks, lagoons, billabongs and rivers are his habitat and he will emerge from the dried up river bed or waterhole when you least expect him. He especially loves the wetlands around estuaries.

If you hear a loud bellowing cry, stay away from the water.

Is the Bunyip a prehistoric survivor? The Diprotodon was an Ice-Age marsupial that co-existed with the early Aborigines before becoming extinct. Is this what is still remembered? Or perhaps there's a Lost World full of dinosaurs somewhere in the Outback, a lot of dreamers have thought so.

There were many sightings of the Bunyip in the 1930s with reports of beasts emerging from caves by creeks at night and pouncing on sheep. But this was the time of the Great Depression. Plenty of tramps had humped their bluey and taken to the road, for going bush, waltzing matilda, was the only viable option for many men in those hard times. The logical place to strike camp for the night is near water, and a sheep is an easier animal to catch and cook than a possum when you're hungry.

Tramps by the riverbanks and Dipotrodons in the bushes are pretty rare these days, but one Australian creature you don't want to bump into is the saltwater crocodile!

Susanna Duffy is a mythologist and life-long collector of ancient tales and forgotten lore. She presents a weekly radio programme in Australia and a fortnightly ezine with customs and celebrations, folklore and fable, tall tales and true from our legendary past.