
Boto
Also known as: Encantado, Pink Dolphin Man, Boto Encantado
The Amazon's pink river dolphin comes ashore at night disguised as a handsome stranger.
Pre-colonial oral tradition
Amazon River basin, Brazil
Human-sized in land form, 6-8 feet as dolphin
Charming but deceptive
Folklore
The Lore
The Boto Encantado is a shapeshifting creature from Amazonian folklore. By day it swims as an Amazon river dolphin, but at night it transforms into a well-dressed young man who attends parties and seduces women. It always wears a hat to cover its blowhole. In riverside communities, unexplained pregnancies are still sometimes attributed to the Boto.
Body Type
Folklore Origin
Media Appearances
- The River of Doubt by Candice Millard
Similar Real Animals
You might also like

Caipora
MediumBrazilian hunters know this forest spirit punishes anyone who takes more than they need.

El Cadejo
HighIn Central America, a glowing-eyed dog follows you home at night, but its color decides your fate.

Adze
HighIn Togo, a vampire disguised as a glowing firefly slips through locked doors to feed on the sleeping.

Taniwha
HighSacred water guardians of Maori tradition that shape rivers, protect tribes, and sometimes drag the unwary to their doom.

Kelpie
HighA shape-shifting water horse that lures riders to a watery grave in Scottish lochs.

Jorogumo
HighA 400-year-old spider that takes the form of a beautiful woman to lure men to their death.

Vodyanoy
HighA bloated, frog-faced old man lurks at the bottom of Slavic rivers, drowning the careless and keeping their souls in teapots.

Aswang
HighThe Philippines' most feared shapeshifter hides as your neighbor by day and hunts as a beast by night.