1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:09,360 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,919 Speaker 2: Our world is full of the unexplainable, and if history 4 00:00:17,079 --> 00:00:20,560 Speaker 2: is an open book, all of these amazing tales right 5 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:25,720 Speaker 2: there on display, just waiting for us to explore. Welcome 6 00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 2: to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 7 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:38,599 Speaker 1: We don't really think about it, but our planet might 8 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,159 Speaker 1: as well be a universe all its own. There are 9 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 1: still parts of Earth that have yet to be seen 10 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,240 Speaker 1: with human eyes. For example, much of the ocean still 11 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:49,320 Speaker 1: hasn't been explored, and there are even islands where no 12 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:52,760 Speaker 1: man has stepped foot. And in those areas are flora 13 00:00:52,800 --> 00:00:56,680 Speaker 1: and fauna we cannot comprehend. Louis Deloyes thought he'd found 14 00:00:56,760 --> 00:01:00,200 Speaker 1: such a place in South America in nineteen twenty. What 15 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:03,680 Speaker 1: he discovered was more than he bargained for. The Lace 16 00:01:03,880 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: was a Swiss geologist, and in nineteen seventeen he started 17 00:01:07,360 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 1: traveling through South America as part of an oil survey. 18 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:12,720 Speaker 1: He'd been joined by a crew of twenty men, but 19 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:15,440 Speaker 1: that number had dwindled since the starts of their journey. 20 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:18,800 Speaker 1: They had faced a number of hardships, including run ins 21 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:23,560 Speaker 1: with hostile indigenous peoples and devastating diseases. Several members had 22 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:26,840 Speaker 1: even disappeared in the mountains. By nineteen twenty, there were 23 00:01:26,840 --> 00:01:29,959 Speaker 1: only four men left. The group had set up camp 24 00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:33,080 Speaker 1: one night by Columbia's Tara River when they noticed something 25 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:36,360 Speaker 1: along the banks. Two creatures had emerged nearby, and they 26 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:39,440 Speaker 1: were getting closer. They were almost five feet tall and 27 00:01:39,520 --> 00:01:42,560 Speaker 1: covered in red fur, and they looked like large apes, 28 00:01:42,600 --> 00:01:45,720 Speaker 1: only they were walking upright on two legs like a human. 29 00:01:46,200 --> 00:01:48,840 Speaker 1: One was a male, the other was a female. As 30 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:51,640 Speaker 1: the pair inch toward the camp, it was clear they 31 00:01:51,680 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: had not come in peace. The creatures started making loud 32 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: noises and throwing their feces at the crew. Scared and angry, 33 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 1: the men kicked up their guns and fired. Both apes 34 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:05,560 Speaker 1: were hit, but only the female died. The male ran 35 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:08,040 Speaker 1: back into the woods to nurse his wounds and was 36 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:11,720 Speaker 1: never seen again. Deloys examined the creature that lay at 37 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:13,920 Speaker 1: his feet. It didn't look like any ape he had 38 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:16,760 Speaker 1: seen before. While on the surface, it had features like 39 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:19,399 Speaker 1: a spider monkey's, but it was much larger and had 40 00:02:19,440 --> 00:02:22,679 Speaker 1: no tail, and while most monkeys only have thirty two 41 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:26,040 Speaker 1: teeth in their mouths. This one had thirty six. Deloys 42 00:02:26,120 --> 00:02:28,240 Speaker 1: and the other men propped the animal up on a 43 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,440 Speaker 1: crate in a seated position. They wedged a long stick 44 00:02:31,560 --> 00:02:34,080 Speaker 1: under its chin to keep it from falling over, and 45 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:37,040 Speaker 1: then photos were taken before the creature was skinned and 46 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:40,760 Speaker 1: its skull was removed. Any scientist would have been excited 47 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 1: to share this discovery with the world. A brand new 48 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:45,760 Speaker 1: species of ape had been found along the coast of 49 00:02:45,800 --> 00:02:49,040 Speaker 1: South America, and Louis de Loys was about to be famous. 50 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,120 Speaker 1: Except he wasn't. Not at first. He sat on the 51 00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:55,720 Speaker 1: news for a number of years, refusing to tell a 52 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,120 Speaker 1: soul about what he'd seen. Plus, much of his evidence 53 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:01,040 Speaker 1: had been lost before or he'd made it back home. 54 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 1: All that remained was a single photograph of the ape. 55 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:07,680 Speaker 1: It wasn't until nineteen twenty eight when his friend George 56 00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:10,800 Speaker 1: Montendan found what had nearly been forgotten. He was a 57 00:03:10,800 --> 00:03:14,359 Speaker 1: professor of anthropology and was paging through Deloys's notebook when 58 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:17,359 Speaker 1: he came across a photo tucked inside. He'd seen plenty 59 00:03:17,400 --> 00:03:19,760 Speaker 1: of apes and monkeys throughout his career, but this one 60 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:22,680 Speaker 1: was much different than the others, and he knew it 61 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:25,840 Speaker 1: needed to be seen, it looked like Deloys had discovered 62 00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:29,600 Speaker 1: what other scientists had only theorized about the missing link. 63 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:32,600 Speaker 1: The two men worked together and had stories about the 64 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 1: eight published in several newspapers. Montandan also submitted a paper 65 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:39,600 Speaker 1: to the French Academy of Sciences, dubbing the creature the 66 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:44,320 Speaker 1: ameranthropoid's loisi. It was the biggest scientific discovery of the day, 67 00:03:44,880 --> 00:03:47,520 Speaker 1: at least it was supposed to be. As soon as 68 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:49,920 Speaker 1: other scientists and naturalists got a look at the animal 69 00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:53,120 Speaker 1: in the photo, they started asking questions, how big was 70 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:55,480 Speaker 1: it really, where did its tale go? Why did it 71 00:03:55,520 --> 00:03:58,600 Speaker 1: look so much like a spider monkey. Eventually the answers 72 00:03:58,640 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 1: weren't good enough, when both Deloy's and Montendan were labeled frauds. 73 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:05,400 Speaker 1: The final nail in the coffin, though, came in nineteen 74 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:09,360 Speaker 1: sixty two. That year, doctor Enrique Tahara sent a letter 75 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: to the editor of a Spanish language magazine, a letter 76 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:15,040 Speaker 1: that wasn't published until nineteen ninety nine. In it, he 77 00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:18,239 Speaker 1: explained how he knew Deloy's ape was a hoax, writing 78 00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 1: mister Montendan said that the monkey had no tail, that 79 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:24,640 Speaker 1: is for sure, but he forgot to mention something. It 80 00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: has no tail because it was cut off. I can 81 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:32,200 Speaker 1: assure you this, gentlemen, because I saw the amputation. Deloyz 82 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: died of syphilis in nineteen thirty five. He was barely 83 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:39,160 Speaker 1: forty two and left behind a legacy of deception. Montandan 84 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:42,560 Speaker 1: didn't fare much better. When he wasn't fabricating hoaxes. He 85 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:46,560 Speaker 1: was pushing eugenics ideas and working with the Nazis. He 86 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:50,159 Speaker 1: was executed in nineteen forty four for betraying his country. 87 00:04:50,520 --> 00:04:54,240 Speaker 1: It seems that the French resistance didn't tolerate monkey business 88 00:04:54,279 --> 00:05:11,360 Speaker 1: of any kind. The world is full of natural wonders. 89 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:13,640 Speaker 1: We actually have a list of seven of the most 90 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:17,279 Speaker 1: impressive ones, which was compiled by CNN in nineteen ninety seven. 91 00:05:17,600 --> 00:05:20,919 Speaker 1: They are the Northern Lights, the Grand Canyon, the Great 92 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:24,799 Speaker 1: Barrier Reef, Mount Everest, the Harbor of Rio de Janio 93 00:05:24,880 --> 00:05:30,440 Speaker 1: in Brazil, Zimbabwe's Victoria Falls, and Perkutin, a volcano in Mexico. 94 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:34,159 Speaker 1: These are bucket list level phenomena places that people travel 95 00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:37,200 Speaker 1: thousands of miles to see. But there's another lesser known 96 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:42,120 Speaker 1: location that's just as mysterious and breathtaking. It's called Mosquito Bay, 97 00:05:42,520 --> 00:05:45,640 Speaker 1: which I know is not a particularly enticing name. It 98 00:05:45,720 --> 00:05:48,320 Speaker 1: is not named after the blood sucking insects that we 99 00:05:48,360 --> 00:05:51,400 Speaker 1: all know and hate. It's named after a pirate ship 100 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:55,040 Speaker 1: that once sailed through the area. Mosquito Bay is located 101 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 1: on the southeast edge of Viakis, which is a tiny 102 00:05:57,800 --> 00:06:00,000 Speaker 1: island about seven miles off the coast of Puerto Rico. 103 00:06:00,520 --> 00:06:03,440 Speaker 1: By day, the waters there look perfectly normal, but when 104 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:07,719 Speaker 1: the sun sets, things get curious. The water glows neon 105 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:11,839 Speaker 1: blue in the darkness. There's an entire tourism industry around 106 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:14,560 Speaker 1: the glowing bay. However, there are also a lot of 107 00:06:14,640 --> 00:06:17,719 Speaker 1: rules that visitors have to follow. For example, tour guides 108 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:20,280 Speaker 1: can't use motor boats to take people out on the water. 109 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:23,680 Speaker 1: They can only use kayaks. Plus, tourists can't swim in 110 00:06:23,800 --> 00:06:26,719 Speaker 1: the bay. The closest they can get is just dipping 111 00:06:26,760 --> 00:06:30,080 Speaker 1: a hand in. And despite being called Mosquito Bay, there 112 00:06:30,120 --> 00:06:33,200 Speaker 1: is absolutely no bug spray allowed, at least not the 113 00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:36,720 Speaker 1: kind that contains a chemical called deet. If you're wondering 114 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:39,920 Speaker 1: why all these restrictions exist, it's because the bay's neon 115 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:43,240 Speaker 1: blue light depends on it. You see, Mosquito Bay glows 116 00:06:43,279 --> 00:06:46,480 Speaker 1: because the water is home to billions of microscopic, single 117 00:06:46,520 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: celled organisms called dinoflagelets, which just happen to be bioluminescent now. 118 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:56,440 Speaker 1: Bioluminescence occurs when a living organism's body gives off lights 119 00:06:56,480 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 1: as the result of an internal chemical reaction. The most 120 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,120 Speaker 1: common example of this is fireflies. Everyone knows them, but 121 00:07:03,160 --> 00:07:06,200 Speaker 1: there are all kinds of species that glow, including certain 122 00:07:06,240 --> 00:07:11,240 Speaker 1: types of bacteria, worms, starfish, jellyfish, and even sharks, so 123 00:07:11,600 --> 00:07:16,320 Speaker 1: bioluminescence isn't actually that rare. However, Mosquito Bay is unique 124 00:07:16,400 --> 00:07:19,480 Speaker 1: because of the sheer number of glowing organisms it contains. 125 00:07:19,880 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: For every gallon of water, there's an estimated seven hundred 126 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:26,720 Speaker 1: thousand dinoflagelets. Over time, they've gotten trapped inside the bay 127 00:07:26,960 --> 00:07:29,720 Speaker 1: and become the accustomed to feeding off nutrients from the 128 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:34,320 Speaker 1: surrounding mangrove trees. Still, these tiny glowing creatures are very 129 00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:38,200 Speaker 1: sensitive to changes in their environment. Other bioluminescent bays have 130 00:07:38,200 --> 00:07:40,760 Speaker 1: been destroyed by humans in the past, hence all the 131 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:44,280 Speaker 1: rules visitors have to follow. The fast movement and fuel 132 00:07:44,320 --> 00:07:47,320 Speaker 1: exhaust from motor boats can kill them. Swimmers aren't allowed 133 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:50,480 Speaker 1: in the water because human sweat saliva and urine can 134 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 1: throw off the marine ecosystem, and bug spray containing deep 135 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:57,040 Speaker 1: is the biggest problem of all. It could actually wipe 136 00:07:57,040 --> 00:08:00,680 Speaker 1: out the microorganism that makes the bay so beautiful. Thanks 137 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:03,600 Speaker 1: to these conservation efforts, people have been able to experience 138 00:08:03,640 --> 00:08:06,960 Speaker 1: this natural wonder without hurting it. In two thousand and six, 139 00:08:07,080 --> 00:08:11,000 Speaker 1: Guinness World Records named Mosquito Bay the brightest bioluminescent bay 140 00:08:11,120 --> 00:08:15,040 Speaker 1: on Earth. But a decade later, in twenty seventeen, disaster 141 00:08:15,200 --> 00:08:19,239 Speaker 1: struck and it wasn't anyone's fault. Hurricane Maria decimated large 142 00:08:19,280 --> 00:08:23,040 Speaker 1: portions of Puerto Rico, including Viacus and Mosquito Bay. For 143 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:26,400 Speaker 1: the first time in recent memory, the glowing bay went dark, 144 00:08:26,720 --> 00:08:30,000 Speaker 1: and people feared that the dioflagelets had all been killed 145 00:08:30,200 --> 00:08:33,400 Speaker 1: or would it return. But then eighteen months later, the 146 00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:36,959 Speaker 1: bay's signature glow slowly began to come back. It seemed 147 00:08:36,960 --> 00:08:40,840 Speaker 1: the microorganisms were recovering, and soon the water actually glowed 148 00:08:40,920 --> 00:08:45,280 Speaker 1: brighter than it ever had before. These days, the bioluminescent 149 00:08:45,320 --> 00:08:48,400 Speaker 1: creatures are alive and well, and people who visit the 150 00:08:48,440 --> 00:08:51,000 Speaker 1: bay say it's one of the most magical places they 151 00:08:51,040 --> 00:08:54,720 Speaker 1: have ever seen. In twenty twenty, Conde Nast named Mosquito 152 00:08:54,760 --> 00:08:57,200 Speaker 1: Bay as one of its seven Wonders of the World. 153 00:08:57,679 --> 00:09:00,320 Speaker 1: So who knows, Maybe one day the glowing water will 154 00:09:00,360 --> 00:09:04,600 Speaker 1: earn a spot on CNN's official list. Until then, Mosquito 155 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:13,440 Speaker 1: Bay remains a uniquely bright spot on Earth. I hope 156 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:16,800 Speaker 1: you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. 157 00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:20,200 Speaker 1: Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about 158 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:24,800 Speaker 1: the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show 159 00:09:25,000 --> 00:09:28,240 Speaker 1: was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how 160 00:09:28,320 --> 00:09:31,920 Speaker 1: Stuff Works. I make another award winning show called Lore, 161 00:09:32,160 --> 00:09:35,800 Speaker 1: which is a podcast, book series, and television show, and 162 00:09:35,840 --> 00:09:38,439 Speaker 1: you can learn all about it over at the Worldoflore 163 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:44,600 Speaker 1: dot com. And until next time, stay curious.