lechuza

backpackerverse.com

Lechuza—a Spanish word for a type of owl, especially the barn owl—is a myth popular throughout northern Mexico and Texas. As the story goes, an old woman shape-shifts into a giant owl, La Lechuza, to take revenge on people who wronged her during her life. Sometimes the owl is variously depicted as black or white and sometimes with the head of the old woman.

Exactly what the lechuza does to exact revenge varies widely across tellings of the story, though most reference the lechuza carrying away unsuspecting prey to her lair. She lures her targets, often children or drunk people, out of houses by crying like a baby or by swooping down on cars late at night. Various methods are claimed to protect against the lechuza: tying seven knots in a rope and hanging it by the front door, throwing salt and chili powder into the bird’s face, shooting the bird, or reciting the Magnificat, a Christian prayer to the Virgin Mary.

Stories of the lechuza are thought to have been around since the Spanish colonized Mexico. The exact origin of the lechuza legend is unknown, though it is possible that an actual giant owl was the inspiration for the story. Giant birds have been reported in the area, and legends from Native American tribes north of Texas also incorporate giant birds (e.g., thunderbirds).

Fearers of the lechuza have taken action against actual owls. In August 2014, a video of Mexican villagers interrogating and burning an owl alive went viral. The villagers said the owl was really a lechuza and its screams as it was being burned were the witch screaming. Some social media users condemned the incident as superstition gone wrong, leading to animal cruelty.