The city of Amarillo, Texas, is soliciting guesses as to the identity of a so-called "Unidentified Amarillo Object," offering netizens the chance to explain what was captured in a bizarre image published by the city's zoo.
According to the city's authorities, cameras on the zoo's perimeter captured footage of an unknown object on the other side of the facility's fence at 1:30 am on May 21. The object's silhouette is unrecognizable, albeit it appears to be supported from beneath by two lengthy legs.
"Was it a person with a strange hat who likes to walk at night? A large coyote on its hind legs? A Chupacabra? It is a mystery – for Amarillo to help solve," the city government said jokingly.
While the identity of the would-be cryptid surely is not that crucial, the zoo and officials in the surrounding Amarillo area are embracing the unusual image as an opportunity to have some fun with the community.
"We just want to let the Amarillo community have some fun with this," Director of Parks and Recreation Michael Kashuba said in a news release. "It is important to note that this entity was outside the Amarillo Zoo. There were no signs of attempted entry into the zoo. No animals or individuals were harmed. There were no signs of criminal activity or vandalism."
Amarillo has asked anyone with theories about the object's identity to contact the city's public information office.
Whether they sent their proposals to the city or not, social media users immediately began coming up with theories about what it could be. Or they just posted memes, as is usually the case.
"Swiper, no swiping," said one netizen.
And some offered quite plausible explanations for the mysterious "alien" caught on camera. While other potential detectives asked the zoo to provide a video of the incident in order to get a better idea.