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Viral video of the “Shadow Beast of the Amazon” is AI-generated Photo credit: cutestrawberrymilk/Instagram
A viral video claiming to show a mysterious animal in the Brazilian Amazon is not what it seems. The 10-second clip, shared widely on Instagram, shows a black, four-legged creature with a long tail and a snout that resembles a hyena’s. It has attracted over 1.6 million views and sparked confusion about whether it shows a real, unidentified species.
Claim
A viral Instagram video claims to show a mysterious animal in the Amazon rainforest. The creature, now being called the “Shadow Beast of the Amazon,” appears in a 10-second clip posted by the account “CuteStrawberryMilk.” It shows a black, four-legged animal with a long tail and a snout that resembles a hyena’s.
The caption reads like a scientific report. It states,
"On March 8, 2025, an automated wildlife monitoring camera deployed by the Brazilian National Institute of Ecology (BNIE) recorded a mysterious quadrupedal mammal in a remote region of the Amazon rainforest. The footage, captured during a routine biodiversity survey, reveals a large, dark-furred creature moving cautiously through the dense jungle."
The post goes on to say the animal shares some traits with a capybara or lowland tapir but shows “striking anomalies.” It claims the creature’s body is more elongated, its tail unusually thick and long, and its gait unlike any known species. It also says the animal’s eyes don’t reflect infrared light—something typical of nocturnal mammals.
The caption adds that BNIE researchers compared the footage with known animal databases and found no match. It even claims that some experts think this could be an undocumented subspecies or a leftover from an ancient lineage. The post ends by saying the site has been flagged for more research, including new cameras and DNA analysis.
But the entire story falls apart under basic fact-checking.
Fact check
The so-called Brazilian National Institute of Ecology does not exist. A quick online search for the name returns only reposts of the same video and no official references. There is no government agency or research group by that name. Every trace of the clip leads back to the same Instagram account that originally posted it.
Claims about the creature’s unusual features—such as a long, thick tail and an elongated body—do not match any known animal in the region. While some viewers compared it to a capybara or a lowland tapir, experts pointed out clear differences in body shape and movement. Even a melanistic jaguar, a rare black variant of the big cat, shows distinct features that do not align with the animal in the video.
Closer examination of the clip reveals visual errors consistent with AI-generated content. The tail bends and loops in unnatural ways. Its movements glitch subtly. The animal’s eyes lack the reflective glow that real animals display in night-vision footage. These details suggest the video was digitally created, not recorded in the wild.
No scientific reports or studies back the sighting. Wildlife experts have not verified the footage, and no credible sources have reported a discovery. The video exists only on social media, where it has fuelled speculation without evidence.
The video is not real. It does not show a new species or a lost animal. It is AI-generated content designed to look like a camera trap video. The original poster even hints at its fake nature, asking viewers to guess if it’s real or AI.
Know what you’re watching before you believe it.
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