Crodh Mara: The Tale Of The Scottish Water Cows!

Hiya!

If you are anything like me, when you think of folklore or myths, you’re mind will go to Nessie (The Loch Ness Monster). Or the dark cloud of horror that lingers over those two simple words.

When I started researching the folklore in Scotland I never thought I find so many faeries and creatures. And pretty much all of these folklore creatures have Gaelic names. I can’t speak or read much Gaelic so I have no clue what any of them say.

When I came across Crodh Mara my first thought was that this was going to be some sort of humanoid creature; probably female as Mara looks like a girl’s name. And that its purpose was going to be that it lured people to their death or something awful like that.

Oh, boy! I was so hilariously wrong! This creature that I assumed would be so utterly terrifying, that would wander dark secluded roads was the exact opposite. It is simply a water cow.

The “Cattle of the Sea” is what I have found them to be called; I assume that’s a translation of Crodh Mara. I have also seen them called Sea Cattle, which sound cute, but my absolute favourite name for them is Fairy Cattle. Fairy Cattle! I can’t lie, every time I write Fairy Cattle I picture a cow with pink, glittery fairy wings. It is the best visual my mind has ever conjured!

A cow wearing pink, glittery fairy wings is a beautiful visual, think about that winged cow climbing out of the water.

Yes, the water. As their name suggests they do live under the sea (down where it’s wetter, take it from me!). Specifically, they live in fresh and saltwater on Scotland’s West Coast. Just imagine being by the seaside and seeing a cow emerge from the water. I honestly think that would be the moment my brain just stops working.

A cow walking out of the sea is something that would make you question a few things for sure. These creatures are said to be usually hummel (hornless), and a dun colour (tan colour). Sounds fairly normal.

The normal colour is black, just some black, hornless water cows, or you can have the spectacular red and speckled water cow! How fabulous does that sound? Seriously imagine enjoying the beauty of the Isle of Skye, looking out over the sea and out the corner of your eye you see a red and speckled cow emerged from the water and calmly start grazing on some grass. Say goodbye to your sanity, everyone!

It sort of sounds like a Mooshroom from Minecraft!

Not everyone, however, thinks “A cow just came out of the sea, that’s weird”, some people apparently think “aha! A water cow, I am going to use it”. This is what happened in a story from the Isle of Skye, a crofter and his mental idea. The crofter is said to have managed to get some of the Crodh Mara Bulls to mate with his “mortal” cattle. This process is said to have improved stock. Now, I read this and my initial thoughts were you had to be mental to go up to this mythical cow and somehow convince it to go back to your farm.

I later discovered that you may not need to convince the bull to come with you; you can stop it from returning to the sea. The way you are said to accomplish this is by taking earth from a graveyard, sneaking up on the Crodh Mara and scatter the earth between the herd and the shoreline. This sounds easy enough except for the fact you’re not sneaking up on one Crodh Mara but a herd of them. The crofter who is said to have done this deserves a reward for this, that sounds terrifying! As a result of this crofter’s plan, it is said that most of the cattle on the Isle of Skye are descendants of Crodh Mara.

This is the cutest folklore I have come across so far into my journey through the Otherworld and its secrets. I have enjoyed learning about the Crodh Mara and discovering that they don’t seem to be that terrifying as I first thought.

Facts At A Glance

Other Names: Water Cattle, Cattle of the Sea, Fairy Cow
Found in Sottish Folklore.
Found in fresh and saltwater on Scotland’s West Coast.
Crodh Mara comes ashore to graze on the grass.
If you take earth from a graveyard and scatter it between the shoreline and herd, you can stop them from returning to the sea.
Stories say that most cattle on the Isle of Skye are descendants of Crodh Mara.
Crodh Mara bulls are said to have mated with mortal cows to improve their stock.