In today’s world, surveillance cameras are everywhere—watching over malls, streets, and even zoos. They help ensure that people, animals, and everything in between are where they’re supposed to be—and not up to any mischief.
But a few months ago, the Amarillo Zoo captured something on camera that was anything but ordinary.
Late one night, their surveillance system picked up a bizarre, eerie-looking figure lurking just outside the zoo’s perimeter. The still image from the footage left zoo staff scratching their heads—and quickly went viral after the City of Amarillo shared it on Twitter.
The post was simple but intriguing: “Do you have any ideas of what this UAO—Unidentified Amarillo Object—could be?”
The internet lit up with theories, memes, and wild guesses. Was it a werewolf? A person in costume? Something… not of this world?
One thing was certain: whatever it was, it gave everyone the creeps—and captured the imagination of thousands.
The figure in the image is distant and a bit blurry—partly obscured by shadows and separated by the zoo’s perimeter fence. While some viewers agreed with the City of Amarillo’s theory that it resembled a person wearing a quirky hat, others weren’t so sure. Its odd posture and unusual silhouette left plenty of room for imagination.
As soon as the photo hit Twitter, it exploded. Users flooded the comments with wild guesses, both serious and hilarious. Some thought it might be a costumed prankster or a cryptid straight out of a campfire story. One user jokingly suggested it was Rocket Raccoon from Guardians of the Galaxy—and honestly, with a little squinting, it’s not that far off.
The mysterious snapshot quickly turned into an internet sensation, sparking laughter, curiosity, and just a little bit of unease.
Other Twitter users suggested it might be an alien of some sort.
Yet others suggested it might be a pokemon character.
Of course, not everyone joined in on the guessing game. Some viewers took a more skeptical route, insisting the photo was doctored or staged. They pointed to the grainy quality, odd lighting, and the figure’s peculiar stance as signs that it was too strange to be real. For them, the viral image wasn’t a mystery to solve—it was a hoax to debunk.
But whether people laughed, speculated, or doubted, one thing was certain: the photo had done its job. It stirred imaginations, sparked conversations, and turned an ordinary zoo surveillance shot into an internet phenomenon.
What do you think the creature in the surveillance footage really is? Do you think this is a real photo, or do you think it was photoshopped?