Indus worm Indus worm The skōlex (Indus Worm or the horrible Indian worm), in ancient Greek writings, was a supposed giant, white, carnivorous worm with a large pair of teeth that lived in the Indus River. Gustav Oppert in the 19th century reasoned that "skōlex" referred to a like-sounding word in the Indian language, and was convinced the word was "culukī" () for "fish" or "porpoise". In his opinion, the word could refer even to a "crocodile" by extension. Scholar Erik Seldeslachts, in a 1998 paper, has suggested parallel with "kṛmiḥ" () which has the duel meaning of "worm" and a name
Lambton Worm on Worm Hill. The worm terrorises the nearby villages, eating sheep, preventing cows from producing milk and snatching away small children. It then heads towards Lambton Castle, where the Lord (John Lambton's aged father) manages to sedate the creature in what becomes a daily ritual of offering the worm the milk of nine good cows – twenty gallons, or a filled wooden/stone trough. A number of brave villagers try to kill the beast, but are quickly dispatched. When a chunk is cut off the worm, it simply reattaches the missing piece. Visiting knights also try to assault the beast, but