Episode 153: The Adze:

Ian takes us to the mother land this week to tell us the legend of a spirit that takes a form most of us would not think twice about. 

As summer sweeps across the US fireflies, or lightening bugs, are out light up the night. For many of us we have memories of going out to catch them and put them in jars to keep in our rooms over night. 

This is probably not something they do in Togo and Benin, and Ghana, where they have a legend of a vampiric entity. This thing takes the form of a firefly to find it's way into a house, then it takes human form to possess someone. 

Like many places legends like these are made to explain the unexplainable. Vampiric fireflies are no different. 

TPL EP Source Notes:

https://cryptidz.fandom.com/wiki/Adze

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adze_(folklore)

https://www.rmpbs.org/shows/monstrum/episodes/adze-shapeshifting-firefly-west-africa-yuqas5

https://adeche.com/en-us/blogs/learn-african-mythology/the-adze-a-deep-dive-into-the-vampiric-firefly-in-ewe-folklore?srsltid=AfmBOoqbMyNrciFMj6nK-T-mxLR8h20xS2w0P893r7QWIBcgf7hgCmg8

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/monster-mythology-adze