Have you spotted the squonk, Pennsylvania’s very own cryptid?

(WJET/WFXP) – As the summer season comes to a close and the cool chill of fall nips the air, creepy creatures will soon emerge from the dark as their time to shine draws near.

While some states have iconic creepy cryptids like Point Pleasant, West Virginia’s mothman, or California’s Fresno nightcrawlers, Pennsylvania’s strangely named mythical beast is somewhat… pathetic.

It’s named the squonk, and its first known origins stem from the book Fearsome

Creatures of the Underwood, written by William T. Cox and published in 1910.

The book, which spans only 50 pages, features illustrations and brief descriptions of different mythical beasts that make their home in the woods.

Cox, who claimed the creatures resided in Pennsylvania’s hemlock forests, described the squonk as a sniveling, sad creature who is constantly crying over how ugly it is.

“Because of its misfitting skin, which is covered with warts and moles, it is always unhappy,” Cox wrote. “Hunters who are good at tracking are able to follow a squonk by its tear-strained trail, for the animal weeps constantly.”

The teary-eyed creature even has its own scientific name, thanks to a mythological encyclopedia by Josepha Sherman: lachrimacorpus dissolvens, which means “body dissolves into tears.”

While the sad, lonesome squonk is out crying in the forest, one city has recently begun a celebration in its honor.

Squonkapalooza is hosted in Johnstown and describes itself as “an all-ages cryptid festival celebrating the squonk and other creatures of Appalachian and Americana folklore and cryptozoology.”

The event features a crying squonk mascot and offers attendees educational experiences to learn about cryptids, along with local vendors and live entertainment.

But this isn’t the first time the squonk has found itself as the center of attention.

Steely Dan’s 1974 track Any Major Dude Will Tell You references the squonk’s tears in a verse, and the Genesis album A Trick of the Tail features a song simply titled Squonk.

So the next time you’re out taking a hike in one of Pennsylvania’s many beautiful parks, keep an ear out for the soft sobs of the squonk. You never know if they could be lurking nearby.