10

What was the name and author of the sci fi story about a group of big game hunters in Canada who end up being hunted by an alien panda with tentacles? I read this story when I was a boy in the late 1960’s. The only other little detail I can recall is that it was in a Sci Fi anthology book.

0

2 Answers 2

14

This has to be The Head Hunters by Ralph Williams (1951):

Snrr, described by the author as a huge panda-like creature with tentacles in addition to or instead of arms, is scavenging the universe looking for interesting specimens to take back to the Royal Museum at Ebrrl. Unfortunately, his first find was just a bit too cunning and managed to escape. Worse, the scared human has found his way into the company of two other humans who specialize in big game hunting. Fortunately for Snrr, he has the advantage of technology and the ability to influence the thinking of these puny humans from miles away. This, we suspect, should be an easy win for our ursine extraterrestrial visitor.

The entire story can be read online at the Internet Archive.

4
  • 1
    I believe this is it! Thanks for the answer! Now my life is complete.
    – P.R.P.
    Jan 15, 2019 at 18:12
  • Thanks for the link.
    – P.R.P.
    Jan 15, 2019 at 20:14
  • Wondering if “The Head Hunters” could have been the inspiration for the movie “Predator”?
    – P.R.P.
    Jan 15, 2019 at 20:23
  • 1
    That sounds completely insane... but I guess that's sci-fi for you...
    – Omegacron
    Jan 15, 2019 at 21:04
4

Is it possible that you're thinking of the 1953 "The Ruum" by Arthur Porges? (full copy available online with illustrations)

A shape-shifting, indestructible robot—a "Type H-9 Ruum"—is accidentally left behind on earth during the age of the dinosaurs by visiting aliens, and not recovered because their ship is destroyed in a battle. The Ruum's work is collecting different species of animals within a 30-mile radius, weighing 160 pounds (give or take 15 pounds) and preserving them in a state of suspended animation for later retrieval.

Many millions of years later Jim Irwin, a uranium prospector in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, encounters the Ruum's specimens, animals which include modern and prehistoric mammals and a small Stegosaurus. After he has noticed that the animals are all of a uniform size, and alive, the still-functioning Ruum appears. Shooting it with a rifle does not damage it, and when the approaching blob-shaped Ruum reveals gripping hooks and a probe dripping green liquid, Irwin runs as it pursues him at a steady five miles per hour. It is noted that Irwin weighs 149 pounds.

Fit and military-trained, Irwin attempts to evade and destroy the Ruum. First he hides above his trail and drops a boulder on it, but this also fails to damage it. Then he climbs a sheer cliff, but the Ruum extrudes a climbing claw to the ledge where he is hidden. He tries to dislodge it with a stick, and finds the Ruum can generate an electric shock. He shoots it and dislodges it, but the Ruum is unharmed by the fall and responds by growing multiple claws. Having not had any time for food or sleep, Irwin eventually circles back to his camp by a lake and sets a trap with dynamite. Taking advantage of the Ruum's distraction by a grizzly bear, which it kills, he detonates the dynamite using a pistol bullet.

Dazed by the explosion, he sees the Ruum still unharmed and still approaching. Exhausted and defenseless, he awaits it adding him to its collection. However, it lifts him up, then puts him back down and leaves. Soon afterward, his colleague Walt Leonard arrives by seaplane and rescues him. Safely in the plane, they make plans to bring a helicopter and collect some of the Ruum's specimens in its absence to sell to scientists. Leonard comments on Irwin's haggard appearance, guessing him to have lost 10 pounds during the chase: the reader understands that this caused his weight to become less than the Ruum's weight criterion.

There was apparently a sequel, "A Specimen for the Queen", published in 1960

4
  • If so, scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/65847/… also provided this for an unaccepted answer.
    – FuzzyBoots
    Jan 15, 2019 at 17:17
  • Points against it include it not being bear-shaped, and it being a single hunter, but it has tentacles, and hunts in Canada.
    – FuzzyBoots
    Jan 15, 2019 at 17:18
  • Thanks for the quick answers, but don’t think “The Ruum” is it. I remember it being described as a giant panda with tentacles and there being a group of hunters involved.
    – P.R.P.
    Jan 15, 2019 at 17:30
  • Definitely doesn't look right, but hey, I found another interesting story to read. +1 and thank you. Jan 15, 2019 at 20:25

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.