Nonsense Alphabet

For our class on nonsense poetry we took inspiration from both Edward Gorey's Utter Zoo (1967) and the strange and wonderful contents of medieval bestiaries. The challenge? To create our own nonsensical catalogue of beasts using the letters of the alphabet. Students worked in pairs on groups of three to four letters each, so the following is a collective effort!

Far deep in the raging sea,
The Aquatius dines on hot English tea.

You'll find the Brackenbatch frighteningly tall,
His scaly face will show nothing at all.

The timid Cryntopolis resides in the trees;
Sometimes you might catch him talking to bees.

The Doppledee lurks through misty lands,
He forsakes your feet but eats your hands!

The Elkasaur eats people with great delight,
But on seeing a spider he flees in fright.

When seeing a footprint, Feracia emits a radar,
Almost as if a monster lives within her care.

The Gamity jumps into his tunnel in the group
Whenever he hears that dreadful, screeching sound.

In a puddle, the Herra caught a glance
Where she frightfully, quickly feel into a trance.

The Iggypop is yellow and extremely cute,
He loves to wear his top hat along with a little black suit.

The Jowry-Lowry's not afraid
Of bees, or trees, or lemondade.

Kentlebugs lives on vines
Instead of dots, they have lines.

The Lumblebee likes to buzz and sting
And flies around in circular rings.

The Momofly had a spotted belly
And dines on only sandwiches of jelly.

It's rare to see a Nymphadory Shrimp fly,
They're as small as an eyelash and they're also quite shy.

Oodleshnoodles live in groups of three
And can be found swimming under the sea.

The Pukadillydumble bird loves to sing
All around the jungle, you can hear its voice ring.

The Quatrolimbus has four legs
And in the spring it lays its eggs.

The Rottenus is a frightening beast
That has a smell resembling a spoiled feast.

The great Sir Galikath has clamping claws and strange teeth like rocks,
Too bad he is held down by his helmet and shields of clicking clocks.

The Turpress sings majestic mighty tunes
With a royal robe of forks and silver spoons.

Here comes the Unisaurasis who stays in the sky,
Yet he is so chubby I don't know why.

The Valimur is an amateur for sure.
First it greets, then eats petites --
It's a flesh in Bangladesh.

Wohckxitox is a scary, hairy, legendary visionary.
It's like a dinosaur that lives in Baltimore, I swore.

Devious and greedy, large as an octopus
It's creeping up to you, the one and only Xopilus.

The Yetermisis is a boldly creature.
In the freezing mountains it lives with thick and snowy fur.

Now,  to conclude this motley crew
Comes "zee" or "zed" depending who
You are, your speech, and whence you come
(From Santa Fe to En-ga-land):

The Zimpaphon's a wretched curr
With beets for eyes and tacks for fur.
His pickled sight and pointy pelt
Are feared throughout the Bible Belt.