AI illustration
Ekek
People in Iloilo tell of the ekek, a winged human-like creature that hunts at night. It looks like the manananggal but cannot split its body. Unlike the wakwak, it has a bird's bill. Some say it can turn into a large bird or bat.
Folklore is retold; versions differ.
Sources: Wikipedia: Ekek (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikidata (CC0)
The story
The ekek is a winged, human-like creature in Visayan stories. People say it hunts at night and craves flesh and blood. Tellers often place it in the Visayas, and some link it to Iloilo. It can turn into a large bird or a bat. The name is said to copy its call, "ek ek ek".
It is a close relative of the manananggal, a creature that flies at night. Unlike the manananggal, the ekek cannot split its body in two. Compared with the wakwak, the main difference is the bill. The ekek has a bird's bill, and the wakwak does not. In the stories, it targets sleeping pregnant women. It reaches the womb with a long tongue to drain the unborn child's blood. It also copies faint, far-away sounds, so victims think it is distant when it is near.
The Wikipedia article on the ekek cites no sources, and it carries warnings that it may be a hoax. Please treat these details as unchecked local lore. The age of the belief is unknown.