One of the founding members of the international society of cryptozoology, an explorer searching for the fabled long-necked monster Mokele-Mbembe of Lake Tele in the Congo and one of the many investigators into the legend of the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland.
In 1980 Dr. Roy Mackal accompanied by James H. Powel, a crocodile expert, ventured deep into the wildest part of Likouala country around Lake Tele to reconnoiter, gather, and collate reports on sightings of the Mokele-Mbembe. The local people generally described it as being red-brown in color with a long neck, topped by a small reptilian head and having a thick body and a long, whip like tail. They believed that it lived in deep pools close to the bank and usually emerged early in the morning or late in the afternoon, making little noise and leaving behind three-clawed footprints.