Berberoka
Northern Luzon — Apayao and the surrounding lowlands
The berberoka is one of the more mechanically inventive creatures in Philippine folklore, recorded in the traditions of northern Luzon. It hides in a pond or a stretch of swamp and draws the water into itself until the bed is exposed and the fish are flopping in the open.
Anyone who wades in to gather the easy catch is standing in the creature's mouth, in effect. Then the water comes back.
Its one weakness
Accounts consistently give the berberoka an oddly specific fear of crabs. It is the sort of detail that tends to mark a legend as genuinely old and locally told rather than borrowed — invented monsters are rarely afraid of anything so ordinary.
Berberoka — Common Questions
What is a berberoka?
A berberoka is a swamp-dwelling ogre in northern Luzon folklore that sucks the water out of a pond to expose fish, luring people in before releasing the water to drown them. It is said to be frightened of crabs.