They are a sign that may fool a passerby or an intruder that someone is currently occupying the space, and the occupant is aware of the outsider's presence in the area.
To a casual passerby, glancing down from one of the slick new bridges on the Island Highway, nothing seems amiss.
In some instances, these other-worldly creatures can be downright nasty, placing curses on passerby who inadvertently stumbles into their domain.
Cleopatra, the commanding Queen of the Nile, charmed men and bewildered passerby's with her mesmerizing beauty.
In West Africa the Mpongwe believe in local spirits, just as do the Eskimo; but they are regarded as inoffensive in the main; true, the passerby must make some trifling offering as he nears their place of abode; but it is only occasionally that mischievous acts, such as the throwing down of a tree on a passer-by, are, in the view of the natives, perpetuated by the Ombuiri.