In Navajo and Ute tradition, a skinwalker (yee naaldlooshii) is a witch who gains the ability to shapeshift into animals, often at the cost of committing grave evils. Feared as malevolent beings, they are said to run on all fours at unnatural speeds, appear at windows, or lure victims into the desert at night. Reports of skinwalkers persist across the Southwest, particularly in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, where strange humanoid figures and eerie howls are still reported. The legend remains one of the most enduring and terrifying aspects of Native American folklore.