The chylon is found in some medieval encyclopedias. It is a fish (possibly some kind of mullet) that only eats a thick and viscous secretion from its own body. Despite this the chylon has a strong body.

As found in the encyclopedia of Thomas of Cantimpré, the chylon is possibly a misunderstanding of one of Aristotle's descriptions (see Sources) of the mullet [Sedinova, page 324-325].