The Weird, Wild, Wacky World of Cryptozoology:Flying On Wings Of Thunder.

Dedicated To Gladys Hale
Proud member of the Eastern Band Cherokee Nation
And The greatest Grandmother A kid could ever want
At rest with her ancestors October 1st, 1987

When I was a child I was absolutely terrified of thunder storms. When the thunder cracked and the lightning ripped the sky apart I would rush to the nearest safe haven and pray to god that it would soon end. However all that came to an end when I was five years old and my grandma told me that I had nothing to fear because the storm was just the Great Bird or Thunderbird bringing renewal to the Earth. To a kid with an imagination such as mine, all I could think about was a giant bird flapping it’s enormous wings as it flew over head causing the rain to fall and the grass and the crops to grow. What an amazing sight to behold.

The legend of the Thunderbird seems to be a common legend among pretty much all the Native American Nations of North America. The Thunderbird was a being to be respected for it’s power but feared as well. Although my grandmother’s explanation for the storms was charming and it helped me overcome my fear, unfortunately not all stories concerning the mighty Thunderbird can be considered to be so quiant.

In Lawndale, Illinois in the summer of 1977 one eleven year old boy, Jake Lowe, would have a run in with not just one bird of gigantic proportions but two and the experience would leave an indelible mark upon his psyche for all time. Jake and Several of his buddies were behind his house enjoying a game of hide and go seek while they enjoyed the last rays of the warm summer day. Suddenly Jake was torn away from his game when he heard an awful screech come from overhead. Jake looked up and watched as two gigantic black birds with immense wingspans came flying out of the north Jake screamed when he realized that the two winged nightmares were flying directly towards him. The thin wiry boy took off running but was stopped when he realized his feet were no longer touching the ground, one of the deadly birds had Jake in it’s grasp most likely with the full intention of flying the lad away for a late afternoon snack.

Jake screamed and punched at the birds talons as it carried him a good twenty feet into the air. Jake’s mother upon hearing her son’s screams, rushed outside to see the nightmarish sight. Jake’s mother began to scream at the birds and throw rocks and sticks at the winged terrors until they finally dropped her son. Jake, his mom and his friends watched as the two giant black birds flew off into the horizon never to be seen again.

Young Jake Lowe, was lucky that day. There are numerous historical accounts from here in the good old US of A and abroad of colossal birds that fly out of no where and carry off their unsuspecting victims be they dog, goat or human. For the most part the mainstream researcher will tell us that these stories are hoaxes due to the fact that such animals just do not exist. They further claim that when a sighting of a giant bird is seen the witness is seeing a regular bird but their frame of reference is off due to altitude. However according to the fossil record at one time such a bird did exist that would have been capable of carrying off a full grown man. The Teratorn, a colassol bird with a ten to twenty foot wingspan existed during the Pleistocene era and may have existed into relatively modern times. Some researchers believe that it is a slim possibility that a small relict population of these birds have beat all the odds and still traverse the skies even to this day. However others suspect that giant birds may not be birds at all but something far older and far deadlier.

Reports have come from the darkest jungles of Africa and the jungles of South America of the possible existence of living Pterosaurs, flying dinosaurs that lived and supposedly became extinct with the other lizard kings over sixty-five million years ago. In 1994 and 1996 a team of researchers from various scientific disciplines mounted an expedition to the rain forests of Papua New Guinea after hearing stories of a giant flying beast that had a history of terrorizing the locals. The creature called the Ropen, was said to be the size of a man, with an enormous wingspan, a long beak filled with razor sharp teeth and a thick membrounous hide with no feathers. The researchers spoke with many of the natives who claimed to see the Ropen fly overhead at night and dive at unsuspecting folks who would dare to venture out after dark. The natives claim that centered in the chest of the giant flying lizard is a giant light that shines brightly as the Ropen ventues into the night. The locals also claim that when burying their dead they have to dig extra deep because the creature will come at night and dig a fresh corpse up for food. Most mainstream researchers believe that what the locals are seeing is nothing more sinister than an oversized fruit bat which are common in the area, however when it comes to the reports of the bioluminesense that leaves them scratching their heads.

Half a world away on another continent the locals of the Congo region in western Africa tell stories of a giant flying lizard that brazenly descends from the clouds anytime of the day and carries away livestock and children in their greedy little claws. The natives describe the beast as being six feet long with a twenty foot wingspan, powerful talons and a beak filled with rows of dagger sharp teeth. The locals call the creature the Kongamoto or the Breaker of Boats because it is known to attack men as they fish in the various lakes and dive bomb their boats until they are broken. Except for the lacking bioluminesence the creature sounds very much like the Ropen.

Over the last thirty plus years researchers have journeyed to the region and showed pictures of possible suspects to the locals each and every time they pick the picture of a pterodactyl. When told that such a creature has been dead for tens of millions of years and this beast could not possibly be the Kongamoto, the locals become angered insisting that their winged nightmare is a giant flying lizard that they are told should not be.

Some paleontologists tell us that the regions of Africa and South America where such creatures have been witnessed for countless generations by the locals have not really changed that much since the age of the dinosaurs. Sure there have been some minor climate changes but they believe that the ice ages did not reach the equitor and the Congo and New Guinea may have stayed relatively tropical while the rest of the world froze it’s ass off. So it is possibly, however unlikely, that something from that ancient time period may have remained. But would you believe that back here in the good old US of A folks have been witnessing what they describe as being giant flying lizards?

In April 1890, a call went out over all of Arizona for any brave soul who could take down a flying beast that was terrorizing the countryside and claimed that this beast was the mythical Thunderbird. The story of this winged nighmare spread throughout the entire southwest of it’s wings that sounded like thunder and it’s gigantic body blotted out the sun. Many who claimed to have seen the mighty creature told tales of witnessing it as it swooped out of the sky and carried away cattle, dogs and the occasional man. Several intrepid cowboys answered the call and claimed that for the right price, they could capture and kill the beast and show the world that such things still exist.

The locals told the brave monster hunters that the creature left it’s lair as the sun rose over the mountains and flew off for the days hunt. The hunters sat and waited in the brush until they watched as the majestic form of the creature could be seen flying over the mountains just as they were told. They watched in awe as the enormous creature flew towards them letting out a mighty roar that made their blood run cold. As the bird flew overhead the cowboys opened fire. It took several rounds to fell the creature but it came crashing to the ground with a great thud. The mythical thunderbird was dead.

I am well aware that some of you are probably thinking, “Ah bullshit, just another legend of the old west.” Would you believe that their was photographic evidence? When the cowboys brought their kill inot the town of tombstone to collect their reward a reporter and a photographer met them a picture of the beast was taken with the proud cowboys standing over the bagged beast and a story was written up. In the April 26, 1890 edition of the “Tombstone Epitaph”, the story of the beast and the brave men was written, the beast was described as having a twenty-five foot wingspan and looked more like a lizard than a bird. Thus ends the strange story of the Arizona Pterosaur, the picture and the story have been lost to time although a few researchers claimed to have seen it.

The Legend of the Thunderbird has always been one of my favorite cryptozoological mysteries not just because of the story my grandmother told me but because it would seem almost every culture has a story of a giant flying creature. Perhaps there is some truth to the myriad of stories of dragons and great birds because they are still among us flying on wings of thunder.

Rick E. Hale
t_seeker@hotmail.com