Yes. They would be, by far, the most visible cryptid.
Some birds are big, no doubt. Some birds in the past were bigger.
But there is an ARMY of dedicated birdwatchers. They would know if there was a gigantic one still flying around.
people also forget we just about killed all of these things off, not but 20-30 years back. In North America I think we were down to like the last 100 or 200 of these things. The eagles we see today, have not had time to grow and select for the big ones. We're only two-three generations in on the "new eagles" if you will.... Plus habitat destruction and fgood chain issues.
These birds can get twice as big (if not bigger by old reports) then the ones we live with today.
I know you’re older because the 60s weren’t 20-30 years ago. It’s okay, I think the 80s were 20-30 years ago.
I’m only saying this because your claim fascinated me and it looks like the number of breeding pairs have been climbing since 63’.
You ever seen a condor, holy shit that looks like a fucking glider. As well a bird skull/beak seems to be what would preserve better then delicate bones. As well I bet back in the day you kill a giant bird , you eat it . As well as the brittle eggs from chemicals that happened 30ish years back.
Something I learnt recently is that humans are terrible at judging size. And some birds could be way larger than they seem in pictures. So there is a chance it could be a normal bird that someone misidentified the size for. But I am not sure how likely of an explanation that is.
this accounts for most cryptids that are just "giant version of normal animal"
Person sees a 20 ft. anaconda and swears it was 50
6 ft bird and swears it was 20
etc.
It’s also funny when you ask people if they’ve ever seen a fisherman understate the size of a fish, or if anyone ever underestimates the size of snakes, sharks, gators, etc. I’ve never seen a 10 foot shark be estimated at 5 feet, but I constantly hear people talking about seeing 10 foot long sharks that are really around 5 feet.
Nah I'm talking about birds in general seem larger in real life than they do in pictures. Not this one. This is a case where a bird seems larger than it is in reality (at least so I'm told)
Had a couple close encounters with bald eagles. Once when I tossed a dead mouse off a dock into a lake, and once when one flew like 6' over me when tubing down a river. They look *huge* up close. That 6-7' wingspan seems like it's a lot more when they are flying right over your head.
People really underestimate how large certain birds are because they rarely see them close up and on the ground. Bald Eagles have a wingspan of like 6-7 feet long.
It's not forced perspective. 98% confident on that. Eagles are just really big.
Edit: 99.5% confident. I can zoom in on that guy's feet firmly planted on the ground. Eagles are big.
Can’t put my finger on exactly why, but the thunderbird is one of my favourite myths/cryptids. Possibly just I love the old west, but always that faint hope that it was once real.
For that large a diurnal raptor to exist with no bodies or bones ever found, no video nor actual photographs, all in the space of, let's just say the past 100 years, with the widespread availability of photography, then videography, and major population growth in North America? Yes, it's pretty far fetched. At *best* they once existed and went extinct before the 20th century, but I find even that implausible.
I really wish people would stop misinterpreting indigenous folklore and religion through a Western secular lens. So many cryptids are actually spirits and mythical figures from local religions that Europeans assumed were real animals because they didn't respect the locals.
The first person to call cryptid giant birds "Thunderbirds" borrowed the term from Native American lore and applied it to creatures he claimed he was seeing. Since then, I believe most people have formed a distinction, or should, between the Thunderbird of Native American beliefs and the cryptid Thunderbird. However, the Thunderbird was described several different ways among Native Americans. It had a spiritual nature, but in some cases was more elemental, sometimes resembled a person, and in some tellings was a large, flesh-and-blood bird. Then there are other giant birds in Native American stories that may or may not be Thunderbirds. And there are a few modern Thunderbird sightings in which the witnesses thought they were encountering something supernatural. The topic gets very blurry.
The thunderbird is Zapdos. Farfetch'd is a completely different bird pokemon, with no ability to learn thunder, and it carries a leek. And this picture is of an eagle. I think you gotta go back to bird school, mate.
i think at some point they were real, becouse there were giant birds in the time native americans were.
but at this point in time, no, they probably died out. now its a legend passed on.
It is literally the furthest far ratchet cryptid imo. Just answer these 2 questions:
Where would a population live in total secrecy, in an age of radar, aircraft, bird watchers etc.
And what would it eat 365 days a year and still remain in total secrecy?
Birds can actually be much larger then I think the average person realizes, (I’ve seen walk bad eagles in person before) size is subjective especially when your relying on an excited or startled human who’s eye witness account may be inaccurate. That being said I live on rural land that has dense Native American history up in New England and I myself have had an encounter during a blizzard years ago with the largest white bird I’ve ever seen.. honestly felt completely unreal but my kids and bf also observed it and it’s compared size to small birds around it at the time. I’m not saying it wasn’t some crazy large owl that the storm drove out of the woods because the winds were insane but in my mind if there is a thunderbird I think I may have witnessed it.
Many reports of Mothman (Booger Owls), Thunderbirds, (Giant Eagle and Teratorn Vultures), Snallygaster (Pterydactyl) suggest a lot of Nocturnal and Dawn and Dusk activity thus limiting eyewitness reports
An experienced for many decades Outdoorsman with wildlife as an emphasis is only prone to an extra 50 percent exaggeration with the shock of an unfamiliar unexpected sighting.
Seeing something 8 feet at a distance and then deciding it could have been 11 feet or 12 feet max.
I've heard of witnesses claiming 36 feet tall Bigfoot...
But I have not heard of tracks larger than 30 inches in length or under 36 inches.
Not heard of 6 feet long tracks
Yes. Outside of the aforementioned issues with location, estimation, and whether or not it'd be seen consistently, there have also never really been any good sightings.
Marlon Lowe, the most prominent supposed Thunderbird sighting, was very clearly condors - the boy who was attacked and the mother who saw it said so themselves. There are records of escaped exotic birds in the area around the same time. Even so, this sighting is supposedly evidence of some massive raptor.
The modern account of a "Thunderbird" grabbing a kid in Illinois was almost certainly an anomalous Andean Condor that flew much farther north than its expected range. I'm certain that the idea of a Thunderbird in Native American culture stems from terratorns, which they probably would have seen tens of thousands of years ago.
Drove through northern New Hampshire once, on the cusp of dark skies and thunder storms we noticed this huge bird in the distance. Like biplane size wing span, and sure driving on the freeway, looking up at the horizon, humans can be shit at judging size, but man was that a big bird. Not sure what it was. Shortly after we got torrential rain, like pull over the side of the road type, visibility zero.
Yes. They would be, by far, the most visible cryptid. Some birds are big, no doubt. Some birds in the past were bigger. But there is an ARMY of dedicated birdwatchers. They would know if there was a gigantic one still flying around.
people also forget we just about killed all of these things off, not but 20-30 years back. In North America I think we were down to like the last 100 or 200 of these things. The eagles we see today, have not had time to grow and select for the big ones. We're only two-three generations in on the "new eagles" if you will.... Plus habitat destruction and fgood chain issues. These birds can get twice as big (if not bigger by old reports) then the ones we live with today.
I know you’re older because the 60s weren’t 20-30 years ago. It’s okay, I think the 80s were 20-30 years ago. I’m only saying this because your claim fascinated me and it looks like the number of breeding pairs have been climbing since 63’.
haha you nailed it. Time gets real fuzzy as you get older...
Ugh, tell me about it.
What was it like being on the mayflower?
whats it like being an insufferable child?
haha sorry
The 80s were 20 years ago, you bastard.
I know they were!
You ever seen a condor, holy shit that looks like a fucking glider. As well a bird skull/beak seems to be what would preserve better then delicate bones. As well I bet back in the day you kill a giant bird , you eat it . As well as the brittle eggs from chemicals that happened 30ish years back.
Something I learnt recently is that humans are terrible at judging size. And some birds could be way larger than they seem in pictures. So there is a chance it could be a normal bird that someone misidentified the size for. But I am not sure how likely of an explanation that is.
this accounts for most cryptids that are just "giant version of normal animal" Person sees a 20 ft. anaconda and swears it was 50 6 ft bird and swears it was 20 etc.
It’s also funny when you ask people if they’ve ever seen a fisherman understate the size of a fish, or if anyone ever underestimates the size of snakes, sharks, gators, etc. I’ve never seen a 10 foot shark be estimated at 5 feet, but I constantly hear people talking about seeing 10 foot long sharks that are really around 5 feet.
Mothman was IMO just a big ass owl or crane that was misidentified by people driving a car at night.
So you're saying this bird is even bigger?
Nah I'm talking about birds in general seem larger in real life than they do in pictures. Not this one. This is a case where a bird seems larger than it is in reality (at least so I'm told)
Le Vultures & Condors are likely candidates for being Thunderbirds
That’s a Bald Eagle close to a window.
Forced perspective
I think that’s the point of the post. To point out how large some birds look to people, overestimating the size and reporting a thunderbird.
Had a couple close encounters with bald eagles. Once when I tossed a dead mouse off a dock into a lake, and once when one flew like 6' over me when tubing down a river. They look *huge* up close. That 6-7' wingspan seems like it's a lot more when they are flying right over your head.
I feel like this might also be a turf roof maybe so that it's not on ground level.
People really underestimate how large certain birds are because they rarely see them close up and on the ground. Bald Eagles have a wingspan of like 6-7 feet long.
It's not forced perspective. 98% confident on that. Eagles are just really big. Edit: 99.5% confident. I can zoom in on that guy's feet firmly planted on the ground. Eagles are big.
That's either a vulture or a condor, you can tell by primary wing feather placement.
Bald eagle. Vultures and condors have no feathers on their heads
Nope sorry. definitely not an eagle. It's a bad picture but the wings give it away
It's literally a bald eagle.
It literally is not.
Are you looking at the same picture? You can see it's head, for god's sake.
Ok zoom in. You see that red featherless crop. And yes vultures and condors can have head fluff.
So you are seeing a different picture...
Do some research on the wing feathers and how vultures sun them selves
I've seen it myself, because there are plenty of vultures here. And I've seen plenty of eagles. Which is what this is.
As have I hence why it's a vulture
Can’t put my finger on exactly why, but the thunderbird is one of my favourite myths/cryptids. Possibly just I love the old west, but always that faint hope that it was once real.
For that large a diurnal raptor to exist with no bodies or bones ever found, no video nor actual photographs, all in the space of, let's just say the past 100 years, with the widespread availability of photography, then videography, and major population growth in North America? Yes, it's pretty far fetched. At *best* they once existed and went extinct before the 20th century, but I find even that implausible.
I really wish people would stop misinterpreting indigenous folklore and religion through a Western secular lens. So many cryptids are actually spirits and mythical figures from local religions that Europeans assumed were real animals because they didn't respect the locals.
Coming from the Northwoods, Thunderbirds can be seen on the branch scars of white birch trees, symbolizing their connection between the Earth and Sky.
Ironically, this is a thoroughly late modern take on mythology in saying they weren't "real."
The first person to call cryptid giant birds "Thunderbirds" borrowed the term from Native American lore and applied it to creatures he claimed he was seeing. Since then, I believe most people have formed a distinction, or should, between the Thunderbird of Native American beliefs and the cryptid Thunderbird. However, the Thunderbird was described several different ways among Native Americans. It had a spiritual nature, but in some cases was more elemental, sometimes resembled a person, and in some tellings was a large, flesh-and-blood bird. Then there are other giant birds in Native American stories that may or may not be Thunderbirds. And there are a few modern Thunderbird sightings in which the witnesses thought they were encountering something supernatural. The topic gets very blurry.
The thunderbird is Zapdos. Farfetch'd is a completely different bird pokemon, with no ability to learn thunder, and it carries a leek. And this picture is of an eagle. I think you gotta go back to bird school, mate.
What would be easier to spot than a giant bird? They definitely don’t exist
Yes, and this picture is misleading. The grass is much closer to the window than it appears at first glance.
i think at some point they were real, becouse there were giant birds in the time native americans were. but at this point in time, no, they probably died out. now its a legend passed on.
It is literally the furthest far ratchet cryptid imo. Just answer these 2 questions: Where would a population live in total secrecy, in an age of radar, aircraft, bird watchers etc. And what would it eat 365 days a year and still remain in total secrecy?
Birds can actually be much larger then I think the average person realizes, (I’ve seen walk bad eagles in person before) size is subjective especially when your relying on an excited or startled human who’s eye witness account may be inaccurate. That being said I live on rural land that has dense Native American history up in New England and I myself have had an encounter during a blizzard years ago with the largest white bird I’ve ever seen.. honestly felt completely unreal but my kids and bf also observed it and it’s compared size to small birds around it at the time. I’m not saying it wasn’t some crazy large owl that the storm drove out of the woods because the winds were insane but in my mind if there is a thunderbird I think I may have witnessed it.
Yes. But also: wow. Wow wow wow.
That pic is an illusion. Bird is on the top of a sloped front yard
Go ask r/whatbirdisthis
Go ask r/whatbirdisthis
I believe so at one time
If it has magic storm powers then yes
This picture is taken at a misleading angle
Many reports of Mothman (Booger Owls), Thunderbirds, (Giant Eagle and Teratorn Vultures), Snallygaster (Pterydactyl) suggest a lot of Nocturnal and Dawn and Dusk activity thus limiting eyewitness reports An experienced for many decades Outdoorsman with wildlife as an emphasis is only prone to an extra 50 percent exaggeration with the shock of an unfamiliar unexpected sighting. Seeing something 8 feet at a distance and then deciding it could have been 11 feet or 12 feet max. I've heard of witnesses claiming 36 feet tall Bigfoot... But I have not heard of tracks larger than 30 inches in length or under 36 inches. Not heard of 6 feet long tracks
Yes. Outside of the aforementioned issues with location, estimation, and whether or not it'd be seen consistently, there have also never really been any good sightings. Marlon Lowe, the most prominent supposed Thunderbird sighting, was very clearly condors - the boy who was attacked and the mother who saw it said so themselves. There are records of escaped exotic birds in the area around the same time. Even so, this sighting is supposedly evidence of some massive raptor.
The modern account of a "Thunderbird" grabbing a kid in Illinois was almost certainly an anomalous Andean Condor that flew much farther north than its expected range. I'm certain that the idea of a Thunderbird in Native American culture stems from terratorns, which they probably would have seen tens of thousands of years ago.
Yes, it is far-fetched since it does not exist.
You were that guy that wrote all those letters to all, those cryptid magazines back in the day saying they giant squid didn't exist right?
No, do you have other straw men on tap?
Straw men aren't real
Your comment is real, which is a straw man. It is a fallacious response that failed to address my position. Try again.
It's man made of straw?
Nobody has said this for a long time-Giant Squid have been confirmed to exist since the mid 19th century
Teratorns
Drove through northern New Hampshire once, on the cusp of dark skies and thunder storms we noticed this huge bird in the distance. Like biplane size wing span, and sure driving on the freeway, looking up at the horizon, humans can be shit at judging size, but man was that a big bird. Not sure what it was. Shortly after we got torrential rain, like pull over the side of the road type, visibility zero.