Thunderbird Spotting

In response to my recent Cryptomundo posting about unusual birds showing up in North Dakota, cryptozoologist Matt Bille, author of Rumors of Existence …and his forthcoming Spring 2006 sequel, Shadows of Existence, comments (remarks reproduced with permission) thusly: When the topic of birds comes up, I always puzzle over the contrast between the amazing ability of birders to spot – and report – small accidentals and their apparent inability to spot Thunderbirds the size of Piper Cubs. With all respect to those who have done work in this field (Coleman, Hall, etc.) I remain convinced this is strong evidence no [...]

Precursor to a Weird Summer?

What’s up with the birds in North Dakota? In the last two weeks, birders have seen, and in some cases, photographed, eight different species of birds not seen in the states for years or decades or, as it turns out, ever. These include sightings of a mountain plover (not seen in North Dakota since the 1930s), a Eurasian wigeon, two great black-backed gulls, an anhinga, a mountain chickadee, a gray jay, a red-shouldered hawk and an eastern meadowlark. Eight accidentals in two weeks is remarkable. “Typically, maybe one or two a month over a year. To see eight in two [...]

See The Jersey Devil Here!

Come on in! See the Jersey Devil. Step right up. Get your tickets here. Look inside and see the actual Jersey Devil. Actually visible below, for real… In circus, sideshow, and carnival jargon, the gaff is the gimmicked item, the taxidermy fake, the rigged prop often used by the illusionists, the sideshow artists, the showmen to turn the tip, that is, get the audience, to enter the sideshow, tent, attraction, freakshow, exhibition. The Jersey Devil and the gaff go hand-in-hand. Take what happened…a hundred years ago. In 1906 huckster Norman Jefferies, publicity manager for C.A. Brandenburgh’s Arch Street Museum in [...]

Jersey Devil and Ivan T. Sanderson

One January night in 1909, E. P. Weeden of the Trenton, New Jersey City Council bolted upright in bed when he heard someone trying to break down his door. It was a most unusual “someone,” apparently, because Weeden also heard distinctly the sound of flapping wings. Councilman Weeden rushed to his second-floor window and looked outside. He did not see the intruder, but the sight that greeted his eyes chilled him far more than the icy temperature ever could: In the snow on the roof of his house something had left a line of tracks. And whatever that “something” was, [...]