General area of the sightings.

Over the last few days I received two separate reports of a possible thunderbird sighting in Oakland county Michigan. The two people submitting the reports could be connected or know one another, but at this time I do not know. The two sightings describe a very similar creature. I'm fairly familiar with the area as this is where my wife grew up. I have been in this area many times over the years.

Before I get to the actual reports, I want to offer some general information about Thunderbirds and Oakland county.

Thunderbirds are described as large, bird-like creatures. Sighting of Thunderbirds go back for centuries and there are some fossil records that show a bird with a 12 to 18 foot wingspan did exist. But sadly Thunderbirds are mostly thought of as myths nowadays even though there are a growing number of sightings.

Oakland county is a rather large area with lots of water. In fact, there are 387 lakes in Oakland county. Cass lake, which I have been to several times, is the largest and deepest lake in Oakland county. Oakland county is located in the northwest of the Detroit metropolitan area. Even thought the area is flat and heavily populated, there are still areas with good sized forests. West Bloomfield Woods Nature Preserve is a 162 acre preserve that is frequented by over 100 bird species as well as white-tail deer, ref fox, coyote, weasel, mink and salamanders.So, this area is a viable habitat for possible Thunderbirds.


Now that we got some general information about the area, lets look at the report.

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Sometimes, when we start working a claim or case, we get to a dead end for various reasons.
This does not necessarily mean the person was untruthful or trying to pull a fast one. We have had people attempt to hoax us and I guess that is just part of the field.

Often times, we get sent photos or someone will send in a report and they are looking or asking for help with their mystery. In some cases we are able to help. Take for instants some recent photos sent to us by Nancy. Nancy, has some large birds on her property and they are causing some damage and attacking some of the critters. Of course, knowing Iowa has some history of Thunderbird sightings and that these birds on Nancy's property were large, we had hopes that maybe, just maybe it was Thunderbirds.

Here is one of Nancy's Photos

One of a few photos that Nancy sent us.

Team member Leon Drew, talked with Nancy on the phone and got more details about the birds and property. We were then thinking these birds could be vultures, and even Nancy thought they could be, but vultures normally do not attack living critters. But buzzard on the other hand, also called chicken hawks, do attack critters, and they are pretty large, so these large birds on Nancy's property could be buzzards. There was also a fairly recent report of a condor being seen in Iowa. Plus the picture quality was not that great due to how it was taken, which couldn't be helped, and we really can't identify the birds for sure until a better photo is taken.

Nancy's neighbor also had a mystery. He had this odd looking round things with a hole in them, laying on the ground. This photo was sent in.

I will admit, it is a weird looking thing. I didn't know what it was ....but I did find out.
I did some searching on the internet and found out this is the fruit of a Osage orange tree. The fruit is edible but it has a unpleasant taste. It is also called a horse apple. It is said that the fruit is a natural insect repellant. I found some good information and my info at 2 dope sistahs blog.

Of course this is only a couple of examples but other times we run down leads and they just don't pan out or the evidence is just not there to support the claim. Then on other cases we reach an end and just need to wait for another clue to keep going.

I have had several cases where someone would send me photos and claimed Bigfoot was standing in the background but it was nothing more than a shadow or just cases of pareidolia. We still have to check this stuff out and understand it is just part of the field. Often times, these types of reports are not posted. 

Not too long ago, we had someone trying to pull a fast one on us. It was a story about a Gorilla photo from the United Kingdom. We were able to filter out this story and expose it as a fake. The person who sent it in may have been taken in as well. I do wish other websites would attempt to filter some of their stories, as some of them will publish anything to get a few clicks. Oh well, what can you do.

I just thought I'd share a few of the cases, where it just didn't pan out. The cases are fun to work, even if they don't pan out sometimes or we get stuck and have to wait on the next clue. Thanks goes to Nancy for sharing her photos and stories with us. Thanks also goes to Leon Drew for his help.

Thanks
~Tom~       



This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet.



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Its finally here...the last post of 2014. As I sit here and reflect on this past year I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get more time in the mountains and get more accomplished. It seems this year our team was swamped with life events. Every thing from sickness to work obligations and it kept us from spending as much time as we normally do in the research field and pursuing stories.

Even with the up hill battle that 2014 presented to TCC, we still managed to make some contributions and add a couple new Team Members.

In 2014, we managed to release 2 video documentaries, Bigfoot:The Evidence Files and Oregon Home Of Bigfoot?, both of which are available on Amazon.com. So, Bigfoot remained a big topic for us and we posted over 45 sighting reports or Bigfoot related post. TCC, also presented over 20 interviews, some written and some audio/video. Some interviews were with other researchers including Cliff Barackman from the hit TV show Finding Bigfoot.

Our next biggest topic was UFOs. We logged over 10 UFO related post. Which also included some UFO videos from Chris Light.

One surprising topic for me personally was the logging of at least 5 Thunderbird reports.

On top of all of this we also managed to post up several book and movie reviews along with many other related post about everything from ghost to reincarnation. We will end up with over 240 total post which is a little down for us but with all things considered, it's not too bad.

We also added many videos to our Youtube and DailyMotion accounts. So all in all it was a productive year but we want to do even more in 2015.

We also had a few awards this past year, which we are proud of.
Paranormal Film Award 2014 - Winner -Thomas Marcum of The Crypto Crew with Bigfoot: Tracking A Legend.
Investigator of The Year 2014 BF - Winner - Thomas Marcum of Crypto Crew.
Researcher of The Year 2014 BF – Winner - Jason Morse of Crypto Crew.
Picture of The Year 2014 BF – Winner - Thomas Marcum of Crypto Crew.

In the coming new year we hope to step it up and bring our wonderful readers and supporters more great stories and reports. I personally plan on spending more time in the mountains this coming year and plan on traveling some.

On the Bigfoot front I hope to add more game cameras to my stock of Bigfoot hunting materials and I would really like to get me a thermal imager but ...they are so costly...I don't see it happening.

Anyways, a BIG thanks to all those who have followed us the last few years and here is to wishing you and us a Great 2015!!!

Happy New Year from The Crypto Crew Team!!!


Thanks
~Tom~



This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet.




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El paso, Co - Thunderbird Sighting

This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet.



I got in another possible Thunderbird report, it has never been reported until now.  The wingspan of the bird in this report is larger than any reports I have read. Could it have been a Thunderbird or something else?

- Start Report - 

Name: Christine ******

Email Address:  Withheld but on file

State: Colorado

County: El paso

Date of Sighting: 2006

Time of Day: 4am

Nearest Town: COLORADO SPRINGS (less than half mile from national forest)

Length of Sighting: 1min

How many Witnesses: 1

Any Photos/Videos: no

Describe sighting in detail:

I Stepped out onto the front porch suddenly & started something above me on the roof.  I Heard a loud clawing or scratching above but before I had a chance to look,  there was a great flapping sound like a large flag in the wind.
A percussion type force filled my ears & actually knocked me backwards into the door. Looking up I saw in silhouette from the moon light of a huge winged thing. (40ft wingspan easy)It  lifted away from the roof & as it flew off it made an unearthly sounding screech, almost like a croak.
I would greatly appreciate hearing from a cryptozoologist regarding this, this is my first time speaking about this at all & I've done a lot of research: given other known "bird related" elements (carcass damage,  eyeshine & hemophagocytosis) I think there is a connection between this thing and the reported cattle mutilations. Thank you

(Note: I did send Christine an email and some info about this possibly being a Thunderbird.) 


- End Report -

UPDATE -  The following is a follow up conversation I had with Christine. She has obviously researched the cattle mutilations to some degree.
Christine said:
"Thank you for your response. Despite consistent historical accounts by many native American tribes about the Thunderbirds, you are correct, it is not accepted as 'real'.  This is exactly why I never reported it. About 2 years ago I tried researching it but at the time all the websites were dominated by cattle mutilation reports. That's when it dawned on me that if the Thunderbird was real, what did it eat? Further reading confirmed a connection; photographs of cows draped in treetops and over fences along with carcass damage consistent with raptor predation follow the 37th parallel across the country. If you cross reference that with the map you sent me of sightings, it is consistent with the central-Mississippi flyway bird migratory pattern. I don't know what part of the country you are in but here in Colorado the cattle mutilations have become a serious issue for ranchers; one rancher was forced out of the trade after losing 23 head of cattle, in las animas county. There is a $2,500 reward & it has been the subject of 2 federal investigations. I don't think anyone will take me seriously though, the other theories of UFO, cult or government conspiracy are much more "exciting" to everyone else. but to me the confirmation of a Thunderbird type species would be amazing."


Thanks again for this extra information.

- End Update-


This does sound like a Thunderbird but the wingspan is lager than any reports that I have read. A bird this large would not have any problem attacking cattle and this could explain some of the cattle mutilations in the area.

Thanks to Christine for sending us the report. If anyone in this area has had a similar sighting or has had a cattle mutilation problem and you don't know for sure what it was , then please let us know.



Thanks
~Tom~  





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Thunderbirds in Nebraska?

This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet.


Just got in another report of a Thunderbird sighting. If anyone has had sighting, please send us a report by Clicking Here



Name: Ashley *********
Email Address: Withheld
State: Nebraska
County:
Date of Sighting: Summer in mid 1990
Time of Day: late afternoon
Nearest Town: York
Length of Sighting: about 2 minutes
How many Witnesses: 4
Any Photos/Videos: no
Describe sighting in detail:

"Mom, Dad, my brother and myself were on the front porch at the end of the day. It was very quiet. All of a sudden you could hear this "whoooosh, whoooosh" starting quietly but increasing in volume. At it's loudest point a shadow fell over and covered the ENTIRE porch, and we looked up and could see in great detail a giant bird, completely black, with huge talons. It was very low to the ground, only mere FEET higher than our 1 story home. I remember the family being in complete shock, and shrinking back under the roof of the porch as it swooped a bit lower, then back up into the sky and headed west, disappearing over the trees. We will never forget this strange experience. We've told people about it. I just saw a thunderbird sighting on youtube, which led me here to report."

Thanks for the report Ashley.

Thanks
~Tom~





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Thunderbirds in Montana (Mock Up Photo)

This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet.



I recently got in a report about a Thunderbird sighting in Montana and wanted to share it with everyone. I have also started adding theses type of sightings to our sightings map.



Name: Matthew O'Brien
Email Address: *****************
State: Montana
County: Unsure - along 1-90
Date of Sighting: October 1987
Time of Day: Afternoon
Nearest Town: Unsure
Length of Sighting: 15 seconds or less
How many Witnesses: 2 - Me and my Father
Any Photos/Videos: No
Describe sighting in detail: While on a road trip with my dad, middle of Montana on 1-90, the giant bird flew over us, flying south to north.  Largest bird I have ever seen, bigger than an eagle or turkey vulture.  Estimate wingspan of 15-20 feet.  Shaped like a bird of prey.  Brief sighting, as we were driving at 60mph on the freeway.  Saw it through the windshield for 10 or 15 seconds before we weren't under it anymore.  It was perhaps a few hundred feet up in the air.

Here is a general map of I-90

I-90 - the middle of nowhere.

Have you seen a Thunderbird? if so report it to us by Clicking Here!

Thanks
~Tom~


[original source photo: Our Life Experiments ]




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This is a recent report sent to me, I have withheld the last name and included a map of the general area. -Tom

Name: Corey ****(Last Name withheld but on file)
State: Iowa
County: Van Buren
Date of Sighting: July 4,2008
Time of Day: around 3 pm
Nearest Town: Keosauqua
Length of Sighting: about 15 minutes
How many Witnesses: 3 others besides myself
Any Photos/Videos: no

Describe sighting in detail:
I truly believe Thunderbirds are migrating up and down the Des Moines River in Iowa. I am an experienced bird watcher and have a trained eye for detail and have seen over 300 species in my county. In December 2006, 2 big birds were seen by bridge construction workers and she described them as very dark with some white on the wings and were twice as big as a bald eagle and I tried convincing a woman that they were golden eagles but she quickly said no as she was very familiar with eagles. However sometime after that she changed them to the golden eagle. I watched for them but no luck.

However, on July 4,2008 I was fishing on the other side of the river from Keosauqua during the afternoon and I saw a large dark bird flapping with hard and deep beats for a long distance down the river and I thought an osprey or bald eagle because of the long crooked wings when it glided for a short distance. I watched it with my 16x50 binoculars as it flew down the river and it started soaring around in circles and to my surprise was a turkey vulture but it was different. It resembled a turkey vulture but it had a large head not small head, broader tail and much broader wings but it had the silvery wing feathers. Its flight pattern was different and it must have been a heavy bird with all the deep flapping. A turkey vulture rarely does and soars more and when they glide they hold their wings in a V and this bird glided with crooked wings as I mistook it for an osprey which are rare here in summer but bald eagles are nesting along this river. I didn't have a camera and only binoculars. I was fishing with 3 other guys but they didn't pay much attention to it.

A large bird was sighted recently in Illinois resembled a turkey vulture but twice as big.
A large black bird was reported in Central Iowa around the same time as the big birds down here on December 13,2007. I am very confident that the bird I saw was no ordinary turkey vulture. There is an Indian thunderbird symbol in Lacey-Keosauqua State Park.


-End of Report

Thanks goes to Corey for sending in the report.

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