I heard one of those “throw-away” news stories on the radio about an hour ago about a pilot (and his passengers) who spotted a GIANT bird flying over Alaska. (This was a credible big-timenews radio station, not some goofball shock jock.)
I did a fast search on the web and turned up nothing. Anybody know more?
Thanks in advance.
I’m sure it would be wonderful to discover such an animal, but I strongly suspect this is going to turn out (actually it probably wont; it will likely never be spotted again) to be one of those cases where a familiar object looks much bigger than it really is because of the lack of contextual cues.
I remember reading about a scientist running for his life as he glimpsed what he thought was a polar bear approaching across featureless terrain; it turned out to be a rabbit.
here is anohter story that basically repeats most of the first one http://www.knoxstudio.com/shns/story.cfm?pk=BIGBIRD-10-15-02&cat=AN
And here’s a website showing some Steller’s Sea-Eagles with a Carrion Crow in their midst. These eagles are large, as in HUGE, birds.
I agree with Mangetout (“Brother Maynard! Bring up the Holy Hand Grenade!”) about context. Even as an experienced ornithologist, I can easily be confused about the size of an unknown bird if I have nothing to compare it to.
Could it be the mysterious…thunderbird? (dun dun dunnnnn!)
No, I am not seriously proposing that’s what it is. The news story just sounded awfully familiar.
Thanks for turning me on to the Steller’s Sea Eagle! It’s beautiful, and I’d never heard of it before.
A bird with a 14-foot wingspan? That would be a damn big bird, but I don’t see how this is impossible, or even improbable.
I’d keep my pets indoors if such a thing was around, but I wouldn’t be worried for myself or my loved ones.