The Pennine Pterodactyl
The moors of England are filled with strange tales and even stranger creatures. Could one of the beings its mists keep hidden be a...pterodactyl? Some sightings by those in the Pennines moors, and the surrounding West Yorkshire area, have alleged the sighting of a peterdactyl, nicknamed the Pennine Pterodactyl.
The flap of pterodactyl sightings kicked off in September of 1982, with the first sighting being reported in Shipley Glen. William Green saw what he called a ‘huge’ bird, with a wing-span of at least six feet (or more). He also noted, interestingly enough, that the creature appeared to be flying very haphazardly. Green also described the creature as grey and leather, similar to an enormous bat, and said that, overall, it was “eerie to look at.” It is important to remember that, in this sighting, Green did not compare this creature to any dinosaur.
Just a few days later, another woman reported seeing a “monster” bird surrounded by other birds. She said that the wing-span was enormous, guessing it to be around 10 feet. She also noted the direction: it appeared the bird was headed to Leeds.
After these stories and a few more trickle in, it is no surprise that the local press started paying attention. One press-driven theory seemed hell-bent on proving that, beyond a doubt, the bird was simply a heron. However, sightings continued to roll in and more and more people insisted they’d know the difference between a heron and...something else.
Sightings would continue through 1984, which is surprising as it seemed this creature hung around the area for some time. As more sightings rolled in, several people began comparing the creature to a dinosaur-like creature and, specifically, a pterodactyl.
Many of the sightings, similar to Green’s, noted that the bird did not move gracefully or easily cut through the air. Reports of the pterodactyl seemed to continually describe the flying pattern not only as clunky but, perhaps, even indicating that the creature was perhaps hurt.
Of course, there is a theory that, somehow, someway there was a prehistoric creature (or prehistoric-like) creature that was flying around Yorkshire in the 1980s. Realistically, and similar to Nessie, the idea that this kind of environment could support one (much less multiple) of these sorts of creatures was fairly impossible.
Another theory that is still a bit paranormal is that the image of this creature is actually a ghost. Similar to stone tape theory, those who saw it simply saw the ghostly image of the prehistoric creature.
Of course, some people believe these sightings are nothing more than a strange and/or diseased bird.
Thanks to Mike T for the blogstonishing suggestion!
This image is of Shipley Glen and Airedale by Tim Green from Bradford. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.