Big Bird (also known as Big Abby) is the name of a cryptid that flew over the Rio Grande valley area of South Texas, USA, in 1976. This Big Bird isn’t the adorable one who lives on Sesame Street with his teddy bear Radar, but he was named after him in jest. It was the subject of jokes and concern. Some associate these sightings with the Lechuza of Texan and Northern Mexican folklore.
Description[]
Most witnesses described this unknown mysterious animal, UMA, as being about five feet tall, featherless, having a long beak, bat-like wings, and a monkey-like face.
Sightings[]
All of the following reports have come from the Rio Grande area.
- December 26, 1975: In the early morning hours of December 26, 1975, Joe Suárez, a rancher in Raymondville, 30 miles north of Rio Grande, came to check on his livestock and found a dead goat that he had tethered in an enclosure. The right side of its body was severely damaged, the lungs and heart were lost, and it had a bite wound on its nose. When police officers arrived to deal with the situation, they discovered that the goat's blood was still warm and that it had not been killed long. They also discovered that there were no footprints in the surrounding area and determined that the attacker had come from the sky, but they did not see this predator.
- January 1: Tracey Lawson and cousin Jackie Davies were playing outside when they saw the creature. It was over five feet tall, had dark red eyes, a bald head, a gorilla-like face and a long beak. The avian emitted a shrill screech. The next day, their fathers saw three-toed tracks, pressed about an inch into the ground. The family dog stayed inside its doghouse, leaving only to go into the house for dinner, and then had to be forced back outside.
- January 7: Policeman Arturo Padilla saw something in the headlights of his cruiser; it was a huge bird. Minutes later, fellow officer, Homer Galvan, sighted a large black silhouette gliding through the air. Alverico Guajardo spotted the creature and described it as looking like a bat.
- January 14: Armando Grimaldo heard a sound like a bat’s wings flapping. Suddenly, large talons grabbed him and tore his shirt. It was a bird-like creature with red eyes, a monkey-like face and no beak.
About this time, several school teachers witnessed the strange bird, which had a wingspan of at least 12 feet across. One of the teachers did some research and discovered a picture that looked like what they saw. The image that the teacher found depicted a pterosaur.
While there is no substantial evidence to prove that Big Bird exists, it seems strange that it has a monkey-like face.
Explanations[]
It could be a large bat or bird, or possibly a living pterosaur of some sort. One distinct possibility, which cannot be ruled out, is that it was a Jabiru - a large South American stork with a featherless face and a long dark beak, which sometimes strays into Texas.
Trivia[]
Armando Grimaldo, who encountered it, testified that it was a pájaro, which means bird in Spanish, so it is sometimes called Texas no Pájaro（テキサスのパハロ） in Japan.
In Popular Culture[]
- Big Bird is featured in the popular trading card game MetaZoo: Cryptid Nation.
Gallery[]
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