Revised Review for Live Pterosaurs in America

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Jonathan Whitcomb

I don’t know the real name of the reviewer “stevie” on Amazon, but I am very grateful for his revised review of the second edition of my book Live Pterosaurs in America. He recently changed his four-star rating to five-star.

Before quoting from his lengthy review, I quote from the introduction in the third edition of LPA, for it reveals an important part of my motivation (added comments, not in the book, are in brackets [ ] ).

If this book does nothing more than comfort the eyewitnesses of strange creatures [comforting them to know that they are not alone and insane], I would be grateful; but there’s much more. We need to understand why we believe what we believe. . . . while writing this book, I mentioned my work to a second-grader; she said, “Who will buy your book? Crazy people?” I think better of you. And I think, because of what she and many others have told me, that we must understand indoctrination, for it influences our beliefs; the extent of that influence discomforts me.

If money were my primary motivation for writing books, I would have given up being an author years ago. Giving someone joy and purpose, even in just a short reading session—that motivates me to keep writing. The following excerpts from “stevie’s” review give an example of what helps me to keep writing, even when some critics accuse me of spreading lies (I will leave that unpleasant subject alone for now). Thank you to all my readers who recognize the truth in what they read.

This is an updated review of the book and I am changing my rating to 5 stars. This book has been on my shelf for almost a year now. I pick it up every now and then and a part of me becomes more impressed by the book every time. . . .

Whitcomb painstakingly reviews every account for credibility and reason. This man is not a crank. He tries to weed out would be hoaxes and miss-identification. This is not a guy looking to create evidence to confirm his own beliefs. On top of this, I have great respect for a guy who follows his dreams so passionately. He has traveled to Papua New Guinea to search for the creature there and this book is somewhat of a sequel if you will. After Whitcomb traveled to New Guinea, he started to collect more stories from North America concerning the pterosaur like creature . . .

. . . This is well written and very hard to put down.

Thank you for those words. They will help me to continue to get up at 3:00 on cold winter mornings. I thank God that I am not alone in this society that frowns at living pterosaurs.

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Pterodactyl in San Diego, California

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Jonathan Whitcomb

Two eyewitnesses were shocked, one night last November, by two giant long-tailed creatures that flew over the city of San Diego: apparent “pterodactyls.” This was not the first report that I have received from San Diego, but it’s the first one with repeated two-way communication. The two men saw, near Holy Cross Cemetary but far from extinct, the pterosaurs flying about 90-120 feet high.

Ropens Over San Diego

“It was about 8 pm. I was at my friend’s house. The sky was super clear. We were standing on the street. I was watching the stars when from the west came this large dark object overhead. As it got closer, we noticed its huge wingspan; each wing was about 10 to 15 ft. It was gliding right above us . . . we had never seen anything like it. Then it suddenly stopped and turned around. . . . Then . . . we saw another one above us. . . . then they both left [towards the] east.”

Flying Creature in Los Angeles

California is a hot state for reports of apparent living pterosaurs, probably because of the combination of large land area and large human population (potential eyewitnesses), like Texas, where the reports are even more common.

Flying only about 300 feet above the heads of two astonished humans (the couple had been taking a walk in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County one night in 2009), the creature appeared to have a wingspan of 10-20 feet. Also astonishing was the faint glow . . . [leading one eyewitness] to connect the creature with the ropen of Papua New Guinea.

Nocturnal Pterosaurs

The general rule points to nocturnal pterosaurs, with daylight sightings being quite likely the exceptions. We might review the two daylight sightings in Georgia a few years ago. The eyewitness saw two apparent pterosaurs flying early in the morning, but after sunrise, the first sighting being very soon after a major storm passed through that part of the United States. It seems likely that the storm had disturbed two nocturnal pterosaurs enough that they made themselves known in daylight, by flying over a highway.

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Attracting a Pterosaur

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Jonathan Whitcomb

The following was sent to me by a blog reader who suggests a possibility for attracting a nocturnal bioluminescent pterosaur:

“Has anyone tried the obvious strategy of luring a pterosaur with a glowing decoy? If there are still living pterosaurs, they would be quite rare, and anxious to find a mate (assuming they use their glow like fireflies do.)” [From Joe]

Well, Joe, I believe that some persons have unintentionally done just that, through simply driving a car at night. I have never encountered a nocturnal pterosaur myself (not yet), but I have encountered eyewitnesses who have been surprised and even terrorized, at night, by a glowing pterosaur who appeared to enjoy car chasing.

One case involved a young man who was traumatized by an apparent glowing pterosaur that chased his car for some distance at night. The young man later went through many sessions with a psychologist. How tragic if that psychologist assumed that there was no such flying creature!

Driving While Under the Influence of a Pterosaur

. . . Americans (at least a few Americans) observed Drive Safely Work Week . . . I doubt we will ever have Drive Safely While Witnessing a Live Pterodactyl Week. But in the United States, driving may be the most common activity when someone sees an apparent living pterosaur . . . Within a period of about three years, I received reports of at least ten sightings involving driving, in seven states . . .

American Ghost Lights (bioluminescent pterosaurs)

My associates and I have a unique perspective, having studied the ropen light of Papua New Guinea. We know, from many eyewitness testimonies, that those nocturnal lights correlate with sightings of glowing flying creatures described like giant Rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs.

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Wingspan Estimates Eliminate Hoaxes

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Jonathan Whitcomb

Recent analysis of recently-accumulated data shows that no significant number of hoaxes could have been involved in fifty-seven of the ninety-eight eyewitness sighting reports in which wingspans were numerically estimated. In other words, no hoax or hoaxes had any major influence on the living-pterosaur investigations.

This had been shown in an earlier study, when less data was available. A larger sampling of eyewitness testimonies now confirms the earlier conclusion: no hoaxes, or at least so few of them that the result is unimportant.

A Hoax in Wingspan Estimates?

Most of the 98 sighting reports, from which the 57 with wingspan estimates were taken, suggest flying creatures that have long tails like Rhamphorhynchoids. That is where the idea comes from for the possibility that hoaxers may have tried to conjure up that type of pterosaur in their hoaxes. But the data shows something far different from what is commonly believed about Rhamphorhynchoids, for the size-estimates do not fall sharply at around five-to-seven-feet, but gradually decline at huge wingspans, far larger than what is standard-size for even the largest flying birds of modern times.

Hoax of Pterosaurs

How do I know that these reports are not the result of hoaxes? . . .  With many eyewitnesses, with sightings in many American states, I have found something interesting about reports of featherless appearances. A hoax would be expected to include certainty of no-feathers, for why would a hoaxer want to leave any room for doubt? But the overall descriptions in the many sighting reports I have examined show something different: The definitely-no-feathers are out-numbered by the probably-no-feathers. Since actual sightings would involve many conditions (distance from creature, visibility, angle of view), some eyewitnesses would not get a clear enough view to be really sure the creature had no feathers. That is what I have received from many eyewitnesses: What is natural for true sightings but unnatural for hoaxes.

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Cryptozoology Book LPA-3 on Amazon Discount

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Jonathan Whitcomb

Amazon.com has just discounted the third edition of Live Pterosaurs in America: $9.82. This is also eligible for the Free Super Saver Shipping (See Amazon explanation for the free shipping offer).

Excerpt From the Cryptozoology Book (Page 42)

“My friend and I were talking and I mentioned that I had seen an extremely large bird that resembled a pterodactyl some years ago when [I was] driving to town from the family farm between Rush Center and Larned, Kansas. I could not believe my eyes as I immediately thought of a prehistoric bird when I saw it. It must have had a wing-span of 16-20 feet.

“I asked my friend what kind of bird it could have been. We looked at pictures on the internet to see if we could figure anything out. I know he thought I had a vivid imagination, etc. So I decided to check further and ran across this site. I was amazed to find a lot written about others who claim to have seen such a bird. I never said too much to anyone about it because, of course, such a claim raises eyebrows. Also, I figured if I saw it others must have too (you couldn’t miss it); but I never heard anything about it from anyone else.”

Live Pterosaurs in America (“From the Author”) on Amazon

“My friend and I were talking and I mentioned that I had seen an extremely large bird that resembled a pterodactyl some years ago when [I was] driving to town from the family farm between Rush Center and Larned, Kansas. I could not believe my eyes as I immediately thought of a prehistoric bird when I saw it. It must have had a wing-span of 16-20 feet.
“I asked my friend what kind of bird it could have been. We looked at pictures on the internet to see if we could figure anything out. I know he thought I had a vivid imagination, etc. So I decided to check further and ran across this site. I was amazed to find a lot written about others who claim to have seen such a bird. I never said too much to anyone about it because, of course, such a claim raises eyebrows. Also, I figured if I saw it others must have too (you couldn’t miss it); but I never heard anything about it from anyone else.”

Publisher of Live Pterosaurs in America (third edition)

Nocturnal pterosaurs have always lived among us, but hidden by something. Enter now the realm of a new branch of cryptozoology, a branch overshadowed by the dogma of a “universal extinction.” How did scientists miss living pterosaurs? Get the answers here, hidden secrets about how these amazing flying creatures of the night have gone mostly unreported: Until recently, almost nobody would listen to eyewitnesses; but for the past seven years many of them have been interviewed by the author of this book

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Pterosaur News Room

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Jonathan Whitcomb

Extensive pages allow media professionals to access images and information in this press room of “Live Pterosaur.” The home page includes:

With daylight sightings, perhaps the most publicized modern report comes from Duane Hodgkinson, who saw a “pterodactyl” near Finschhafen, New Guinea, during World War II. . . . in a jungle clearing that was about a hundred feet across, in clear daylight, [they] saw a “huge” winged creature as it ran across the far side of the clearing and took off into the air. Hodgkinson . . . estimated its wingspan as equal to that of a Piper Tri- Pacer airplane . . . and its tail as “at least” ten or fifteen feet long. The head had a long crest and there was no sign of feathers.

On “Images for Media,” is found:

  • Photos of Jonathan Whitcomb, Duane Hodgkinson, Wesley Koro, Gideon Koro (his brother), Mesa Agustin,  Abram of Opai Village, David Mokay, and Luke Paina.
  • Photos of Umboi Island, Finschhafen Harbor (Papu New Guinea), and the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary (Orange County, California).
  • The following sketches: fruit bat compared to a large ropen, long-tailed pterosaurs observed by Eskin Kuhn, a similar one observed by Patty Carson, and a Flying Fox fruit bat.

The “Questions and Answers” includes:

Question #2: Why do many paleontologists believe they’re all extinct?

Answer 2-B: Until recently, little research had been done on reports of sightings of apparent living pterosaurs. Even now, many paleontologists may know little or nothing about that research for it is in cryptozoology, a very different field from paleontology.

Answer 2-C: Until a few years ago, few if any peer-reviewed scientific journals had published anything on eyewitness sightings of apparent living pterosaurs. The subject of modern extant pterosaurs appears paranormal, so it has been ignored in most scientific journals.

The “Press Room for News Releases” page includes:

“Hoaxes are disproved,” declares Jonathan Whitcomb, author of the nonfiction book, “Live Pterosaurs in America.” After compiling data from reports collected from early-2004 to mid-2009, from eyewitnesses across the United States, he found three kinds of evidence disproving any hoax- explanation.

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Cryptozoology Book LPA-3 Now Available

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Jonathan Whitcomb

The third edition of Live Pterosaurs in America is now available on Amazon, with a suggested retail price (Amazon sometimes reduces their price) of $13.65. Before going into details about how it differs from the second edition, I include a recent Amazon review about the second edition:

I couldn’t put this book down. It is absolutely fascinating to read about eyewitness accounts of the people who have seen these creatures. To learn about these testimonies from such an open minded perspective is refreshing in the extreme! The way that our school systems and scientists alike are indoctrinated is sad. There is so much money out there being used for research, if only they would use it for good. I highly recommend this book to anyone! People should know the truth about what is going on. No one ever hears anything about this unless they conduct extremely specific internet searches, even then, information is minimal. Jonathan Whitcomb needs to write more books! [from "StrangeDream" - Oct 11, 2011 review on Amazon - rating the book with five stars out of five]

The third edition has a thrilling account from the eyewitness Patty Carson, whom I interviewed earlier this year. I quote part of what is in this new edition:

 “I [Patty Carson] was watching Monster Quest . . . it triggered my memory of [my] sighting of the pterodactyl and just out of curiosity, I googled ‘Pterodactyl in Cuba’ and I’ll be . . . if that guy’s drawing didn’t come up on the first page, and the word Guantanamo!!! . . . “I was only a child when I saw it . . . We lived at the end of the road, last house, by the radio tower. [American military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in 1965] . . . Suddenly it sat up, as if it had been eating something or resting. . . . right in front of us about thirty feet away. All of us froze for about five seconds, then it leaned to its left and took off . . . in a big hurry, . . . and flew to its left and disappeared behind trees and terrain.”

What I did not mention in the book is the orientation of the tail vane on the apparent Rhamphorhynchoid pterosaur that Patty had seen. She is sure that it was horizontal, meaning it would be visible from below or above but not from the side. I double-checked it, asking her about this below/side perspective, and she verified that is how the tail vane was arranged on the flying creature.

Cryptozoology Book on Barnes & Noble

The details are slower in getting through to Barnes & Noble, but Live Pterosaurs in America, third edition, is now available with that online book dealer.

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Third Edition is Only Weeks Away

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Jonathan Whitcomb

The third edition of Live Pterosaurs in America is only a few weeks away from publication. The final stage is awaiting some sketches from an eyewitness. Although there may still be some changes from editing, the present stage is close to complete, so here are some previews:

Acknowledgements

To the eyewitnesses who’ve bravely come forward, telling us of apparent living pterosaurs, I dedicate this book. They deserve to be heard. . . .

. . . In the United States of America—that’s where Scott Norman, in 2007, became the first American cryptozoologist to see a clear form of a living pterosaur while searching for one: a large flying creature with a head three to four feet long. We mourn the passing (from natural causes) of our young friend who is deeply missed in the cryptozoology community.

Introduction

If this book does nothing more than comfort the eyewitnesses of strange creatures, I would be grateful; but there’s much more. We need to understand why we believe what we believe. When I first began researching these eyewitness sightings, years ago, I mentioned a word to a kindergartner: “pterosaurs;” he said, “A comet.” Years later, while writing this book, I mentioned my work to a second-grader; she said, “Who will buy your book? Crazy people?” I think better of you. And I think, because of what she and many others have told me, that we must understand indoctrination, for it influences our beliefs; the extent of that influence discomforts me. . . .

. . . These flying creatures, apparent pterosaurs seen by eyewitnesses in Papua New Guinea, in America, and in other countries, have not yet been captured or clearly photographed, so they’re still classified not in zoology textbooks but in cryptozoology. . . . still . . . you be the judge.

Pterodactyls and Bulverism (the cryptozoology book is quoted)

When someone publishes a web site with a URL that includes the words “stupid” and “lies,” and the point of the site is to ridicule those who promote the idea of living dinosaurs or living pterosaurs, “bulverism” probably fits . . . Of course “libel” also fits, but . . . Individuals are attacked, real persons, me and my associates. Quotations of what we say can be hard to find on that site; the attacker’s portrayal of our motivations, easy to find. An average reader who gets very far on that site is unlikely to search out the actual words and deeds of living-pterosaur investigators. Why search for the writings of people who are both stupid and liars? But what if the critical mistake is in the one making accusations?

cover of third edition of the nonfiction cryptozoology book

[The third edition of Live Pterosaurs in America (available on Amazon) was published early in November, 2011]

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