I recently received the following account:
Hello Sir. I wish to report 'something' I witnessed on March 17th, near my home. I live in a rural area in Cabell County, WV. I am a widow and moved to this house last September 2016 from Ohio. I live with my daughter.
Not long after we moved in, we began to hear loud 'flapping' sounds coming from the river across the road from my property. The sounds would usually occur at night. We also saw bright orange lights through the trees near the river.
One afternoon I walked across the road and looked around, but I couldn't find anything out of the ordinary.
The sounds and the lights continued all winter. In fact, one evening while it was snowing, the flapping sounds were very loud. I watched from my living window as a bright orange light quickly moved upstream, then downstream above the river.
Then on Friday March 17th, I was on my front porch and heard a loud 'squawk' come from the direction of the river. I looked that way and saw a huge bird-like 'something' above the trees. It was early evening, but it was silhouetted against the sky. It looked like it stopped in mid-flight, stretched it's wings and hovered in mid-air. It had bright orange lights or eyes and seemed to stare and radiate at me. It was terrifying and menacing! I ran into the house and called for my daughter who was in the basement. We looked out the window, but it was gone.
We haven't heard any sounds or seen any lights in the two weeks since my sighting. Can you tell me what I saw? JL
NOTE: I emailed JL...then called her. She stated that the creature resembled a huge wasp and hovered like an flying insect. The thin body was tapered and the wings were solid. I asked her if it was shaped like a butterfly or moth...she acknowledged it had a similar outline, but only two large wings. She estimated that the wing span was 10-12 feet and that the body was about 4 foot in length. There was no head, but the bright orange 'eyes' were positioned within the body. It was dark in color and the wings were more 'rounded' and 'solid' as compared to a butterfly or moth. She also noticed that there were several thin arm-like 'things' sticking out from the mid-body.
The witness sounded quite rational, but truly worried that this creature would return. She swears that it looked directly at her, leaving her with a feeling a foreboding and fear. She estimates that she was about 40 yards or so from it.
I asked her to keep in contact with me and to report any unusual activity in and out of the house. She did acknowledge that the house is spiritually active and that she has witnessed a shadow being on 3 occasions. There have not been any disturbances affecting her sleep or daily routine. Her daughter has not experienced any of the activity. I asked if she would like an investigator to come to her home...but she declined and would like to remain anonymous. She gave me permission to post her report and follow-up, minus any personal information and the specific location.
The description is somewhat similar to Mothman encounters that have been reported to me in the past...though this particular being is smaller than those previous reports. Could it have been a misidentified bird, owl or custom-built drone? It does seem unlikely. Lon
The Mothman Prophecies: A True Story
Encounters with Flying Humanoids: Mothman, Manbirds, Gargoyles & Other Winged Beasts
American Monsters: A History of Monster Lore, Legends, and Sightings in America
The Tale of the Mason County Mothman
