Mothman

Name: Mothman
Address: US

모스맨

Legend, unconfirmed: a grey, man-sized winged figure about 1.8 m tall with a 3 m wingspan and red eyes that glowed in car headlights, reported around Point Pleasant, West Virginia, in 1966–67. The first sighting was in the 'TNT area' of old WWII bunkers; the town now has a steel statue and a yearly festival.

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At a glance

Country: United States
Kind: Legendary creatures

Quick answers

Where is Mothman?

Mothman is in United States.

Mothman is a creature from American folklore, a winged, humanoid figure that people said they saw around Point Pleasant, West Virginia, between 15 November 1966 and 15 December 1967. Despite the name, early reports described bird-like features, not a moth. The first newspaper story ran on 16 November 1966 in the Point Pleasant Register.

The legend grew after the national press picked it up, and it became more famous through John Keel's 1975 book The Mothman Prophecies and a 2002 film. Today the town holds an annual Mothman festival. This page separates the sightings from the explanations. The sightings stopped after December 1967, but the tale lives on in books, films and local souvenirs.

What people reported

On 15 November 1966 two young couples told police they saw a tall, dark creature with glowing red eyes near the old 'TNT area', a former wartime munitions site. They described a man-shaped figure about seven feet (2.1 m) tall with white wings, and said it chased their car as they drove away fast. Other witnesses soon reported similar sightings, and some described a large bird with red eyes.

Possible explanations

Local officials suggested a big green heron. A wildlife biologist at West Virginia University said the descriptions fit a sandhill crane, a bird nearly as tall as a person with a wingspan of about 2.1 m and reddish skin around its eyes, that may have strayed from its migration route. Others suggest barred owls. Keel claimed a link to the Silver Bridge collapse, but that is part of the legend, not a documented fact.

Fun facts

People in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, reported a winged 'Mothman' in 1966; today the town has a shiny Mothman statue and a yearly festival.
The first newspaper headline was about 'Man-Sized Bird' and did not use the word Mothman.
A sandhill crane's wingspan is about 2.1 m, similar to the size witnesses described.
The town holds a yearly festival devoted to the legend.