By Cade Shadowlight
The Thunderbird is one of the most enduring legends in Native American folklore, revered by tribes across the continent from the Pacific Northwest to the Great Plains and beyond. In stories passed down through generations, the Thunderbird is depicted as an enormous bird-like spirit, powerful enough to create thunder by flapping its wings and shoot lightning from its eyes. It is often portrayed as a protector or a harbinger of storms. Tribes like the Ojibwe, Lakota, and Kwakwaka'wakw incorporated the Thunderbird into totem poles, petroglyphs, and oral traditions.
In cryptozoology, the Thunderbird has transitioned from folklore to a potential cryptid, with some experts theorizing it could be a surviving prehistoric species or an unknown, very large, eagle or other bird of prey. Perhaps even a surviving remnant of the controversial Washington's Eagle, which James Audubon measured its wingspan at over 10 feet (article link).
Descriptions of Thunderbirds from folklore match modern reports of gigantic birds with wingspans up to 20-70 feet, far larger than any known living avian like the California condor (9-10 feet).
Some cryptozoologists suggest links to extinct teratorns (ancient giant vultures with 20-foot wingspans) or even pterosaurs like the Pteranodon, which went extinct 66 million years ago but might have persisted in remote areas. These theories gained traction in the 20th century as sightings of giant birds mounted, blending native myths with modern claims.
Modern Thunderbird encounters date back over a century, with clusters in states like Illinois, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Iowa, and Missouri. One famous 1977 incident in Lawndale, Illinois, involved a massive bird allegedly attempting to carry off a 10-year-old boy, Marlon Lowe, witnessed by multiple people. Those witnesses described two enormous birds, one grabbing the boy by his shoulders and lifting him 35 feet before dropping him. Lowe, now an adult, has steadfastly maintained the story in interviews, even showing scars he attributes to the bird's talons.
Other eyewitness reports describe dark, leathery-winged creatures soaring silently or causing gusts strong enough to shake vehicles. While skeptics attribute these to misidentifications of large raptors or even drones, believers point to consistent details across unrelated witnesses.
Expeditions, including those by cryptozoologists like Loren Coleman, have scoured remote forests and mountains but yielded no concrete evidence. Yet the legend persists, fueled by blurry photos and eyewitness accounts.
Though no physical proof exists, the Thunderbird's cultural impact endures, inspiring, literature, and personal stories to this day. It serves as a reminder of how indigenous knowledge intersects with science, challenging us to question what might lurk in North America's vast remote wildernesses.
For Further Reading
- Dr. Daniel Authur Biddle - Thunderbirds and Flying Dragons: Evidence that Giant Birds and Pterosaurs Lived Recently (2025) – The latest book on the subject, having come out only last month (November 2025). On Amazon.
- T. Peter Park – A Guide to Sky Monsters: Thunderbirds, the Jersey Devil, Mothman, and Other Flying Cryptids (2021) – Comprehensive overview of aerial cryptids, with a deep dive into Thunderbird lore and sightings. On Amazon.
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