ropen-pterodactyl American eyewitness

In 1944, in (Papua) New Guinea, Duane Hodgkinson and his friend saw a "pterodactyl" with a wingspan similar to a Piper Tri-Pacer (29 feet).

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[Jonathan Whitcomb]

A new nonfiction book has recently been published: "Live Pterosaurs in Australia and in Papua New Guinea." It's only $3.99 (U.S. dollars) on Amazon, published as a Kindle digital ebook. It has some recent sightings, including one on the coast of Umboi Island: The tail of the ropen was seen in daylight, as it was sticking up out of the water over the reef near Bunsil Station.

[chipotle29]

13000+ hours of flying experience. I think it's safe to say he knows a damn bird when he sees one.

[Jonathan Whitcomb]

Hodgkinson lived on a farm for years just before he went into the military and witnessed this huge flying creature. The point is simple: He said that the clearing was about 100 feet in diameter (a farmer should know this quite well) and both the creature and the two soldiers were in that clearing at the same time, so Hodgkinson's estimate of the size of the creature could not be too far off.

[Jonathan Whitcomb]

Even more important, other eyewitnesses have seen a similar flying creature and the size was estimated by them to be too large to be any known bird or bat (in addition to the other sightings involving a very long tail). Hodgkinson was not alone in 1944 and he has not been alone since then. Giant pterosaur-like creatures live in the southwest Pacific.

[Supaflow7]

i believe him, i mean why make up something like that?

[arnoldosu1]

Actually pterodactyls are not an animal at all, it is at best a nickname for pterodactylus which are in fact a type of pterosaur. And the irony or I guess happenstance here is that people talk of this being a dinosaur sighting when in fact pterosaurs are reptiles. We see dinosaurs everyday (birds) but call pterosaurs (winged lizards) dinosaurs...ha! There's your irony.

[ZARVOE]

Actually pterodactyls o not have head crests. But hen. Pteranodons do not hsve tails. if his creature is as described, it'd be something new. Though it may be that it is a Pterosaur.

[Xproject187]

Been having car trouble lately,unable to devote any time however I did try to upload a location placemark to G-Earth but caught hell from Naysayers when I did

[Xproject187]

Perhaps it wasn't a pterodactyl that he saw,rather a variant & because he's unknowledgable in the feild of identifing the animal,the best name he could give it was the name he thought it was.

Irregardless this man saw what he says he saw you can argue technicalities all day long but the fact is the prehistoric bird I know to be a pterodactyl was sighted by me & 2 others over a park in Modesto Ca. @ Moose Park & when I tried to add a location placemark to G-Earth I caught hell from Naysayers

[schassis]

I remember seeing one when I was a kid in Louisiana I thought it was a demon or the devil bat like leathery wings peach to light brown in color fairly large wing span and the spade/diamond shaped tail I knew it wasn't a bird then I remember the first time I saw a pteradactyl in a book and I was like so thats what I saw but how? starting to think there are plenty of them alive around the world still.

[ErgoCogita]

So this guy saw a large bird and in hindsight thinks it was a long extinct flying reptile?

Seriously, anyone with two minutes and a computer can see that a Great-billed Heron in flight exactly matches the guys sketch. All the way down to the crest of the head and the fact that they grow quite large and are found in PNG.

[Laura m]

I am reading the non-fiction book 'Live Pterosaurs in America' by Jonathan Whitcomb.I must say that it is a very good book and well worth the read! If your mind was closed to this subject,it will be opened after reading this book!

[Xproject187]

When you asked if I'd seen a crest on it's head,I assumed you meant the oddly shaped back half of its head,however in short "I recall seeing no crest".

Allow me to do my best to explain the shape of the head of the creature We saw.

The closest assessment that I can give as to the shape of its head would be that of a "Claw Hammer",only not bent downward. As for the front of its head,well it wasn't blunt like the front of a claw hammer,but rather like the beak of a pelican,without a saggy throat.

[KaxakaDarktree]

The pterodactyls are peaceful, humans are too big to eat, they love eating fish and scavenging small animals, only up to the size of 12 inches long, without exceeding a width of 5 inches.

They swallow their prey whole.

They only go near people is because they are curious. They're VERY intelligent!!

They do not hav a headcrest.

They do not hav a tail!

They're 10 feet tall.

They're also bioluminescent.

This old man's memory has been heavily influenced by scientists depicting dead species.

[Xproject187]

I did a lil investigation on thee issue(Locally).

I went back to my sighting location & made a few videos(which I'll upload to Youtube soon).

Anyway,there's a number of Homless Folks camped out there & while there I ran into a girl I used to know. I mentioned my sighting & rite away she said.

"Oh My God ! Awhile back,a lady came running out of the "Forested Area" crying that she'd saw one too,& it was exiting some brush.

I plan on trying to find & interview her ASAP.