Would "Thunderbirds" show up on radar?

The Thunderbirds are supposed to be about 20 feet in wingspan, I think, in length.

There have been anecdotal reports of thunderbird sightings:

The man was driving on a rural two lane roadway outside of the town of Clendenin, at about 8 A.M. when he had to step hard on his brakes, to avoid hitting a giant flying creature in the middle of the road. The giant bird was only a few yards ahead of him, and was feeding on road kill. The witness, an avid hunter, was startled by the size of the creature, which stood at least four feet tall, with its head extending above the roof line of his vehicle.... The witness later returned to the site and measured the distance across the road from edge to edge. It was 21 feet.

From Cryptomundo. Also here is a link to some articles about Eagles snatching children.

Anyways. Here's my question. If there are indeed birds that large--in the 15'-20'+ wingspan range.... these things should be showing up on radar. I wonder if thunderbird sightings could be cross-referenced with airport radar sightings, if they happen in an area near an airport.

I know that airport radar can distingush between a plane blip and a pidgeon blip. The biggest known flying bird is an Andean Condor with a wingspan of twelve feet!

He doesn't even have his wings unfolder there, and he dwarfs the man. Twelve feet should definitely be radar-able, but Imagine a bird ten feet bigger than that!

[edit on 13-9-2008 by asmeone2]

Such a heavy bird would need to fly from place to place. If jets can fly under radar its no mystery how a heavy bird can go from an outcropping to another across a wide canyon and rest again without ever showing up on radar. Could they still today exist? yes but at the rate of species going extint it may have happened in the 40s , 70s , or 90s already. We just don't know. They may exist today, still.


My ex and I went to a wedding chapel in the mountains. Just to look at it. I am familiar with all of the Audubon prints and I saw two birds in the field next to the chapel that were the size of ostriches and looked like cranes. I knew these birds were never cataloged and at the size of them would be a very rare entry to science. My ex however had taken all of the pictures in the camera and we had no film. This may have been the last breeding pair of those birds, and the may have been unsuccessful, and with no pictures we have no record.

Thunderbird? After seeing those other birds with my own eyes, I would say every chance has existed.

I think Thunderbirds from Native American lore were UFO's. But to answer your question, I will use the guys post above me!

reply to post by Illahee


I saw one in OK this year. Do not know the exact wingspan but it looked like an enormous raven. There is a thread about it in this forum. I have since moved from the area it was in.. but it was amazing just having something that sacred nearby.

reply to post by NephraTari



That sounds very nice. I am close to that area... I have a close spiritual connection with birds, and would feel so honored to see one!