Expanded second edition: An American flight instructor, an Australian psychologist, many natives on tropical islands, an Australian couple, a Baptist minister, a teenaged farm-boy--each saw a giant living pterosaur. Each was amazed, or terrified, or shocked by a brown or dark-colored featherless creature: long-tailed and with a wingspan as great as fifty feet. Why have many Western scientists been wrong about universal extinctions? Read how standard models of macro-evolution have actually caused the problem, indoctrinating millions into believing that pterosaurs are extinct and ancient. They live now.

Fly above common true-life adventures, and dive into what may become the most unsettling scientific discovery since Copernicus and Galileo: living pterosaurs of the modern world--what a discovery! It soars above disputes about religion, revealing why an official discovery of an extraordinary animal has been delayed for so long. Above all, this explores human experience: eyewitnesses and those who interviewed them. People have become connected by common encounters; persons of various faiths, with various levels of education, from various countries and cultures, have seen a living pterosaur, commonly called "pterodactyl." Notwithstanding the delay in the official scientific discovery, eyewitnesses from around the world continue to encounter these flying creatures: featherless, long-tailed, often larger than any known bird. A few Americans explored a few islands in the southwest Pacific, in brief expeditions scattered between 1993 and 2007, looking for a modern pterosaur. "Creationist" each man was labeled, yet many of those following them, in recent years, carried no religious purpose. The creatures have many names: seklo-bali, duwas, wawanar, indava, kor, kundua. In Papua New Guinea, natives in isolated communities speak in village languages numbering in the hundreds, yet many natives carry a common fear in the dark: a huge glowing creature flying in the night. Natives on Umboi Island call it "ropen." Three American Christians--one middle-aged LDS-Mormon high priest and two younger Protestant Young Earth Creationists--explored parts of Umboi Island in two separate expeditions in 2004, interviewing native eyewitnesses of the elusive ropen. They returned home even more convinced that long-tailed pterosaurs live, even thrive, in Papua New Guinea. This resulted in the publication of several books, two scientific papers in a peer-reviewed journal, and over a thousand blog posts, written mostly by those who trudged the jungle trails of Umboi themselves and spoke with the eyewitnesses face to face. Those two expeditions in 2004 also cleared the path for other searches in Papua New Guinea and elsewhere, including expeditions led by those with no religious purpose in searching for ropens, namely the Destination Truth and Monsterquest television shows. This book illustrates how we succeed better by working with those of different faiths in pursuing a common goal, in this case finding a modern living pterosaur and supporting each other in our common beliefs and values. Why has the official scientific discovery been so long delayed? The causes are multiple and interrelated, but one obstacle has been resolved. Speculation that religious bias of investigators has played a big part in sighting reports of apparent pterosaurs--that conjecture has been shot down. Consider the words of Sandra Paradise, an eyewitness in Georgia: "The world is now totally different. I feel blessed that God has allowed me to see this creature that should not be here, and yet is, this strange dragon-like thing that lives somewhere in the woods . . ." Steven Cottingham, a government official in New Guinea many years ago, told the author, "My sighting occurred at night near Lab Lab on the southern tip of Umboi. The light lasted for four to five seconds, and until reading your reports now, have never been able to explain the sighting." The American flight instructor Duane Hodgkinson told the author about his encounter with a long-tailed flying creature in New Guinea: "It was a big one! I have a Piper Tri-Pacer airplane [wingspan twenty nine feet] and it appeared to be about that size." Patty Carson, of Southern California, said, "It did have a tail and it had a diamond shaped tip . . . The skin was a leathery, brownish reddish color. It had little teeth, a LOT of them."

Fly above common true-life adventures as you dive into what may become the most unsettling scientific discovery since Copernicus and Galileo: Living pterosaurs of the modern world---what a discovery!It soars above disputes about religion, revealing why an official discovery of an extraordinary animal has been delayed for so long. Above all, this explores human experiences—of eyewitnesses and those who interviewed them. People have become connected by common encounters; persons of various faiths, with various levels of education, from various countries and cultures, have seen a living pterosaur, commonly called "pterodactyl."Notwithstanding the delay in the official scientific discovery, eyewitnesses from around the world continue to encounter these flying creatures: featherless, long-tailed, often larger than any known bird.A few Americans explored a few islands in the southwest Pacific, in brief expeditions scattered between 1993 and 2007, looking for a modern pterosaur. “Creationist” each man was labeled, yet many of those following them, in recent years, carried no religious purpose.The creatures have many names: seklo-bali, duwas, wawanar, indava, kor, kundua. In Papua New Guinea, natives in isolated communities speak in village languages numbering in the hundreds, yet many natives carry a common fear in the dark: a huge glowing creature flying in the night. Natives on Umboi Island call it “ropen.”Three American Christians—one middle-aged LDS-Mormon high priest and two younger Protestant Young Earth Creationists—explored parts of Umboi Island in two separate expeditions in 2004, interviewing native eyewitnesses of the elusive ropen. They returned home even more convinced that long-tailed pterosaurs live, even thrive, in Papua New Guinea.This resulted in the publication of several books, two scientific papers in a peer-reviewed journal, and over a thousand blog posts, written mostly by those who trudged the jungle trails of Umboi themselves and spoke with the eyewitnesses face to face.Those two expeditions in 2004 also cleared the path for other searches in Papua New Guinea and elsewhere, including expeditions led by those with no religious purpose in searching for ropens, namely the Destination Truth and Monsterquest television shows.This book illustrates how we succeed better by working with those of different faiths in pursuing a common goal, in this case finding a modern living pterosaur and supporting each other in our common beliefs and values.Why has the official scientific discovery been so long delayed? The causes are multiple and interrelated, but one obstacle has been resolved. Speculation that religious bias of investigators has played a big part in sighting reports of apparent pterosaurs—that conjecture has been shot down.

Encounters with living pterosaurs Live "pterodactyls?" In the United States? Many scientists have long assumed all pterosaurs died millions of years ago. Now take a whirlwind tour of many years of investigations in cryptozoology, and prepare for a shock: At least two species of pterosaurs have survived, uncommon, not so much rare as widely, thinly distributed. Nocturnal pterosaurs have always lived among us, but hidden by something. Enter now the realm of a new branch of cryptozoology, a branch overshadowed by the dogma of a "universal extinction." How did scientists miss living pterosaurs? Get the answers here, hidden secrets about how these amazing flying creatures of the night have gone mostly unreported: Until recently, almost nobody would listen to eyewitnesses; but for the past seven years many of them have been interviewed by the author of this book. Many modern pterosaurs are much larger than any bat, many with long tails, many with head crests. What about news headlines? How did these creatures avoid media attention? Get the answers from years of work by American cryptozoologists. The old "fruit bat" explanation for reports of pterosaurs in Papua New Guinea--that bat idea has now been shot down; the tail length of the larger creatures has been estimated at a minimum of ten feet and a maximum of over twenty feet. More shocking, these giant long-tailed flying creatures are not confined to the southwest Pacific: They are seen in the contiguous United States of America. Most pterosaurs in North America, however, are smaller, with many wingspan estimates at less than fifteen feet; nevertheless, how shocking! What amazing encounters! In California, New Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, Florida, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and many other states, eyewitnesses have seen strange featherless creatures flying overhead. These are not bats; most have long tails and are bigger than any bat. Dive into eyewitness testimonies; compare sightings through the author's detailed analysis. Third edition, nonfiction

A study of dozens of hidden animals—from the chupacabra to Mongolian death worms—drawing on eyewitness accounts from around the world. This informative book includes information, interviews, and stories about forty different cryptids seen around the world by credible eyewitnesses like policemen, rangers, and doctors. Readers will learn where and how to find flying humanoids, hairy humanoids, giants of all kinds including rabbits, bats, and spiders, goblins, vampires, werewolves, demons, aliens, and ghosts. Cryptozoology—a term coined in the 1950s by a French zoologist named Bernard Heuvelmans—is the study of hidden or unknown animals not recognized in standard zoology. From traditional cryptids like Big Foot, the Abominable Snowman, and Nessie, to mythical cryptids like unicorns, vampires, dragons, and werewolves, to lesser-known cryptids like bunyips (waterhorses), Encantado (Dolphin Men of Brazil), thunderbirds, mothmen, and chupacabra, these creatures are very much alive, says expert Deena West Budd, if beyond the realm of normal perception. The Weiser Field Guide to Cryptozoology includes a brief history of the field and surveys all the creatures for which any credible amount of research exists—as well as giving tips on how to spot these creatures and cautionary advice on how to interact with them. Includes two dozen line drawings rendered from eyewitness descriptions

Monsters have been spotted everywhere, not just hiding under a child’s bed, lurking in the closet, or springing forth from folkloric tales. For many people, monsters are nothing more than myth, folklore, and legend combined. For others—and particularly those who have encountered monstrous forms surfacing and emerging from shadowy caves, from the dark waters of ancient lakes, and from the vast jungles and forests of our worlds—monsters are all too terrifyingly real. Werewolves, Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, the Chupacabra, Mothman, the Abominable Snowman, and sea serpents may represent the most famous monsters, but they are not alone. In fact, quite the opposite: monsters can be found all across the planet. Exploring the history, folklore, pop culture, and the world of the supernatural, The Monster Book: Creatures, Beasts, and Fiends of Nature is a comprehensive resource of the monster menagerie that exists on planet earth. This fascinating look at monsters has 120 photographs, drawings, and illustrations to bring the nearly 200 entries to life, including The Mongolian Death Worm; The Beast of Bray Road; The Owlman of England; The Yeren of China; Mokele Mbembe; Living Pterosaurs; The Flatwoods Monster; The Labynkyr Devil; Alien Big Cats; Lizard Man; Lake Worth Monster; The Beast of Gevaudan; Megalania, the Monstrous Monitor; South American Sasquatch; Nessie’s lesser known cousin; The Jersey Devil; Sea Serpents; Orang Pendek; and Phantom Black Dogs. Stories of these creatures are told around flickering campfires on chilly nights in the woods, before tucking excited kids into bed, on prime-time television documentaries, and on late-night radio talk shows. Tales of terrifying creatures that the world of science assures us don’t exist. But try telling that to the witnesses. This richly researched reference overflows with fascinating information to make readers think about—and reconsider—their next visit to the woods. This fascinating read also includes a helpful bibliography and an extensive index, adding to its usefulness.