'Large Bird-like Entity' Seen over Chicago's DuSable Harbor

Lon Strickler of Phantoms and Monsters received an email on the evening of September 25th from a man who claimed to have seen a "very large flying winged creature" over Chicago's DuSable Harbor, just south of Navy Pier.  The sighting took place on Saturday, September 23rd.

I own a boat at DuSable Harbor. Saturday evening at (September 23, 2017) around 6:20-6:30PM, my friends and I saw what could only be described as a very large flying winged creature over the harbor, just south of Navy Pier. It glided at around 200-300 feet by my guess and slowly flew east over the lake until it was out of sight.

I'd guess it was at least 8 feet wingspan with an almost equally long body...if not longer. It was witnessed by at least 3 of us! So I know I'm not crazy.

Strickler was able to call the witness that same evening for a follow-up interview.

"The witness and one of his friends told me that the winged being was gliding approximately 200 ft. above them, flying towards the east...out over Lake Michigan. They had been walking on the pier towards his boat, when one of them noticed the large bird-like entity gliding above the harbor. The winged being glided a small 'S' shaped pattern, as it continued flying towards the east. It never flapped it's wings," said Strickler.

"The entity was described as a huge bird-like being, with a thin and long human body with long legs. The estimated body length was 6-7 feet,” he continued. “The wings looked like those of a huge eagle, but more triangular in form. The wing span was between 8-10 ft. The entire body and wings were very dark or black in color. The entire incident lasted no more than a minute or so, as the entity slowly glided away from them."

DuSable Harbor is less than a mile north of the Adler Planetarium, where three sightings have been previously reported in 2017; one on May 19th, and two more on June 23rd.  

This is the latest in a string of flying humanoid sightings reported in the Chicago area.  Most of the sightings have taken place near the lakefront within a few miles of Lake Michigan, although there are some reports coming from the suburbs surrounding Chicago.  The sightings generally take place in the evening or at night, often in or near a park and around water, and witnesses consistently describe a large, bat or bird-like creature with humanoid features; although in one case the creature was reportedly "insect-like." 

To report a sighting, reach out to us directly at The Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

You can view a timeline of the sightings so far here, and an interactive map here.