'Unknown Flying Human Owl' Reported between Barrington, Illinois and O'Hare International Airport

The Singular Fortean Society recently received the following report from a witness who said she and her husband saw an “unknown flying human owl” perched in a tree near their apartment towards the end of October this year.

This witness agreed to the use of her and her husband’s first names and the initial of their last name.

According to the report:

I am writing to you today in regards to the Mothman/Human Owl. This is Diana and Jesus G. So, we live at The Reserve in Hoffman Estates, and our apartment complex is next to an empty corn field and across from Barrington there is a forest preserve. My husband and I live on the third floor of the complex as we face another building, but can also see towards the corn field to our right. We also have lots of trees around our building almost as tall as the building itself.
We would normally go out to our porch every night to smoke a cigarette, and about a month and two weeks ago [late October 2019], we went out at about 9 or 10 pm. We usually leave our phones inside so we can enjoy [a] little chat and gaze at the stars, or even see a pack of coyotes roaming around the streets and apartments, or sometimes even head back into the field towards the forest (keep in mind this field has no crop so it is empty and you can see towards the street).
Well, that specific night my husband was to my right and he is taller than me, so I was talking to him taking a puff, when I noticed something in the pine tree (I believe it is pine) behind him..right at the top of the tree, not in between the branches or nothing, RIGHT AT THE TOP. He noticed I wasn’t paying attention so he turned around to look, and sure enough there was what we thought was a huge owl looking out towards the field then looking back around. So, after a couple seconds, maybe 30 seconds, we started to question each other. “What is that?” “Is that an owl?”
I’m talking about this thing was pitch black but it’s wings and shape were HUGE; as you can see that from the reflection of the sky which was lighter. I recall continuing to smoke as we tried to examine this creature looking around. Once we had noticed it, I don’t recall ‘it’ ever looking at us.
We were already a few minutes outside before I noticed so I’m not sure if he ever looked down at us. I was more into the body shape though, I could see huge, long, black wings. We couldn’t really see any details as it was super dark.
My husband was trying to get closer to the edge to get a good look at it, but we could really just see the long wings and huge shape. Well, after finishing our square, we said ”yeah it might just be an owl, a pretty big one for sure," and we came inside our complex which is the roof of the building. Normally at night we could hear the animals climbing on the rails and roof, but our roommate whose room is next to the porch, he states he always hears something walking at night by his window or above it. I’m not sure if it’s that creature, the tree is right next to us so he can easily climb onto the building.
Jesus and I never saw it again when we would go out there, but we did joke around about it being behind us on the roof and that it would pick us up and fly away; he did it to scare me. We thought nothing of it until we read the article about a semi truck driver who spotted something similar at O’Hare Airport, which is not far from here. Once we saw that we just stared at each other because we recall what we saw, so we now know WE WEREN’T SEEING THINGS LIKE THIS WAS LEGIT.We sometimes step out for a moment to see if we find it again, but so far he’s been gone...and that’s our story about seeing this unknown flying human owl.

Investigator Tobias Wayland followed up with Diana via email.

"The thing is, we could see the black shadow of it holding on to the tree, but not the exact tip of the tree," she said in response to a series of questions sent by Wayland. "There was no more branches above him, so it could have been he was perched. We tried comparing it to an eagle, but even a humongous eagle wouldn’t compare to it. It has to be twice or maybe three times the size. We’d say about six to eight feet tall, genuinely not lying about how huge it looked."

"We were just smoking relaxing before hitting the pillow for a nights rest, clear mind," Diana added. "Actually, me and my husband were talking about a family issue, and the very next way we received some bad news."

Diana also reported having had paranormal experiences in the past, but said they have not increased in frequency since the sighting.

"I usually have a lot of paranormal activity happen to me, but not any different since [the sighting]," she said.

"For as long as I can remember, I’ve always experienced something," Diana continued. "Usually, I would experience sleep paralysis, and many times I’ve been woken up to someone standing over my bed watching me. As much as a little girl, an old lady which I believe is my grandma, an older man, one who’s cuddled me and also one who’s left me scratches on my body. I’ve had someone wake me from my sleep at 4 am and walk out of my room into the same empty house, and when I got up to look around nobody was there."

"I’ve had so so many experiences," she said. "It’s never ending for me."

Lon Strickler of Phantoms & Monsters was also contacted by the witness, and the same account was related to him.

Immediately to the west of the sighting location are the Shoe Factory Road Prairie Nature Reserve and the Arthur L. Janura Forest Preserve.

Hoffman Estates is several miles south of Barrington, and less than 20 miles northwest of O’Hare International Airport—both of which have had recent reports regarding unusual winged humanoids.

Several other sightings have been reported in this area of Illinois, including the December 6th sighting of a red-eyed, winged humanoid near O’Hare International Airport, a November 26th sighting of a seven-foot-tall “person with wings” outside of O’Hare, a September 29th sighting of a toddler-sized “bat creature…running like a gorilla” near Barrington, an October 30th sighting of a large, winged humanoid in Park Ridge, an October 29th report of a winged humanoid accompanied by several other beings, an October 19th sighting of a “giant-sized bat” outside of the Edward Hotel in Rosemont, an October 5th sighting of a "tall creature" with "bright red eyes" and "large wings” near O’Hare International Airport, and a report from July of a six-foot-tall creature flying over the Des Plaines River near Rosemont.

This is the latest news in a string of ‘Mothman’ sightings from within a few hundred mile radius surrounding Lake Michigan, including every state bordering the great lake. These sightings ostensibly began in the spring of 2017, but more historical accounts are being reported as more people become aware of the phenomenon. Sightings of weird winged beings around Lake Michigan have been reported at all hours, often in or near a park, and around water. Witnesses consistently describe a large, gray or black bat or bird-like creature—although in a small number of cases the creature was described as insect-like—sometimes with glowing or reflective red, yellow, or orange eyes; and humanoid features such as arms and legs are often reported. Many of the sightings are also of something seen only briefly or are described only as a flying creature with few details, which leaves open the possibility that a large avian being could explain some encounters. Sightings of anomalous avians, including thunderbirds and pterosaurs, are often reported in or near the same locations as those where witnesses have reported winged humanoids.

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.

To report your own encounter with the impossible, reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

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