Mothman

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Appearance
The Mothman is a cryptid that is native to Point Pleasant, West Virginia. It is described as a bipedal humanoid figure with large wings and owl-like traits. Its most frightening and noticable feature being its large glowing or reflective red eyes.

History
On November 12th, 1966, 5 men were digging a grave at a cemetery near Clendenin, West Virginia, when they saw what looked like a man like figure flying low from the trees nearby. This sighting is now known as the first recorded witness of the Mothman.

Soon after, on November 15th, 1966 2 couples from Point Pleasant, Roger and Linda Scarberry and Steve and Mary Mallette told the police about a large grey creature whose eyes glowed red when the car's headlights picked it up. They described the creature as a "large flying man with ten-foot wings" following their car as they were driving to an area out of town known as "the TNT area", the site of an old World War II munitions plant.

There have been a number of similar sightings reported during the next few days. Two firemen claimed who spotted the creature said it was "a large bird with red eyes". Soon after Mason County Sheriff George Johnson said that he believes that there was an unusually large heron living in the area. Newell Patridge, a local contractor, believes otherwise and told the sheriff when he shined his light at the creature's eyes they glowed like bicycle reflectors. He also blamed the Mothman for strange buzzing noises in his television set and for the disappearance of his German Shepherd. Later on, Wildlife Biologist Dr. Robert L. Smith took a look at the reports and noticed that they fit the characteristics and traits of the sandhill crane. He also suggested that the crane probably wandered out of its migration route since it wasn't native to that region.

The collapse of the Silver Bridge on December 15th, 1967 caused more people to believe in the Mothman and that it might have been involved with the incident in some way.

Modern Influences
The first annual Mothman Festival was held in Point Pleasant, 2002 and later on a 12-foot metallic sculpture of the creature made by artist Bob Roach was unveiled in 2003. In 2005, the Mothman Museum and Research Center opened up. The Mothman festivals take place on the third weekend of every September, which include a variety of attractions and events such as Mothman pancake eating contests, guest speakers, vendor exhibits, and hayride tours. The Mothman has also been a major influence in movies, books, and other forms of entertainment