In a Nutshell

Three flying creatures, with an appearance suggesting a pterosaur, were seen flying together over a beach in Belize, Central America. The eyewitness, Vito Kobliha, who now lives in Southern California, was involved in a film project for an unrelated documentary, in 2006, when he and another member of the production team witnessed the three apparent pterosaurs. They were able to videotape them with a high-definition camera, although the creatures were flying high and at a distance.

Belize Pterosaur

The apparent pterosaurs were high and rather far off, but Kobliha had the impression that they were not ordinary birds.

Videotaping three apparent living pterosaurs with a professional camera—that set this sighting apart from other sightings. I hope to have a copy of his video soon, so that I can analyze the footage.

According to the book The Pterosaurs From Deep Time, by David M. Unwin, the metabolism and physiology of those flying creatures was closely tied to their body temperature. Were pterosaurs warm-blooded like mammals and birds, or cold-blooded, like reptiles? The book says that “the nature of these processes [physiology and metabolism] has been fiercely debated for more than a century.” The basic assumption in this book (like almost all science books about dinosaurs and pterosaurs) is that these creatures became extinct millions of years ago.

But some cryptozoologists, including Jonathan Whitcomb, suggest that some pterosaurs still live in various parts of the world. Although Whitcomb avoids direct reference to the warm-cold-blood controversay, he suggests how pterosaurs can presently survive the winters of North America.

How do Pterosaurs Survive the Cold?

We could delve into where and how a mouse or bird or fish survives when the coldness arrives, but the point is this: Small mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and butterflies survive cold winters (or migrate), so large pterosaurs should have some way to do the same or something similar.

That answers questions about how modern pterosaurs survive cold winters, even though that blog post does not answer the question, “How did pterosaurs survive for millions of years?”

Cryptozoology

One of the challenges for those pursuing cryptozoology (or those pursuing the cryptids themselves) is the possibility of a hoax. How do we know that a proclaimed eyewitness is not pulling a prank? Did a middle-aged couple in Scotland really see something slithering across the road one night, slipping back into Loch Ness? Did an American hunter really see something like a Big Foot in Oregon?

Frozen “Big Foot” in Georgia

It turned out to be just a Halloween costume. But the news media jumped on the report, for a deputy sheriff seemed to be putting his career on the line (why would he risk his career for a hoax?). Well, that deputy sheriff did have his career shot down, for the frozen “Big Foot” was a hoax.

Eyewitnesses of Living Pterosaurs

A press release seems to show an objective look at hoax possibilities with alleged pterosaur sightings in the United States. (See Reports of Live Pterosaurs) Three seperate factors were analyzed, with the conclusion that hoaxes could not have caused the majority of the sighting reports. To some skeptics, it seems to be too good to be true: living pterosaurs in the United States. But nobody seems to have come up with a reasonable response to the analysis of the statistics about wingspan, featherlessness details, and long-tail dominance.