Is this the Jersey Devil???

Could a misplaced one of these be the Jersey Devil???

The single species, H. monstrosus, is found from Gambia to southwestern Ethiopia and south to northeastern Angola and Zambia (Hayman and Hill, in Meester and Setzer 1977; Koopman 1975; Largen, Kock, and Yalden 1974).
Head and body length is about 193-304 mm, there is no tail, and forearm length is 118-37 mm. The wingspan in males is as much as 907 mm. This genus has the greatest sexual dimorphism in the Chiroptera; Bradbury (1977) found that males, which averaged 420 grams, were nearly twice as heavy as females, which averaged 234 grams. The coloration is grayish brown or slaty brown. The breast is paler, and the lighter color extends up around the neck, forming a sort of collar. A white patch is present at the base of the ear. Shoulder pouches and epauletlike hair tufts are lacking in both sexes.
Male Hypsignathus may be recognized in flight by the large, square, truncate head. The muzzle is thick and hammer-shaped, hence the common name. Other distinctive features are enormous and pendulous lips, ruffles around the nose, a warty snout, a hairless, split chin, and highly developed voice organs in adult males. Females have a foxlike muzzle similar to that of Epomophorus.
In referring to this genus, Lang and Chapin (1917) commented: "In no other mammal is everything so entirely subordinated to the organs of voice." The adult male has a pair of air sacs that open into the sides of the nasopharynx and can be inflated at will, as well as a great enlargement of the voice box (larynx) and vocal cords. The larynx "is nearly equal in length to one half of the vertebral column," actually filling most of the chest cavity, pushing the heart and lungs backward and sideward. The voice thus produced, a continuous croaking or quacking, is quite remarkable and probably attracts the females. The gregarious chorus reminded Lang and Chapin of "a pondful of noisy American wood-frogs, greatly magnified and transported to the treetops."
The hammer-headed bat inhabits forests, being most common in swamps, mangroves, and palms along rivers. It usually roosts in foliage but has been found in a cave. Bradbury (1977) stated that Hypsignathus roosted at a height of 20-30 meters during the day and would forage up to 10 km from the roost at night. With the ripening of certain fruits, this bat often seeks the high forest or native clearings to feed. It may take the juices of mangoes, soursops, and bananas. Van Deusen (1968) reported that Hypsignathus killed and ate tethered chickens.

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[Edited on 3/30/04 by NotTooHappy]

Thats a great find, the head really does look like the descriptions I have read. It is pretty big for a bat as well, according to the wingspan given in the description you pasted, almost 3 feet.

[Edited on 3-29-2004 by William One Sac]

holy cow!!! that is the freakiest flying thing I have ever seen...they did say it was bat right? oooh a face only a momma could love.

i would love to hear the sound that thing makes.

does anyone know the dimensions of the jersey devil? I thought that it was supposed to be the size of a human, and made a shrieking noise. Then again, I could be wrong.

According to one account it was said to have stood over 8 feet tall.

home.adelphia.net...

The resemblance to eyewitness descriptions is uncanny however...

What would be interesting to see is if Jungle Habitat (an abandoned zoo in NJ) ever had one of these as it is rumored to have been closed down with animals still roaming around.

www.weirdnj.com...

Originally posted by Jonna
What would be interesting to see is if Jungle Habitat (an abandoned zoo in NJ) ever had one of these as it is rumored to have been closed down with animals still roaming around.

www.weirdnj.com...

Yeah but, the Jersey Devil has been around for more than 300 years.
Maybe the bat hitched a ride on a boat or something. You gotta admit, it does look like the description of the Jersey Devil though.

Originally posted by IKnowNothing
does anyone know the dimensions of the jersey devil? I thought that it was supposed to be the size of a human, and made a shrieking noise. Then again, I could be wrong.

hmm, i thought the devil was somthing like 3 or 4 feet.

Definitely an interesting read. The only thing I would question is that the overall description seems to be that of an herbivore that favors tropical-semi-tropical fruits. Given that, I'm just wondering if it's hearty enough to have survived transport to the US from Africa, via slave ships at some point in early US history. Without similar habitat or food, it seems unlikely it would have adapted that quickly to survive but I could be wrong too.

Here's a few more pics:

kind of looks like one of my ex girlfriends. you can see why i dumped her- those big eyes, and she kept telling me she was blind.

haha

no no! The Jersey devil is reported to have left horse-shoe print marks

The face does look similar to the faces descripbed however I do not think that it is the jersey devil. The devil is hundreds of years old. but I suppose there could be a small population.

Though it is possible that this is the creature famed as the jersey devil, I think there are some things that it could not explain. First as mentioned before the Jersey Devil leaves hoof prints, and I doubt very much that this bats prints resemble those of horses. Second, and please correct me if I am wrong, is it not true that the jersey devil has antlers of some kind? I was always under the impression that it did. As for the size I do not think that would be too big of a deal, people often over estimate things when they panic, not to mention that most of the sittings are at night. Aside from those differences I have to say there is a freaky resemblance between the two, nice find NotTooHappy!

It probably is the jersey devil in some sightings...

I think you've made a remarkable connection here...

Thanks for the side by side Gaz.

Quote by Thain Esh Kelch

It probably is the jersey devil in some sightings...

Yea alot of people probly saw it and were freaked claiming they saw the Jersy Devil........

well how about this picture here
www.unexplained-mysteries.com...

Interesting similarities, but some things do not match up. I live in New Jersey on the border of the pinebarrens (where the Jersey Devil is supposedly from) and have been hearing about this thing since I was in early grade school, where we were actually taught about it. The head and face look similar, and they both have wings, but that is where the similarities end.

To restate some things already stated, the JD has been reported to be over 8 feet tall, leave hoof prints, and has been reported for over 300 years. The JD has also been reported as killing farm animals, and its body consists of parts similar to many animals, including horse, bat, goat, and serpent.

I have also been to the Pine Barrens many times, including field trips when I was in school. One particular teacher I had was VERY informed on the JD, and I have never heard any mention of this bat living in or near the area.

I have also heard stories of another creature that is supposed to live in the Pine Barrens. It doesn't have an official name, but we call it Moosehead, for obvious reasons. It also has red, glowing eyes. We went off-roading in the Pine Barrens in my truck one night, after a night of drinking, and got stuck in a sand pit. Started freaking out, wondering if the JD or Moosehead was gunna get us. Funny looking back on it, how stupid we were acting. I love this friggin state, so much wierd stuff!!!