Can anyone help me identify this winged thing?

Spectre is right. I live in Florida, Naples to be exact. My back yard is the everglades and Blue Herons do get that big. They are all over the place here. Another bird that it could be is a wood stork. I will look for a pic.

I dont know why but your post made me think of the kite bird. Beautiful big things but u dont want to see one if your a sailor . Heres a link.
www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov...

I know exactly what type of bird you are talking about, because I saw one yesterday and took a picture of it. The name of this mystery bird is "Great Egret"

I posted the picture of this graceful bird in flight, you can see it here:

buzzingjackal.deviantart.com...

I hope that helps.

Buzzingjackal

I had a similar experience with an owl one night on a lonely desert road about 2am. A small critter in the middle of the lane spread it's huge wings as wide as the car, almost as wide as the lane, and flew up inches from the windhsield. It was close enough to me when it launched that i could tell it was a great horned owl, probably the largest i've seen. Must have been bent down over roadkill because it went from being the size of a small rabbit to as wide as my car in 1/2 second, pretty damn impressive.

Originally posted by machinegunjordan
a flamingo lives nowhere near california and how would its feathers get bleached that idea is stupid.

Hey don't call an idea stupid till you know the facts. Flamingos are not native to california but they do live in zoos and animal theme parks so it is possible that one could have escaped. And as for the wings being bleached of course they weren't bleached but a flamingo gets its pink coloring from the shrimp it eats and if it did escape the diet of shrimp wouldn't be available to it so it would turn white. so if a flamingo is reported missing you've got your culpret. I think it's a crane

Maybe its related with the following stories of huge wings appearing?

www.fallenwings.org...

Eagrets/Egrets
[img]http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://homepage.mac.com/rstacy/%2520images/pages/herons/egretgreat/2001/great_egrets_110201C34.jpg&imgrefu rl=http://homepage.mac.com/rstacy/%2520images/pages/herons/egretsnowy/2001/snowy_egrets_110201C34.html&h=375&w=319&sz=28&hl=en&start=2&tbnid=J3l3bT5Vd iMbYM:&tbnh=122&tbnw=104&prev=/images%3Fq%3Degrets%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-USfficial%26sa%3DG[/im g]

Ibis & Heron?

Many more birds like that.

They don't always land on water.

I 90 goes over swamp in Louisiana, and is suspended over them a good 30 ft or more. We picked up one of these birds on some of the suspended part between Gray and Gibson, which got his by a passing car (most likely intentionally) and brought it to "the bird lady". (Some woman who took in injued birds and healed them, then set them free, when the vets said that they were ready to go) The bugger about pecked my brother's eye out.

Why they end up where they do.

They migrate. You can find most waterfowel anywhere there might be a natural or manmade lake, river, or when they have to settle down from some of the larger trips, nowhere near water (they don't stay therw long, though).

I know it wasn't an eagle, but she may be right about it being a heron because the wings were shaped just like this
www.becci.com...
except they were totally grey.

It sounds like you are describing the great blue heron. They are common here in Southern Ontario, and the first one I saw when I was a kid made me do a double take, because it looked like a pterosaur as it flew around, and it took me a while to realize it was actually a bird.



I do not think blue herons normally live in California. What you saw then is what bird watchers call an accidental, a bird that has somehow strayed, frequently a long way from its normal range.

[edit on 16-8-2006 by Boingo the Clown]

It looks like a heron to me. Sometimes birds become confused or ill and they lose their way.

The most convincing thing I have found among these posts is the grey herons.The Grey Heron is a large bird, standing 1 m tall, and it has a 1.5 m wingspan. It is the largest European heron. Its plumage is largely grey above, and off-white below. It has a powerful yellow bill, which is brighter in breeding adults. It has a slow flight, with its long neck retracted (S-shaped). This is characteristic of herons and bitterns, and distinguishes them from storks, cranes and spoonbills, which extend their necks.The Grey Heron is common throughout temperate Europe and Asia. It is resident in the milder south and west, but many birds retreat in winter from the ice in colder regions.

Quite common here in Louisiana......but in Central California......I dunno. I would only be able to think of one escaping as a pet or flying across the ocean from Japan. Although I do consider both highly unlikely. Considering they don't quite make great pets and I can think of no reason as to why one would WANT to fly across the ocean.

It is untrue that flamiongos get their color form the shrimp there are pink flamingos and also some other colored ones.

well in here in az and we have lots of huge herons, brought in for lakes and stuff

what color was its eyes ? did you see?

Originally posted by IOMMISINY
It is untrue that flamiongos get their color form the shrimp there are pink flamingos and also some other colored ones.

They do get it from what they eat though

2. A flamingo's pink or reddish feather, leg, and facial coloration comes from a diet high in alpha and beta carotenoid pigments, including canthaxanthin. The richest sources of carotenoids are found in the algae and various insects that make up the staples of a flamingo's diet. www.swbg-adventurecamps.com...

I've lived in SoCal all my life, most of it near the coast, and I think what you are describing is the Great Blue Heron. They are common to SoCal and it is likely one could be found as far north as Modesto. They are big birds with long wings. Their light blue coloration could easily be mistaken for grey under the circumstances you described.

I have your answer right here:

Size: 39–52 inches (99–132 cm) with a wingspan of 70 inches (1.8 m).
Range: Alaska, Quebec, and Nova Scotia south to Mexico and West Indies.

The great blue heron is the largest and most common of the North American herons. It is often seen standing at the edge of a tidal pond watching for small fish, its favorite prey. It also feeds on small mammals, reptiles, and occasionally, birds.

This heron gets its name from its bluish-grey feathers and regal size. It has a huge wingspan of nearly 6 feet. When in flight, its neck folds into an S-shape, and you may hear it makes its call — a hoarse, gutteral squawk.

Source = www.ocean.udel.edu...

Wingspan of up to 6 feet, Bluish-Grey feathers, regal size. Matches your criteria. And at night, it's hard to see colors, so chances are you just saw the grey and not so much the blue tint. Definitely not a crypto, but I could understand why you were spooked.

It also feeds on small mammals

I've seen them feeding on moles/gophers near Lake Elsinore. This huge bird standing stock still in the middle of a field, then POW! it strikes quickly downward as the mole/gopher pokes it head out of its hole and comes up with the hapless creature scissored in its beak. Something to see.