Obviously, if these are physical animals, they would have to be lighter-than-air or possess some anti-gravity property. We seem to be treading into the realm of the supernatural or cross-dimensional.

And thanks to SpringheeledJack for labeling this for what it is—”Fortean.” I also thought about labeling these sightings that but was reluctant because the of term “Fortean”’s unfortunate “supernatural” associations. Didn’t want to start a possibly thread-derailing argument over it. So thanks again, SpringheeledJack. Fortean this definitely is.

BTW, Fortean enthusiasts would be familiar with the “Storm carrying the (insert animal/object here) around” Hypothesis. That is why I included it in here. Charles Fort discussed it at length in his books—in relation to “Frog Falls” and other airborne phenomena of his and our time. Like Mystery_Man, he was dead right about the unlikehood of a Storm “selectively” carrying only certain objects/animals but not others. Plus (like I said) there apparently were not storms/tornadoes in the area reported at the time—making this almost certain it was NOT weather-related.

Are these sightings seasonal or related to wind direction ? A researcher could maybe come up with some answers from this aspect, like clouds of dust or pollen or some kind of fungal sporing

Not forgetting chinese kites or strings of lanterns. Not likely I guess. Then last and least some form of pollution like clouds of NO2

As with all things odd that have been reported over the years by people, we’re looking at things that are either: mis-interpretations, hallucinations, illusions/mirages, natural phenomenon encountered by persons not familiar with them, or the real mccoy. In all of those, the information is so sporadic, and so dated that it’s hard to try to go on the trail of something like that.

I tend not to dismiss these witness claims that they encounteed something: I think they did see something, but again, it may have been interpretations of real phenomenon/creatures, etc. and they may not have really encountered what they thought they did.

When you see something out of your realm of experience, you do try to put a rational face on it, dredging through your own background of stored knowledge to try to come up with something. So, the farmer for instance, had an understanding of snakes, and whatever it was he saw, fit the snake motif, so that’s what he called it. Was it a giant flying snake? The practical side of me says, probably not. The Fortean side of me says, “I wasn’t there, who knows.”

I liked the summation on the article, and I think it sums up my attitude as well. I am not going to go spend a lot of time trying to hunt down flying snakes, because it seems Fortean to me, and not something based in cryptozoology. The only way to experience something of that nature is to be in the proverbial right place at the right time (or maybe the wrong place depending on your perspective here…).

In the end, I will still put my energies into hunting down “my” best candidates for cryptids, but I still appreciate these Fortean things that pop up from time to time, if for no other reason than to exercise my philosophical/supernatural side:)

It might be that the explanation might be on some sort of temporary hallucinatory event that prompts the appearance of serpent-like shapes seen through the background of the sky.

Even westerners that experience the ingestion of ayahuasca report seeing hallucinatory imagery filled with snakes and crocodiles, that might be due to the brain interpreting writhing tubular shapes that appear to have a volition of their own as serpents —our old primate emergency systems kicking in when confronted with incomprehensible perceptual input.

The winged snake is one of the most ancient and ubiquitous symbol in human history. It is a very powerful Jungian archetype, conveying the union of opposites —the slithering snake confined to the Earth, and the wings of the birds that inhabit the heavens.

Either that, or we might have to resort to UFOlogical explanations, and someone playing optical tricks on the poor witnesses. If a UFO can be said to change shape from a disc to a truck and then to an automobile, then why not a snake?

Just a wild speculation, of course.

In the case of sky serpents, I tend to doubt that we are dealing with any sort of zoological phenomenon here. I just can’t think of what sort of animal could account for the eyewitness reports, and as has been mentioned there are physical laws to take into account. So while I appreciate the speculation along more supernatural lines of thinking, I think it is worthwhile to look for alternative explanations other than the paranormal or zoological.

Korolloke said these reports may be caused by gliding snakes, but I have a hard time imagining these types of snakes could produce some of the accounts. Gliding snakes first of all need some base from which to spring, like a tree. When they do glide, it is far from flying, but more like a protracted, controlled fall. There is no lift, and the snake has a noticeable downward trajectory. A gliding snake would not likely be described as “wriggling vertically through the skies” as described in one report above. Gliding snakes are also not particularly bulky and heavy, which would be counterproductive to their gliding adaptation. They certainly would not be “as long as a telegraph pole.”

Cryptidsrus brings up the possibility of storms throwing up snakes into the air, but I also have somewhat of a problem with this explanation. Essentially, it is the same connundrum as “frog falls,” in that if there is a storm capable of hurling or sucking snakes up into the air, then why are there no other animals flying about? Why would it be only snakes? It is pretty far fetched to think that a storm would selectively send snakes airborne.

I do think that some reports could be caused by some airborne debris tossed about by the wind, which might give the appearance of a flying serpent. Perhaps we could also have some cases of predatory birds carrying large snakes away as prey. Some birds of prey can carry quite a bit of weight and could feasibly be flying with a snake that appears quite large in comparison. Is it not possible that under certain circumstances a person could see something like this, and mistake it for a winged serpent?

In the end I think that considering the range of sizes and appearances reported in these flying serpent cases, it may not be constructive to focus on any one given explanation. People have long seen wierd things in the sky and there are various possible explanations for these. Strange things in the sky could encompass a good deal of different phenomena, rather than any one culprit. It seems likely to me that a wide range of arial phenomena, misidentifications, optical illusions, and yes even hoaxes or tall tales, could all be at work to some extent or another here with flying serpents as well.

Do I smell a prequel here?