Videos of Object Resembling Flying Humanoid Provoke Speculation of 'Mothman' in Phoenix, Arizona

A still image taken from the video submitted to MUFON.

Updated 4/14/20

Two videos of an object resembling a flying humanoid filmed over Phoenix, Arizona, on March 22nd, have some speculating that perhaps ‘Mothman’ has come to the Grand Canyon State.

The first video to garner widespread attention was submitted to the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) the day after it was filmed.

According to the report, the sighting took place at approximately 5 pm.

We first noticed it while sitting in our backyard. Black object moving slowly from [northeast] to [southwest]; very strange shape looking like a figure with wings. My wife commented that it looked a a giant bumble bee. We used binoculars and video taped. Confirmed odd shape looking like object was spinning as it was moving. It was an overcast evening but object was very defined in black. Clouds were moving opposite direction. No noise could be heard, moving under clouds about a mile up. This object looked like a giant transformer.

The second video was recorded in Ahwatukee Foothills Village, part of the East Valley region of the Phoenix metropolitan area, and was shared by the mother of the person who filmed it.

According to the woman, her son had filmed the object and shared it to the social media video-sharing site Snapchat.

Speculation regarding the object quickly turned to flying humanoids once the video was shared to social media, specifically the winged being known as Mothman.

Skeptics pointed out that if the object were a creature, it’s odd that it does not appear to be moving any of its limbs. But believers rebutted by explaining that many Mothman witnesses describe the being as flying without moving its wings.

Many skeptics said that they believe the object captured on video to be a balloon—specifically, a balloon of popular Toy Story character Buzz Lightyear, an item available for sale through retailers like Party City. However, weather data from the time of the sighting shows that the wind was out of the south/southwest, which would have been moving against the object’s heading, according to the MUFON report.

While a balloon could explain the object’s stiff appearance and slow, linear movement, at this time the sightings remain unexplained.

The Singular Fortean Society reached out to the woman who shared the second video, and she agreed to ask her son if he’d be willing to discuss his experience.

The young man sent a message a few days later that said "an email with questions would work best, it’s easier for me to write down all my thoughts."

Investigator Tobias Wayland then compiled a list of questions and verified the witness' identity. Wayland decided after doing so that the witness should remain anonymous, since he is a minor.

"My grandma had noticed it in the sky before any other of my family members, and that's when I took out my phone and recorded it on Snapchat ," the seventeen-year-old said of his experience. "It appeared to just hover in the sky for a while and would slowly turn. It had legs and a head I could make out, but no arms. We watched it for a good 30 minutes before it drifted off farther away from us and higher."

The witness said that, "at first glance when I realized I was looking at something I've never seen before, it scared me pretty bad—like fight or flight mode—but then it receded when we all stared for a little bit. We also talked to some strangers and got their opinion on what it was."

"The only other time I saw something paranormal was probably a ghost, maybe, when I was younger, but I can't remember much of that," he added.

Wayland sent the witness a list of follow-up questions, but has yet to receive a response.

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