Live Pterosaur Media Center
Scientific Papers
David Woetzel of New Hampshire and Jonathan Whitcomb of California  may be the only writers who have published, in a peer-reviewed journal,  scientific papers supporting the idea of modern living pterosaurs. Both of the  American cryptozoologists explored Umboi Island, Papua New Guinea, in  two separate expeditions, late in 2004, and interviewed native eyewitnesses  of the ropen.   The more recent scientific article, by Whitcomb, was published in the  Creation Research Society Quarterly, Volume 45, Winter 2009: “Reports of  Living Pterosaurs in the Southwest Pacific.” It mostly examines sightings in  Papua New Guinea within the past few years and decades. (To quote:)   “Following publication of the book Searching for Ropens in mid-2006,  Paul Nation’s late-2006 expedition resulted in video evidence of what  is believed to be bioluminescence of an unidentified flying creature.  This interested the producers of Destination Truth on the Sci-Fi  Channel enough that they mounted a video expedition in early 2007  that recorded another instance of this unidentified light. Thanks to the  broadcast of that episode in mid-2007, the public has been exposed  to the possibility of living pterosaurs.   “. . . Jonah Jim and Jonathan Ragu, both of Umboi, made separate  sightings in different areas of Umboi. However, both described a  glowing, flying creature. When shown many illustrated silhouettes of  birds, bats, and pterosaurs, both chose the Sordes Pilosus, a  Rhamphorhynchoid pterosaur as best fitting what they had seen  (Woetzel-Guessman expedition).   “. . . the first noncreationist ropen expedition team—the television  production, Destination Truth, led by Josh Gates—videotaped a light  similar to that videotaped by Nation. Two forensic experts could not  explain the evidence.”   Woetzel’s scientific paper, “The Fiery Flying Serpent,” published in the  Creation Research Society Quarterly, Volume 42, March, 2006, on the other  hand, mostly examines old or ancient accounts of possible pterosaurs:   “Over the years Biblical scholars have speculated about the nature of  the creature described in the Authorized Version [of the English Bible]  as “the fiery flying serpent.” The nexus of modern archaeological  discoveries, ancient historical accounts, and recent cryptozoological  research provides new insights into the identification and  characteristics of this creature.”                                                           ### The opinions expressed are those of Jonathan David Whitcomb. Media professionals may use these paragraphs in whole or in part for news distribution. All of the images on this page may also be used by the news media.
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This village leader saw the ropen light: a brilliant flash
From the 2009 peer-reviewed scientific paper  “Reports of Living Pterosaurs in the Southwest Pacific” (by Jonathan D. Whitcomb, CRSQ,  Volume 45, Winter 2009):   “Most ropen sightings are of a bright but brief  glow that moves approximately horizontally at  about 330 ft (100 m) above ground level, often  against a mountain background. Based on  interviews from the 2004 expeditions . . . an  estimated several hundred Umboi Islanders  have seen this light. . . .” 
First of thirteen pages of the scientific paper by Jonathan D. Whitcomb
According to paleontology research, involving  fossils, the Rhamphorhynchoid pterosaur tail is  mostly inflexible except at the base where it  connects to the body of the creature. This is in  harmony with findings by the expedition of  Woetzel and Guessman (in 2004) regarding the  ropen of Umboi Island. The ropen was said to  have a tail that does not bend except around  the base of the tail. 
Searching for Ropens and Finding God (in its  fourth edition), by Jonathan Whitcomb, may  be called the “Bible of modern pterosaurs.”