YEAR: 2013

SEASON: Winter

MONTH: March

DATE: 23

STATE: Illinois

COUNTY: McDonough County

LOCATION DETAILS: Two miles west of Illinois Rt 67 on N 1850th Rd.

NEAREST TOWN: Blandinsville

NEAREST ROAD: Nearest big road was 67

OBSERVED: I was driving home from Macomb Illinois and looked out in the field (mostly checking to make sure there were no deer) when I saw some type of animal, I have never seen before. It was on all fours, long haired, bigger than a dog but smaller than a buck -deer. It was long haired, light colored, and just standing in the field. It took me a minute to comprehend it. Didn't really look like the right terrain but I looked at info and saw one had been sighted close by in 2012.

ALSO NOTICED: Nothing unusual but I was not expecting to see something like that. I did mention it to a good friend of mine the next day. I told her I still hadn't figured out what it was!! That I had never seen anything like it before.

OTHER WITNESSES: I was alone

OTHER STORIES: Just looked on this site after I was telling another friend about it and she showed me there had been. A sighting in Colchester Illinois and a couple nearby towns.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Almost full moon. It was around 9:15 p.m. It was a clear night.

ENVIRONMENT: Water source nearby but was out in an open field. There are some wooded areas nearby but was scarce where it was at the time I saw it.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Stan Courtney:

I spoke with both witness by phone:

In summary -

• The animal was on all fours.
• Witness stated that the animal was shorter than a white-tailed deer (a large buck can stand 48 inches tall).
• The animal was very heavily built.
• The greyish hair was 6 inches long.
• It was the witness' impression that the animal was not wanting its face to be seen but kept looking down towards the ground.
• As the witness drove by the animal stood perfectly still.
• The animal was @ 75 yards from the vehicle.
• It was four days before full-moon, with the moon having risen at 3:41 p.m.

About BFRO Investigator Stan Courtney:

Stan Courtney has a special interest in wildlife audio recording. He has attended numerous BFRO Expeditions. See Stan's blog StanCourtney.com for recordings he has collected over the years.

Stan Courtney can be reached at illinois@bfro.net