The other day I posted this video, which I was sent by an American TV researcher. I was not aware that it had been so widely distributed and am quite surprised that I have not seen it before. I always look for zoological explanations if I can, and Robert Schneck wrote:
Hi Jon,
Assuming it's not a CGI hoax, it might be a wading bird, an egret perhaps, walking directly towards the camera. Why it's walking around at night I couldn't guess, though something might have disturbed it.
Sincerely,
Robert
On the other hand, my lovely wife Corinna suggested that it could be a snake rearing up.
I'd agree with you; this is most probably an egret walking around slowly. If the light source to the left is visible light and not an infrared illuminator (impossible to tell from the footage, BTW) then this could explain why the bird doesn't look too disorientated. As far as birds are concerned any light at all including the unearthly orange glow of low-pressure sodium street lights is sometimes enough to wake them up in the night and start them off singing.
ReplyDeleteOne other point is perhaps worth mentioning here on colours on CCTV. At home I have a monochrome CCTV which has very good infrared sensitivity, i.e. no infrared cut filter as most digital cameras do. Viewed through this camera a dark blue coat that is relatively inconspicuous to the human eye at night or in twilight is highly visible to the infrared vision of this camera; it looks about the same "colour" as a white t-shirt.
So, the colour of the bird on this video is most unlikely to be realistic, and the animal is probably a lot more drab to human eyes than the camera makes it appear.