Mysterious flying creature terrorizing Oklahoma family at night

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — An Oklahoma City woman says she’s being terrorized by a flying creature that continues to bang on the door of her back porch, causing her family to wake in fright.

“It’s really frightening when you hear the bang,” Carol Dillin told NewsNation affiliate KFOR.

Identifying and stopping the flying creature from hitting Dillin’s back door has become her obsession over the past month. She said it’s been tormenting her family at night, even with all of her lights out and her changes to make the porch not-so-friendly to flying foes.

“There’s an owl there, an owl there,” she said, pointing to two large, fake bird statues designed to scare off birds.

“And then here’s Harry,” she said, pointing at a fake skeleton in a flannel shirt. “He’s supposed to be a scarecrow, but nobody’s afraid of him.”

*Carol Dillon has used owl decoys and even a scarecrow to try to ward off the flying nuisance. (Courtesy of Carol Dillin)*

Dillin has set off bug bombs, used bug spray, and put a cabinet and pillows in front of her door. However, the creature keeps at it.

In several security camera videos, you can hear the creature hit the glass, making a loud thud.

*The creature slams against the door of her back porch, waking everyone in the house. (Courtesy of Carol Dillin*)

“I thought somebody was hitting baseballs against the house. Then it started sounding like basketballs,” said Dillin.

*Dillon believes it’s a bat, but others aren’t so sure. (Courtesy of Carol Dillin*)

Dillin swears she knows what the creature is.

“I’ve seen enough of the videos to know because of the scalloped wings,” said Dillin. “You know, that’s a bat.”

*A large moth — of which there are several species in Oklahoma — could be making the noise, experts claim. (Courtesy of Carol Dillin*)

*Bat or moth? (Courtesy of Carol Dillin*)

Micah Holmes, with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, said it’s hard to tell, but he believes it’s a moth. He said moths in Oklahoma can grow up to seven inches long.

“This is a good year for moths because it’s been pretty wet, for the summer,” said Holmes. “This is the time of year they’re out and trying to mate.”

“If it is a bat, keep in mind, bats eat a lot of insects, mosquitos and other things that we don’t like,” said Holmes. “Bats do serve a purpose, and they won’t hurt you either.”

Oklahoma State University insect diagnostician Alex Harman, who also viewed the video and screenshots, said he doesn’t believe it is a bat because they use echolocation and wouldn’t be flying into the glass.

Much like Holmes, Harman leaned more towards a Luna, Sphinx, or Polyphemus moth. He said those flying insects are big enough to produce the loud thuds.

*Five-Spotted Sphinx Moth (Courtesy of Alex Harman*)

Harman said although Dillin has her lights turned off, the creatures may be attracted to the tiny green light on her camera.

“But, how is the moth surviving all the bug spray?” asked Dillin.

Harman said the bug bombs and bug spray wouldn’t affect the outdoor moths.

Meanwhile, Dillin is at her wit’s end. She’s also ready to close off her back porch.

“We have a guy coming Friday morning to give us an estimate, and next Monday, we have another guy coming for another estimate,” said Dillin.

KFOR contacted WildCare in Noble, Oklahoma, who said they need better footage to determine what the flying nuisance is, for certain. They suggested Dillin buy a trail cam to get some perspective. Dillin said she plans to buy one.