Sighting in Malleville-sur-le-Bec, August 5, 2007

While looking through their photographs on a computer, a person noticed a strange image on one of them. The pictures had been taken from inside a car, from a distance of about 1,800 metres, using a large 100-300 zoom lens with a teleconverter. Nothing had been seen at the time: there was no visual observation.

GEIPAN's examination of the whole series of photos made it clear that the image showed a large bird taking off at the moment the picture was taken. In the first photo the bird had not yet left, and in the third it had disappeared completely. The distance, the use of the zoom and the position inside the vehicle explain why the photographer never noticed it. According to GEIPAN, this kind of mistake is very common: seeing a bird fly past is so ordinary that the brain, focused on taking the shot, simply discards the information.

The case was classified B (probably identified): a curious image on a photograph, caused by a bird taking flight.