Encounter Atlas
If something is watching you
Dogman reports have a pattern: a dark road or a deer stand, a growl or a smell, then eyes at a height that doesn't make sense. Whatever is out there, the safe response is the same, and it's the same response that gets you the best record.
- Stay put and stay calm. Don't run. Running from any predator, from a coyote to a cougar, can trigger a chase.
- Keep your light on it and get bigger. Stand up straight, face it, hold your arms or jacket out. If you're with others, group up shoulder to shoulder.
- Hit record. Phone voice recorder first (it works in total darkness), then video if you can hold the light on it. Say the time out loud.
- Make noise. Talk loudly and firmly. Don't scream, which can sound like prey.
- Back away slowly toward your vehicle, camp or the trail, keeping it in view. Don't turn your back and don't follow it if it leaves.
- If it attacks, fight back. For nearly every animal you could meet at night in North America, fighting back hard is the right call. The exception is a defensive grizzly attack, where lying flat and protecting your neck is advised.
- Once you're safe, write it down. Before you talk it over, before you sleep, before you read anyone else's story.
Never
- Never shoot at eyes or a shape you can't fully identify. Hunters and hikers wear headlamps; eyeshine from a dog looks like eyeshine from a coyote. This is how people get killed.
- Never follow it into the woods in the dark. Come back in daylight, with someone, and look for tracks then.
- Never let pets off the lead at night in the backcountry. A dog that chases something into the dark is the start of a lot of bad stories.
Eyeshine: who's looking back at you?
Many animals have a mirror-like layer at the back of the eye (the tapetum lucidum) that bounces light back out, which is why their eyes glow in your beam. The colour, the height, the spacing and the way the eyes move all help narrow it down.
Typical eye height on level ground, standing normally. Colours vary with angle, light colour and age; treat this as a starting point, not a verdict.
| Animal | Usual eyeshine | Eye height | Giveaways |
|---|---|---|---|
| White-tailed and mule deer | White to pale green-white | 3–4.5 ft | Often several pairs; heads bob down to feed; a loud snort or "blow" when alarmed |
| Elk | White | 5–6 ft | Big, widely spaced eyes; herds; bugling in fall |
| Moose | Reddish | 6–7 ft | Very high, wide-set eyes: a common cause of "something tall" at night in moose country |
| Black bear | Yellow to orange, sometimes reddish or green | 2–3 ft (5–6 ft standing) | Large, round, close to the ground; slow swinging movement |
| Cougar | Green-gold to yellow | 2–2.5 ft | Steady stare, eyes fairly close together, may lower its head |
| Bobcat | Green-yellow | 1.5 ft | Smaller version of the cougar |
| Coyote | Green-gold | 1.5–2 ft | Often in pairs or groups; quick, trotting movement |
| Red fox | Usually green | 1–1.3 ft | Darting, low; screams that sound human |
| Domestic dogs and cats | Usually green, can be yellow, orange or red | Varies | Blue-eyed pets may have little or no shine |
| Raccoon | Yellow | Under 1 ft, or up a tree | Bright eyes very close together; often in trees, which puts them at strange heights |
| Opossum | Dull orange | Under 1 ft | Slow, waddling; hisses |
| Rabbits and hares | Red | Under 0.5 ft | Freeze, then bolt |
| Owls | Red to orange | Anywhere up a tree | The classic "red eyes 8 feet up". Head turns, then the eyes vanish as it flies |
| Alligators | Red | At the water line | Southern swamps; eyes skim the surface |
| Spiders | Green sparkles | On the ground | Dozens of tiny single points in grass: wolf spiders |
| Feral hogs | Little or none | 1.5–2.5 ft | Pigs lack the reflective layer; you may hear grunting and see nothing |
| People, apes | None (red only in flash photos) | — | Humans and great apes have no reflective layer, so no true glow in a torch beam |
The puzzle
Humans, chimps and gorillas don't have eyeshine, which is why a person standing in your beam doesn't glow. Yet glowing eyes are one of the most common details in Bigfoot and Dogman reports. Some researchers argue an unknown animal could simply have the reflective layer; sceptics say the glowing eyes usually belong to a known animal at a confusing height. Either way, eye colour and height are worth recording carefully.
Why the height can fool you
- Slopes: a deer on a bank above a road can put its eyes 7 or 8 feet above the road surface.
- Logs, rocks and stumps: a coyote standing on a fallen tree is suddenly a tall coyote.
- Trees: raccoons, bobcats, house cats and owls all climb or perch.
- Distance: in the dark you can't judge range well, so you can't judge height either. Note what's around the eyes (fence posts, a car, a tree) and measure it in daylight.
- Spacing: eyes far apart mean a big head close by, or something very big further off. Close-set eyes at head height may be a raccoon in a tree, not a giant.
Night sounds that fool people
Sounds carry strangely at night, bouncing off ridges and water. Before you decide a sound is unknown, compare it with these. The Macaulay Library at Cornell has recordings of most of them, free.
A woman screamingShort, hoarse, terrifying screams, especially in winter during the mating season. Also high yips and a sort of cough-bark.
A baby crying, or a cat fight from hellYowls, growls and screams, often in late winter.
A long, eerie screamRare to hear. Females in heat yowl like a huge housecat. Most "cougar screams" turn out to be foxes or owls.
A crowd of maniacsYips, howls and wavering group chorus. Two coyotes can sound like a dozen, and they often start up at sirens.
Monkeys in the trees"Who cooks for you" is the normal call, but pairs break into wild cackles, whoops and gurgles. A top Bigfoot-howl suspect east of the Rockies and in the Northwest.
A deep, soft hootDeep hoo-hoo-hooo. Young ones make a rasping, hissing screech.
A whinnying horse, very smallA descending whinny or a long trill. Tiny bird, spooky sound.
A screaming whistleBulls bugle in the fall: a low groan that climbs into a high, wild whistle, then grunts.
A sharp blowAn alarm "whoosh" or snort, sometimes with foot stamping. Bucks grunt, does bleat.
A fight in the darkGrowls, screeches, chitters and purrs. Fighting raccoons sound much bigger than they are.
Whining, moaning chatterSqueals, moans and teeth-chattering, often up a tree.
A rock thrown in the waterA loud tail slap on water when alarmed. Several in a row sound like someone lobbing boulders.
A child in painCaught rabbits let out a shrill, very human scream.
A wolf, or a lunaticWails, yodels and tremolo laughs across northern lakes.
Grunting, crashing brushGroups move noisily through thick cover. Dangerous at close range in the South.
Anything at allOther campers, hunters, kids on ATVs, pranksters. Sound travels for miles on a still night.
When you hear something, record it, then estimate the direction with your phone compass and how far away it seemed. Note the time and whether anything else (dogs, coyotes, birds) reacted. Then run it past the Merlin app and the library before calling it unknown.
Documenting a night encounter
Audio first
Sound works in the dark and your phone can always do it. Start recording as soon as anything happens and narrate: time, what you see, which way.
Then video
Phone "night mode" stills smear anything that moves. Video with your torch on the subject is better. Hold still and don't zoom in digitally.
Thermal, if you have it
A thermal monocular or camera shows warm bodies through brush and in complete darkness, and many can record. It can't see through glass, so step out of the vehicle or roll the window down.
Mark your spot
Drop a GPS pin where you stood and take a compass bearing toward what you saw. Snap a photo in that direction, even if it's black.
The next morning
- Go back in daylight, with someone else.
- Stand where you stood and photograph the scene in the direction you were looking.
- Have your friend stand where the eyes were. Photograph them from your spot, then measure the height and distance with a tape or rangefinder.
- Look for sign: tracks, flattened grass, hair on fences, scat, broken branches. Photograph with scale before touching.
- Note what's there: a fence, a bank, a log or a deer trail can explain a lot.
Night safety basics
- Never alone, never off-trail in the dark. If you are alone (sitting in a stand, driving a forest road), someone should know exactly where you are and when to worry.
- Two lights, minimum. A headlamp and a bright handheld, with spare batteries.
- Know the season. Night-time deer poachers and legal night hunting (for hogs, coyotes and raccoons in some states) mean other people with guns and lights may be around.
- Vehicles are the biggest danger on forest roads. Park well off the road, wear something reflective, and don't stand in the road with a light.
- Carry bear spray where bears live, and know how to use it before you need it.
- Cold sneaks up. Sitting still at night, you lose heat fast. Pack a warm layer more than you think you need.
Night kit
See and be seen
Record and stay safe
Had an encounter? Read how to write a credible report, then tell us about it. You can read more about the Dogman and the Rougarou in the creature index.
