The Cabicanca (informal Portuguese for "What a big beak!") was a cryptid bird witnessed by the population of Aguiar da Beira, Portugal.
Sighting[]
"Tower of the Cabicanca" - a tower named after the creature, said to have been built on the church where it nested
The Cabicanca settled in Aguiar da Beira, building its nest on top of a local church. Apparently, the stork shocked and terrified all who saw it in the community, halting church service and other facets of town life. After some time a passed, a merchant, armed with a recently developed (and thus rare) long gun was made aware of the situation. He spent some time drinking and mustering up courage, before waiting for it to take flight and then shooting it down. The village rejoiced and celebrated the hero, who has since become a revered local figure alongside the bird itself. The creature’s body doesn’t appear to have been preserved, and brief descriptions for curious locals give us the only knowledge of its appearance.
Description[]
The bird was described by Pinho Leal as having the following;
"enormous beak, a gaunt neck, long legs and an ugly body"
Subsequent retellings emphasize a large beak and stork identity.
Theories[]
The white stork, one possible identity favored by scholars
Most scholars believe the cabicanca was either a white stork (Ciconia ciconia), or a black stork (Ciconia nigra). Both birds are native to the Iberian Peninsula, and are known to nest on the rooves of buildings. However, neither species are particularly aggressive, or “ugly” – their patterns and colors are relatively tame. It should also be noted that these birds are by no means a rare sight in the area, so it seems unlikely one would be so unusual and intimidating to locals.
The marabou stork, suggested as a more likely alternative to the native storks
With these factors in mind, some have suggested a vagrant marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer) instead. Marabou storks are quite imposing due to their large size and bald heads, matching quite well with the witness descriptions. Marabou storks aren’t native to the region, but have been seen in the Iberian Peninsula recently (extremely rarely), potentially as a result of illegal imports. However, assuming this is the cause for modern vagrants, this is a major hole in this theory which has yet to be resolved.
Other theories include vagrant pelicans, shoebill storks, neopterosaurus, and various extinct giant Leptoptilos genera from Asia, although all identities have their own respective issues
Notes and references[]
https://www.portugalnummapa.com/cabicanca
"Portugal antigo e moderno : diccionario geographico, estatistico, chorographico, heraldico, archeologico, historico, biographico e etymologico de todas as cidades, villas e freguezias de Portugal e de grande numero de aldeias ..." by Pinho Leal, page 38