Known as the Valley of Death, the little town of Jatinga in Assam is the place of an annual mass death of birds that has puzzled scientists for years. The locals have long thought the seemingly suicidal birds were angry spirits from the sky come to torment them.
Deep in the heart of the Dima Hasao district of Assam lies a small village shrouded in mystery and surrounded by eerie legends. This is Jatinga, a place where birds fall from the sky in droves, and strange lights flicker in the darkness. For years, scientists, researchers, poets and curious visitors have tried to unravel the secrets of this enigmatic village, but the truth remains elusive.
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Some believe the small town of Jatinga with only 2500 people is a cursed place, haunted by the spirits of the dead. Others claim that it is a vortex of strange energies that attract birds and other creatures to their doom.
The Mystery of Jatinga: Birds committing suicide
Jatinga is known for its strange phenomenon of birds committing suicide and it has at least been happening for over a century. Every year, during the months of August to November, between 7 pm to 10 pm, hundreds of birds come crashing down to the ground in Jatinga. It is said it happens mostly on moonless and foggy dark nights.
The Birds of Assam: Jatinga in Assam, India has long been known as the Bermuda Triangle of Birds. The strange case of countless of birds seemingly plummeting to their death has puzzled scientists for years.
It is a bizarre sight that has puzzled researchers for years. The birds that are affected are usually night migratory species that come from the Himalayan ranges. The birds that are affected by this phenomenon include the tiger bunting, black bittern, and little egret, amongst others.
Theories Behind the Bird Suicides
The local tribals first took this natural phenomenon to be spirits flying from the sky to terrorize them and is also believed to be behind killing many of those that have plunged to death with bamboo poles. Many studies over the years have dispelled the bird suicide theory, but says it is actually the village on a killing spree of the birds to eat them.
There have been many theories behind the bird suicides in Jatinga. Some people believe that the birds are attracted to the lights in the village and become disoriented, leading to their deaths. It could also be the wind that makes them go towards the lights as safety but are hit with bamboo poles on their way down and killed.
Others believe that the birds are driven to suicide by a magnetic force that emanates from the hills surrounding Jatinga. However, none of these theories have been scientifically proven.
Legends and Myths Associated with Jatinga
Jatinga is steeped in legends and myths that add to its enigmatic aura. One of the most popular legends associated with Jatinga is that it is a cursed place. It is also said that this is why the villagers set up the bamboo poles, who feared the birds that they thought were evil spirits sent from the sky to cause them harm and it was meant as more of a protective measurement when the birds got attracted to the lights from the village. Or whatever that is making the birds drop from the sky that is.
The Green Country: Assam at the eastern foot of the Himalayas is often associated with mysteries and mythical tales and the hill village of Jatinga is just one of them. The place is also known for its diversity of faun and flora.
According to the legend, a powerful witch cursed the village, causing the birds to fall from the sky. The witch is said to have been angered by the villagers who refused to help her when she was in need. Another legend states that Jatinga is the gateway to the underworld, and the birds that fall from the sky are the spirits of the dead trying to communicate with the living.
The Enduring Mystery of Jatinga
Jatinga is a place that continues to baffle scientists, researchers, and visitors alike. Its strange phenomenon of bird suicides, haunted places, and legends have made it an enigmatic destination that draws people from all over the world. While the truth behind the mysteries of Jatinga may never be fully understood, one thing is for sure: it is a place that will leave a lasting impression on anyone who dares to explore its secrets.
What really happened to the missing hikers that mysteriously disappeared at Sai Kung? Did they simply get lost and die in the dense jungle? Or could it be that there really is something of a mystic realm that leads to another dimension there?
Sai Kung is a popular place for hikers to enjoy nature away from the bustling urban life. There is however a dark side to this as many hikers are said to have disappeared from what has been called, this mystic realm or the Sai Kung Barrier 西貢結界.
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This mysterious realm is also located at a popular hiking area at the Sai Kung Peninsula 西貢半島, on the outskirts of Hong Kong.
People speculate as to what this is caused by, and some claim that the place is an entrance to a parallel timeline or something of another dimension.
Read also: Hoia Baciu – a place where there are also said people have been reported disappearing and reappearing as if coming out from another realm.
The Missing Police Officer
One of the more popular stories that are connected to this urban legend is the story about a missing police officer. The story got so famous they even made a movie based on it.
One day in 2005, a police officer was out hiking on his day off close to Pak Tam Chung and got lost. He called 999 for help as he knew precisely how it was done, working in the police force himself.
He gave his coordinates to the dispatchers, but they were unable to locate them. The conversation was strange and somewhat halted. They did send out rescuers, but to this day, he has never been found.
The Dead Boy Scout Leader
Just a month later there was another strange case that would happen in the area. Four hikers set out from Cheung Shand and went through Shek Uk Shan, Nam Shan Yung and Pak Sha O.
They stopped to rest close to where the missing police officer had disappeared just a month before. One of the hikers was a 23 year old experienced Boy Scout leader. He felt sick and asked the three women he was hiking with to go on without him.
Two days later his body was found by the police.
The Missing Bus Driver
Fast forward to 2009 there was another strange thing that happened in the mountain. A bus driver went missing in Sai Kung, but his belongings were found. His family called his cellphone and a fisherman answered it and said he had found it while he was fishing in the deep blue sea.
The bus driver became one of those who were never found again.
The Missing Hiker
In 2011 999 received a phone call near Pak Tam from someone asking for help, but the phone call was mysteriously strange, just as the police officers had been years before.
They couldn’t find the missing man this time either.
Found hikers that ended up dead were also discovered in 2019 and 2020 and 2021. It is after all a popular hiking area.
What Really Happened at Sai Kung
These mysterious disappearances have caused major speculations over the years. People disappearing out in the wild is perhaps not as uncommon as we want it to be, especially not in a jungle as dense as it is here with many places to go off parth, but so many over the years? What is it about this place?
A common denominator about these cases is that they were in the far northeast of Sai Kung, and whether it is a portal to another dimension or a huge python snake that got to the disappeared hikers, or even bad Feng Shui in the area that makes it haunted, you should always thread carefully and never off the path.
This haunted forest known to be the Bermuda Triangle of Romania with its eerily coiled trees and whispers of local legends reminds us all that Transylvania is not only haunted by the legend of Dracula and vampires. Take a walk in the Hoia Baciu Forest and hopefully you will get out as well.
Romania has a rich history of the unexplained and lores and legends that will creep into the bones of those listening. This forest is clouded in mystery and is no exception. Strange orbs of lights are said coming from inside the treeline, and rumors of it being a possible gateway to another dimension draws desperate people to try for themselves. The stories of the haunted forest has reached an international reputation now and is on most lists of “most haunted places in the world“.
Read More: Have a look at all our stories about haunted forests: Here
The forest has always had a paranormal undertone whispering in the wind from old legends, but modern lore of the forest being a hotspot for UFOs, missing time and has started to take hold as well. All of these legends are what has given it the nickname the Bermuda Triangle of Romania. The mysterious forest of Hoia Baciu, or Pădurea Hoia as it is in Romanian, has many haunted legends lingering among the trees.
Hoia Baciu Forest: The Transylvanian forest is shrouded in mystery and intrigue, largely due to its peculiar trees, a dense thicket of gnarled, contorted trees with twisted branches that seem to reach out like spectral fingers. Local legends claim that the trees are imbued with supernatural energy, and many believe that they are gateways to other dimensions or portals to the spirit world.//Source: Wikimedia
The Haunted Forest for Ufology
It’s not only those living close to the Hoia Baciu forest, superstitious people or those seeking ghosts that claim there is something going on in between the trees. Even in academic circles there are those who were intrigued by the strange place and the subject has been dealt with by both national research as well as overseas.
UFOOver the Treetops: This picture is one of the pictures Emil Barnea took of the sky above the forest, now believed to be of more strange origin.
Even some selected professors at the university in the city claim this particular forest is a place where paranormal activity happens, and in the modern world filled with strange disappearance legends, tales of aliens and UFO’s has started becoming a part of the lore of the haunted Hoia Baciu Forest.
In the late 60’s a biologist named Alexandru Sift came back with pictures from the forest that he claimed were flying UFO’s in the sky over the twisted trees. Sift wandered into the forest to have a closer look at the strange vegetation that can be found in there as part of his research.
These pictures of the alleged UFO’s were published by his chemist friend of Sift, side by side with theories about the paranormal stuff happening in the old forest right outside the city. And what he found and reported off got more people interested in both the paranormal legends that had seemingly always followed Hoia Baciu.
The same claim about seeing a UFO inside of Hoia Baciu came from a military technician named Emil Barnea as well. In 1968 he took some pictures in the western part of the forest while he was camping in the forest. Barnea took a huge hit by publishing the pictures as the communist government at the time looked at tales like ghosts and aliens like madness and superstition. He even lost his job because of the publishing of the pictures.
But what was the truth behind the pictures? What flew in the sky that made people think it had to be aliens? Both of these cases, with what seemingly looked like picture evidence, helped to give the forest a sense of notoriety more than a local place filled with local legends.
When first delving into the local lore since the first trees started growing there, strange occurrences had been reported long before the 60’s and people started talking about UFOs.
The Bermuda Triangle of Romania
Hoia Baciu Forest is located near the Cluj-Napoca city in the northwestern part of Romania, an old forest still stands only half an hour away from the city by car. The forest is in notorious Transylvania, and for many it is expected that a haunted forest should be placed right here. Although the city close to the forest is free from the Dracula tales of Bran Castle and the tourist attractions one might find in a lot of towns capitalizing on the vampiric lore of the country. But there is a certain eeriness to the trees bending in twisted ways with skeleton-like branches reaching out for the hikers.
We are away from the bustling modern everyday life from the city and here in Hoia Baciu Forest and the only thing to hear is the falling leaves, whispering as they reach the ground, and the sounds of deer, walking among the trees. Some might say Hoia Baciu is much more scary than Dracula himself.
Strange Lights of Hoia Baciu: Another one of the pictures taken by Barnea in the 60’s showcasing strange lights that has been told legends about in Hoia Baciu throughout the years. What the lights and figures over the forest really was has never been found out, but has been the source of much speculation within the ufology community.
When saying the forest is an old one, it truly is. As in 55 000 year old. With such old places like the mysterious Hoia Baciu, there are old stories that no one really knows when they started or came from. Farmers in the valley claim the forest is haunted to this day, and especially stories about strange disappearances there are plenty of. The story about the strange disappearances are also why the Hoia Baciu forest is also sometimes referred to as: “The Bermuda Triangle of Romania.”
The Disappeared Shepherd
One of these disappearance stories from Hoia Baciu tells of a shepherd that went into the Hoia Baciu and vanished with more than 200 of his sheep without a trace, never to return. Perhaps a man could simply vanish in a forest by himself, but 200 sheep? The stories about many people disappearing are odd considering the forest is not that big compared to other places an covers an area of about 3 square kilometers.
In some sources it is after the disappeared shepherd that the forest is named Hoia Baciu. The locals are at times afraid to enter the forest because of tales like this that have been handed down for generations. The once brave enough to venture in have also complained about feeling nauseous, itching as well as getting migraines when they are brave enough to enter.
The Girl Who Vanished
Perhaps the most famous tale from this forest is of the 5 year old girl that wandered into the forest one day and got lost and disappeared from the face of the earth, at least for the rest of the world. Years passed and after five years of being missing she came back out from Hoia Baciu, supposedly in the same clothes she wore on the day of her disappearance, not looking a day older.
When asked where she had been and what had happened, she had no answers. She reappeared in the forest with no memories of where she had been and what happened to her, at least, she didn’t want to share it. For her it had apparently only been a little while, not many years.
Many accounts claim there are many, perhaps as many as thousands of people that have disappeared in this Bermuda Triangle of Romania over the years. But of course, no hard evidence is found of these occurrences. Because they never happened, or merely because they happened so long ago that evidence of this is long gone?
Ghosts Haunting the Forest
There are not only strange legends about people being whisked away for years or forever or pseudo science of UFO and aliens that are told going on inside of the forest. A part of the local legends of the forest also deals with ghosts haunting the trees.
One of the ghost stories tells of the ghosts of Romanian peasants that were murdered in the forest and is believed to still be trapped in the forest, unable to move on.
They are sometimes seen wandering among the trees in Hoia Baciu, observing the people entering their final resting place. Other tales of shadow figures, something looking like ectoplasms as well as hearing strange voices are also told by joggers and hikers. One of the ghosts are supposedly also wearing something that looks like the northern Romanian traditional clothing.
The Poiana Rotunda Inside Hoia Baciu
The Poiana Rotunda: The clearing in the forest were most of the strange happenings is taking place giving the nickname Bermuda Triangle of Romania// Photo: Lajsikonik
Most of the paranormal reporting has now started centering around a supposed vegetative dead zone found inside of Hoia Baciu. This place is called Poiana Rotunda, or ‘Round Meadow’ found west in the forest.
The Poiana Rotunda is a one kilometer area of grassland inside the thick forest and is a close to perfect circle on the ground where no trees grow from the soil, apparently without an explanation.
People claim that they feel nauseous or dizzy when coming close to this place, and most of the strange things that are told about the forest are said to have started or happened around this dead zone.
What happened here has been up for much speculation. Could it be from a UFO landing at this place, could it be a sign of the gateway to the parallel dimension that seems to have spirited away many people throughout the years?
The more earthly and natural reasoning for this mysterious meadow in the middle of the forest could also be caused by natural causes or illegal deforestation the forest is suffering from. Soil samples have been taken from the place, but as of now, we don’t really have a definite explanation for this phenomenon.
A Walk Inside of the most Haunted Forest in the World
No matter what really lies inside the forest, of it really is haunted or some sort of Bermuda Triangle of Romania, it certainly pulls the strangest and darkest things out from people visiting. It is a perfect setting to put on a tv-show, sell books claiming all sorts of stuff.
Maple groves, gatherings of beech, ash and elm wrap around themselves, contorting to strange shapes that perhaps help the feeling of uneasiness and gives the forest an overall creep factor. Blocking out the sun, leaving us in a sort of eternal shadow below the trees, anything seems possible in Hoia Baciu.
An online magazine about the paranormal, haunted and macabre. We collect the ghost stories from all around the world as well as review horror and gothic media.
