Have You Ever Heard Mysterious Screams in the Woods of Illinois or Wisconsin?

Have you ever been in the woods and heard what sounds like a woman or velociraptor screaming? Don't worry, it's likely not as serious as you think.

Weird Sounds in Nature

For the record, I am not a camper, but I do spend a lot of time at a cabin in the woods of Wisconsin so I've heard a LOT of weird, and sometimes terrifying, calls in nature.

Thanks to the Strange Wisconsin Facebook group, I recently learned that squirrels "scream" when they are distressed, and today I learned that another animal can cause some people to panic in the woods of Illinois and Wisconsin.

On October 18, 2023, one man posted this question;

Has anyone heard or do they know what makes a sound like a velociraptor calling for other raptors up here in wi, sounds exactly like a raptor call from Jurassic park, was weird as hell. I heard it one day, and a week later my gf was outside and came in to tell me that she heard it too. Whatever it is sets the dog off and he just wants to get inside.

Okay, I know velociraptors aren't running loose in the woods of Wisconsin or Illinois, but what is actually making a scream like that?!? Many commenters on the post suggested it could be an owl or deer, while others said;

Probably the cranes, they sound very prehistoric.

Female cougars calling for a mate.

Bob cat or mountain lion.

Foxes scream like a woman being stabbed to death.

Hmmm...those suggestions are interesting, so I decided to investigate some of those sounds for myself.

Here is what a Sandhill Crane sounds like...

And this is what a fox scream sounds like...

That fox scream is pretty terrifying, so I'm leaning towards a fox being the culprit of the 'velociraptor' scream. What do you think?

Just in case you're not completely weirded out yet, here are some spooky creature sounds you may hear while in the woods at night...