Thunderbird

The thunderbird is a mythological birdlike spirit in North American Indigenous peoples' history and culture. It is considered a supernatural being of power and strength.

It is frequently depicted in the art, songs, and oral histories of many Pacific Northwest Coast cultures, but is also found in various forms among some peoples of the American Southwest, US East Coast, Great Lakes, and Great Plains.

Description
The thunderbird is said to create thunder by flapping its wings in Algonquian tellings, and lightning by flashing its eyes in both Algonquian and Iroquois tellings. Across cultures, thunderbirds are generally depicted as birds of prey, or hybrids of humans and birds. Thunderbirds are often viewed as protectors, sometimes intervening on people's behalf, but expecting veneration, prayers, and gifts.
Archaeologically, sites containing depictions of thunderbirds have been found dating to the past 4,000 years.
Petroglyphs of thunderbirds are found near Twin Bluffs, Wisconsin. They are in a shelter that was probably used c. 250 BCE to 1500 CE.

By people
Stories about the struggle between the Thunderbird and Whale (q.v.) have been traditionally told by various Pacific coast tribal groups. Studies have scrutinized the possible connection with the Cascadia subduction zone earthquake in the year 1700 that sent a tsunami to Japan.

Algonquian

The thunderbird myth and motif are prevalent among Algonquian peoples in Eastern Canada (Ontario, Quebec, and eastward) and the Northeastern United States, as well as the Iroquois peoples (surrounding the Great Lakes). The discussion of the Northeast region has included Algonquian-speaking people in the Lakes-bordering U.S. Midwest states (e.g., Ojibwe in Minnesota).
In Algonquian mythology, the thunderbird controls the upper world while the underworld is governed by the underwater panther or Great Horned Serpent. The thunderbird creates not just thunder (with its wing-flapping) but also lightning bolts, which it casts at the underworld creatures.
Thunderbird in this tradition may be depicted as a spreadeagled bird (wings horizontal, head in profile). They are also quite commonly portrayed with the head facing forward, thus presenting an X-shaped appearance overall (see under §Iconography below).

Ojibwe…