There is some speculation that this bird may have been seen by Egyptian travelers and sparked the legend of a very large heron seen once every 500 years in Egypt. Archaelogists have found the remains of a much larger heron that lived in the Persian Gulf area 5,000 years ago.
The bird may be modeled on the gray heron ( Ardea cinera) or the larger Goliath heron ( Ardea goliath) that lives on the coast of the Red Sea. Home :: the Symbols :: Phoenix Phoenix (Bennu, Benu)Īppearance: The Bennu bird was a large imaginary bird resembling a heron.
