Roc (Rukh)
The Rukh (roc) is the gigantic bird of prey of Arabic and Persian legend, an eagle-like creature with talons strong enough to lift an elephant and carry it to its mountain nest. Solitary and ancient, it is the apex predator of the remote seas; its role in Sinbad's voyages and the accounts of medieval geographers made it an explanation for giant bones and an emblem of the unknown.