An Animal of Many Names
Reports of large primate-like creatures are nothing new. Bigfoot (or Sasquatch) has been sighted along the west coast of North America, from British Columbia all the way down to California. The southern United States is home to the Swamp Ape (also known as the Skunk Ape because of its strong odour). Australia's version is called the Yowie, and Russia is home to the Alma. Bigfoot has also been sighted in Laos, Viet Nam, and China.
Footprints and Sightings
Many casts of footprints have been taken, and one shouldn't necessarily discount eyewitness accounts, either. Bigfoot is apparently very shy and a lot of people who have claimed to have seen one have had a lot of experience in the outdoors, i.e. They would know that they are not seeing a bear or another type of animal. In 2002, chimpanzee expert Jane Goodall went on record to say that undiscovered primates to exist!
The Skookum Cast
In September of 2000, researchers from the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization discovered a body impression of a large animal in the Skookum Meadows area of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (Washington State). Dubbed the "Skookum Cast", it measures 3.5 feet x 5 feet. 200 lbs of plaster were used to fill it in; the cast was also reinforced by tent poles from the researchers' camp.
The Cast contains the print of the left forearm, hip, thigh, and heel of a large animal. The heel impression included ridge patterns (similar to fingerprints). BFRO researchers also found footprints measuring 17 inches in the area.
The Cast has been examined by several experts, including a physical anthropologist, a Canadian wildlife biologist, and an exotic animal handler. They agreed that it does not match any known animal native to the area and that it was likely made by a living Sasquatch. Hair samples collected at the same time belonged to animals one would expect to find in the area (coyote, bear, deer, and elk) with one exception: a single hair was determined to have come from a primate.
Do we now have the evidence to state conclusively that Bigfoot is not a legend, but a very real animal?
For information about another mysterious animal, check out my fellow author Jason Rip's article on the Mokele-Mbembe entitled Monsters, Monsters Everywhere in Suite's African History topic. I know you will find it well-written and very informative.
