About Bigfoot
AN UNCATALOGUED ANIMAL
WHAT'S A BIGFOOT?
In 1958, big foot was a term used to describe large, human-like, footprints. As in "Those are some big footprints." Today, "bigfoot" is a name used to describe the things making the footprints. RIGHT. BUT, WHAT'S A BIGFOOT? Unknown. But, it's not just one thing. A living species needs a healthy breeding population. Scientists have suggested 5,000 adults is the minimum number needed for the long term health of any species. DO WE KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT BIGFOOT? Yes. We know what a bigfoot looks like. It bears a strong resemblance to the mountain gorilla. Morphological analysis of the subject place it either similar to the mountain gorilla or between a gorilla and a human. HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE? In 1967 multiple witnesses encountered a bigfoot. They documented the encounter on film and made casts of its footprints. The bigfoot in the 1967 film is estimated to be 7 feet 3½ inches in height and weighing 700 pounds. It moves bipedally. THAT'S A LOT TO PUT ON A FILM, HOW DO YOU KNOW IT'S LEGIT?
WHY IS BIGFOOT UNRECOGNIZED AS A SPECIES? Because there is no type specimen (body, blood, DNA, fossil, etc). A physical type specimen is required for a new species name to be accepted by zoologists. A growing body of evidence has been collected and attributed to bigfoot, but the creatureitself remains uncatalogued and unrecognized as a species. So, what is bigfoot? Bigfoot is an unrecognized species of large hairy hominoids living in America. |
WHY DO PEOPLE THINK BIGFOOT IS PARANORMAL, OR SILLY?
The entertainment has out-paced the science. Before 1967, it was an animal that people had to keep from stealing their cattle. It may have been an unusual animal, but it was not any more paranormal than an owl, bear, or wolf. It certainly wasn't silly. After 1967, "Bigfoot" became a character. Television associated Bigfoot with the paranormal, UFOs, and the Loch Ness Monster. Hollywood amplified the perception, but also added a level of silliness with "Harry and the Hendersons." Eventually advertisers got involved and gave us "Messin' with Sasquatch." The result is an entire generation of people who think bigfoot is a singular mythical being who lives in the minds of children or silly people, and not a breed of animal living in the mountains and forests of North America. SO, WHY CONTINUE TO CALL THEM BIGFOOT? 1. Bigfoot is currently the most recognizable name. (see below) 2. Bigfoot is technically more accurate than Sasquatch. Sasquatch is a moniker inspired by Native American words. [source] It's most similar to a word in the Chehalis dialect of Halkemeylem, Sesqac. 3. There is some precedent for animals being referred to by an identifiable feature like; the laughing hyena, the hammerhead shark or the three-toed sloth. *Note: They're called Boogers in the south. Maybe because of an identifying feature — maybe not. :) |
The Standard Bigfoot
"Bigfoot" is a term that is applied in two ways. In its widest sense, it is applied to every type of hairy humanoid from all over the world, regardless of that hairy humanoid's characteristics. In other words, it is a catch-all category that is applied to every variety of legendary ape-man by those who don't know better.
In its more correct sense, "Bigfoot" applies to a certain type of hairy humanoid that is frequently reported in the Pacific Northwest area of America (roughly the states of Washington, Oregon and the northern part of California) and also found in similar habitats in western Canada, possibly as far north as Alaska. This type has a relatively stable set of characteristics and is often viewed as the standard Bigfoot. [source: the cryptid zoo]
Hairy Humanoids
Hairy humanoids are roughly human in form, but are largely or wholly covered in fur or hair. In other words, most of these creatures could be broadly described as ape-men. The most famous hairy humanoid is the bigfoot, but there are countless other cousins of bigfoot found in legends and sightings from around the world.
Some people use the term "bigfoot" for any type of hairy humanoid from any place in the world, but the proper use of "bigfoot" restricts the term to creatures supposed to live in North America. [source: the cryptid zoo]
Undisputed
FACTS
It's a fact that for more than 400 years people have reported seeing large, hair-covered, man-like animals in the wilderness areas of North America. It is a fact that sightings of these animals continue today. Real or not, these reports are often made by people of unimpeachable character. It is a fact that, for over seventy years, people have been finding, photographing, and casting sets of very large human-shaped tracks. Most are discovered by chance in remote areas. These tracks continue to be found to this day. It is a fact that the cultural histories of many Native American and First Nation peoples include stories and beliefs about non-human "peoples" of the wild. Many of these descriptions bear a striking resemblance to the hairy man-like creatures reported today. These are some of the facts. There is, however, much disagreement as to what these facts mean. Read more from: The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization Copyright © 2016 BFRO.net |
The Bigfoot Phenomenon
MONSTERS
and more specifically myths of big, hairy monsters, are a world-wide anthropological phenomenon. In North America, one such myth is known as Bigfoot. Many contemporary stories relate individual and group experiences with the Bigfoot phenomenon. Robert Pyle aptly observed, “...the phenomenon of Bigfoot exists.” This single, lucid observation, which differentiates the existence of a Bigfoot from the existence of the phenomenon. Since we know that the phenomenon exists, what is its source? |
|