http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/08/14/bigfoot.body/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

and apparently he's a redneck...

The Appalachians seem like an unlikely place to find an undiscovered large ape.  Looking at road atlas maps I always thought western Canada was the place where a bigfoot type creature might actually live undiscovered.  The inland Coast Mountains area north of Vancouver is completely undeveloped.

Edit: If Bigfoot ever is confirmed I'm guessing it would be classed as another type of Homo, probably a fellow descendant of homo erectus but further from us than the neanderthals.  There are bones from ca 600-800,000 years ago of bipedal 'humans' over 2m tall, and homo erectus was widespread across Eurasia so could have plausibly crossed Beringia into the Americas.  

Alternatively, if it is more apelike, that could make it very like a robust australopithecus or paranthropus robustus, which split from our line maybe 2 million years ago.  This seems very unlikely as a line of descent though as I believe these robust humanoids were all confined to Africa, like modern chimps and gorillas (which split from our line 4-6 million years ago).

As far as I know all the South American monkeys split from our line prior to the last continental break-up from Africa more like 20 million years ago, and depictions of bigfoot don't resemble them.

Overall, I think Bigfoot is scientifically possible, but if it exists is most likely a descendant of homo erectus and thus closely related to modern humans.  Lower intelligence and large robust body structure may be the result of evolutionary adaptation for reduced neoteny in that line, ie the modern bigfoot retains less childlike characteristics into adulthood than did its homo erectus ancestor, while modern humans have continued to evolve increasing neoteny.

I think it's probably fake... otherwise we would see photographs of whole body, not just some brown furry looking matter and something that might be head... even trought they had to stuff it into the freezer and it probably was pretty decayed to begin with, the still could made some photos of whole thing to make it more convicting...

If forced to put my own money down, I would bet against this being the real thing, but I do believe it's possible a large apelike creature remains undiscovered in North America.  The people who claim it isn't really have no appreciation of how big this continent is and how much of it is wilderness.  In addition several larger sized animals have been discovered in other parts of the world within recent years.  

This press conference today will either be a quickly exposed hoax that is forgotten within a week or something truly remarkable that will be remembered for generations.  We shall wait and see.

Quote from: wulfgar;235543...but I do believe it's possible a large apelike creature remains undiscovered in North America.  The people who claim it isn't really have no appreciation of how big this continent is and how much of it is wilderness.

I'll believe in a race of lizard men first, since the large desert areas are much more remote and see far less activity than the forests.  Most forest areas in North America aren't all that remote.  Most see pretty heavy travel from tourists, park rangers, logging/mining companies, etc.

Apart from that, I still don't believe its possible - sure, one or two bigfoots could hide out in the wilderness.  But in order for the species to survive millions of years, there would have had to have been millions of the things around at some point.  We're not talking new species of tiny insects here, we're talking seven foot tall ape-men.  Seven foot tall ape-men would tend to leave large amounts of bones around after they die, they'd tend to leave a lot of obvious paths when they walk with their 24" feet, they'd tend to eat a whole lot to keep up their 300+lb weight so you'd notice the animal carcuses strewn everywhere, they'd make a shitload of noise moving around so it's pretty unlikely no one would ever spot them.

Yeah, I'd certainly think this one is 98-99% likely a hoax, though you never know.  While the southern Appalachians is mostly wildlife park these days, the area is long inhabited, pretty heavily developed, and crisscrossed with roads, as the story says.

Whereas that famous old film of bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest I'm genuinely unsure, I would say only 50-60% likely a hoax.  If it wasn't for the bipedalism Bigfoot would potentially just be another large undiscovered mammal.

Mind you, one possibility is that Bigfoot did once exist but is now extinct.  I saw an interesting investigation of a central African legend of a strange horned jungle dwelling creature.  They showed pretty conclusively that it was a rhino; rhinos had lived in the area when it was much drier, but after a struggle had eventually gone locally extinct some time after the climate warmed up and it got wetter; dying out ca 1,500 years previously.

Quote from: jgants;235545Apart from that, I still don't believe its possible - sure, one or two bigfoots could hide out in the wilderness.  But in order for the species to survive millions of years, there would have had to have been millions of the things around at some point.  We're not talking new species of tiny insects here, we're talking seven foot tall ape-men.  Seven foot tall ape-men would tend to leave large amounts of bones around after they die, they'd tend to leave a lot of obvious paths when they walk with their 24" feet, they'd tend to eat a whole lot to keep up their 300+lb weight so you'd notice the animal carcuses strewn everywhere, they'd make a shitload of noise moving around so it's pretty unlikely no one would ever spot them.

I disagree with most of those points - if they were true, gorillas would not exist.

1.  Gorillas have never had a population in the millions.
2. No vast piles of bones.  No gorilla fossil record, because they don't live in habitat where fossilisation occurs.
3. Paths no more obvious than those of other large animals - bears, say.
4. Gorillas are vegetarian. I'm sure if Bigfoot exists it's primarily or solely vegetarian.  Edit: The observed lack of aggression supports this.
5. Gorillas can be quiet.

I'm not saying Bigfoot is likely; the USA is too well settled for it to be likely that Bigfoot is real but undiscovered, though not quite impossible.  The rain forest of the Pacific Northwest seems to me to be the only plausible habitat though.

Edit: Bigfoot from most accounts appears to have about the same mass as mountain gorillas, though taller because bipedal with longer legs (7'+ instead of 5'+), and to live in temperate rainforest rather than tropical rainforest.  Incidentally mountain gorillas live adjacent to Rwanda & Burundi, among the most densely human-settled places on Earth.

Ya'll who think this is a hoax have obviously never heard of the Skunk Ape that has been seen even in the Smoky Mountains where I work. So take that, you bunch o' Yankees!





(No, I don't believe its real, but I'll be telling the guests tonight that it is!)

Quote from: jgants;235545I'll believe in a race of lizard men first, since the large desert areas are much more remote and see far less activity than the forests.

Impossible! Conan killed all the serpent men! Of course, he also killed all the winged carnivorous apes, but...

Quote from: jeff37923;235551Ya'll who think this is a hoax have obviously never heard of the Skunk Ape that has been seen even in the Smoky Mountains where I work. So take that, you bunch o' Yankees!

Hey, I'm an Ulster Scot like it says in my sig, my wife is a hillbilly girl from Knoxville whose heart bleeds bright orange, and our baby son is even called Billy!  And he's wearing a University of Tennesee baby outfit at his nursery (here in London, England) right now!  So don't call me a Yankee!  

Apparently this one has ben debunked already.

It's a costume stuffed with animal guts.

What did you call me?

Quote from: McrowIt's a costume stuffed with animal guts.

Gross! Why people do these things...? I just imagined how bad must the smell be...

Quote from: Mcrow;235581Apparently this one has ben debunked already.

It's a costume stuffed with animal guts.

Source please?  I'm interested in this story.

Quote from: S'mon;235546Whereas that famous old film of bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest I'm genuinely unsure, I would say only 50-60% likely a hoax.

Sadly, I'm thinking closer to 98-100% likely.  Have a look at this computer stabilised rendering of the film.  Without the jumping and jostling of the trained rodeo trick rider camera man, it just looks like some guy in a fur suit.

Sorry, Virginia.  There is no Santa Claus.

!i!