When it comes to Bigfoot, many will argue that the hundreds of recorded eye-witness encounters are simply a man in a monkey suit running in front of a deliberately shaky camera. Fair enough, as most of the videos posted online are just that! However, upon further investigation and intricate analyzation of eye-witness videos, we can better determine the difference between Bigfoot fact and fiction. Here’s your formula to proving fact or fiction.
 
If you’re not familiar with the Bigfoot Independence day video, it depicts a large creature carrying (what appears to be) a small Bigfoot child. At first glance, the creature in the video almost appears to be a CGI insert, simply created on a computer by a graphic designer. Similarly, the Patterson-Gimlin film has been just about the most controversial piece of footage that has ever existed. Most believe it to be an elaborate hoax, and many have admitted to being involved in its production. However, as scientists, we must not discredit any evidence, as it would be unscientific to assume footage is a hoax without dissecting and analyzing the small details within it. Unless we can prove the evidence to be false, we must not assume that it is. After all, upon further investigation of the Independence Day film and the Patterson-Gimlin film, citizen-scientists have gathered enough information and scientific backup to rule out human involvement in both sets of footage. In order to determine a video or photo’s credibility, it is important to understand the difference between the subjects in the footage, and Homo sapiens (us.) Throughout the dissection of hundreds of credible Bigfoot footprints, scientists and researchers have discovered the difference in anatomy between Homo sapiens and Bigfoot. This differentiation is what can help the average person determine the credibility of footage or photos within seconds. If you understand the difference in anatomy, you will be an evidence expert.
 
Let’s talk Homo Sapien: A human has a longitudinal arch in their foot, which means the entire foot is incorporated into the lever which propels it off of the ground, and weight is pushed to the ball of the foot while walking. The bending happens at the toes, providing traction while moving. This is why we, as Homo Sapiens, only lift our foot slightly between strides.
 
Let’s talk Bigfoot: By analyzing the structure and imprint of credible footprints, scientists discovered that a Bigfoot has mid-foot flexibility, like the subject in both films. The weight of the creature is not concentrated on the ball of the foot like Homo Sapiens, but rather the midfoot. A Mid-tarsal break causes weight to transfer from rear to forefront. This anatomy is typical of great apes, and causes these creature’s legs to lift at a higher angle between strides in order to support their midfoot flexibility while walking. In fact, Bigfoots lift their leg 21 degrees higher than a human with each step. Another aspect of anatomy that differentiates Bigfoot from us is the ratio of the arm to the leg, which are approximately the same size. If a human was wearing arm extensions under an ape costume to create a more primitive appearance, their elbow would
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​Sasquatch, Canada
The word Sasquatch is derived from the Coast Salish tribe’s language; specifically the word, Sasq’ets, meaning “wild man” or “hairy man.” J.W. Burns established the term “Sasquatch” in the 1930s when he acted as an Indian agent assigned to the Chehalis Band, otherwise known as the Sts’ailes First Nation. The Sts’ailes people claim a close bond with Sas’qets, and believe it has the ability to switch from the physical to the spiritual world.
 
In 1884, an article regarding Sasquatch was published in Victoria’s British Colonist. It is known as the earliest documented evidence of a Sasquatch sighting. The article follows the quest of local village men chasing down and capturing a “half man, half beast” near Yale, British Columbia. When villagers found the creature near a set of railroad tracks, they nicknamed it “Jacko.” After waking the creature from unconsciousness, they chased it all the way to a set of bluffs above the town. The men were said to have corralled “Jacko” onto a rock shelf and rendered him unconscious with the toss of a rock. Two days later, the newspaper ran a letter to J.B. Good, former superintendent of the Lytton Indian Mission. Good wrote that similar stories of “wild men of the woods” had been told by indigenous groups that encountered such creatures while out hunting. During the summer of 2011, a British Columbia man shot a video showing a possible Sasquatch traveling swiftly up a mountain range in the Tantalus Mountains near Squamish.
 
Sasquatch is reported to range between 6-9ft tall and is covered in thick black or brown hair.
 
Bigfoot, United States
The first mention of the name, "Bigfoot" can be traced back to a construction worker named Jerry Crew who presented a plaster cast of a huge footprint he had found in Bluff Creek Valley to a local newspaper office in Northern California. He reported strange activity and huge tracks around the construction site; causing Crew and his buddies to nickname the creature, “Bigfoot.” On October 5, 1958, The Humbolt Times printed his story accompanied by a picture of him holding up the footprint cast, which spanned more than half the length of his upper body. The title of the article read: "New 'Sasquatch' found - it's called Bigfoot." Once published, the name took off and became the coined term for the creature.  
 
Bigfoot is reported to range between 6-9ft tall and is covered in thick black or brown hair. (Click Read More) 

Sasquatch, or Bigfoot, is known to be a large, bipedal creature that roams the forests of North America and Canada. Thousands of sightings and hundreds of credible footprints have been enough evidence to raise public interest. However, there is one piece of evidence that still remains missing: a body. Perhaps the most important question that has surfaced among the Bigfoot community is why we don’t find them sleeping, eating, or socializing. Another question one may ask is why we don’t see them more often. The answer may lie in their living space. In a number of sightings, Bigfoots have been said to dwell in caves. One may argue that caves are not abundant enough to support an entire population of creatures. However, many underground metropolises existed thousands of years ago, supporting civilizations of over 20,000 individuals. Nature-made caves may be the wrong place to look. Perhaps, if Bigfoot is half-man, we should be on the search for something man-made.
 
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The Cappadocians of Turkey were a civilization from the Byzantine era that constructed a system of underground corridors that stretch 1.5 miles wide and run 371 feet deep within a mountainside. Within these dwellings, the Cappadocians kept livestock, supplies, and roughly 20,000 individuals. Although this civilization is among the largest underground cities, Cappadocia has a record of subterranean communities. In fact, there are over 200 underground civilizations that exist in this region of Turkey. Derinkuyu, is an 18-story underground city that also housed over 20,000 people. Over 1,000 years have passed since these corridors have been occupied, however their discovery can lead to clues about Bigfoot’s wareabouts. In order to determine if Bigfoots have the ability to construct such intricate tunnel systems, we must look to past accounts of their behavior. In order to recognize credible behavior, we must first turn to a credible piece of evidence.
 

Bigfoot DNA evidence is far and few between, and most specimens are inconclusive or only suggestive. However, a story of an ape-woman named Zana seems to support the existence of the creature we’ve all been seeing for thousands of years: Bigfoot. Zana was a mysterious woman discovered in 1850 in the Ochamchir region of Georgia, Russia by local hunters. Zana’s appearance was extremely unusual and uncharacteristic of modern human. Her body was massive at 6’6”, she was covered in hair, and was slightly different in anatomy than the humans of the time. After being captured from the dense forest, she was brought to an isolated mountain village called T'khina, fifty miles from Sukhumi Russia. She became extremely violent, and exercised non-human strength and speed. These characteristics seem to reflect the many eye-witness reports of Bigfoot. Zana would outrun horses and effortlessly climb trees. Zana’s incredible strength, unmatchable speed, and physical appearance is exactly what witnesses report in North American Bigfoot sightings. Although science isn’t entirely sure what Bigfoot is, Zana’s existence may point to the answer, and this answer clues us in to Bigfoot’s behavior.
 

Zana was determined to be a relic hominin. During her time in the village, Zana conceived children from two men in the community. Her youngest son, Khwit’s tooth along with the saliva of several of Zana’s living descendants were submitted to Oxford professor Bryan Sykes for DNA examination. The skull of  (CLICK "READ MORE"  TO CONTINUE) 

​Why we don’t find remains:
In Indiana, a body farm serves as a research facility for determining criminal acts. The Blow Fly and its maggots are examined in order to determine the age of the decaying body, and often, the cause of death. Dr.Neil Haskell, one of the world’s leading entomologists recalls a record during the early 80’s indicating a pig of 50 pounds that was reduced to 18 pounds within 96 hours by a species of Blow flies, which inhabit most of the world. By using a mathematical proportion, and basing it off of an estimated 800 pound Bigfoot, this would mean that the entire body of a Bigfoot could decompose in 100 days with just the influence of the Blow fly. This calculation would not include the influence of vultures, who have been known to decompose a human body in just 5 hours. It would also leave out the influence of other insects, bugs, animals, and weather. Bigfoots habitat is the Pacific Northwestern U.S., an area with a large amount of rainfall. In a rainforest, the average time for a leaf to decompose is 6 weeks, as opposed to 7 years in a pine forest.​ The climate of Bigfoot’s habitat can leave huge clues as to why we haven’t found remains. Another important point to recall, is the possibility of Bigfoot burying their dead, as seen in many hominid groups’ behavior. Bigfoot sightings usually occur deep in the woods, mountains, and rural terrain. If such a creature is roaming the Pacific Northwest, its remains would lie in the deepest parts of the forest. Many animals have an instinct to hide when they are sick, hurt, or dying. If such a creature seeks cover, their remains may lie in a hidden location. The legend of Bigfoot will forever remain a mystery if a body is not discovered. However, because of the creatures’ illusiveness along with the nature of its habitat, scientists may want to consider the other evidence we have of the creature, such as footprints revealing anatomical features, hair samples, and the countless sightings by credible witnesses.
 
How we know Bigfoot is not a man in a costume:
The anatomy of the creature Bigfoot cannot physically be recreated by a human. Through digital analysis of the famous Patterson-Gimlin film, the creature’s size of 7’6.5” was determined. However, one does not need scientific skill to distinguish a Bigfoot from a human hoaxer. In fact, there is a 21 degree difference between Bigfoot’s stride and a human’s, which is often the line that draws the two apart. When a human walks, they lift their foot 52 degrees off of the ground, whereas a Bigfoot lifts theirs 73 degrees. Such an anatomical difference is why the Patterson-Gimlin film has been proven not to be a hoax. In the most credible photography and videography evidence of the creature walking, it represents the same image: a back leg that bends at an extremely abnormal angle, not possible for modern human anatomy to recreate. Such anatomy can be supported in the way the creature steps.
​After close examination of hundreds of credible footprints, scientists have been clued in to why the creature walks the way it does. A human has a longitudinal arch, which means the entire foot is incorporated into the lever which propels it off of the ground, and weight is pushed to the ball of the foot. The bending happens on the toes, providing traction. In a foot with mid-foot flexibility, like the subject in the film, the weight is not concentrated on the ball of the foot, but rather the midfoot. A Mid-tarsal break causes weight to transfer from rear to forefront and is most commonly present in apes. By piecing the evidence together, (Click Read More)

Bigfoot is described as a hairy, bipedal ape-like man that roams the dense forests of the United States. They are often characterized by their sheer size, strong odor, large footprints, and striking resemblance to our own kind. How can we know that they exist? What clues has nature given us that many scientists choose to ignore? In this post, we will take a look at the evidence nature has provided us with, that signals a strong correlation between Bigfoot sightings and prime habitat conditions.
 
A rainforest can be described as a luxuriant, dense forest rich in biodiversity, found typically in tropical areas with consistently heavy rainfall. Most often, one may relate the term “rainforest” to South America, Asia and Africa. However the seemingly secret dense, tropic-like areas of the Pacific Northwestern United States are unknown to many. The Olympic Rainforest lies within Washington State, and soaks up an average annual rainfall of 170 inches, making it the wettest place in the U.S. Imagine a creature 3 times the size of a large Chimpanzee. What might they be thriving on in a Pacific Northwestern rainforest? The answer lies in the diet of known rainforest apes. Primates are omnivorous, however while most of their diet consists of fruits, leaves and other plants, most apes will also eat insects, spiders, bird’s eggs and occasionally rodents. Chimpanzees have actually been seen hunting full-grown colobus monkeys. The Olympic National Park is not so different from your average Asian or African rainforest.  However, for a large hominin like Bigfoot, the prey must be larger for an animal of such size to thrive. Species that dwell in these forests include plenty of deer, moose, grizzly bears, river otters, pine martens, and an abundance of edible plants and insects. If Bigfoot is an intelligent hominin, perhaps its species creates tooling to assist in hunting large prey. However, if Bigfoot is classified as a Great Ape, (Click Read More)

​Recent fossils discovered in Morocco are determined by scientists to be the oldest Homo Sapiens remains we have. This find is rewriting the story of evolution and pointing to the idea that Homo Sapiens evolved in multiple locations around Africa, instead of just one location (as previously thought before.) Philipp Gunz, a paleoanthropologist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, and a co-author of two new studies on the fossils, published in the journal Nature, points out that our species did not evolve from a single area, but rather all across the African continent. Until this recent discovery, the oldest known fossils of Homo Sapien dated back 195,000 years. The new fossils are near 300,000 years old, indicating that we existed much longer than previously recorded. The recent fossil discovery revealed individuals who share very similar facial characteristics to our own. However, their brains differed in many ways.
 
The closest living relatives to Homo Sapien are currently Chimpanzees and Bonobos. We share a common ancestor that lived over 6 million years ago. After we split off, our ancient ancestors evolved into different species, or hominins. If Bigfoot is indeed, a hominin, then we may have evolved from the exact same ancestor. This would mean that we may share very similar brain functions and even physical characteristics. However, perhaps Bigfoot is even closer than just a relative. Homo Sapiens were always believed to have evolved from a single area of Africa. However, the new fossil discovery has placed them all throughout Africa. Could one of these isolated groups have evolved into the species we know as Bigfoot? This theory may not be so farfetched.
 
When Homo Erectus, the predecessor of Homo Sapien, appeared about 500,000 years ago, they had a body covered in thicker, denser, and longer hair than ours. If we are still discovering Homo Sapiens fossils today, then perhaps there are even older fossils waiting to be discovered. If this is the case, there may have been enough time for a small group of our species to evolve into what we know today as Bigfoot. According to phys.org, it takes about 1 million years for a species to completely evolve. However, this process can happen quicker under certain circumstances. As a species evolves, it needs to be isolated from its parent species. If a small group of Homo Sapiens crossed the land bridge and ended up in the U.S., their isolation from other Homo Sapiens may have been the driving factor that evolved them into a different species; one of which has adapted to its environment. In just 100 years, the English peppered moth adapted to its environment by changing color. Could this be a similar adaptation situation for Bigfoots, who have hair-covered bodies?
 
Homo Erectus and later, Homo Sapiens who’s brains grew larger and cultures evolved started to lose their body hair throughout hundreds of years. Perhaps, if an isolated group of Homo Sapiens were dwelling in the woods of North America, they may have adapted to their cooler, larger environment and grew in height. They also would have acquired more hair. But, how could this group be dwelling in the U.S. and not be seen, or recognized for so many years? The answer might surprise you. There are many reports by Native American tribes, (Click Read More)

Interview with Cliff Barackman:
​
1.Bigfoot has been described as a bipedal ape-like man. Do you believe it could be a surviving hominid, or do you believe it to be an ancestor of Gigantopithecus?

Cliff: "Sasquatches are definitely a surviving hominid, but all apes and humans are hominids, which means they are in the family Hominidae.  The question would be if they are a surviving hominin, which is defined as being in the lineage or an offshoot of human beings.  Hominins include Australopithecus all the way up to present day Homo sapiens sapiens, and all the offshoots thereof.  This is most likely the case for sasquatches as well.  At the same time, it is entirely possible that Gigantopithecines were also an offshoot of the Hominin lines. So little is known about them (though much is speculated), that it is impossible to say at this point."
 
2.What are some common behaviors that you’ve seen/heard in a Bigfoot report?

Cliff: "Most of the time when a Bigfoot is encountered, besides the mere shock of the event, it is rather a dull affair.  The Sasquatch typically either walks/runs away, or it watches the observer and then walks away.  Some atypical reports would include intimidation displays, such as yelling, growling, throwing and breaking objects, stomping, or even bluff charges."
 
3.If Bigfoot is so large, how could it remain so elusive?

Cliff: "They are large, but not significantly larger than a brown/grizzly bear.  Many members of the species, if not most, are smaller, perhaps the size of a large black bear.  These animals also largely stay out of sight.  Sure, there are many reports of seeing bears, but there are probably at least 100 bears for every Bigfoot.  The numbers are in favor of Bigfoots being rarely seen.  When one adds to this that Sasquatches seem to be mostly nocturnal, very smart, hyper aware of their surroundings, and want nothing to do with us, it seems natural that they would rarely be seen."  
 
4.Could you give me your best description of a Bigfoot’s features?

Cliff: "In general, adult Sasquatches range from six to eight feet or so in height, and they probably weigh between 400 and 1,200 pounds.  They are generally human-like in shape, but covered, with hair (except on parts of the face, the palms, and bottom of the feet) with wider shoulders, longer arms, and a lower-placed head that often seems to rest on the shoulders (they do have a neck, of course, but their muscles can often obscure this).  The hair covering is dark, usually brown or black, with a reddish tinge when seen in the right lighting conditions.  They are often described as having an overhanging brow ridge, and a head that slopes away from the forehead in a conical shape.  Their noses are wide and broad, though not ape-like." 
 
5.How many do you think there are?

Cliff: "I guess that there are probably between 8,000 and 10,000 individuals in North America, give or take a few thousand.  This sounds like a lot, but would make them one of the rarest large animals."
 
6.Based on your research of footprints, how does Bigfoot’s anatomy differ from humans or apes?

Cliff: "The footprints indicate that the Sasquatch foot is proportionally wider than a human foot.  It also seems to be flexible in the mid section of the foot, just like the feet of other apes.  In other words, Bigfoots lack the rigid arch that the human foot has.  The ankle is shifted forward on the foot, which is a biomechanical redesign of the human foot in order to accommodate their larger mass."  
 
7.Have you come across many hair samples? What were the results of DNA testing?

Cliff: "I've seen a couple purported hair samples, but the ones I've been directly involved with have not produced testable DNA."
 
8.If one were to come across a Bigfoot, what would your advice be?

Cliff: "Savor the moment.  It might never happen again. Oh, and take a photo if possible."​

All across the world, thousands of reports describe a similar, 6-11 foot tall bipedal ape. Many call it Bigfoot, and some believe it is an ancient hominin. However there may just be another explanation to the sightings of such a creature. Thousands of years ago, a creature called Gigantopithecus was undeniably the King Kong of ancient people. It thrived for 6 million years in Southeast Asia before dying out just a few thousand years ago...or did it?
 
Dr. Russel Ciochon, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Iowa, says that when Gigantopithecus was standing on its hind limbs, it would have measured up to the eves of a one story house, almost doubling the size of a human. It was about 10 ft tall and 1,100lbs.  The fossils of this massive and mysterious creature have been carefully studied, and although scientists only have 3 jaws and 1,100 isolated teeth, they can conclude that it was the largest ape that ever lived. Gigantopithecus was also the only one to go extinct in the Pleistocene, the geological epoch which lasted from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago. But what if this creature did not go extinct...what if it was still thriving, perhaps in a different location than it originally inhabited.
 
Scientists believe that the land bridge that once connected Siberia to Alaska may have been a possible route for Gigantopithecus to have traveled to North America.  Dr.Jeff Meldrum from Idaho State University points out that the environments of both continents share a striking resemblance. If this giant ape has been dwelling in North American forests, then perhaps it could explain the thousands of eye witness reports of an ape-like creature called Bigfoot. Some experts even believe Bigfoot may be a relative of Gigantopithecus. Either way, the countless sightings and descriptions of a giant ape-like creature have been talked about for centuries. Aboriginals have told many stories of giant apes kidnapping their women and children from the village, and different Native American tribes have over 100 names for it.  
 
Dr.Briggs Hall is a Washington State wildlife veterinarian, and he believes the possibility of a giant ape living in the North American forests is high if the creature is nocturnal and very intelligent. But, if this giant ape exists in North America, why did it go extinct in Asia? Aaron Clauset, a computer scientist at the University of Boulder has been studying the extinction of Gigantopithecus. He explains that as an animal gets larger, they become unable to produce offspring as quickly, therefore reducing the population and making them more sensitive to changes. As a result, fluctuations in climate that threatened their food sources caused their ultimate demise. But, if their food source was being affected in Asia, perhaps they were intelligent enough to seek it out elsewhere. If Gigantopithecus really did migrate to the Northwestern United States, then it would have had an abundance of food and water, and it would be able to sustain its population. Until further evidence is discovered, we must assume the extinction of Gigantopithecus. Could Bigfoot be a descendant...or perhaps not an ape at all? Bigfoot may just be closer to us in DNA than we think.
                     
Bibliography:
 
"The Largest Ape That Ever Lived Documentary." YouTube. N.p., 23 July 2015. Web. 03 May 2017. 
 
"The Largest Ape That Ever Lived Was Doomed By Its Size." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 01 May 2017. Web. 03 May 2017.