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Tuesday 27 December 2011

Gorillas And On Gathering Hard Evidence Of Sasquatch



    One of my favourites on gorillas. I think those involved in Bigfoot research really need to see film such as this as it might provide some insight into Sasquatch behaviour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3U01hoyg6c&feature=related

    Note how the Silverback at one point 'charges' the hide used by the cameraman. Throughout this film one thing is quite clear: the gorillas involved know the cameramen are there. Wild living creatures are not going to be fooled by some hide or even people using "scent hide" sprays.  The 'charge' seems almost similar to some Sasquatch approaches to tents -they know someone is inside and it might well just be a "brushing against the tent" to us but to Sasquatch it could mean "Hey -I'm out here.  My area."

    If we accept that Sasquatch exists then we have to accept that it has spent many thousands of years adapting to its environment and being able to know when something is "off" in its habitat.  We have stories of bow-hunters covered from head to toe with camouflage in elevated seats that Sasquatch approach and even sniff out. There are even cases of Sasquatch turning to look at 'hidden' hunters.

    I think those looking for Sasquatch need to change their mindsets. Do not hide your scent.  Let any Sasquatch become familiar with it and take it from there.

    If camping in a known Sasquatch area and if it is believed one is active at the time then a trail cam or two could be set up around the camp.  Putting out bait such as fish, meat or fruit is probably not a good idea if you are in a flimsy tent and in bear country. Note also that bears seem attracted to the petroleum in the plastic casing and have been known to smash trail-cams by tooth and claw. This is rather like bears being attracted to the formaldehyde in refrigerators because it smells ant-nest like.

    In a cabin somewhere it might work.  For one thing a cabin would be fairly secure from bear attack and, in the past, have been fairly good protection in what have been called Sasquatch ‘attacks’.  These attacks may be the Sasquatch asserting its territory and making it clear that it owns this particular area.

    Snellgrove Lake and the cabin located there seems to be one such case.  Stone throwing, pounding on the cabin exterior and even, when no one is there, breaking in and trashing the interior. This raises several possible avenues for investigation and research.

    Firstly, of course, there is the idea of hiring the cabin for a year and record and monitor any possible Sasquatch activity.  A good plan of action for a year would be needed, though it should be adaptable.
    Secondly, there is evidence gathering with no cabin base but outside of fishing season so that humans cannot mess evidence up.  In 2002 I was asked by police wildlife crimes officers to draw up some guidelines on gathering evidence of large, non-native cats.  The following is based on these guidelines and though it refers to large cats it can be applied to Sasquatch.

    For over thirty years, since the sightings of puma (Puma concolor) in the Scottish Highlands and also Wales which first got me involved in acting as a Police Advisor on exotic animals, there has been a problem regarding collecting evidence.

    Firstly, there are many people who set themselves up as “Big cat investigators”.  Most of these people do not even have the basic knowledge of a naturalist let alone the knowledge required to assess sightings of large felids.  Many cases over the years have resulted in what has been claimed to be “irrefutable proof –hard evidence” of what has been termed the “UK Big Cat”.  Newspaper photographs of plaster casts of paw-prints said to have come from such animals have invariably shown claws and tell-tale features of canid tracks.  
    It should be noted that there are good photographs of casts showing details of large felid tracks.
    However, these pieces of “evidence” are treated as belonging to the alleged investigator.  Many such pieces of evidence are unbelievably destroyed once the person jumps onto another subject –I am aware of two cases in which good large felid track plaster casts were dumped in waste bins along with incident reports simply because the person involved had lost interest but was not going to give his “hard work to someone else”.  Also, maps, photographs, plaster casts and much documentation has been destroyed by the families of investigators after their deaths as “just hobby junk”.

    Since the mid-1990s, many people have jumped from investigating unidentified flying objects (UFOs) to delving into the paranormal.  When those subjects prove boring these individuals suddenly find a new interest in “UK Big Cats” –it tends to get them into the newspapers and even onto local television more because it is not so fantastical as, say, UFOs.  “Cryptozoology” is the current new craze.

    I have spoken to these people quite often and it is amazing just how little they know and several even noted that they were looking into why “Big Cats” were not seen in the Winter and had a theory that they might hibernate!

    But even those slightly more credible individuals were unwilling to supply casts or photographic evidence pertaining to exotic felids.  The same attitude applied: it was “their” evidence.

    There were, up until 1998, some thirty plaster casts of tracks held by private individuals that were quite clearly diagnostic of exotic felid ranging from lynx (Lynx sp.), puma (Puma concolor) and leopard (Panthera pardus).   These have all been clearly shown in press photographs.  Such casts would provide good, solid evidence of exotic felids but even the offer to buy some of these casts has been turned down.  Others have vanished along with the no-longer-interested investigators.

    Hair samples have also been shown in photographs, as have alleged scat – shockingly, mainly held in un-gloved hands and with the holders face close enough to taint any possible results that might exist.  Other samples shown in plastic bags are often removed to show TV or press cameras.  Some samples held for ten years or more would be pointless to attempt DNA analysis on. 

    The reason why these samples have not been forwarded to a laboratory is purely cost.  Fresh samples analysed by two labs pertaining to a felid sighted in Lincolnshire did return Panthera pardus DNA but this has only ever been publicised at a local level. That said, the photograph of the alleged ‘big cat’ taken on another occasion is of nothing more than a black domestic cat thus proving why all evidence must be clearly checked because, despite a very good description of a leopard seen at zero feet (just over 3 feet/90cms) from the observer the photograph taken was of a black cat seen from a distance –no one was interested in setting up cameras and leaving them in situ.  So called ‘investigators’ with but also without permission of the property holders camped out in tents and one police officer told me “It was like a mini Glastonbury at times –there was even music from radios!” and, naturally, a reclusive cat is going to be attracted to that!

    Photographs or video footage of felids can tend to suffer from distance between camera and felid or, more often, suffer from the fact that there is nothing to compare the size of the cat photographed/filmed to.  A couple of pieces of video footage do contain such items so we know the cats filmed were large.  In one video clip the cats can be quite clearly seen and there are enough items in the clip (as well as some recorded on video later) to estimate size accurately –as in the Jagouarondi footage from Surrey.


    Of course there are photographs of livestock kills that bear all the characteristics of large felid attacks.  In some cases it has been possible to photographs wounds on horses and ponies (such as “Bianca” at XXXXXXXXX farm) and measure and match said wounds to large felid dentition.  Many farmers have offered to keep sheep or other animals killed by what they claim are large cats so that proper post mortem may be carried out to ascertain the truth.  Sadly, cost and transportation of such animals to a veterinarian willing to carry out this work has been a major stumbling block.

   Work has also been carried out by a university on dentition marks on carcass bones that clearly show a large felid was involved.

    There has been enough evidence over more than thirty years to conclusively prove the existence of specific exotic cat species in the UK.  It is, sadly, of no use after so long and with so many “Big Cat investigators” involved in in-fighting.

    What is needed is a concerted effort to not only film/photograph exotic felids but to gather hard evidence that can be studied and from which DNA evidence can be obtained.

Plan Of Action

    Over the years certain areas have become known large felid “hot spots”.

    Certain farms are frequently visited, have livestock killed by or just passed through by large felids.  Farmers and locals have been more than willing to have investigators keep observation of these areas.  The problem is that felids have not just good hearing and sense of smell but seem able to, via instinct, know when something is different or that people are nearby.  These animals live and survive on their instincts and are never going to show themselves out in the open.

    We have enough evidence in the form of reports from observers and enough has been done to establish geographical territories and note prey animals.  This needs to be backed up by hard evidence.  Hard evidence that it might be possible to gather from known areas frequented by these felid.

    MAP 1 shows a rough idea of ‘Corryn Gwall Farm’ which allows us to show how evidence might be gathered

 
    Farms tend to be somewhat more cluttered than this diagram shows but it does represent a number of known, regularly frequented farms.  It is necessary to maximise the number of ways in which to gather evidence, as shown in the next diagram.







A-G indicate locations for camera traps able to take daytime/night time images.  As these are usually fastened to posts or other objects it is possible to move them should it seem one particular route is used more often than others.  The beauty of these cameras is that their use is quite flexible.


    A  is fastened onto a tree looking up a rough track approaching the farm.  This is a track that other wildlife may use as animals tend to use “game trails” rather than trudge over or around obstacles in wooded areas.  This camera would need to be focussed at a point where a marker post has been left indicating various heights (30 cms, 60 cms and 90 cms) so that any animal photographed can have its size accurately assessed. 

    B would be focussed on the same track but pointing down the track so that an image of any animal can be captured as it heads toward the farm.  Again, a height gauge post would be placed on the track.

    C is, of course, dependent upon whether there is a convenient pond from which wildlife might drink.   Damp mud could also provide spots from which tracks might be cast.  It is always worth considering placing a drinking point if no pond exists and to make sure the ground around it is always wet.  However, this is all dependent upon the property owner.

    D would be positioned at the front of the house looking up any entrance/approach road.  Large felids have been reported entering/leaving farm courtyards by the main entrance.  It would also show where a felid might be heading so that a camera trap can be moved to that area.

    E camera could be trained on the pond/water source and any wall leading to it.

    F could be angled to take photographs of anything approaching/getting over a back wall or fence.  There are a large number of reports in which felids have jumped up onto  a wall and remained there for several seconds to one minute, looking around.

   G This should be fastened to a tree or post pointed in the direction of any livestock that is reportedly attacked frequently.

   All of these cameras must have a height gauge post in shot but, as noted, all are flexible in where they can be placed.

   In the diagram a short hurdle has been placed across the rough track.  Something around 50-60 cms in height ought to suffice.  The idea is that deer or other animals can walk over or get under the hurdle but that a felid moving over it might leave hair samples behind.  There are a number of ways in which such hair can be caught.  The idea of placing a string of barbed wire across the top is ruled out as there is no wish to injure any animals.

    Favoured methods are:[1] “roughed up” wood that can snag hair, and,[2] double sided tape.  Obviously, the obstacle would need to be checked each morning and any hair collected and placed in a sealed plastic bag.

   The double-sided tape hair snag would also work on a fence or at strategic points along a wall.  Again, this would need checking each morning. So that there is no question as to where hair has been found it is important that, before removal, it is photographed in situ.  Sterile gloves must be worn and any sample placed in a sealable plastic bag marked with date/time collected as well as location taken from. 
   The same applies to any unidentified droppings found.  Farmers and others living in the country tend to know what a fox, deer or badger dropping looks like but it should be a case of “unsure –secure” and a sample collected and bagged as per hair samples.  In addition to this it might be worth placing a marker where the dropping was found for future reference and to see whether droppings are deposited there regularly.
 
   The importance of photographing any trace evidence before bagging cannot be over-emphasised.

   When it comes to tracks the person checking each day or who lives on the property should be given a guide to tracks of deer, rabbit, badgers, foxes, dogs and felids so that they can eliminate non-felid.

    The idea of a sand-trap located on the property should be looked at.  A 90 cms x 90 cms area covered with 3-4 cms of sand (or substitute material) might solicit tracks so that it can be assessed what is visiting the property.   

   It must be made perfectly clear that even with all of the above it is not a case of evidence of any type being obtained within a few days or even weeks.  We know that certain felids wander their territory so even when they return it is no guarantee that evidence will be obtained.  It might take a year but the chances are improved if the owner of the property has seen the felid or has noted where it seems to go to/come from as they do seem to be creatures of habit at times.

   The cost of game trail cameras and DNA analysis are the big drawbacks unless a backer can be found.

   I think that regular trail-cams can be used but, in the case of Sasquatch, need to be placed higher up a tree (so bears cannot get to them) and angled.  Any number of trail-cams are available but even though they can take a large number of photographs the batteries will die and once the card is full that is it –just after that last image is taken Sasquatch could walk right in front the camera, sit down and peel a grape!  So, every week or so the batteries will need checking and the card replaced.  This adds more human contamination/smell to the area.

   I believe that the best way forward are cameras such as the Raptor Cellular camera system that will capture a photograph and email it to you via a cellular network upon motion-activation.  The built-in camera will capture colour photographs during the day and via a no-flash Infra Red mode at night. All photos are stored on the included UBS Flash Drive and the battery operated system can last several months in a remote location –I’ve heard of several adaptions of these devices to solar energy where a solar panel is placed high in a tree meaning that you can get endless image feed.


   With cameras, hair traps and so on, enough evidence can be gathered to satisfy most scientific minds without the need to kill – though some claiming to be “scientists” have stated publicly that “nothing” will convince them and a couple have stated that even a body “does not mean there is a population.”

    There is another question that needs to be addressed.  Whether to go armed when looking for Sasquatch?  We know nothing about these creatures but if they are similar to gorillas then the chasing/charging at those who encounter them could just be juvenile status posturing.  Gorillas will try to sort out disputes amongst their group without violence if they can.

    However, we have seen via the work of Steenburg, et al, that females have been encountered as well as possible family groups.  If Sasquatch have learnt anything from observing hunters it is that they kill wildlife.  Humans thusly equal a possible threat to young or females.  Any creature that can kill large wild hogs and deer with its bare hands is a potential danger to humans if encountered in the wrong situation or if the human involved breaches some territorial taboo.

    Remember that the Sasquatch hunter is going to be out in sometimes mountainous or hilly forestry making a fast exit impossible. If cornered by a Sasquatch and the animal does not back off what options are left?  I do not advocate immediately shooting any Sasquatch because of “false charging” but I do think that there is some form of protection –after all, Sasquatch seem to have bears in their territories and if you attract an aggressive bear to you…

    The whole point is, however, to gather as much physical evidence as possible –there is no such thing as “too much evidence”!

     


Monster Caught Off Brasil..?

Found this interesting in that it made TV news.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiavWz7PGsw

Thursday 22 December 2011

Books

Hello All.
Just a note to remind people that the books Some Things Strange & Sinister, Some More Things Strange & Sinister and The Red Paper:Canids are currently on offer at £10 each.  After Christmas they'll go back to their pre-offer price of £15.00 each!

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Alexandr Fedenyow -RIP


Below image of the Russian Almasty variety called Leshiy created by Alexandr Fedenyow, who was also a graphic artist.

"I’m sorry to inform you that on December 15, 2011, at the age of 46 died suddenly Alexandr (Sasha) Fedenyov – a ‘troublemaker’ on the Cryptozoology (Russian) site… Ural’s tracker… Memory Eternal to him! Went to his mother, returned to his home, after a few hours they discovered him breathless. The autopsy showed swelling of the lungs (suffered from asthma). Died December 15, buried on the 17th. Not long ago he very much wanted to go to the Ural’s tayga where he many times met with a hominoid, but had no opportunity… And I am very sorry that I could not help him in this". ~ Igor Bourtsev

Tuesday 20 December 2011

Mysterious Creature Caught On Video?

 I'd ask for footage or phtographs of the area in question because I was looking for the "creature" but only saw what looks like a crane "picker" (a large sized version of the little ones you find in arcades and fairs to try to "grab a prize").  Then I realised that's what they were talking about.


Pity.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVKYgarUTQM

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: In Search of Giants by Thomas Steenburg

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: In Search of Giants by Thomas Steenburg: I got this book in the post yesterday and gave myself a day off to read it. It was quite an interesting read and there was only one thi...

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: On The Scientific 'Need' To Kill A Sasquatch

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: On The Scientific 'Need' To Kill A Sasquatch: There is a point I need to make, yet again, and this time sparked off by Thomas Steenburgs book that I just reviewed on this blog. I do ...

On The Scientific 'Need' To Kill A Sasquatch

There is a point I need to make, yet again, and this time sparked off by Thomas Steenburgs book that I just reviewed on this blog.

I do totally and utterly disagree with some of Steenburgs final words:

"I sometimes wonder if those who are against the shooting of a sasquatch really want to see this mystery solved at all. After all, if the creature is proven to be real, then the puzzle will be over."


Steenburg notes that in his spare time he became a hunter. Not of Sasquatch but "game". So, the idea of shooting and killing a Sasquatch to solve a "puzzle" is no big deal to him, though he does point out that killing a "bunch of them" isn't a good idea.

The idea that "science" must be satisfied is an utter nonsense in todays world. There are many new primate species discovered that have not been killed (sadly some have but by native hunters -the ramifications if it ever turned out that some biologist or other person had said "get me a dead one and I'll make it worth your while" well...).  Good photographs of new bird and mammal species and even formerly thought of as extinct species has proven good enough. Collect feather samples, droppings, hairs, etc., for testing as well as game trail camera and video footage.  Case proved.


I've outlined previously a good, adaptable, way of going about this with Sasquatch. A combination of still photographs/video footage, hair samples and even (if possible) faeces and footprints of any animal means its there and alive.  Do research and learn how many newly discovered species then become endangered or "at risk" because they have been scientifically proven to exist.


This is the 21st century. To say that a bunch of people sat on their arses in laboratories or universities, even museums, must  be given a body to satisfy them is nonsense.  I've seen and met these people who have knowledge on the subject based on TV programmes, the odd magazine article or lousy website they just checked on. "No such thing" they say.  Well, prove it. Carry out a year long study, talk to witnesses and go out and do field research -that is what science is about. "No. We don't need to -it doesn't exist" they reply. These are NOT scientists and deserve no respect let alone a sacrifice to them.


There is enough research work carried out by John Green and many others showing that these creatures have food sources and huge geographic areas to wander and live in.  So they can survive.  Work carried out on genuine Sasquatch plaster casts has shown dermal ridges and other features beyong hoaxers -we can even estimate weight, etc.. 

Scientifically minded individuals who have gone out into the field have heard vocalisations (scientifically tested and pronounced "unknown"), they have found the Sasquatch "nests" and heard the stone and wood-knocking that shows these creatures have some intelligence.  On two occasions I have seen recorded for tv (Snellgrove, etc.) the reactions of these persons as large stones are thrown at them from out of the forestry.  There is that look, yes, some of them may have believed Sasquatch was real and done the lab work, but getting stones thrown at you from forestry is unexplainable and a kick of reality to the ass.  Unless, of course, some Grizzly has woken up early from hibernation and decided to practice its baseball throwing?

What is the Sasquatch population? we have absolutely no idea.  They could be hanging on by a thread as far as existence as a species is concerned. Look at it this way: a mother Sasquatch has young and has to feed them solid food and train them how to forrage. 

She is out alone, grubbing around and a hunter sees her. Every hunter we know of has never fired at a Sasquatch because it looks humanlike but say the hunter spotting the female thinks "Goddam. I shoot this one I'll be world famous and my financial problems will be over -I'll have proven these things exist!"

Bang.

Dead Sasquatch.  Science has its proof and some young Sasquatch either die through starvation or get predated upon by a bear or even puma. With one shot a vital family group can be wiped out -it's happened with other wild species just this way.  As far as we know Sasquatch may even be borderline panda-like in its mating -and we know how well that's gone for them.

Steenburg notes (252):

"The town of Cobalt, Ontario, had a creature in their area for years.  Locals gave it the name Old Yellow Top because it had a streak of light-coloured hair on the top of its head.  It was around from the late 1950s through the 1960s.  The last reported sighting of Old Yellow Top occurred in 1970..."

An animal tends to keep within its own territory and this may be applicable to Sasquatch, though some suggest there may be yearly migrations, that said Chimpanzees and Gorillas tend to inhabit one area but do move around though not long migrations.  I think it safe to consider that Sasquatch may do like-wise. A suggested trek from Canada, through the US and down into Florida for instance does not seem likely.  Any animal knows its local food sources, watering holes and places of safety and though they may wander around a huge territory it is unlikely they migrate. 

Though there is the suggestion, from reports, that Sasquatch might live in family groups we have no idea whether this is a permanent thing or restricted to mating and rearing of young only.

So, if we take it that, factually, we have no idea regarding breeding or population size, then shooting and killing for 'proof' is out of the question. In wildlife research we depend on eye-witness observation of individuals and/or family packs/groups, knowledge we already have on the animal, faeces, hairs and even paw/hoof prints to study.  We do not go all hissy and demand something is killed so that we can be satisfied an observer is telling the truth.

There are cases on record of individuals being chased or, in their opinions, warned off by Sasquatch (for whatever reason).  "Chases" are usually half-hearted with observers stating that the way the creature moved was so fast it could have caught them at any time -but didn't.  Now, let's say that a hunter gets into this situation but knows nothing about Sasquatch -heck, he probably laughed hysterically over his beer every time someone mentioned seeing Sasquatch- and does what he would do naturally if a Grizzly was charging him: aims and fires his rifle.

What does he do if he kills it.  Most observers state the Sasquatch looks "almost human" or even "Orang Utan-like" (and they can look quite human).  If he has any intelligence then he has a major problem.  Yes, he has proof that these things are real and there's money in this. But then it hits him: can he be charged with killing a Sasquatch? If he fobs it off as "I've provided scientific proof at last" what would happen if those scientists prove it near or almost human?  Is that murder?  Will he be targetted for the rest of his life by "tree-huggers"?  Will someone try to kill him in revenge?

Best to just leave the body and let nature take its course.  In a month there won't be anything left to be stumbled upon and "dead Sasquatch!" shouted around the world -they did a bullet in the remains...

But then we have hunters who have levelled their rifles at the backs or fronts of Sasquatch. What if they actually pulled the trigger and then realised what they have done?

Same situation as "self defence" shooting.

It is a topic you can debate for hours.

The thing is that this may have happened more than once over the last century and that hunter never went into the woods again and never offered a really good reason why.  Self Defence or simple 'sport' killing it is still the death of a creature that could be vital to a population. I'm glad certain areas have legislature or are looking at such to protect these animals rather than issuing proclamations like "Hey , we wanna prove we got Sasquatch: $10,000 to whoever brings a genuine one in for study!"

You want people to stop saying "You've wasted your life, man -they don't exist!" then go all out to gather the evidence but don't even think about killing a creature to prove it. Leave the population to continue and think of the best ways to prove your case -a miniature transponder fitted into a dart that can penetrate or stick to a Sasquatch so you can follow it , .22 slugs have allegedly been fired into Sasquatch with no noticable affect so a dart implanting a tracker, even if only in thick skin is no problem.

There are other ways -some including transponders placed inside food.  Sasquatch want to steal from a cabin then hang your salmon/meat up outside with the transponder in it.  Yes, after a few days it'll be passed through the Sasquatch digestive system BUT you'll have tracked/plotted its route for a while and the device will lead you to Sasquatch faeces!

I would genuinely sooner let Sasquatch remain a "mystery" than prove it existed with a body and all that entailed. Let the Sasquatch hunters/scientists stamp their feet.  Why should we, as humans, demand that any species be killed just so that we can say "I told you so"?

It is definitely wrong to demand a body -if a trucker or motorist hits and kills one okay. That is an accident but hoping that one is killed that way so you can have a clear conscience...?



In Search of Giants by Thomas Steenburg

I got this book in the post yesterday and gave myself a day off to read it.

It was quite an interesting read and there was only one thing I found annoying.

Steenburg prints the Q & As he has gotten from interviews after 
he has given us a brief sighting account. In the Q & A section he then writes what the observers saw in their own words. For a book on rarely covered sightings this is annoying. I really do not want to read about the observation three times in a short space.

Better to give the date and time and allow the observers statements to give the detail.  If there are odd aspects such as, in one observation, a witness reporting large stand-up ears then you can write "I questioned him on this..." and publish the relevant lines.

Better still, if you want to present the word-for-word statements by observers put them in appendices at the back of the book so those interested can go through them later.

And there were other aspects that I found distracting froim the gist of the book.  Observer Joseph Verhovany apparently had/has an accent that made him talk in broken English. So some things he said were not understood -"discreprancies" popped up such as finding out part-way through an account that Verhovany had dog(s) with him.  In the Q &A Steenburg writes that he cannot understand something Verhovany says. This made the whole observation being recorded pointless.

I am guessing that Steenburg recorded these Q & As on a dictaphone?  The procedure should be, as police will tell you, record on tape  and on paper so that this does not happen. A standard basic report form might also be helpful. In the past, when I've come across witness to events who do not speak English as a first language, I get them to give their accounts in their mother-tongue so it can be translated into English later.

But I'm now guilty of distracting myself from the purpose of Steenburgs book. We hear time-and-again, about Bigfoot/Sasquatch in the United States.  We hear repeatedly, though to a much lesser degree about the Yeti.  However, South America and Canada get very little coverage.

Steenburg is trying to balance out the record and in his work, as he notes, sticks to the Canadian (his) side of the border and this is good. It means that an investigator will get to know the country and reports from it well and that means getting into a good position to know the hot-spots, etc., etc..

Firstly, one thing I have never seen in documentary programmes, apart from the Patterson-Gimlin event, is the mention of breasted Sasquatch.  Albert  Ostman, if you believe his account, mentions female Sasquatch but that is really it in general. Steenburg shows that female Sasquatch ARE reported and that Canada has some interesting reports.  Reports that I think in certain cases are just as important, if not more so, than certain oft-cited US events.

So, yes, world, Canada does have Sasquatch sightings.



My negative points are raised from years of investigation and the need to get facts.  Some will argue that this is what Steenburg is doing.  Fair enough but I think the same can be done by the appendices idea. Did the book put me off? Nope. I'm now going looking for Steenburgs other books!

Well worth reading.

Sunday 18 December 2011

Sunday Sermon: On Books And Stuff And Why I Am Really Quite Normal






If I so much as mention Bigfoot/Sasquatch or even unknown sea creatures to people I meet I get that look.  You know the one -a slight wry smile with that look of "he seemed quite normal earlier!"

But then, if I go into a sudden lecture on history I can get the same look -or worse.  An acquaintance once telephoned me and asked what I was "up to?"  I replied: "I'm currently re-reading Julius Caesar:Man, Soldier & Tyrant by J. F. C. Fuller-" before I'd even finished there was the laugh, though it was quickly followed by a "Well, I shouldn't be surprised really!"

I am not just interested in the "established" history. I am fascinated by the “Lost” history.  For instance, that Irish sailors reached the Americas long before the Vikings and many others.  Bristol was one of the most important ports in Medieval times and our founding father traders had secret sea route maps but where did Bristol merchants get their maps?  Why are pineapples depicted in Ancient Egypt and also in a mural at Pompei –they are New World fruits in the Old World?

Then we have all the lost technology from the past (do not even as a joke mention “Ancient Astronauts” to me.  Man is creative and inventive and we do not need to pull aliens into everything from the building of the pyramids to the Easter Island heads (we know through archaeology how these were built).  Al Andalus (or Andalusia) was ruled by “The Moors” for 800 years after moving into the Iberian Peninsula around the 8th century.  They quite literally re-introduced civilisation to Europe. Mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, architecture and even medicine was far more advanced than that in the rest of Europe –people travelled to Al Andalus (where religions were not in conflict) to learn these skills.  What the Spanish later did in their Reconquista was set Europe back hundreds of years.

There is so much to learn out there and when people say “Who cares –that’s in the past!” I just have to look at them and ask why they are alive!

But then we have those old questions regarding ghosts, demons and the like.  According to the church it has not yet decided upon the ghost and ghostly.  Now, if after over 2000 years of Christian religion, full of ghostly events and practically based upon some ghostly events, hasn’t yet decided it is only because it simply just has not bothered or, even more likely, coming upon events it cannot explain it decided that it “never happened” or to talk about it is “blasphemy” or might incur the attentions and mischief of the Devil so “be quiet”.  The Devil –another Church creation that doesn’t appear in the Bible.

Growing up you hear things. I once lived in a house in St. Werburghs, Bristol, where the back room overlooking the Mina Road Park had a very weird feeling.  As kids my brother, Peter and I had this as our bedroom.  I have never ever slept well and so I got used to the huge glowing eyes looking in through the window at night (an owl) and how things mysteriously moved about the room during the day (windows left open during the day and a jackdaw popped in –I caught it one day moving things and I don’t know which of us looked more surprised!).

But the room had a very strange feel and it was where I had my first hypnagogic event (a waking dream): the dark silhouette of a traditionally dressed witch with full high pointed hat –I even through a book at ‘her’ as she moved past the bed.  My gran did wonder why the book was on the floor when she came in to wake us up in the morning.  My mother and father had this bedroom at one point but my mother flatly refused to stay in it –even during the day she would not go into it unless someone was with her and she never said why.
One morning we heard a “thump” and my gran and parents rushed upstairs to the room in question.  My brother had been knocked out having hit his head on the ceiling. “He must have been bouncing on the bed” was my fathers explanation: yet we had not heard a sound before which we should have done had he been bouncing on the bed.  Also, which I realised even then, he must have been performing Olympic style leaps to hit the high ceiling!

Eventually, a lodger, Fred, moved into that room. Within three years or so he was taken to a mental hospital but we had all realised this was inevitable –sadly, people deteriorating mentally is no rarity.  Then the new lodger moved in.  Derek was young, bright and breezy and had no trouble with “the room”.

I could go on and on but throughout my formative years I encountered one thing after another that some might call “ghostly” –witnessed just by myself or with others. Our home in Knowle, Bristol, had thrown up a few oddities and one evening we were sat around and I looked at the Christmas decorations as the latest “event” was mentioned. On TV someone was talking about “the devil” so I said: “If the devil exists let him pop a red balloon!”

“Bang!”

A red balloon popped.  I thought it was hysterically funny.

Even in Germany the ghosts and ghostly kept popping up.  So, that I was reading books by Elliott O’Donnell, Harry Price and others by the time I was thirteen should not surprise anyone.

One day, after school, I went into the Greystoke Avenue Library, in Southmead, Bristol, and looked through their “Older readers” section.  In those days, if under 16 you weren’t really allowed to venture over to the adult section but the librarians let me.  I had read most of the paranormal/ghost books but saw two I had not read before.  I was in a hurry and on leaving the library discovered I had accidentally picked up a copy of Brisley Le Poer Trench’ The Flying Saucer Story.  I was annoyed. I could not take the book back until next day (lending policy). 

On that day I read The Flying Saucer Story and much more than forty years later I’m still suffering the results of that read! It was only later that I heard from my parents that before I was born they had been on the farm in Germany and seen a large ball of light (UFO).  So it was fate!

 


And wildlife. I have never had a problem in this area.  While in Sevier Street, St. Werburghs, I looked out after a Summer rain shower to see an approximately six inches (15 cms) long caterpillar of some type –it was literally covered in long, fawn colour hair so it looked like a long mop.  It moved up the wall between the outhouse and coal shed and to this day I have never been able to identify what it was.

In Germany, while collecting wood for the fire in woods just outside Dalborn, my father about six feet ahead of me with the wood-cart, there was a sudden silence. I turned to my left to see a young fallow deer, a true “bambi”, looking at me curiously. Some ten feet (3m) beyond it, in amongst the trees, stood the mother also looking at me. This lasted some time before we all mutually moved off.

My grand mother had lived in Dalborn since the Second World War but had never seen any hares.  She was a bit miffed when I returned from a walk to describe watching groups of hares and even hare ‘boxing matches’! 

When I was a bit older I did walk through the forestry and hear an odd noise. I looked down and saw wild boar piglets and at that point I broke into a cold sweat because I became aware and then saw the sow.  She stared at me as I slowly moved away, walking backwards and not taking my eyes off her.  She never charged me.

On one holiday, as a family, we went with our grand-father to pick dandelions for his giant rabbits.  The route was a familiar one to us –out through the farm orchard, down the tractor path and then along a basic road between cornfields and the forest. As we passed a tree stump a good few feet from the forestry my grand-father casually mentioned that the stump was where he had seen “the sturm-geist” (storm ghost/spirit). Now, Opa had suffered a stroke so his vocabulary was good but not great –he was still “re-learning” full speech.  The storm ghost had an ugly face and was covered in hair and when he saw it the beasty leaped from the trunk and into the forestry.  “It sounds like a chimp or monkey of some kind” I said.  Opa smiled that smile: “No. We don’t have monkeys here.” I thought “We don’t have monkeys but we do have storm spirits!”  Of course, Opa was probably thinking “He thinks we have monkeys in the forest?”

Opa had been alone that time but when we were all together on the rough track one day, right next to where the sturm-geist had been seen, he said “Look there!” All we saw was a glossy black, hair-covered back leap into the coniferous forestry. If you’ve seen black furred/feathered creatures you’ll know that in bright sunlight the fur/feather has that sort of brownish, even purplish glint.  So did this beasty.  I rushed forward determined to see what it was but the forestry was so wild at that point I could only get five feet ort so –but we all heard it crash through the branches of the trees.

My cousin later threw almost an hissy-fit as we explained the event.  I have no idea why he was so vehement in his dismissal of the sighting.  His explanation?  It was a “fishing bird.” I was puzzled having never heard of a “Fishing bird” –I found out it was a cormorant. I’ve seen so many cormorants over the years (we have them in Bristol) that I know it was not that we saw.  And besides, our critter was leaping not flying.

On another occasion I observed what I thought was a badger emerging from forestry across some fields.

 
Everyone, including the local ranger, assured me that there were no badgers in the area. A few nights later I got up to go to the bedroom window because it was hot and sticky and the midges were being noisy pests. I heard a noise in the flower bed, about three feet (90 cms) below the window.  I looked down and there, looking up at me, was what for all the world looked like a fluffy black fox with white facial markings –almost raccoon like.  I tried to reach for the camera at my bedside that had a flash on it and trying to do so without taking my eyes off the critter.  My hand knocked the camera and I tried to grab it –when I turned back the animal was gone.

Next day..there was that look again in amongst chuckles as I explained what I had seen. I was dreaming it seems. No such animal existed. Alright, now I knew what people reporting a UFO or Sasquatch felt like!

Back in England I went through all my books and –there it was.  Fluffy black fox with white markings!  But it was not a fox, rather it was a raccoon-like dog which is a rather primitive wild canid that can hibernate and they were kept by fur farmers before escapes in the 1930s and, of course, during the war.  I had seen one the furthest west they had moved (though that was not known at the time.
Next year I took the book and showed everyone I could in Dalborn.  Not a single odd look just the very, very annoying response of “Yes. You saw one –so what?”  I was sure this was a conspiracy.
So you can imagine I thought everyone considered me a nut-case.  However, one day my aunt said to my mother: “Ask Herr Professor if he wants coffee.”  I looked around and she was looking at me.  I had no idea up to this point that the family called me “Herr Professor” or that some of the locals were also referring to me in that way.  Apparently, my constant nose-in-books, asking questions and checking everything from insects, unusual plants and animals out had earned me a reputation!

The books, of course, varied.  I had been introduced to Brinsley Le Poer Trench (later Lord Clancarty) and his outlook on “flying saucers” and I had read of Price and O’Donnell and their ghost hunting experiences.  My big heroes were later added to: Major Donald E. Keyhoe and his take on the flying saucers and Ivan T. Sanderson who covered many topics but then, he had travelled and lived in much of the world and seen and investigated much.  Sanderson had introduced me to underwater UFOs (USOs), the Patterson-Gimlin film and, with Abominable Snowmen:Legend Come To Life, set me on another avenue of study.

I corresponded with George Haas of the Bigfoot Bay Area Group, Dimitri Bayanov in Russia on the Almas and many others covering subjects from hairy hominids, sea creatures, UFOs, ghosts, astronomy, aeronautics and beyond. I investigated my first UFO when I was around 15 years of age and joined many different UFO groups –I even famously fought with two Men In Black characters on my doorstep (quite a few witnesses).  I have chased (on foot) UFOs at Warminster, on roof tops, along roads -and nearly crashed twice.  I never ever understood why people wanting to find “the truth” just stood on the spot not daring to face the phenomena face-on.

The same applies with ghosts or even unusual creatures: you do not endanger yourself but you don’t just stand there saying “Well, that was a mystery wasn’t it?”

And those over-sized “coffee table” books full of photographs and full colour illustrations did not help.  “Is this true?” I’d ask myself.  How could I trust some stranger who just wrote this account or offered a photograph without checking it all out myself?  Sadly, those huge books are a thing of the past to a degree.
But when I kept being asked about my “officially unofficial” UFO work, or my work as a wildlife consultant to UK police forces and so on I got fed up.  I decided to put it all (well, some of it) in writing.  Some Things Strange & Sinister was my look at ghosts, poltergeists, UFOs, local and world-wide mysteries and, where-ever I could I gave an explanation.  Explaining something away is not being a sceptical debunker.  Only after you’ve looked at all the possible explanations can you say this was a hoax, that was misinterpretation or, sorry Charles Fort, that never happened.

Dead aquatic creatures washed up on UK shores as well as on Tanzanian shores. Alleged ‘mermaid/man’ carcasses and so much more.

I could, like others, just sit back and say this was all real.  No need to disbelieve. An easier life by far but then that would mean believing that real flying saucers had crashed at Aurora and Roswell. I’m not that dumb. No, I have to look into these things.

In some cases it has taken 20, 30 and even 35 years to get to the bottom of an event/case but to me that is worth it. Now I know what the facts are. And I need to point out that I am not a “Cryptozoologist”, a “Ufologist”, a “Fortean” or any other pseudo-ologist!  I am a naturalist/researcher-investigator.  That’s it.
When I wrote my second book, Some More Things Strange & Sinister I put together a lot of what I had learnt as a naturalist, historian and researcher-investigator.  From gorillas in the UK before they were actually scientifically discovered, primate historical mysteries and oddities, tales of all sorts of wildmen from the United States, England and Europe.

I looked at the mystery of a strange city said to appear in Alaskan skies each year.  Unlike other writers and ‘researchers’ over the years I went out and found the quoted source and the oft-mentioned photograph of the city-in-the-sky.

The so called “Girt Dog Of Ennerdale” which, in 1810, killed sheep and was eventually killed.  Everyone has written on it in the “mystery big cat field” or in cryptozoology and Forteana.  It’s been a werewolf, a vampire beast, a hyena a UFO creature of some kind and even a tiger, lion or a Tasmania thylacine (the current cryptozoological favourite explanation).  I went out and got the, again, oft-quoted sources and found that there is no great mystery and definitely no big cat or thylacine. The facts are in the original sources.


The Beast of Gevaudan –again, so many silly explanations but going back to original sources and corresponding with the French natural history museums, the explanation is clear –and there are later incidents correlating with “the beast” events.
Sea creatures and so-called “flying light wheels” emerging from the sea, the Great Serpent of Carthage, mystery snakes and so much more and all pulling together everything I have learnt since I was a child.


The Red Paper: Canids covered Ennerdale but also the natural history of foxes in the UK from the point where they were going extinct through to mass importation of foxes for hunting.  Wolves roaming the British countryside long after they became extinct here, jackals, coyotes, arctic foxes and much more –the hunts, where they came from and cases never before reported on.  One naturalist called it “an explosive book!” 
I try to make each book, no matter what the subject matter, interesting for the reader whether they are UFO or cryptozoology buffs or simply curious.  Photographs, maps, charts and much more, though sadly, the idea of full colour plates is way to expensive. To think. To learn and enquire into the strange, the unusual or even history is what makes us humans.


Before I shift off this mortal coil I want to pass on this information and keep delving into things that grab my attention…and try to carry on earning some kind of living!

Long winded, I know, but it tells you something about me. 

I really am quite normal.






Saturday 17 December 2011

How to Photograph Wolves at Wolf Park

TOP SECRET!!! (I DO Have A Sense Of Humour)

For over thirty years in the UK, and occasionally abroad, I was "Officially unofficially" investigating and studying UFO reports.  That's no big secret.  However, a former RAF contact I worked with got in touch and stated that, though he had no idea where it originated, he'd been sent the below Air Force ID chart which it seems is circulating amongst RAF and USAF pilots/crews.

To his question: "Is this anything to do with you?" I must, sadly, answer "NO!"

But it is bloody funny and I do get the joke!

Whoever made this -you are a genius (though you have breached so many secret regulations I think you should look out for three men in black!)

Friday 16 December 2011

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: Some More Things Strange & Sinister

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: Some More Things Strange & Sinister: Paperback 326 pages Price: £10.00 Ships in 3–5 business days ...

Some More Things Strange & Sinister


Some More Things Strange & Sinister
 Paperback
326 pages

Price:£10.00
Ships in 3–5 business days 
 
 
Follow-up to the hugely successful Some Things Strange & Sinister. 
 
For those interested in Ufology,cryptozoology,hominology,unusual natural history,ghosts and mysteries in general. The secret history of gorillas -before they were 'discovered'. 
 
Wild men of Europe, the UK and US. Hominology. Giant snakes. Amazons. The Giant serpent of Carthage. Girt Dog of Ennerdale. The Beast of Gevaudan. 
 
Crocodiles in the UK. Silent City of Alaska. And much more. Updated with extra pages and photographs.

http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/some-more-things-strange-sinister/14847371?productTrackingContext=author_spotlight_338105_

Some Things Strange & Sinister


Some Things Strange & Sinister
Paperback
358 pages
Price:£10.00
Ships in 3–5 business days 
 
 
After more than 30 years as an investigator and more than forty as a naturalist,the author has opened some of the many files he has accumulated dealing with such things as.. 
 
The Terrifying EventsAt The Lamb Inn,The Ghosts Of All Saints Church, Dead Aquatic Creatures of Canvey Island,captured bigfoot like creatures in India -all exclusively presented for the first time and with new added research previously unseen. 
 
PLUS a vastly expanded section on Spring-heeled Jack! Photographs,maps,line drawings and up-dated to make 358 pages looking at Things truly Strange and Sinister.
 
Cryptozoologist,Ghost Hunter,Ufologist or Fortean:this book has something for everyone -including the just plain inquisitive!



http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/some-things-strange-sinister/14958906?productTrackingContext=author_spotlight_338105_

Canids -Foxes, Jackals, Wolves, Coyotes and other UK mystery canids



Red Paper 1:Canids
Paperback
202 pages
 £10.00
Ships in 3–5 business days
 
 
Up-dated 2011 edition includes section on sarcoptic mange in foxes and treatment plus a list of wildlife sanctuaries and rescue centres in the UK. By the 1700s the British fox was on the verge of extinction and about to follow the bear and wolf having been hunted for sport for centuries. The answer was to import thousands of foxes per year for sport. But foxes kept dying out so jackals were tried. Some were caught, some escaped. Even wolves and coyote were released for hunting. The summation of over 30 years research reveals the damnable lie of "pest control" hunting but also reveals the cruelty the animals were subject to and how private menageries as well as travelling shows helped provide the British and Irish countryside with some incredible events. The Girt Dog of Ennerdale is also dealt with in detail.

http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/the-red-papercanines-vol1/18605332?productTrackingContext=author_spotlight_338105_

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: Can we stop another unscientific cull of badgers?

ANOMALOUS OBSERVATIONAL PHENOMENA: Can we stop another unscientific cull of badgers?: I'm a naturalist so sorry if this annoys anyone but this is serious. Save Me IMPLEMENTATION OF BADGER CULLS CONFIRMED BY T...

Can we stop another unscientific cull of badgers?



I'm a naturalist so sorry if this annoys anyone but this is serious.



IMPLEMENTATION OF BADGER CULLS CONFIRMED BY THE GOVERNMENT

It was a black day on Tuesday for animals, for Science and for humanity.

Caroline Spelman made the speech which all of us knew she would eventually make, confirming this Government’s decision to instigate ‘pilot culls’ of badgers. It is typical of the way this administration has operated, that the announcement was made at a time apparently deliberately unspecified, on almost the last day of this Parliamentary session, making it as difficult as possible for a response to be made.



The whole conduct of this business has been shady and shameful. DEFRA have gone through the motions of a consultation, but they made the questions almost impossible to answer in a critical way, and then they ignored the findings anyway. It has become more and more apparent that this Government is determined to kill badgers, no matter what. In going down this road they have totally ignored a large majority of public opinion, the advice of all independent scientific commentators, and any moral considerations whatsoever. The decision panders to the extreme end of the farming community, the very element that helped put this Government in power. Although legions of other, well informed farmers are also against this cull and in favour of pursuing the vaccination route, together with strict adherence to stringent cattle controls, their voices are likewise being ignored.



From a scientist’s point of view, this is painful to watch. The whole meaning of the word Science has been trampled upon by these people. They keep talking about a “science-led cull” and saying “the Science tells us …” It’s a travesty. The essence of Science is impartiality, and conscientious scientists offer opinions only when they are directly based on hard evidence. It is glaringly obvious that the only scientists, who have come out in favour of this cobbled together killing plan, are those in the pocket of the Government. It is depressing to see some of the country’s best-educated researchers apparently being told to find evidence to support a decision which has in effect already been made.



This announcement will plunge the country into conflict.



It would be my preference to direct our anger at the Government, and not at the farmers, many of whom will suffer from this decision through no fault of their own. But to the public it will become obvious that the price of their bottle of milk will now be the blood of thousands of mostly healthy badgers; badgers who have been slaughtered in a desperately misguided attempt to solve a farming problem, which has spread into our countryside, infecting whole populations of our wild animals with an unpleasant disease. You have to remember that this is not a government that has any respect whatever for animals … they are also intent on bringing back the abhorrent 'sports' of fox-hunting, stag hunting with dogs, and hare coursing. So it's hardly surprising that they are willing to sacrifice the lives of thousands of badgers simply to solve a financial issue in an already hugely subsidised industry.

But most of all, even if this desperate and ill-informed decision actually COULD lead to the eradication of Bovine TB in cattle – and nobody really believes it will – this is a morally unsupportable course of action. It is time that the laws protecting all animals were tightened up and given teeth. How long can we carry on devastating the Natural World and ignoring the fact that, if we as animals matter, then all sentient creatures do too, and have a right to life and health and fair treatment?



If we allow this slaughter to happen, the blood of these

beautiful and innocent animals is on ALL our hands

 Petition already signed by 40438
http://www.38degrees.org.uk/page/s/badgers-petition#petition

Wednesday 14 December 2011

Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy group has blood on their hands

Or so Bigfoot Evidence http://bigfootevidence.blogspot.com/ says. And, I have to say that since this is based on statements by the TBRC themselves.

The quote in question :

"The TBRC investigator fired upon the animal with an auto-loading shotgun in an attempt to collect a specimen. The creature ran off and no blood was found before the loss of daylight. Additional teams returned to the area in the following days to continue the search for evidence. Stones with apparent blood stains were subsequently discovered a short distance east of the original sighting location in the dry creek bed that is adjacent to the cabins. Several, but not all, of the rocks were collected. Another team was sent to collect the remaining rocks, but a hard rainfall took place on the day of their arrival, and the team was unable to locate any more of the rocks."

It seems that this is not the first Bigfoot creature the TBRC has shot at. It seems that these 'conservationists' want to kill a Sasquatch as the ultimate piece of "scientific evidence" and they should be villified for this.

But they are not the first.  John Green is a Sasquatch researcher/investigator whose works are highly recommended and some of the best found outside of Sanderson's book. In Sasquatch: The Apes Among Us, Green asks: "Should they (Sasquatch) be hunted for scientific purposes? Definitely yes..they will have to be , and study will have to include dissection...sasquatches are not available for study without killing them." (pp. 462 and 463).

Green's opinion is that the Sasquatch is an animal.  And Ape. In his book he seems rather annoyed that there is "public objection to the killing of any of the great apes for research purposes (which) has risen to the point where projects involving it are not approved, even though there are sufficient animals available." (p. 463).  Even at that time I could not believe Green had written that.  It shows a total lack of knowledge pertaining to Great Apes, their environments, populations and the delicate balance of these populations.

But Green can be seen in interviews in which he is quite clear that these Sasquatch are American Great Apes and that apes are okay to kill for study.  At this point I lose respect for the man if not his research.

In the Society for the Investigation of The Unexplaineds Autumn, 1980, issue of Pursuit, Dmitri Bayanov, Chairman of the Hominoid Research Seminar, Darwin Museum, Moscow, took Green to task.  In "Why It Is Not Right To Kill A Gentle Giant" Bayanov made his arguements quite clear and stated that it was most definitely wrong to try to kill as Sasquatch. In the brief correspondence I had with Bayanov  he made it clear that Green maintained the stance.

In January, 1973, the late George F. Haas published his paper The Present State Of Bigfoot, a copy of which he sent to me a little later, Haas states (p.3):

"It would be nice to have a body for examination and dissection and it is fully realized that until such is available the actual existence of the creatures cannot be scientifically determined.  Some investigators sincerely and honestly advocate that a body be brought in for the benefit of science but we feel strongly that there can be no justification whatever for killing one of the creatures for that purpose. It is to be hoped that such a scientific examination could wait until the body of one that has died naturally, or been killed by accident, has been found.  Sooner or later that will happen."

Now, there are certain problems here.  Firstly, 1973 and 1980 was a period when there was no DNA testing.  Secondly, if -if- these creatures do exist, we have no idea about population numbers.  Kill a Sasquatch and you might be killing one of the vital males or females in a breeding group. This could lead to a major threat to any population.

Things have changed considerably over the decades.  For instance, we have DNA so that hairs (also open to many other forms of testing), scat, blood and other material can be tested.  There are very many methods of gathering hair and, though a bit more limited, getting blood samples (see Monster Quest Sasquatch Attack and material found at Snellgrove Lake).

There are infra red/night vision and general types of trail-cams that can be used and a combination of these set up in a wide area might very well produce good footage (again, Snellgrove seems an ideal locale).

Analysis of footprints is, today, very advanced.  Checks can be made for dermal ridging and Dr. Meldrum has proven that there are good physical comparisons between prints from around the US/Canada and even China.  We can tell a great deal from footprints now.

Analysis of video footage cannot be analysed just by experienced film-makers/videographers but the movements of alleged Sasquatch creatures can be analysed and attempts to copy said movements made. If we look at the Patterson-Gimlin footage we see a perfect example. Over 40 years technology has taken this shaky footage to the point where a leg muscle injury can be seen, where accurate assessment of size and so on made and, above all, it shows the unique way that "Patty" walked.  The late Grover Krantz studied this and noted that a man could not walk as shown. Big laugh.  Now the method of walking has been tested using a tall athlete and it has been found that a man ..cannot walk that way.

Arguements used by detractors of the "Patty" footage seem, at best dumb or desperate.

At one point, if asked what I thought, I said the film was a "bad hoax". My opinion has now been altered due to all the scientific analysis carried out.

A body of a sasquatch found...not likely.  Chimpanzees have been seen to comfort and take care of sick/dying members of their group and even use leaves to bury a body.  Sasquatch are assumed to be more intelligent than chimps in their behaviour and tests carried out in typical sasquatch country to see how fast a deer can decompose/be disposed of found that it happens about 50% faster than was thought.

Scientific researchers have looked not just at habitat but food sources as well as possible Sasquatch "nests" so that we know, based on eye-witness reports and our own experiences, what the creatures eat. The detractors always state that "there is never any bedding area found"/"There is no food for a primate to survive on" which, being honest, is pure bilge.  Those people have not studied cases or the literature and to a man/woman they all admit to not having gone on any expeditions or studies.  So, can I say here and now that their opinions do not count on the subject.

The average member of the public does not know about all the research being carried out just the "silly season" jokes -though I've not seen a Bigfoot/Sasquatch report on tv news or in the press in the UK for a very long time.

If it was discovered that the Thylacine did exist in a relic population somewhere would scientists, who never studied live specimens, insist that one be shot for "scientific purposes"?  No. The animal is protected. 

If the Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy group is planning to "bring in a corpse" they should -must- be condemned and I'm quite sure that supporters withdrawing financial assistance and a boycott of any TBRC fund raising items ought to make them think again.

Killing any animal so you can stamp your foot and cock-a-snoop and say "See -I was right!" is unacceptable. Like the BFRO, I am afraid that the TBRC has lost its credibility for me.

Email the TBRC and say "NO KILLING"

http://www.texasbigfoot.com/


Russian Cliff Sasquatch, 2008

I started playing this video and was somewhat surprised to see/hear the analysis. It's absolute bunk. What you are seeing is a man/woman in a black outfit and clearly has a rucksack on his/her back.

I had thought that I'd gotten the wrong clip but have been told this is the right one.  And people wonder why anything "Bigfoot/Sasquatch" is laughed at!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ckdt2kZ6rYE