November 2010 Alleged Skunk-Ape sighting.
You be the judge......
What is hairy, 7'
tall, weighs 300 pounds, and smells like rotten eggs, moldy cheese, and
dung? People around the United States and the world call it Skunk Ape,
Nape, Yeti (Dweller among the rocks), Sasquatch (Wild Man), or Bigfoot. They
may be the same creature.
The alleged skunk ape is
considered a cryptid. It is thought by many to be related to Big
Foot, but it is actually a
Pongid, or Great Ape. They have also been called Napes. The
skunk-ape supposedly hides in muddy, abandoned caves which is thought
to create the awful "skunk like" smell.
Over the years, there have been numerous sightings of these large
mammals throughout the U.S. Reportedly, these "Skunk Apes" live in swamps, caves,
forests, open grasslands, and at the edge of your backyard. Thought to
be mostly vegetarian, there have been enough occurrences that one would
believe they probably indulge in meat, too. The
most famous such photographs were taken anonymously and mailed to the
Sarasota Sheriff's Department in Florida in the year 2000. These
photos are known as the Myakka Skunk-Ape photos. While these
photos are arguably the most famous, there have been many more photos
taken of the alleged SkunkApe. Some of these are posted on this
site. We cannot attest to any of these alleged sightings but we
have only been able to disprove one of them as can be seen on our
Previous Sightings page of this site.
Skunk Ape sightings tend to occur sporadically and in groups. In 2003,
there were numerous sightings around LaFollette, TN. Spotters created a
loud enough outcry that researchers from the University of Tennessee,
volunteers, and news reporters raced there to search the area for
evidence. Fecal and hair samples were collected, but DNA tests proved
"inconclusive". It could not be determined exactly what type of animal
the samples came from (see Related Articles Page in this site).
Cryptozooligists (hunters of hidden animals) firmly believe in their
existence. Austalian Wallabies live in remote England, although
few Brits have seen them or believe they live on their island. Mountain
lions roam from British Columbia to Patagonia, but few are seen or
photographed. Another example is the snow leopard, which was discovered
only a short while ago. In all these years, scientists had never found
an unexplained patch of fur, any bones, or even a lost tooth from one.
Finally, it was proven that the snow leopard does, indeed, exist.
Throughout the centuries, there have been many stories about a
man-beast. Whether you believe them or not, the legend continues.
Non-believers become believers when they spot a man-ape. Friends become
aloof and worry that you really might be crazy, but you know what you
saw. One need not stretch their imaginations very far to know that
reality really is ... stranger than fiction.
Note: Partially found at
A True Believer
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