# Any believers here in Bigfoot/Sasquatch/the Florida Skunk Ape? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 26, 2011, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067 "2011-01-26T17:41:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/1 "2011-01-26T17:41:31Z")
If so, how do you account for the lack of sasquatch bones in the La Brea Tar Pits, or anywhere else? Wouldn’t there be bones? Wouldn’t somebody have found some by now? The existence of one organism implies the existence of a breeding population, not only at present but into the indefinite past. American paleontologists have had a long time to dig freely within a country at peace. They have never found any hominid fossils or remains, never even found any bones of an anthropoid ape, or any primates at all except for [New World monkeys](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_world_monkeys) and their ancestors. (Not even those, in North America – the monkeys seem to have migrated directly from Africa to South America 40 million ya.) ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/2 "2011-01-26T18:14:30Z")
I see what you’re doing here;) but what the heck, I’ll bite anyway. So I’ll go so far as to say that I’m keeping an open mind in re sasquatches. Some of the reported sightings are pretty credible, and descriptions have been fairly consistant, even dating back to pre-settlement times. So yes, I think it’s at least possible that there could be a small breeding population somewhere out back of beyond, living quietly and avoiding human contact. One argument for this possibility is the sheer size and complexity of what is supposed to be sasquatch habitat. I’ve worked, hunted and hiked in some of that country; for someone used to the more populous regions it is impossible to imagine the sheer vastness, the remoteness of the Northwestern mountains. One can see how a few sasquatches could avoid detection. Take the Cougar, _Puma concolor_, for example. The wildlife folks say populations are expanding, they’re everywhere here in the western states. I’ve spent a great deal of time in prime cougar habitat, have no doubt they’ve watched me, but I have never, ever seen one of the bloody things (always wanted to). But a shy, intelligent animal that wishes to avoid human contact can easily do so. The La Brea tar pits angle doesn’t really mean anything. That region may never have been their habitat, or maybe they were just smart enough to avoid getting trapped. A lot of existing animal types have _not_ been found in the tar pits, or in fossilized form. As to the lack of carcasses or bones, well, tens of thousands of animals die in the field every year, but one rarely finds carcasses lying about. Nature has a pretty efficient disposal system. So I’ll say it’s possible, if somewhat unlikely. SS ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/3 "2011-01-26T18:19:39Z")
I doubt the existence of sasquatch, but I don’t rule it out. The fact that we haven’t found one in the La Brea pits is a lame ass argument against it. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/4 "2011-01-26T18:31:31Z")
You know who else has no bones left behind in the La Brea tar pits? That’s right Mark Twain. How do we know he existed? He left behind books. Maybe we should be looking in the libraries for Sasquatchi. I highly doubt they existed though but I would be highly interested if they did/do. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/5 "2011-01-26T18:51:58Z")
> [@SeldomSeen](#): > > The La Brea tar pits angle doesn’t really mean anything. That region may never have been their habitat, or maybe they were just smart enough to avoid getting trapped. A lot of existing animal types have _not_ been found in the tar pits . . . Yes, I know, it was just an example. But, I don’t think the bones in the tar pits are of animals who were “trapped” there, only of those who happened to die there and then their bones, eventually, got preserved in tar. Which didn’t happen often, but it happened on odd occasions for a long enough time that the pits are just full of Pleistocene-to-modern bones. > [@SeldomSeen](#): > > . . . or in fossilized form. No, fossilization only happens to **really** old bones, but really, is there any existing animal type whose bones have never been dug up? ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/6 "2011-01-26T20:21:23Z")
> [@](#): > > Yes, I know, it was just an example. But, I don’t think the bones in the tar pits are of animals who were “trapped” there, only of those who happened to die there and then their bones, eventually, got preserved in tar. I don’t think that’s the case. Plenty of skeletons are there because their owners got stuck. > [@](#): > > is there any existing animal type whose bones have never been dug up? Sasquatch. Duh. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/7 "2011-01-26T20:23:04Z")
The [bigfoot tape is a known hoax](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patterson-Gimlin_film#Philip_Morris), somebody admitted to making the costume. Other than bigfoot, no evidence exists of the other monsters. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/8 "2011-01-26T20:39:11Z")
> [@Tahssa](#): > > You know who else has no bones left behind in the La Brea tar pits? I was certain this was the path to Godwinization. Would have been perfectly legit, too. I’m reasonably certain no Nazi bones will be found in the tar. OP: I don’t _disbelieve_. **SeldomSeen** ’s post about cougars gives a pretty good example (although cougar dens are pretty easy to spot, even if their owners aren’t). You could probably squeeze 500-1000 Bigfoots in the forests between Oregon & Alaska. If they’re shy and smart, maybe nocturnal, they could stay well-hidden. But I question whether something smart enough to want to stay hidden would not ultimately become curious enough to check us out from time to time. And maybe that’s what’s happening with the rare, lone encounters. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2011, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/9 "2011-01-27T19:37:39Z")
this thread is sooooooo nineteen eighties!!! It seems to me that Big Foot sightings, like UFO sightings , lost all their sex appeal after about 1991…when cell phones became popular. And they got even more boring now that the phones all have cameras. A mystery is no fun if you’ve got the tool to solve it right there in your pocket. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/10 "2011-01-27T20:41:16Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > is there any existing animal type whose bones have never been dug up? Yes, but to the best of my knowledge all living large mammals from North America have been found as fossils and/or in archeological sites. I think even more telling than the lack of fossils is the lack of any significant Native American artifacts associated with Sasquatch. Surely a human-like creature would figure very prominently in indigenous myths and legends, but there are only a few vague references. And the hide or bones of such creatures would be regarded as powerful magic and be preserved by shamans and in medicine bundles, but there are none. While it is highly unlikely that Sasquatch remains would not have been found in the recent past, it’s impossible that Native Americans would never have found any over a period of thousands of years of co-existence. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/11 "2011-01-27T20:44:13Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Surely a human-like creature would figure very prominently in indigenous myths and legends, but there are only a few vague references. What are they? ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/12 "2011-01-27T20:59:14Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I think even more telling than the lack of fossils is the lack of any significant Native American artifacts associated with Sasquatch. Surely a human-like creature would figure very prominently in indigenous myths and legends, but there are only a few vague references… Actually there have been a few artifacts. From **Wikipedia** > [@](#): > > Robert Pyle argues that “Certain artifacts suggest that some Amerindians were acquainted with something having the visage of an ape,” specifically “several carved stone heads from the Columbia River basin,” which Pyle believes depict “prognathous, chinless faces with heavy brow ridges and in at least one case a sagittal crest.”[9] These stone carvings date to pre-Columbian times, According to B. Robert Butler these stone carvings date to the Wakemap Middle Period, circa 1500 BCE to 200 CE > [@](#): > > Sprague examines seven carved heads, which he argues have distinctively primate-like features. Like Pyle, Sprague notes that this does not necessarily support Bigfoot’s existence, but Sprague sees the question of what inspired the carved stone heads as intriguing and unresolved. > [@](#): > > In _The Tsimshian Monkey Masks and Sasquatch_, the anthropologist and ethnologist Marjorie Halpin describes two wood facemasks that were collected from the Tsimshian and Nisga’a tribes near Prince Rupert, British Columbia [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evidence\_regarding\_Bigfoot](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evidence_regarding_Bigfoot) Again, nothing conclusive, but definitely intriguing. I’m still holding out for the possibility of sasquatches in our woods. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/13 "2011-01-28T00:00:57Z")
Of all primates, only the Baboon and the Human thrive in areas without significant fruit resources. There are limited wild fruit resources in Europe and North America, compared with Sub-Sahaharan Africa, or Southeast Asia. So, we’re not a promising site for primates. Most of North America has an annual hunting season for wild game, in the Autumn. Men, familiar with the outdoors and skilled in tracking & stalking wild game, go out by the thousands, every year, armed with shotgun, rifle, carbine. crossbow, or longbow. We’ve been doing this throughout the Colonial period, the Pre-Civil War Era, the Golden Age of the American West (would the Mountain Men and trappers have failed to catch one? I don’t think so.), through two World Wars, & into the current Postmodern Era. Nobody has ever bagged one yet! If they had, they could have been rich & famous overnight. I’ve lived in the Wisconsin countryside, & in the mountains of East Tennessee. I’ve known the outdoorsmen who live there, thrive, & love the back country. Believe me: if Bigfoot existed, they’d have shot one by now. ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/14 "2011-01-28T00:17:29Z")
Cant prove unicorns dont exist either. Just no persuasive evidence they do, ie actual biological remains. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/15 "2011-01-28T00:40:37Z")
I’m more of a hopeful agnostic. I want there to be one - but until they find a body I’m not a believer. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/16 "2011-01-28T01:45:50Z")
Doesn’t evidence indicate that a bionic person is protecting bigfoot? I kind of remember a documentary I saw as a kid. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/17 "2011-01-28T02:49:20Z")
An interesting comparison is the contention that there is now a population of feral chimpanzees living in the Everglades. Whatever else is true or not, we do know that there is such a thing as a chimpanzee. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/18 "2011-01-28T02:55:19Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Of all primates, only the Baboon and the Human thrive in areas without significant fruit resources. If the sasquatch exists it is a hitherto unknown primate. It might not need fruit. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/19 "2011-01-28T03:08:58Z")
> [@SeldomSeen](#): > > I see what you’re doing here;) but what the heck, I’ll bite anyway. So I’ll go so far as to say that I’m keeping an open mind in re sasquatches. Some of the reported sightings are pretty credible,… OK, I’ll bite. Which ones do you think are most credible, and why? ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2011, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067/20 "2011-01-28T03:23:50Z")
\>\>Any believers here in Bigfoot/Sasquatch/the Florida Skunk Ape? He’s never lied to me. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-believers-here-in-bigfoot-sasquatch-the-florida-skunk-ape/569067.md?page=2)