Tom
Doherty Associates, 2006, 297pp., ISBN - 9780765312167
Reviewed
by: Martin Lockley
We are not Alone
A native American elder from
Perhaps you don’t believe in Bigfoot or the Yeti,
but for those who are not anthropologically educated, it helps to know that
there is hard fossil evidence (jaws and teeth) for a giant ape (Gigantopithecus)
that lived in east Asia in comparatively recent times,
and likely coexisted with our ancestor Homo
erectus. If it crossed the Bering Land Bridge during the ice age, when sea
level was low, that’s all we’d need to account for sightings and footprints
that are frequent enough to be almost common place (~800 in one statistical
analysis). Although Gigantiopithecus-sized
foot skeletons are not known they would likely fit Bigfoot tracks nicely- what
I call the ‘Cinderella Syndrome.’ Looked
at another way, we do not know that Bigfoot is not in fact a relict Gigantopithecus. If that were the case we already have
abundant footprints, several films and a large number of sightings to analyze.
When I’m not reading, writing or teaching about the
evolution of consciousness,
my ‘day job’ involves running a small fossil footprint museum at
the
Overall the evidence for Bigfoot is ‘outright persuasive
and compelling” according to Meldrum. The list of
distinguished primatologists willing to declare
Bigfoot a distinct possibility includes Jane Goodall.
Researching this topic a few years ago I found that a surprising number of
professionals, including John Napier (Smithsonian primatologist),
Grover Krantz (anthropologist) and Ivan Sanderson
(zoologist) had written books sympathetic to the idea that the Bigfoot-Yeti is
real and likely still with us. This list
is symptomatic of a growing community of scientists and professionals who, like Meldrum, find the
evidence compelling. Why is the case so
persuasive, when we still do not have the ‘ultimate’ proof in the form of a
body either alive or dead?
First, the evidence all weaves into a coherent, internally-consistent whole.
Tracks, skin and body traces, hair, erect walking, large size, vocalizations, behavior, habitat and inferred fossil relatives all point
to a large ape-like primate. Second,
while some clues are subtle, they appear ecologically sophisticated. For
example, track
distribution plots, indicate Bergman’s
well-known biogeographic rule (larger animals in the
north than in the south). Third, many apes are intelligent and shy, and much
harder to find than popular Goodall and Attenborough
film footage might suggest. Some chimps
have become nocturnal in war-torn regions in order to avoid human contact. There are some wild animals such as the
wolverine that have almost never been photographed in the wild, and there are
previously unknown large deer- and ox-sized species that have only
very-recently been discovered in remote forested areas. Evidence suggests the
same for Bigfoot. Forth, in Halkomelem, one of the
native languages of
Meldrum’s ‘legend meets science’
theme is most topical in the context of paradigm shifts in science, and there
is plenty of proof that large animals have unexpectedly been discovered in remote
areas. So, why are experienced professionals, field biologists and outdoors
men/women, who know the area, most inclined to believe, whereas the doubting skeptics are demonstrably those with little or no first
hand experience and even less knowledge of the abundant evidence that exists. Skeptic claims that compelling evidence (proof) is not
forthcoming, despite prolonged systematic study are disingenuous. Not only,
does the mainstream scientific establishment trivialize and ignore much of the
evidence, it also fails to support prolonged systematic study. Instead the
inclination is to cry foul and invoke hoaxers. But there is little evidence
that even one in a hundred sightings, footprints or vocalization reports has
been fraudulent. Most Gorilla suit hoaxes and false feet are sadly amateurish.
The track evidence, especially large, long-striding trackways,
appearing at night in remote areas, would be very hard to fake, without leaving
obvious tell-tale trails of ones own. To
fake the sheer volume of recorded evidence would require precisely the
regional-scale of institutional, technical and scientific research support that
is so obviously lacking for primary investigations.
We estimate millions of unknown species on earth
including hundreds, perhaps thousands that are likely quite large. A large bipedal ape would be intelligent, and
able to observe and avoid unnecessary human contact. Intriguing reports suggest
that Bigfoot, like many large mammals, can emit infrasounds, that help
disorient trackers nearby. In some cases they have been reported throwing
rocks, moving large objects and beating trees with sticks, just as great apes
are known to. They also investigate campsites and equipment, but appear to do
so only at night. This shows a combination of intelligent primate curiosity and
caution. One might even go so far as to say that an intelligent bipedal ape
would possess psychic abilities comparable to those reported for certain so
called ‘primitive’ human cultures. By
definition these would be hard for us to understand, but animals would react
differently. Thus, reports of horses being spooked seem very plausible. One
witness claims to have seen a Bigfoot follow a deer into a clearing where the
prey became immobile and was easily picked up. Pranksters in Gorilla suits do
not lie in wait in the remote back country on the off chance of fooling
simpletons who just happen to stumble into the area.
Was it in fact Gigantopithecus from