…A team of scientists can verify that their 5-year long DNA study, currently under peer-review, confirms the existence of a novel hominin hybrid species, commonly called “Bigfoot” or “Sasquatch,” living in North America. Researchers’ extensive DNA sequencing suggests that the legendary Sasquatch is a human relative that arose approximately 15,000 years ago as a hybrid cross of modern Homo sapiens with an unknown primate species.

The study, it is said, will report on 20 whole mitochondrial genomes and 3 whole nuclear genomes taken from “purported Sasquatch samples.” My efforts to ascertain from DNA Diagnostics exactly from where and in what manner these samples were obtained were not fruitful, but it is said that a colleague of Robin Lynne, Melba S. Ketchum, has property on which it is claimed

…that there are up to 10 Bigfoots living … she feeds them a variety of foods including Blueberry muffins, which they are particularly fond of.

So, that’s where the samples must be from.

According to the DNA study, the hybrid known as Bigfoot is the result of interbreeding between males of a non-human hominid and female humans. This is interesting because the only other anthropological information of which I’m aware regarding the mating patterns of Bigfoot suggest that the elusive hairy forest dweller is hypergynous in the other direction. Here, I refer to the case of the Almas known as Zana, a Central Asian bigfoot who lived in the village of T’khina in Abkhazia, Republic of Georgia, who joined a human family (first as a captive, then later as a domestic servant) who bred with a human male named Edgi Genaba, and who gave birth to human children who seemed, well, mainly human. (Important note: Many of Zana’s children are said to have died in infancy, suggesting a certain degree of incompatibility between the two species.)

As we await confirmation of the reported DNA results, let us keep an eye on Bigfoot’s blog for his opinion. He blogs under the pseudonym “Sasquatch” at Teen Skepchick.

Update: Palaeoanthropologist Lee Berger has offered, on twitter, a substantial award for convincing evidence of the DNA of Bigfoot:

UPDATE: There is now an interview with my old friend Todd Disotell on The Bigfoot Show about this find.

UPDATE: Skeptisquatch has issued THIS STATEMENT.

UPDATE: Film at 11!

We eagerly await the results!

Photo of Bigfoot by Flickr User gabegross

For more information on Bigfoot and his relationship to the Origin of the Skeptics Movement, you should read my novella, Sungudogo. Click here to learn more about Sungudogo.

Randy Lee Tenley had dressed himself up in a “Ghillie Suit” which is a form of camouflage used by snipers and other soliders so that they look like a bush. Standing up and walking around in such a thing makes you look like bigfoot. But, the point of a Ghillie Suit is to disuse the visibility of the lines you would normal make (our eyes are good at following lines) so that you blend in, or, essentially, disappear. So, when you walk out into traffic in the middle of the night wearing a Ghillie Suit, you look like nothing and some kids driving down the road who did not need to have killing someone be part of their lives forever run your sorry ass right over.

The story is here.

Although I’ve hardly ever blogged about it, I am keenly interested in the topic of cryptozoology which, to me, has two distinct aspects: 1) The scientific, realistic search for previously unknown organisms and 2) the study of OTHER people who are busy in the unscientific, fantasy-riddled “search” (read, often, faking) of so called unknown non-existent organisms.

But who cares what I think. You need to tune in to this evening’s episode of Skeptically Speaking to hear commentary by Blake Smith and Karen Stollznow, of MonsterTalk. Details here. Be there, don’t be square.

I’m pretty sure we did stay on the planet.