Yeren seen in 2005

Meet Big Foot's Chinese cousin

English.news.cn   2010-10-31 10:56:30     by Erik Nilsson

BEIJING, Oct. 31 (Xinhuanet) -- China has its fair share of mythical creatures which roam the countryside leaving tantalizing glimpses and a footprint or two. Erik Nilsson hunts down a couple of sightings.Meet China's monster mesh - the cast of creatures, known as cryptids, whose existences haven't been verified but which some believe roam the country's wild places. China is host to plenty of myths about the not-so-distant relatives of the world's most celebrated cryptozoological creatures.Most foreigners know of Big Foot's cousin, the Yeti, also known as the abominable snowman, which reportedly roam Himalayan Tibet. But fewer have heard of the yeren, or wild man, said to prowl the primeval forests of Hubei province's Shennongjia. Zhang Jiahong, a sheep rancher in Muyu town who claims to have seen two of the ape-men in 2005, told China Daily earlier this month they had "hairy faces, eyes like black holes, prominent noses and disheveled hair, with faces that resembled both a man's and a monkey's".More than 400 locals have reported yeren encounters, the Wild Man Research Association says.Explorer Zhang Jinxing says he has found traces of the creature, including hair, footprints and scat on at least 19 occasions.He began living as a hermit in the 3,200-square-kilometer mountain range in 1994 in hopes of seeing the beast for himself and hasn't given up hope. Local trappers made world headlines when they caught a critter they said was a yeren this April. But biologists in Beijing determined the bizarre beast to be an excessively mangy civet, the Telegraph reported.While no evidence has surfaced to verify the yeren's existence, another former cryptid from the same woodland, the Shennongjia polar bear, was proven to exist in 1922, UNESCO says.Despite the animal's coloration, the "polar bear" moniker is a misnomer, as the creature's closest relative is the Asiatic black bear, as a 2006 study of its genetics published by the US National Center for Biotechnology Information confirmed.Biologists from around the globe have been flocking to Shennongjia to study the "whitenized" genetic clines of the bears and a slew of other endemic species, including white snakes, monkeys, muntjacs or baking deer and serows, a goat-like creature.But while the Shennongjia polar bear has been transferred from the cryptids list to that of scientifically recognized taxonomy, the Maltese Tiger has had no such luck. Alleged sightings of the giant "blue tiger" are occasionally reported in Fujian province, but no solid evidence confirms the big cat's existence.China also has its answers to the Loch Ness Monster. For centuries, massive water-dwelling beasts were believed to lurk beneath the surface of Xinjiang autonomous region's Kanasi Lake, occasionally wriggling onto the shores to snack on cattle.These monsters made world headlines in 2007, when a tourist's eight-minute video of 15 mysterious creatures swimming in the lake was broadcast on national television. The animals' exposed parts appear larger than the lake's largest tour boat, People's Daily reported.There have also been water monster sightings on the other side of the country in Jilin province's Tianchi Lake. The cryptid captured world attention when TV reporter Zhuo Yongsheng filmed six strange creatures swimming in the lake for 20 minutes in 2007.Be they real or not, the animals that are the stuff of Chinese local legends are gaining global appeal among those who believe the line between the mythical and the mysterious is finer than most think.

(Source: China Daily)

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2010-10/31/c_13583948.htm

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MONSTERS. BIGFOOT, CHINESE WILDMAN, NESSIE, SEA APE, WEREWO LF AND MANY MORE [L2] 

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For Halloween- Do Zombies exist?

Zombies: Do They Exist?

By Bernard Diederich;Claudia Wallis Monday, Oct. 17, 1983

Yes, says a Harvard scientist, who offers an explanation.On a brilliant day in the spring of 1980, a stranger arrived at L'Estère marketplace in Haiti's fertile Artibonite Valley. The man's gait was heavy, his eyes vacant. The peasants watched fearfully as he approached a local woman named Angelina Narcisse. She listened as he introduced himself, then screamed in horror—and recognition. The man had given the boyhood nickname of her deceased brother Clairvius Narcisse, a name that was known only to family members and had not been used since his funeral in 1962.This incident and four others in recent years have sparked the most systematic inquiry ever made into the legendary voodoo phenomenon of zombiism. According to Haitian belief, a zombie is an individual who has been "killed" and then raised from the dead by malevolent voodoo priests known as "bocors." Though most educated Haitians deny the existence of zombies, Dr. Lamarque Douyon, Canadian-trained head of the Psychiatric Center in Port-au-Prince, has been trying for 25 years to establish the truth about the phenomenon, no easy matter in a land where the line between myth and reality is faintly drawn. More recently, Douyon has been joined in his search by Harvard Botanist E. Wade Davis. Next month Davis is publishing a paper on his findings in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology. His startling conclusion: "Zombiism exists and is a societal phenomenon that can be explained logically." Douyon set the stage for Davis' study by foraying into rural Haiti, where he met with purported zombies and fearsome bocors. At least 15 individuals who had been branded zombies by terrified peasants turned out to be victims of epilepsy, mental retardation, insanity or alcoholism. The case of Clairvius Narcisse, however, gave Douyon good evidence. Medical records showed he was declared dead in 1962 at Albert Schweitzer Hospital, an American-run institution in Deschapelles. Yet more than 200 people recognized him after his reappearance.The best explanation, Douyon believed, was that Narcisse had been poisoned in such a way that his vital signs could not be detected. The psychiatrist obtained a sample of a coma-inducing toxin from a bocor. The poison is apparently used to punish individuals who have transgressed the will of their community or family. Narcisse, for example, said that he had been "killed" by his brothers for refusing to go along with their plan to sell the family land. Ti-Femme, a female zombie also under study by Douyon, had been poisoned for refusing to marry the man her family had chosen for her and for bearing another man’s child. Douyon sent a quantity of the zombie potion to the U.S., where it came to Davis' attention. An expert on tribal uses of plants, Davis flew to Haiti and began collecting his own samples. "The principal ingredients are consistent in three of four localities," he reports in his paper. Several plants containing skin irritants are used, a charred human bone is thrown in just for show, but the active ingredients are a large New World toad (Bufo marinus) and one or more species of puffer fish. The toad, Davis reports, is a "veritable chemical factory," containing hallucinogens, powerful anesthetics and chemicals that affect the heart and nervous system. The fish is more potent still, containing a deadly nerve poison called tetrodotoxin. To learn how these poisons might relate to zombiism, Davis turned to an unlikely source: Japanese medical literature. Every year a number of Japanese suffer Botanist Davis tetrodotoxin poisoning as a result of eating incorrectly prepared puffer fish, the great delicacy fugu. Davis found that entire Japanese case histories "read like accounts of zombification." Indeed, nearly every symptom reported by Narcisse and his doctors is described, from the initial difficulty breathing to the final paralysis, glassy-eyed stare and yet the retention of mental faculties. In at least two cases, Japanese victims were declared dead but recovered before they could be buried. Japanese reports confirmed what Davis was told by the bocors: the effect of the poison depends on the dosage; too much will kill "too completely," and resuscitation will be impossible. Even with the correct dose, the bocors said, a zombie must be exhumed within about eight hours or will be lost, presumably to asphyxiation. How zombies are revived from their deathlike comas remains a mystery. Both Davis and Douyon heard stories about a graveyard ritual in which the bocor pounds on the earth and awakens the victim, but neither was able to witness it. Davis did learn that upon reviving, the zombie is force-fed a paste made of sweet potato and datura, a plant known to Haitians as zombie cucumber. Datura, says Davis, is "one of the most potent hallucinogenic plants known." Thus the zombie is led away in a state of intoxication, usually to work as a slave. Narcisse, who spent several years as a slave on a sugar plantation, reports that zombies do not make very good workers. Says he: "The slightest chore required great effort." He reports that his senses were so distorted that the smallest stream seemed a wide and unfordable sea, as though "my eyes were turned in." Davis has sent samples of the zombie potion to laboratories in Europe and the U.S., where in one experiment it induced a trancelike state in rats. Such research in the past led to the discovery of curare, an arrow poison from the Amazon now used to paralyze muscles during surgery. Tetrodotoxin may also one day find its place in the medical armamentarium. "People who have lived in the tropics for centuries have learned things about plants and animals that we have not fathomed," says Richard Evan Schultes, head of Harvard's renowned Botanical Museum. "We must not leave any stone unturned, or their secrets will be lost."

— By Claudia Wallis. Reported by Bernard Diederich/Port-au-Prince .source:
  http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,952208-2,00.html

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News: more on Australian big cat and new Yeti search.

Hills Shire Times joins search for big cat
25 Oct 10 by VANESSA BRADBURY
THE search was on for the elusive big cat of the Hills on Wednesday after the recent discovery of giant paw prints in the sand near caves in Marramarra National Park at Canoelands.Hills Shire Times journalist Vanessa Bradbury and photographer Phil Rogers set out for the national park on the outskirts of the Hills with Katoomba-based cryptozoologist Rex Gilroy in a bid to find this mysterious feline which has intrigued locals for years.
See more photos at http://hills-shire-times.whereilive.com.au/photos/gallery/search-for-hills-black-panther/
Mr Gilroy believes the national park would be the perfect setting for the big cat to roam because it has lots of caves off the main walking track and has a good source of water with Marramarra Creek.“I would not be surprised if there are two or three of these big cats here, but we really need to find conclusive evidence of this like good tracks or samples of any faeces,” he said.“There is plenty of food around with possums, foxes and even rabbits.”Our search saw us walk along the main path before getting off the beaten track and going further into the bush to find some caves and any traces of the big cat. Unfortunately no conclusive evidence was found - this time.

Read rest here http://hills-shire-times.whereilive.com.au/news/story/hills-shire-times-joins-search-for-big-cat/

Indiana Jones' hits the Yeti trail in Nepal

2010-10-25 14:30:00

Kathmandu, Oct 25 (IANS) As mysterious and as much sought-after as UFOs, the Yeti - also known as the Abominable Snowman, Migoi and Bigfoot - is not a myth or a hermit in the wilderness. It exists in virginal forests untrodden by man, living on tree barks, frogs and even 'brains' of animals. Immensely powerful, it can kill several yaks with a rock and when lonely, wistfully eyes the mountain women grazing their herds near the forest, toying with the idea of capturing one for company. It has a strong sense of smell, is afraid of the fire and lives in caves. The hairy ape man that has captured the imagination of people down the ages comes alive vividly once again as another 'Indiana Jones' hits the Yeti trail in Nepal with his new book, 'Yetis, Sasquatch and Hairy Giants'. 'I must be frank and say that I haven't come across a Yeti as yet though I went on several Yeti expeditions,' says a candid David Hatcher Childress, the 54-year-old explorer whose nearly 20 books on his exotic wanderings have made his fans bestow the title 'Indiana Jones' on him. 'However, I firmly believe they exist.' The American archaeologist, who first came to Nepal in 1976 at the age of 19, has been to Mongolia, China, Bhutan, Sikkim and places in Canada where sightings of the mysterious creature were reported. His new book, published by Kathmandu's Adventure Pilgrims Trekking and launched in the capital Saturday, puts together a wealth of anecdotes, reports and photographs about the Yeti. 'One of the earliest reported sightings was in 1921 when a British expedition went on a reconnaissance of Mt Everest,' says Childress, on the eve of a trekking expedition in Nepal.

Read rest here http://sify.com/news/indiana-jones-hits-the-yeti-trail-in-nepal-news-international-kkzo4tjfdig.html

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New big Cat sighting down under

Big cat possibly on prowl in Hills again
19 Oct 10 by BEV JORDAN & VANESSA BRADBURY
GIANT paw prints found in the sand near caves in Marramarra National Park at Maroota have ignited speculation about the Kenthurst panther.The photograph was taken by Simon Jones on his iPhone showing paw prints as big as his hand.He and two friends were taken into the reserve by friend Adam Hickey to see some rock art when they came across the paw prints on October 10.“It was sometime between 11am and 11.30am and wasn’t far from the entrance when we saw these big cat prints.“There were quite a few prints there and they seemed to be following what looked like emu prints.”Mr Jones, of Castle Hill, said they had gone to the park to show two Koori friends around.“We got a bit of a shock.”Mr Hickey said they followed the prints, which were on a sand track, for some of the way.He said the prints were not far from the entrance to the park and near some caves.Cryptozoologist Rex Gilroy said he was very interested in this latest giant paw print, especially the back three digits of the print.“I believe this could possibly be a print of the big cat which has been sighted in Kenthurst over the years,” Mr Gilroy said.“It is the season for them to be appearing as spring is the mating season for most animals.“I have already received sightings in Wentworth Falls and the Blue Mountains.”Blacktown big cat enthusiast Greg Foster said it was a good print.“It is more like a print of the marsupial lion Rex and I have been following than the Asian panther-like feline,” Mr Foster said.“From studying the photo I would say it is a large animal with a paw print of about 10cm to 13 cm and is definitely bigger then a cattle dog.”
Source with pic: http://hills-shire-times.whereilive.com.au/news/story/big-cat-possibly-on-prowl-in-hills-again/

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Live Science on Bigfoot

Bigfoot Cousins Claimed in Many Countries

By Benjamin Radford,

A group of Chinese researchers has announced that they are mounting an expedition to seek evidence of the yeren, the Chinese version of Bigfoot. There have been other searches for the yeren in decades past, all failing to find conclusive evidence of its existence. The team, led by a man named Luo Baosheng, is hoping to raise $1.5 million to launch the search.

While Bigfoot is by far the best-known of mysterious bipedal creatures said to inhabit the world's wilds, it is far from the only one. Many countries and cultures have stories of hairy, feral man-like creatures.

Read rest here: http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/bigfoot-cousins-yeti-yeren-monsters-101012.html

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Job Vacancy: Bigfoot hunters wanted

Wanted: A team to look for Bigfoot  2010-10-10 13:20:00

Beijing, Oct 10 (IANS) A research association in China has launched a global recruitment drive to form a team to search for the legendary and elusive ape-like creature called Bigfoot.The Hubei Wild Man Research Association in Hubei province will launch the search in the Shennongjia forest region. Located in the remote mountains in Hubei, the reserve has long been rumoured to be the Bigfoot's home, the China Daily reported.The association, which comprises of over 100 scientists and explorers, is hoping the search could end the long-running debate on the existence of the 'half-human, half-ape' creature, said its vice president Luo Baosheng.Over 400 people have claimed to have seen Bigfoot in Shennongjia but no evidence has been found to prove its existence. They say the creature walks upright, is more than two metres tall in adult stage and has a gray, red or black hairy body.The association said the team members should be between 25 to 40 years old and with good physical health.They should also have a basic knowledge of biology and know how to use a camera.

Source:http://sify.com/news/wanted-a-team-to-look-for-bigfoot-news-international-kkknucfijdg.html

Chinese researchers to relaunch 'Bigfoot' search By Katy Byron, CNN Job: Find Bigfoot.

Scientists in China's Hubei Province have announced they are looking for additional members for its special team tasked with tracking down the creature.The Hubei Wild Man Research Association (HWMRA) is recruiting researchers internationally to join the group's search in the Shennongjia forest region, according to state-run news agency Xinhua.Luo Baosheng, vice president of the HWMRA, told Xinhua that the organization is comprised of more than 100 scientists and explorers who have been chasing the ape-like animal for years. The last time a organized search took place was in the early 1980s, Xinhua reported Saturday."Most importantly, we want the team members to be devoted, as there will be a lot of hard work in the process," Luo told Xinhua. Team members are also expected to be in good physical health and preferably 25 to 40 years of age, he added.The search for the phantom, known as the "Yeren" or "Wild Man" in China, will cost at least $1.5 million U.S. dollars, according to Wang Shancai, a member of the the group and an archaeologist with the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology. The group is seeking funding from various companies and institutions, Wang said.Chinese researchers have been searching since the 1970s. There have been more than 400 reported sightings of the half-man, half-ape in the Shennongjia area. In the past, explorers have found inconclusive evidence that researchers claimed to be proof of Bigfoot's existence, including hair, footprints, excrement and a sleeping nest, Xinhua reported.Witnesses say the creature walks upright like a human but is much taller, and is covered in hair head-to-toe. The search for Yeti is not restricted to China.People in the United States have been looking for years. The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) claims it's the oldest and largest organization with the goal of finding Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch. The organization relies heavily on eyewitness reports from residents.According to BFRO's website, the animal began to be referred to as Bigfoot by journalists in the 1950s after a spat of sightings reported in northern California.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/10/09/china.bigfoot.search/

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Bigfoot Observer's Field Manual: A practical and easy-to-follow step-by-step guide to your very own face-to-face encounter with a legend