The Legend of Bigfoot. T. S. Mart
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p.m. and saw a large, hairy creature alongside the road. They passed by, turned around, and came back to the location. The creature was gone, but they heard a high-pitched scream that sounded like a pig or a woman screaming. Then they spotted the creature on the opposite side of the road coming after them. The boys returned to town and told the police what happened. When the state troopers went out later, they found the creature in a field. It let out a deep, guttural roar as it retreated. These incidents were recorded in the police logs, which later came up missing.
BIGFOOT OF THE DEEP SOUTH
While this is a picture of a skunk ape, the wood ape is a collective term for unknown apelike creatures in the southern region. Generally, this group of supposed primates is said to be seven to nine feet tall. A variety of colors, they range from dark hair to shaggy grayish-brown hair. They are similar to chimpanzees and orangutans, but Wood Apes are much more hunched than other primates, with no sagittal crest. Reported to be aggressive, they’re often seen in or around swamps and are easily excitable. According to some, this is not necessarily a traditional Bigfoot. It’s also suspected there are different kinds of southern Bigfoot-type creatures. Other commonly known names are Booger, Esti Capcaki (Seminole, meaning “tall man”), Bush Ape, Wild Man, Swamp Devil, Swamp Cabbage Man, and Swampsquatch.
FOUKE MONSTER
Hair/Fur: long dark-brown, reddish, or black hair, covering the entire body
Eyes: brown
Height: most reports read 7 feet; several others report 4 or 5 feet
Weight: 300 to 500 pounds
Body Appearance: chest 3 feet wide
Facial Features: brown skin, apelike face
Characteristics: moves quickly, strong odor
Demeanor: aggressive, known to attack cattle and livestock
Foot Size: 3 toes; 17 inches long, 7 inches wide
Vocalization: hissing sound; deep, throaty noise
Location: Fouke, Arkansas, southeast corner of the state in Miller county, travels along the remote areas of the creeks and swamps
Tidbit: also known as the Boggy Creek Monster and the subject of the 1972 film by the same name
Legend: Decades before the movie was made, sightings of the monster occurred along Boggy Creek and the Sulfur River. However, the most legendary sighting was in May 1971, when Elizabeth Ford was asleep in her bed and the creature reached through an open window and grabbed her. She awoke, saw two red eyes, and screamed. The monster fled, and the men in the house ran outside with rifles. An altercation occurred between the creature and Bobby Ford, who was later taken to the hospital. Reports of the incident brought flocks of visitors to the area, giving the economy a boost and creating some excitement in an otherwise sleepy town. After the press moved on and the popularity of the movie dwindled, sightings continued to take place. They continue on to this day, and Fouke, Arkansas, continues to be a popular destination for legend trippers.
HONEY ISLAND SWAMP MONSTER
Hair/Fur: long gray hair
Eyes: yellow or red
Height: 7 feet
Weight: 400 pounds
Body Appearance: broad-chested, lean body
Facial Features: reports of reptilian features and apelike features
Characteristics: strong odor
Demeanor: approaches campsites or humans for food, otherwise passive, seen alone
Diet: wild boar, goat, rabbit
Foot Size: 3- or 4-toed with reptile-like claws; up to 10 inches long; heel and arch have ape characteristics
Vocalization: growling; unusual, frightening animal sound
Location: roams the backwaters of the Louisiana swamps, particularly Honey Island Swamp, which is approximately twenty miles long and seven miles wide
Tidbit: also known as the Louisiana Wookie or swamp creature. Legend states a circus train wrecked in the area, and an escaped chimpanzee mated with an alligator to produce this creature.
THE MOSS MAN
Hair/Fur: covered in moss or green foliage
Eyes: amber
Height: 6.5 to 7 feet
Weight: 250 pounds
Body Appearance: human shape
Facial Features: humanlike
Demeanor: haunting but not aggressive
Location: Florida
Tidbit: first spotted in 1978 on a Florida beach. Some say this creature has the appearance of a ghost, as it often emerges out of the mist. In pop culture, the creature appears in Masters of the Universe.
SABINE THING
Hair/Fur: dark gray, reddish brown
Eyes: brown, humanlike
Height: 7 or 8 feet
Body Appearance: upright, bipedal
Facial Features: humanlike
Characteristics: seen in the vicinity of food
Demeanor: leaps and screams as it attacks, passive toward humans
Diet: omnivore and scavenger Vocalization: growls and whoops
Location: forested areas near Sabine and the Sulphur River near the Texas/Arkansas border
Tidbit: may be a relative or variation of the Fouke monster; also known as the Cajun boogeyman
THE SKUNK APE
Hair/Fur: dark brown, red, or black long fur
Eyes: glowing red
Height: 5 to 6 feet, with reports of creatures up to 7 and 8 feet
Weight: 300–500 pounds
Body Appearance: very long hair and arms; walks upright
Facial Features: orangutan-like
Characteristics: terrible odor of skunk, rotten eggs, and manure
Demeanor: often seen alone, will raid campsites for food
Diet: nestlings, wild hogs, and native berries
Foot Size: 3 to 4 toes, with one toe extending outward to the side
Vocalization: growling, whooping
Location: Florida Everglades
Tidbit: also known as the Myakka Ape, the Bardin Booger, and other names located in the Skunk Ape description at the beginning of this section. An older variant of this ape reported in the early 1970s is smaller and moved around on all fours.
Two EGG STUMP JUMPER
Hair/Fur: long white or gray hair
Height: less than 5 feet
Body Appearance: fully covered in hair
Facial Features: apelike
Demeanor: often seen running across the road at night; passive; does not approach humans
Foot Size: about the same as an average human foot