The enormous footprints for which the creature is named are claimed to be as large as 610 millimetres (24 in) long and 200 millimetres (8 in) wide. Michael Rugg, owner of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum in Northern California, claims to have smelled Bigfoot, stating, "Imagine a skunk that had rolled around in dead animals and had hung around the garbage pits". However, eyeshine is not present in humans or any other known apes and so proposed explanations for observable eyeshine in the forest include perched owls, raccoons, or opossums. One alleged sighting stated the eyes of the creature to "glow" yellow or red at night. Ĭommon descriptions also include broad shoulders, no visible neck, and long arms, which experts describe as likely misidentification of a bear standing upright. None of these have been scientifically verified. Some alleged observations describe Bigfoot as more "man-like", with reports of a human-like face, such as those of Bigfoot researcher and filmmaker Todd Standing, who claims to have taken high definition recordings of a Bigfoot's face. Some descriptions have the creatures standing as tall as 3.0–4.6 metres (10–15 ft). Īlleged observations of Bigfoot describe the creature in varying ways, some of which include the creature as a large, muscular, bipedal ape-like creature, roughly 1.8–2.7 metres (6–9 ft), and covered in black, dark brown, or dark reddish hair. "Bigfoot" statue in the Garden of the Gods Wilderness within the Shawnee National Forest in Herod, Illinois. Other creatures of relatively similar descriptions are alleged to inhabit various regions throughout the world, such as the Skunk ape of the southeastern United States the Almas, Yeren, and Yeti in Asia and the Australian Yowie all of which, like Bigfoot, are engrained in the cultures of their regions. Wishful thinking, a cultural increase in environmental concerns, and overall societal awareness of the subject have been cited as additional factors. Folklorists trace the phenomenon of Bigfoot to a combination of factors and sources including indigenous cultures, the European wild man figure, and folk tales among loggers, miners, trappers, and prospectors. The majority of mainstream scientists have historically discounted the existence of Bigfoot, considering it to be the result of a combination of folklore, misidentification, and hoax, rather than a living animal. Bigfoot is an icon within the fringe subculture of cryptozoology, and an enduring element of popular culture. Tales of wild, hairy humanoids exist throughout the world, and such creatures appear in the folklore of North America, including the mythologies of indigenous people. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including anecdotal claims of visual observations as well as alleged video and audio recordings, photographs, and casts of large footprints. Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forests of North America.