7 More Mysterious Ape-men

When I began to research cryptid apelike creatures from around the world, I was amazed at how many there were, from almost every corner of the earth. After posting 9 Mysterious Ape-men from Around the World, there were plenty left to investigate. They may be legends, illusions, or real animals we can't identify, but they are all quite interesting.

1. Fouke Monster

The Fouke Monster is named after the town of Fouke, Arkansas. Sightings have been reported since the 1940s, with a whole slew of sightings between 1970 and 1974. The Fouke Monster is a 7 to 10 foot tall ape-man with long shaggy hair and bright red eyes. It also has a foul odor. An attack on Bobby and Elizabeth Ford in 1971 sparked a frenzy of monster hunting. Three-toed footprints were found around the area, but later exposed as a hoax. The attack by an unknown animal on the Ford family inspired a movie entitled The Legend of Boggy Creek. The 1972 movie is available in eight parts on Youtube.

2. Moehau

New Zealand has its own cryptid ape-man called the Moehau. The large hairy creatures which haunt the Coromandel Ranges are aggressive and are thought to be responsible for the deaths of a prospector and a nearby woman in 1882. The woman had been abducted from her home and was found with a broken neck. The prospector had been partially eaten. Moehau are the size of a normal man, with an apelike face, long shaggy hair, and extremely long fingers and sharp fingernails or claws.

3. Barmanou

The Barmanou is a creature of the mountains of  Afghanistan and Pakistan that is described as resembling the North American Bigfoot. The large apelike creature has a terrible odor of sewage, and is sometimes seem wearing animal skins. The Barmanou has reportedly kidnapped human women to mate with, but how its motives were ascertained is uncertain. Dr. Jordi Magraner, a researcher who wrote about "relic hominids" was murdered while in Pakistan investigating the creature in 2002. The picture is one of Dr. Maganer's sketches from a description from Pakistani shepherd Lal Khan.

4. Nguoi Rung

The cryptid ape-man of Vietnam goes by many names, Particularly Batutut or Nguoi Rung. The earliest sighting by westerners was in 1947. There were so many sightings in 1974 that a scientific expedition was sent from Hanoi to investigate, at the height of the war. They returned with no conclusive evidence. In 1982, a footprint measuring 28 by 16 centimeters featuring long toes added to the belief in Nguoi Rung.

Reports of 'wildman' vary from large to small, with body hair from grey to brown or black and may be alone or with others. But always they are said to walk bipedally. They go by many names among highlands minority people, most are terms of respect. The Vietnamese name is Nguoi Rung - "Forest People". This is the direct equivalent of the name for an ape we do know from Indonesia, the Orang Utan.

Local people said the Nguoi Rung is attracted to fire, and will sit with villagers around a fire at night, but never speak.

5. Maricoxi

The Maricoxi is a South American cryptid, described by Colonel Percy Fawcett (before he mysteriously disappeared into the rain forest of Brazil) as enormous hairy savages that threatened his party with bows and arrows, but could not speak except for grunts. The Maricoxi fled when fired upon. Several types of Maricoxi have been described, ranging from dwarf-sized to 12 feet tall.

6. Yeti

The Yeti is part of the history and mythology of the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal and Tibet. The most common evidence of the Yeti are large footprints in the snow. The first recorded sighting by westerners was in 1832, and the first western account of Yeti footprints was in 1889. Early sightings all described the Yeti as having dark hair and walking upright on two feet. The number of sightings soared in the 20th century as more westerners traveled to the Himalayas for mountain climbing and exploring. Locals encouraged foreigners to believe any large footprints were made by the Yeti, as opposed to a bear or a wolf. The term "Abominable Snowman" was coined in 1921. Since then, the Yeti has been portrayed in popular culture as having white hair, as if to camouflage itself against the snow. This picture is from a video taken in Nepal in 1996.

7. Sasquatch

Undoubtably the most familiar primate cryptid is Sasquatch, also known as Bigfoot, in North America. The Sasquatch Information Society keeps track of reported sightings, which come in constantly from all over Canada and the United States, but center mainly in the Pacific Northwest. Bigfoot is described as having the face of a gorilla, but the posture of a human. It is seven to nine feet tall and covered with long hair. Like some other cryptid apes, Sasquatch has an awful odor. Native Americans have legends of local apelike creatures going back many generations. The name Bigfoot was coined after huge footprints were found in 1958. Although many claims of evidence have been exposed as hoaxes, many people believe that it's possible for a species of giant ape or hominid to reside in the wilderness areas.

Also see the first part of this list, 9 Mysterious Ape-men from Around the World. Somewhat related: Animals that only bite tourists.