Bigfoot DNA / Cryptid News

Hosted byGeorge Knapp

Bigfoot DNA / Cryptid News

About the show

George Knapp was joined in the first half by DNA expert Melba Ketchum, who provided an update on her scientific study and DNA analysis from samples of possible Sasquatch hair. She also talked about how her work with Native Americans has validated a lot of the unusual aspects ascribed to the creature. On her website Sasquatch Genome Project, Ketchum said she posted a letter from a PhD technician who tested some of the DNA sequences, not knowing what they were. The tester told her they didn't compare to anything they've ever sequenced, and wanted to know if they had a discovered a new species. Ketchum has speculated that Bigfoot may be a hybrid species, or a different branch of modern human.

There is Native American lore, as well as from other cultures, that the creature interbred with humans. In fact, one of their test samples, indicated it may represent a recent cross between Bigfoot and human, she revealed. Bigfoot was depicted as far back as in ancient Native American petroglyphs, as well as in artwork and architecture from the 1500s, such as at Notre Dame, she noted. Native Americans have viewed Sasquatch as a kind of spirit person, and some tribes reported trading and interacting with them, Ketchum continued. Investigator Dave Paulides briefly joined the conversation.

---------------------------------

In the latter half, Lon Strickler, paranormal researcher and creator of the website Phantoms and Monsters, shared details about his encounter with Bigfoot, and the Conewago Phantom, as well as other cryptid news stories. His interest in cryptids began in 1981, when he was fishing at the Patapsco River in Sykesville, Maryland, and witnessed a 7-8 ft. tall creature with dark, matted hair and a face that looked Neanderthal. More on the incident here.

He recalled his sighting of the strange Conewago Phantom, which occurred in 1988 at a camp site north of Oxford, PA. First they heard an odd scream, which sounded like that of a child, and later as he and a team searched the area, they saw a large dark figure with bright red eyes in a creek. The figure suddenly shot straight up in the air in a whoosh, and they heard another scream that seemed to fade. Strickler also touched on reports of such cryptids as Dogman, whom he believes may have an interdimensional aspect, as well as the Wampus Cat, and the mythical Slenderman.

Bumper Music