Bigfoot or Sasquatch, large apelike creature reportedly sighted hundreds of times in the United States and Canada (most often in the Pacific Northwest) since the mid-19th cent. Similar to Asia's abominable snowman, Bigfoot is variously described as standing 7–10 ft (2–3 m) tall and weighing over 500 lb (227 kg), with footprints 17 in. (43 cm) long. Sasquatch is a Native American name for the creature. Most scientists discount the existence of Bigfoot. Some supposed footprints of the animal are known to be hoaxes, such as those produced by Ray L. Wallace in Humboldt co., Calif., in 1958, and supposed hair samples that have had their DNA tested have been found to be from known animal species.
See R. M. Pyle, Where Bigfoot Walks (1995); J. B. Buhs, Bigfoot: The Life and Times of a Legend (2009).
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