What is a Skunk Ape?
Deep in the swamps of the southern United States lives a dark, putrid-smelling, ape-like beast known as the Swamp Ape, or Skunk Ape. Regional legends like the Foulke Monster, the Boggy Creek Monster, and the Honey Island Swamp Monster are generally considered forms of Swamp Apes. The creature is often seen darting across back roads, moving through the tree line, wandering into campsites and foraging through dumpsters. Encounters suggest that it is the most aggressive version of North America’s Bigfoot. Many stories account for its short-temper and willingness to engage humans.
What does a Skunk Ape Look Like?
Physically, The Skunk Ape has more in common with chimpanzees and orangutans than other versions of Bigfoot. It is leaner, shorter, and more ape-like than a Sasquatch, though some witnesses report a creature standing over seven feet tall and weighing an estimated 400 lbs. The hair that covers its body is long and coarse and it quickly moves through the wild with an attentive, scanning nature. Some witnesses compare the Skunk Ape to a hunched over “crack-head” or an animal infected with rabies.
The Myakka photos (2000)
Where does the Skunk Ape live?
Most notably, the Skunk Ape lives in remote areas of the Everglades of Florida. Most hairy humanoid creatures found below Kentucky and east of Eastern Texas are considered Skunk or Swamp Apes. Encountered in the swamp or not, this lithe creature is indeed the ‘southern-fried Bigfoot.’ Compelling accounts have come from practically all of the southern states, most notably Sam Houston State Park in Texas, Myakka River State Park in Florida, Everglades National Park in Florida, and Fouke, Arkansas.
Skunk Ape Evidence, Pictures, and Video
Several plaster casts of chimp-like feet have been taken in the south. Distinctively ape-like, many prints may actually be real Chimpanzees treading through the Everglades. Many believe there is a small population of escaped or released Chimps in Florida that have sustained a breeding population.
The most notable photos of the creature were taken in 2000 in Myakka, Florida. An elderly woman snapped two pictures of what she thought was an escaped Orangutan. The creature, she says, wandered into her backyard on three separate nights to steal apples.
Skunk Ape video evidence exists, but is scare and questionable. The Lettuce Lake footage is the most compelling piece of Skunk Ape evidence in recent years. Two men in a canoe recorded a long, black shape dismounting a log into marshy water. The creature moved fluidly through the swamp several feet and ultimately out of sight.
The Skunk Ape in Media & Popular Culture
Often called Boogers, Boogeymen, and Swamp Monsters, tales of the Skunk Ape are popularly relayed as urban legends. This southern rendition of Sasquatch also inspired several low-budget films. Most noteworthy of these productions is the “Legend of Boggy Creek” film series, inspired by sightings of the “Fouke Monster” around Fouke, Arkansas in the 1970s.
The Florida Beer Company produces the popular “Swamp Ape Double IPA.” This 10% ABV beer allows you to get drunk to the smell and taste of a swampy, putrid monkey.
Sources:
Coleman, Loren, and Jerome Clark. Cryptozoology A to Z: The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters, Sasquatch, Chupacabras, and Other Authentic Mysteries of Nature. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1999. Print.
Coleman, Loren. “Myakka Skunk Ape.” The Cryptozoologist: Cryptozoology