I have no idea what to make of Shipton's famous photograph of a yeti track. It looks like a real, albeit strange, footprint, but with no expertise on the subject I defer to people who know what they're talking about, like Darren Naish. I was reading an entry in his blog "Tetrapod Zoology" in which he discusses the print, and was struck by a particular point.
"As several of you noted previously in the comments, the track is made unrealistic by the strange, irregular depressions that occur at the left and right edges, and particularly at the heel. These cannot be reconciled with real structures that occur on a primate's foot, and they can't be taken as evidence for melting because the very sharp edges of the track must mean that - as Shipton and Ward noted - it was fresh and undistorted by sublimation. " http://scienceblogs.com/tetrapodzoology/2008/06/most_famous_yeti_track.php
What if we assume, for the sake of argument, that it really is a yeti track? Could those irregular depressions be nothing more than the results of snow balling up on the creature's hair? My Cairn terrier, Possum, disliked winter because after a short frolic her fur became caked with snow and the sensation made her uncomfortable. Could yetis have the same problem?
The Shipton photograph.
A Cairn terrier in the snow (from http://www.highlandpix.co.uk/about.htm)
And, for no particular reason, a Japanese macaque.
Thanks for the kind mention, Robert. I think that all the evidence is against this being a real print. However, I don't think that 'snow balling' of the sort seen on your dog would leave sharp impressions like those seen on the track (try pressing snow against snow and see what you get). Secondly, you're assuming that the trackmaker had fur on the soles of its feet. That would be really odd (it isn't seen in other primates), and also contrary to eyewitness descriptions of yetis, such as they are. All the best.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind mention, Robert. I think that all the evidence is against this being a real print. However, I don't think that 'snow balling' of the sort seen on your dog would leave sharp impressions like those seen on the track (try pressing snow against snow and see what you get). Secondly, you're assuming that the trackmaker had fur on the soles of its feet. That would be really odd (it isn't seen in other primates), and also contrary to eyewitness descriptions of yetis, such as they are. All the best.
ReplyDeleteIt seems incrdible but I am one of the few people around who has seen and handled the cast of this print. It was formerly housed at SITU headquarters and I have handled both the positive and the negative of it. I could make several obsevations but two are most pertinent: Firstly, the border being that clean and sharp is almost certainly because the outer margin has been dug out-the outer edge of the heel is like the deepest part of the track, and there is an unnatural sort of ledge at the edge, perhaps a whole inch deeper than the rest of the track; and Secondly,the "Big Toe" is a separate feature that really does not go with the rest of the track. In the middle of the track os a small feature which looks as if it might be a superimposed fox track, with claws included, and if so it is about the same size and shape as this "Big Toe."
ReplyDeleteNow I happen to believe in Yeti Tracka and I happen to have looked at quite a few (not just this one) And This one does not match the rest I have stated my opinion that if this track was not wholly a created fake (as Darreen Naish has said), then the best wayto put it is that it has been "Helped Along" by some judicious reshaping prior to being photographed and cast. Oh and yes, the single print that was photographed seems to be the exact same print that was cast.
Best Wishes, Dale D.
BTW, I DO hope that Darren Naish sees this!