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Hairy humanoids are roughly human in form, but are largely or wholly covered in fur or hair. In other words, most of these creatures could be broadly described as ape-men. The most famous hairy humanoid is Bigfoot, but there are countless other cousins of Bigfoot found in legends and sightings from around the world.
Most cryptozoological explanations for them fit in three categories. Some think these creatures are missing links, other researchers think they are primates, and yet others think they are primitive humans. In the "primates" camp, the presumably extinct giant ape Gigantopithecus has become a favorite candidate. In the "primitive humans" camp, Neanderthal man is the favored explanation for hairy humanoid sightings.
In addition to the three main kinds of explanations, there are two main classifications for these cryptids. One category contains all the more tame, normal specimens that have some respectability in the eyes of science, while the other category contains all the weird things that seem supernatural, out of place, or just plain silly. The more respectable category includes Bigfoot, the yeti and other ape-men that seem biologically plausible. These beings typically live in remote areas such as the Pacific Northwest of America or the Himalaya Mountains of Tibet, areas where it is at least somewhat believable that a large mammal could go undiscovered. They usually have footprints with five toes, and they seem to generally behave in ways that a biological animal ought to behave. The second category includes a wide assortment of less plausible creatures that are collectively referred to as "hairy bipeds" (HB for short) or "big hairy monsters" (BHM for short). BHMs are often found in heavily populated areas, places where few scientists expect that large mammals could live undetected. BHMs frequently act in ways that we would not expect from real ape-men, such as wearing absurd bits of clothing. They often have ghostly or paranormal characteristics, such as glowing red eyes, the ability to walk through solid objects, or the ability to suddenly vanish. Like hallucinations, they are often bulletproof. In addition, they often present physical features that are biologically absurd, such as being the size of an elephant, having only three toes, or combining the usual ape-man look with a wolf's head, a goat's legs, or a fishy tail. A good example of an HB or BHM is the headless big hairy monster that has been associated with Mothman sightings. An animal that lacks a head is the pinnacle of biological absurdity. BHMs are more often investigated by paranormal researchers and ignored by mainstream scientists, while the more respectable varieties of hairy humanoids such as Bigfoot are the subject of much scientific debate and draw more research money to their cases.
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