Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science [Hardcover]

Jeff Meldrum (Author), George B. Schaller (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 19, 2006

In this landmark work on a subject too often dismissed as paranormal or disreputable, Jeffrey Meldrum gives us the first book on sasquatch to be written by a scientist with impeccable academic credentials, an objective look at the facts in a field mined with hoaxes and sensationalism. Meldrum reports on the work of a team of experts from a wide variety of fields who were assembled to examine the evidence for a large, yet undiscovered, North American primate. He reviews the long history of this mystery--which long predates the "bigfoot" flap of the late fifties--and explains all the scientific pros and cons in a clear and accessible style, amplified by over 150 illustrations. Anyone who has pondered the mysteries of human evolution will be fascinated and eager to join Dr. Meldrum in drawing their own conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Jeff Meldrum's book 'Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science' brings a much needed level of scientific analysis to the Sasquatch - or Bigfoot - debate. Does Sasquatch exist? There are countless people - especially indigenous people - in different parts of America who claim to have seen such a creature. And in many parts of the world I meet those who, in a matter-of-fact way, tell me of their encounters with large, bipedal, tail-less hominids. I think I have read every article and every book about these creatures, and while most scientists are not satisfied with existing evidence, I have an open mind."
--Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE UN Messenger of Peace & Founder - the Jane Goodall Institute

"Jeff Meldrum is a scientist, an expert in human locomotor adaptations. In Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science he examines all evidence critically, not to force a conclusion, but to establish a baseline of facts upon which further research can depend. His science is not submerged by opinion and dogmatic assumption. With objectivity and insight he analyzes evidence from tracks, skin ridges on the soles of feet, film footage, and DNA, and he compares it to that on primates and various other species. He disentangles fact from anecdote, supposition, and wishful thinking, and concludes that the search for yeti and sasquatch is a valid scientific endeavor. By offering a critical scrutiny, Sasquatch does more for this field of investigation than all the past arguments and polemics of contesting experts." --Dr. George Schaller, Vice-President of the Wildlife Conservation

About the Author

DR. JEFFREY MELDRUM is an Associate Professor of Anatomy and Anthropology at Idaho State University.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; First Edition edition (September 19, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765312166
• ISBN-13: 978-0765312167
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #909,165 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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76 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most Interesting, November 23, 2006

By 

Robert Shepard Jr. (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science (Hardcover)

I first learned about "Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science" on November 10 of this year, when I was sitting in my car listening to NPR's "Talk of the Nation/Science Friday". They had a guy on named Jeff Meldrum, who was talking about Sasquatch sightings. He sounded very knowledgeable and intelligent -- oh, and he had a new book out. Intrigued, I sought it out at the local Borders store. It was, I think, a very good sign that it was in the "Science/Biology" section, rather than the "Paranormal" section sandwiched in between "Crop Circles" and "UFOs".

Now, most of us have probably heard tales of Sasquatch, or Bigfoot, from childhood onward. It's part of American folklore. I think subconsciously I'd always kind of associated Bigfoot sightings with ridiculously gullible people who might also claim to have seen Elvis at the local shopping mall. Steven Spielberg poked fun at this in one scene of his classic film "Close Encounters of the Third Kind".

But a funny thing happened as I dug into the book, a nice, sturdy hardcover tome suitable for reading while propped up in bed. I learned that a wide variety of people have seen signs of something big and mysterious in the woods of North America. These are experienced backwoodsmen, hunters, trackers, naturalists and primatologists. Sightings by settlers go back to the mid 1800's. Even Jane Goodall, a world-renowned export on apes, was persuaded by the evidence she'd examined. It would seem that, whatever Sasquatch may turn out to be, it's no joke.

Without repeating the entire book, I will instead list some of the big questions and observations that are made or raised therein.

o The chapter on Cryptozoology discusses various "unknown" creatures which may exist around the world. One of these is the yeti, or "abominable snowman", of the Himalayas. How similar are its footprints to those of Sasquatch?

o One useful technique for discovering unknown mammal species in remote places is to consult with indigenous peoples. They, after all, are in the best position to know where to look. So, what does Native American legend and lore, and artwork, have to say about Sasquatch?

o There have been some pretty infamous hoaxes concerning Bigfoot, particularly the ones perpetrated by Ray Wallace and his family members. Does this mean that all Sasquatch sightings are hoaxes? How would it be possible to tell real ones from fake?

o There are tantalizing fossil remains of an ancient giant ape called Gigantopithecus. Could Sasquatch turn out to be one of these? Just how hard is it for fossils to be created in places like Oregon and Washington State? How commonplace are fossils for known primate species, such as chimpanzees and gorillas?

o Casts of Sasquatch footprints, including known forgeries, are quite abundant. What does detailed analysis of the presumed "real" ones have to say about the kind of creature which made them. How similar are they to, say, bear paw prints?

o What about dermatoglyphics, the fingerprint-like ridge patterns found in some exceptional footprint casts? What do experts have to say about these?

o Wildlife photography turns out to be much more challenging than many of us think. A lot of the pictures we see in calendars and the like are actually posed, using creatures in captivity. Chimpanzees and wolverines both are notoriously difficult to film in the wild. Plus, commercial-grade videotape doesn't make for the best pictures, especially after they've been copied a few times.

o By far the most famous Bigfoot video was one taken on 16mm film in northern California in 1967, by Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin. It has long been dismissed by experts as a fake. But can modern image enhancement techniques yield useful information? Is some of the behavior evinced by the creature in the film the kind of thing people in the 1960s would have known about? Or is it perhaps something primatologists have learned about only in the past couple of decades?

o Modern computerized motion-capture techniques, like those used in movie special effects, have been used to recreate the kind of skeletal-muscular structure which would be needed to produce some well-documented sets of Sasquatch tracks. What does this evidence show?

o The holy grail of discovering a new species, other than capturing an actual live specimen, would be sequencing its DNA, perhaps from hair samples. What have DNA tests and hair sample comparisons taught experts?

o One challenge with describing unknown species: it is very easy to say that hair does NOT come from, say, moose, elk, bear or wildcats. But it is much harder to say what it IS. What can be learned by comparing the various "unknown" hair samples? Do they consistently look like they could come from a single unknown species?

o There is a principle, called Bergman's rule, which notes that related animal species tend to get larger the closer to the poles they get and the farther from the tropics. One example is bears, where the smallest are a kind found in South America, while the biggest are polar bears. Page 94 shows a graph of the sizes of Sasquatch footprints ranging from northern California to northern Saskatchewan. Is the graph consistent with Bergman's rule?

The chapters come with lots of useful diagrams and photos, including 16 pages of color photos right after page 96. The exceptionally well-written pages are filled with a wealth of information about wildlife that I never knew before. It was worth reading for that alone. Some of it can get pretty technical, to the point that I just had to skim it. Finally, there is an extensive index and bibliography in back, for those who want to do further research.

Jeff Meldum's conclusions purposefully take the middle ground between excessive skepticism on one hand and excessive credulity on the other. Clearly, scientists can be satisfied that Sasquatch really exists only if they can find something truly tangible -- a skeleton, for instance.

Capturing Sasquatch would be a major coup. However, based on various eyewitness accounts of close encounters, including by the author himself, this is likely to be a very large, dangerous creature. Also, people who claim to have literally had one in their gun sights have reported being extremely reluctant to squeeze the trigger. Native American tradition views Sasquatch as sacred, and at least one county in the U.S. actually has laws protecting them.

One thing is for sure: scientists really ought to keep looking into the matter. The impression I get is that the sightings aren't going to go away any time soon.

Should you read this book? I would encourage it. If nothing else, it is a sober, painstaking scientific analysis of available evidence by a large number of experts, in multiple disciplines. This is what science should be. It is very illuminating even if the subject should turn out to be completely bogus in the end.

Final note: There is also, it appears, a companion DVD. It looks like you have to go to their web site to order it, but I'm tempted.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you believe in Science...History is about to change forever, September 23, 2006

By 

H.M. 2005 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science (Hardcover)

It took me only 3 1/2 days to finish this book, the third-most important Sasquatch book to have in your collection (followed closely by "Meet The Sasquatch" and "Sasquatch: The Apes Among Us"). Meldrum covers so many topics that were covered in the TV special that preceded this handsome volume, but the book goes beyond the TV special. Meldrum discusses the Ray Wallace fiasco, the Patterson/Gimlin Film (with an exclusive interview with Bob Gimlin), video footage, footprint morphology and dermatoglyphics, bear/Sasquatch misidentifications, Great Ape behavior and its parallels to Sasquatch behavior, statistical data and information and several other different topics. I would say if you only buy one Sasquatch book this year, make it this one. It's terrific, well-written and scholarly and sober. Would make a great Christmas or birthday gift for the skeptic in your family or circle of friends.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Instant Classic!, January 1, 2009

By 

Sweet Sasquatch Odor "Investigative Science i... (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science (Hardcover)

Jeff Meldrum wrote this book. That's all you need to know. The only real scientist in America with the fortitude to wave his proverbial middle finger at all the alleged "real scientists" who never separate their left and right butt cheeks from their comfortable leather-upholstered chairs of academia.

What this book is: A true scientific approach to presenting the case FOR the existence of a North American bipedal ape.

What this book is not: A listing of countless sightings.

I do have to respond to the moron who gave Meldrum's book one star. Dude, this IS real science. It's about getting out there and investigating what people are telling you they are seeing. If you are a scientist and you're simply going to wait for John Doe to walk into your office with the bigfoot body before you start investigating, then you should be stripped of your credentials.

For those of you interested in taking the bigfoot phenomenon to the next level, there is no getting around it...buy the book, read it, and then frame it on the wall of your front entryway.

Feeling really revolutionary? By several copies and give them to friends and libraries. If today's academia refuses to conduct real science, we're going to have to do it for them.