Holy Balls! Is The Virginia Trail Cam Animal a Ground Sloth?
The Journal of The Bizarre blog just posted an interesting theory suggesting our cryptozoologist friend Jay Cooney's assumption might be wrong about the creature above being a bear. They believe the animal might be a ground sloth. Could this explain the fingers that some are be pointing out? Here's an excerpt:
Cooney's analysis has been echoed by several other researchers, who also tend to favor the theory that the Viginia trail cam creature is a quadruped. We at Journal of the Bizarre also agree with this fact; however, we believe that the creature in question is not a bear, but a ground sloth- an extinct quadruped mammal which last roamed North America 11,000 years ago.
Read the rest of their theory here: http://journalofthebizarre.blogspot.com/2013/08/stunning-bigfoot-breakthrough.html
oh please
ReplyDeleteFrom the article:
Delete"One critical aspect which researchers seem to have overlooked is the enormous tail, which has apparently been mistaken as the creature's hind leg. However, a close look of the photo reveals that the creature's left hind leg is in front of the tree limb on the ground."
For a start the photo is pixellated all to hell and is so grainy that there's hardly any point having 'a close look' since there's no fine details to see. Secondly, the "left leg" they've identified apparently has a different colour and texture to the rest of the creature. It's smooth and light brown rather than being dark and hairy. The 'leg' is the stump that the creature is digging at.
"Once this distinct anatomical feature [the supposed long tail] has been recognized, the pool of possible 'suspects' shrinks considerably, so considerably, in fact, that the ground sloth is the only possibility."
Assuming that the creature *does* have a long bushy tail (a dumb assumption but let's play along for the moment) there's plenty of possibilities for what it might be. Maybe a tamandua or some other species of anteater? A coati? A wolverine? A lemur? A tree kangaroo? There's absolutely no indicator of size in the actual photo or even which country it was taken in so there's literally dozens and dozens of different animals that would fit the description. Leaping to the conclusion that it must be a giant prehistoric animal which is thought to have gone extinct 11,000 years ago is embarrassingly premature. (Premature speculation is always embarrassing but I suspect these guys have a terminal case.)
"Another tell-tale clue is provided by Rick Jacobs himself, who states that the creature appears to have fingers, which are grasping the base of the tree limb."
There's not enough detail in the photo to tell whether it has fingers or not.
"The final giveaway is the animal's fur, which appears to be more "shaggy" than that of a bear or a primate. Of all the possible 'suspects', the fur most closely resembles that of living species of tree sloths"
These guys don't even know what a bear looks like. Do a google image search for "bear shedding coat" or "bear with mange" and you'll find dozens of photos of bears with coats that are just as shaggy as the creature in the photo. Primates such as orangutans or gorillas are also extremely shaggy and I'm amazed that these guys were unaware of this. If someone wanted to be seen as an 'expert' in identifying cryptids you'd think they would have looked at a few good pictures of bears and gorillas other than the picture books they read in kindergarten but I guess these guys slept in on Research Day when they were studying Cryptozoology 101 at their local community college.
These guys put up a really weak argument. It's so weak that my granny could beat it at armwrestling and she's been dead for 36 years. For shame.
We could do without the attitude.
DeleteWe could do without the stupidity.
DeleteA tone argument is pretty much a tacit admission of defeat so thanks for agreeing with my points, I guess.
Deleteleave that poor bear alone he tryiing to find a well needed meal
ReplyDeleteFirst!Shawn Rocks!
ReplyDeleteI still say it's a chimpanzee.
ReplyDeleteYou can say it's a chimp all you want. It doesn't make it true though.
DeleteIt's a turtle without a shell that's wearing a ghillie suit for warmth. Happens all the time.
DeleteIt's not digging for food, it's scooping out a hole so it can lay its eggs.
I like turtles
DeleteAnd turtles like you!
DeletePonies are pretty.
DeleteA North American Mapinguari?
ReplyDeleteSquirrel. Obviously
ReplyDeleteLooks like a dwarf with werewolf disease?
ReplyDeleteLooks like a dwarf with werewolf disease?
ReplyDeleteAnd now we know, because VaJayJay says so and he knows everything, just like yesterday when he said it was a bear
ReplyDeleteThis wasn't jay saying sloth, learn to read.
Delete^ curiously obsessed with a teenage boy
DeleteThe physiques and appearances of bears spans a broad spectrum and are capable of posing in unexpected ways..Coupling this with the fact a photo is a projection onto 2 space of a 3-dimensional scene and the result is misleading pics like this and the Jacob photos...
ReplyDeleteI looked at the photo close up. It doesn't look like the extinct sloth, nor a regular sloth. Sloths have claws instead of fingers from the pictures I have seen of them. That is not a bear either.
ReplyDeleteThis is a bear that has been altered via Photoshop.
ReplyDeleteYes it is. Why does anyone believe this hoaxed crap shows an actual animal that hasn't been altered via Photoshop?
Deleteit's most likely a bear with mange
ReplyDeleteand it's too small for a ground sloth
DeleteThanks so much. I've been looking everywhere for my dog Mr. Snookums. Please feed him well and don't mistreat him.
ReplyDeleteIt's facing the camera with head down. Massive upper w/body tapering down to longer legs. Just like bigfoot...
ReplyDeleteroll one
Looks like Tina Turner to me.
ReplyDeleteEggs.
jacobs creature,what a pointless senationlized title that is,its a bear sme as this one. that's why its 1 shot from the back,they r part of a series,think about it. the people r deliberately not showing u the others in series as it will show a bear
ReplyDeletewhy I bother I don't know
ok it 1 bigfoot taken from back,with the rest mysteriously gone,probaly men in blak but this 1 got out. they r part of the tens of thousands 8ft 600pd apemen ambling about our national arks.
is this some special needs site im unaware off?
'Is this some special needs site i'm unaware off? You could say that, but your spelling and writing skills are probably more retarded.
DeleteMy friends that is a large howler monkey.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that picture is in North America.
Certain localities the howlers have heavier coats and thicker tails.