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Bigfoot may or may not be real, but there is a living relative of the giant ape thought to be Bigfoot already living among us known as the orangutan, according to scientists who studied the ape’s genetic code.

There have been countless Bigfoot sightings for hundreds of years, and the mystery of Bigfoot continues to be popular around the world today as scientists remain puzzled about just exactly what kind of creature people are seeing out in the wilderness.

One likely explanation is that people are misidentifying living animals such as bears, which also walk upright, like Bigfoot. Bears are also hairy and can have black, brown and reddish fur.

Another explanation is that Bigfoot is a hoax perpetrated by humans trying to fool the public for attention, which could explain videos such as the famous Patterson-Gimlin footage shot in 1967.

But one theory that has been offered by Bigfoot enthusiasts such as cryptozoologists is that Bigfoot is a missing link between humans and the great ape known as Gigantopithecus blacki.

Gigantopithecus roamed the Earth up to two million years ago and died out at least 100,000 years ago during the Pleistocene when climate change reduced the food supply the great ape needed to survive.

The problem is that Gigantopithecus lived in Asia, where all fossil remains such as teeth have been found. None have been found in North America, which one would expect if the creature had not crossed the Bering Strait land bridge connecting North America and Asia as cryptozoologists have suggested.

Of course, just because no Gigantopithecus remains have been found in North America, it does not mean there aren’t any out there waiting to be found, whether it be in the Pacific Northwest where most Bigfoot sightings occur, or elsewhere on the continent.

Related: North Carolina man captures Bigfoot on video, and two other recent sightings in the state

Regardless of whether Bigfoot is real or not, Gigantopithecus was a real great ape that did exist. And even if it did not migrate to North America and gave rise to a relic population of the species that is being put forward as Bigfoot today, it turns out that there is a living relative of the species that we can see today in zoos and in the wild.

Genetic studies have concluded that orangutans are a close relative of the Gigantopithecus. Gigantopithecus may have even looked similar to orangutans. However, another blow to the Gigantopithecus as Bigfoot theory is that the great ape moved more like gorillas, using all four limbs to walk in order to distribute its weight.

A 1.9-million-year-old tooth

We know this because scientists directly linked orangutans and Gigantopithecus genetically to a common ancestor after testing a 1.9 million-year-old Gigantopithecus molar found in China.

According to a study published by the journal Nature:

Hypotheses regarding the relationships between Gigantopithecus and extinct and extant hominids are wide ranging but difficult to substantiate because of its highly derived dentognathic morphology, the absence of cranial and post-cranial remains and the lack of independent molecular validation.

We retrieved dental enamel proteome sequences from a 1.9-million-year-old G. blacki molar found in Chuifeng Cave, China. The thermal age of these protein sequences is approximately five times greater than that of any previously published mammalian proteome or genome. We demonstrate that Gigantopithecus is a sister clade to orangutans (genus Pongo) with a common ancestor about 12–10 million years ago, implying that the divergence of Gigantopithecus from Pongo forms part of the Miocene radiation of great apes.

In addition, we hypothesize that the expression of alpha-2-HS-glycoprotein, which has not been previously observed in enamel proteomes, had a role in the biomineralization of the thick enamel crowns that characterize the large molars in Gigantopithecus.

This extraordinary discovery is particularly interesting because it shows genetic material can be retrieved from remains this old, giving scientists hope that they can confirm human evolution further by finding more missing links. It’s the first time that genetic material has been extracted from remains this old from a fossil in the subtropics.

The survival of an Early Pleistocene dental enamel proteome in the subtropics further expands the scope of palaeoproteomic analysis into geographical areas and time periods previously considered incompatible with the preservation of substantial amounts of genetic information.

Ancient DNA analysis

Lead study author Frido Walker of the Globe Institute at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences expressed his own excitement at how the study can be applied to humans.

“Primates are relatively close to humans, evolutionary speaking, he said in a statement. “With this study, we show that we can use protein sequencing to retrieve ancient genetic information from primates living in subtropical areas even when the fossil is two million years old. Until now, it has only been possible to retrieve genetic information from up to 10,000-year-old fossils in warm, humid areas. This is interesting, because ancient remains of the supposed ancestors of our species, Homo sapiens, are also mainly found in subtropical areas, particularly for the early part of human evolution. This means that we can potentially retrieve similar information on the evolutionary line leading to humans.”

It’s certainly a giant leap forward in the abilities of genetic testing, as study co-author and Globe Institute Associate Professor Enrico Cappellini explained.

“By sequencing proteins retrieved from dental enamel about two million years old, we showed it is possible to confidently reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of animal species that went extinct too far away in time for their DNA to survive till now,” he said. “In this study, we can even conclude that the lineages of orangutan and Gigantopithecus split up about 12 million years ago.”

“Previous attempts to understand which could be the living organism most similar to Gigantopithecus could only be based on the comparison of the shape of the fossils with skeletal reference material from living great apes,” Cappellini continued.

“Ancient DNA analysis was not an option, because Gigantopithecus went extinct approximately 300,000 years ago, and in the geographic area Gigantopithecus occupied no DNA older than approximately 10,000 years has been retrieved so far. Accordingly, we decided to sequence dental enamel proteins to reconstruct its evolutionary relation with living great apes, and we found that orangutan is Gigantopithecus’ closest living relative.”

And so, if we were to ever find remains of a great ape somewhere in the Pacific Northwest, scientists could use DNA testing to see if it is a Gigantopithecus or related, assuming the DNA survived the harsh climate. If Gigantopithecus did migrate to North America, it would lend some credibility to Bigfoot believers everywhere. But right now, Gigantopithecus remains are even more elusive here than the Bigfoot itself.

More about Gigantopithecus and the strange discovery of a tooth in a Hong Kong drug store from PBS Eons

Featured Image: Gigantopithecus, Museum of Man, San Diego by Lindsay Holmwood via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

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Even those who know little about world history have likely heard of Merlin the Magician. The mythology which has been built up around him has endured for centuries, even though most have no idea exactly where the character of Merlin came from. Also, was Merlin benevolent or malevolent?

So where exactly did the legend of Merlin start, and how exactly is he connected to King Arthur?

According to a fascinating article found on the website Ancient Origins, the story of Merlin is a complex one filled with contradictions and mysteries:

“The powerful wizard is depicted with many magical powers, including the power of shapeshifting and is well-known in mythology as a tutor and mentor to the legendary King Arthur, ultimately guiding him towards becoming the king of Camelot. While these general tales are well-known, Merlin’s initial appearances were only somewhat linked to Arthur. It took many decades of adaptations before Merlin became the wizard of Arthurian legend he is known as today.”

The first mention of Merlin can be found in The History of Kings of Britain, which was written in 1136 AD by Geoffrey of Monmouth. Much of the work is a historical record of English kings, Merlin is found, but as a fictional character:

“Merlin was paradoxical, as he was both the son of the devil and the servant of God.”

Son of the devil and servant of God? That certainly makes Merlin an object of fascination, if for no other reason than such a description makes us question his motives and what role he played in Arthur’s kingdom.

Part Madman, Part Warrior

The character of Merlin was actually a composite of several historical figures who were well-known to readers of the time:

“Geoffrey combined stories of North Brythonic prophet and madman, Myrddin Wyllt, and Romano-British war leader, Ambrosius Aurelianus, to create Merlin Ambrosius.”

Notice the dichotomy once again: Merlin was part madman and part warrior. That alone suggests that his “magic” may have been little more than the rantings of a lunatic who was bent on attaching himself to power. And no one was more powerful than a king.

Ambrosius is of particular interest because he shows up in relation to another British king, Vortigern, who wanted to erect a tower. However, each time Vortigern tried to build the tower, it would collapse. The only way the tower would ever stand required a bizarre ritual:

“(Vortigern) was told that to prevent this, he would have to first sprinkle the ground beneath the tower with the blood of a child who was born without a father. Ambrosius was thought to have been born without a father, so he was brought before Vortigern. Ambrosius explains to Vortigern that the tower could not be supported upon the foundation because two battling dragons lived beneath, representing the Saxons and the Britons. Ambrosius convinced Vortigern that the tower will only stand with Ambrosius as a leader, and Vortigern gave Ambrosius the tower, which is also the kingdom.”

Geoffrey, in his telling of the Merlin legend, notes that Merlin was also fatherless, but he also retained the character of Ambrosius.

Another change Geoffrey makes is that in the story with Merlin and King Vortigern, Merlin’s prophecies are included. Those prophecies point directly to the ultimate crowning of Arthur as king of Britain. And in doing so, Geoffrey introduces the notion that King Arthur was the fulfillment of a prophecy, giving him a magical air.

Merlin, Stonehenge, and Giants?

One of those prophecies was how Arthur came to be. Another explains Stonehenge’s appearance:

“These include the tale of Merlin creating Stonehenge as the burial location for Ambrosius, and the story of Uther Pendragon sneaking into Tintagel where he fathers Arthur with Igraine, his enemy’s wife.”

Merlin the Shapeshifter

The name Merlin is also found in a poem written by Robert de Boron. The poem was written long after Merlin had first been introduced in The History of Kings of Britain. However, Boron’s poem focuses more on Merlin’s magical abilities:

“Boron places special emphasis on Merlin’s shapeshifting powers, connection to the Holy Grail, and his jokester personality.”

Merlin was also shown in some writings as a mentor and tutor to King Arthur, giving him advice on difficult situations facing the kingdom.

Other depictions of Merlin, however, were much less charitable:

“In some tales Merlin was viewed as an evil figure who did no good in his life.”

Today, most of us know Merlin as the benevolent tutor to King Arthur who often used his rapier wit to defuse potentially dangerous situations. Depictions of Camelot almost always place Merlin in a prominent position even though he wasn’t allowed to sit as a Knight of the Round Table.

Over the centuries, Merlin has undergone many manifestations, from good to evil and back again. Despite all of the contradictions found in a close reading of works that deal with Merlin, he remains one of the most fascinating figures in all of mythology.

This informative documentary has more on Merlin

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