Man-ape`s mistery from Venezuela

Man-ape in Venezuela are among the most famous images in the annals of natural history. Sitting on a barrel and gas assisted grotesque in a stick, dead monkey was photographed in a mountainous district, woodland, from Venezuela. For zoologists from the early twentieth century, the problem was not believed in the existence of such an animal on the American continent.

Interesting history of a famous photos
The picture was taken around 1920 by François de Loys, Swiss geologist who is in a three-year expedition to explore the rivers and swamps of south-west of Lake Maracaibo. The expedition was intended to identify lucrative oil reserves, but the price paid by Loys and his men was incalculable. Of the 20 original members of the expedition survived only four. Other attacks have fallen victim to disease or local tribes.

In final year of studies, the group encamped near the river Tarr, when the forest creatures came second with red hair and height about 1.5 meters, very angry. At first, the thought that bears Loys, and then realized that the monkeys were probably a male and a female. Animals screamed, waving of arms, broke some branches (likely to use them as weapons), they defecate in hand and then threw excrement to camp.
This type of behavior is known for aggressive reaction spider monkeys, and others and suggest an imminent attack. The Loys did what was expected from any self-respecting European: he shot to defend himself and his men. Female died on the spot, and the male, wounded, escaped.
Gathering around the corpse, all agreed that it is a very interesting and unusual species. Unfortunately, given the circumstances, there was no chance to be able to bring the body into Europe in a satisfactory condition. The Loys decided to make a monkey photography and documentary evidence was immortalized on film at a distance of about 3 meters.
What happened thereafter is not clear. According to some reports, the monkey was cooked and eaten by the people of the Loys, others say that was partially preserved body, but later lost during a fight motilones tribe. However, when the Loys returned to Europe, his only evidence was a photo.

Beginning photography-related controversies ...
Curiously, nine years have passed until the light appears. And even then, was not Loys who presented a scientific world, but one of his closest friends, George Montandon, a Swiss anthropologist, who has apparently given the chance to explore some more photo folders Loys of his oldest. Montandon published it in the Illustrated London News and Ameranthropides Loysi animal called in honor of which first met.

Soon after, Paris Academy of Sciences met to discuss the implications of this discovery. Cornerstone of evolutionary theory was that the monkeys higher primates and humans have occurred only in the Old World, in Africa. But if they were present in America, had rewritten the rules long established. It was a kind of leap into the unknown and it is no wonder that the Academy was willing to do.
Scientists have concluded that the animal was a sapajou, a common New World monkeys. But contradicted his size and lack animal tail. Evaluation height depended on his description of Loys and tail had been cut or can not see in the picture.

Spider monkey, or a fake?

Monkey theory was again questioned when the debate occurred skeptics. Sir Arthur Keith claimed that a spider monkey while others went even further, accusing the Loys that shamelessly made false. Throughout the twentieth century have put the following questions: Why did not Loys and photographed by a man with his monkey to highlight the waist? Why put her in a position so strange? Why wait nine years until his friend allowed him to reveal a discovery so important?

In 1996, writing in cryptozoology Loren Coleman Anomalist Magazine and George Montandon said the program had a secret racist. According to this theory the various races were held each other monkeys, therefore, some were superior to others. Until the appearance of man monkeys in Venezuela, Montandon endeavored to explain the monkey ancestor was Native Americans.

In reality, the false argument is quite volatile. Why he wanted the Loys, a geologist seriously threaten to arouse anger by making use of false scientific world in an area that had no tangent with his scientific specialty? Secondly, an expedition marked by disease and violent deaths, surely have more important priorities than this - such as, for example, to reach home alive. How about nine years late - maybe the Loys not appreciate the true value the importance of his discovery.

His supporters say that the barrel of gas analysis, that it was 50 centimeters high, which means that being photographed by Loys was 1.55 meters, almost exactly what he specified in his report. If so, it excludes the spider monkey, which has an average height of between 38 and 68 inches. Other researchers say that - despite some similarities with spider monkeys - there are contradictory features. Among these is the face shape (more oval than triangular) and lack undershot (protruding lower jaw).

If Montandon was the only person who spoke of a mysterious animal, a monkey man in America, his statement could be easily dismissed. But in reality, there are several stories. A chronicle written in 1533 by conquistador Pedro de Cieza mentions a Spanish man-monkey found dead in woods. In the eighteenth century, Edward Bancroft, physician, naturalist and British spy to retell Native American legends about 1.5 meters tall creature who walked on its hind legs and was covered by hair.

In the nineteenth century scientist Philip Goss wrote in his book, Essay on the Natural History of Guiana, on "a large manlike, yet not recognized by zoologists, and in 1876, explorer Charles Barrington Brown noted the presence an animal nicknamed "Didi" by natives of Guyana - a powerful wild man, whose body is covered with hair and living in the forest. More recently, in 1987, an American named Gary Samuels medical mycologists working in Guyana when he heard the sound of steps and turned he saw a bipedal animal about 1.5 feet tall, a kind of man-ape, who roared him and then fled.

It's easy to dismiss his photograph of Loys Labelling it as a fake, maybe because we dislike the idea that a species so important there without us knowing it. But natural history is full of such examples - Okapi, the Komodo dragon and coelcanth site were discovered in the twentieth century - and there are surprisingly many places on the planet insufficiently explored. Maybe Loys was a charlatan ... but still the jury deliberates.