Urban Bigfoot, Seriously?

[Sasfooty]

I didn't see anything the first time I looked at the picture, but I do now. Whatever it is, it doesn't appear to be completely "solid". There are all kinds of things out there, & it looks like you got a picture of one of them.

 

Things can definitely sneak up on you.

[LeafTalker]

Tried to plus you, Sasfooty, but I'm out of plusses for the day!  

 

LCB, I think that's smart, to suspend judgment, if you will.... More information will come, and gradually, the holes will start to fill in...... In hindsight, many things that didn't make sense at the time come into focus. It's part of the fun of all this: watching and waiting. We never know when the mystery will be revealed. We don't control how or when the information comes. Accepting that we don't have that control, and learning to enjoy the 'surprises' and occasional glimpses we're allowed of what's really going on, is what it's all about. (Well, that, and having respect for the things we don't understand; not needing to kill or control such things. There, THAT'S all of it!)  

[Lake County Bigfooot]

Apart from what I have happening or not... The BFRO sight has had lots of interesting sightings popping up, and the

one from Cook County IL I posted above was just one of them, another one that caught my eye was a report from

Northern Minnesota where a golf course worker spotted a tall 7 foot brownish red creature skirting the perimeter of

the property on it's way to ?  Well I have heard of several golf course reports, and I suspect that there are many more

untold.  I was golfing this afternoon along a greenway that runs down lake Michigan from southeastern Wisconsin to

Northern Lake County IL where I have my home, another greenway runs east-west along a ridge near the states border,

this is where I found a large black bear print several years ago.  Power lines and railways are adjacent to those areas

and farms fill in the much of the surrounding area.  It is easy for me to see how they travel at night from area to area

once you understand their methods.  If I could only better understand the pattern of movement in this area and focus

my research accordingly, that is why I study the reports to see if I can discover any patterns in travel or behavior.  I

guess I just like the challenge of trying to figure them out.

Edited October 9, 2014 by Lake County Bigfooot

[JKH]

Sounds like some great habitat, LCB. It is easy to see travel corridors with our current tech, but they're only possibilities. IMO, it's not so easy to detect patterns of behavior, due to the complex dynamics of such a highly evolved critter. I love the capabilities of audio recording, and have been testing some lately with interesting (perhaps only to me) results. Should have done it all summer, as some subtle anomalies seemed to occur in my areas. Ah well, the challenge is the fun, and we must remember our ally, patience.

Edited October 10, 2014 by JKH

[Lake County Bigfooot]

Plus that, I am trying to see the daily grind of recording and listening as more than a results orientated task, though that is my nature.

I enjoy hearing the night, and learning what is making the sounds, and the occasional wood knock that is tell tale to me of their activity.

That has only happened twice, and maybe I caught some whoops and moans.  It seems that it is all or nothing, it is not a daily thing which

suggests their movement to and from my area..

[Lake County Bigfooot]

Key to my recording is a software that allows me to drag and play the data, this allows me to quickly scan over large amounts of time looking

for the anomalies.  I have been using NCH wavepad sound editor, but I am looking for some other options or methods that could speed up the

process, I know you can just go to the spikes, but I find a lot of interesting stuff in the near distance is at too low of a level to do that.  If anyone has

any ideas on how to quickly highlight the anomalies in a recording I would be greatly appreciative.  I have experimented with Audacity and Audition

but could not find a means of searching quickly without possibly skipping over low level captures.  Of course my NCH software requires an update

and I will have to fork out 49.99 after just paying for it last year, unless they let me reinstall it, a file got corrupted and it would no longer load the

files.

Edited October 12, 2014 by Lake County Bigfooot

[JKH]

I got started awhile back using this handy explanation, and it works well.

 

http://sasquatchbioacoustic.blogspot.com/2011/10/using-audacity-spectrograms-to-review.html

 

However, it doesn't address how to quickly find the interesting stuff in the near distance, as you say. When I dropped that link off in BigTex's thread, I noted "don't overlook the subtler sounds", but how is the question. No easy answer, but practice, I guess. I'm finding that if I highlight a short segment (maybe 5-15 minutes) as instructed in the link, I can see some of the low level sounds and listen more directly. With repetition, I can "see" bird noise or dogs barking, for instance, although each recording is different.

HTH

[Lake County Bigfooot]

Thanks for the above information, I think I read that before, but could not decipher it very well.  Now after editing for over a year more of it

makes sense.  I still like the drag and listen feature, but I will move into the realm of spectrographs as well to start defining better the sounds

I am singling out.  I experimented with that feature in audacity, and it works well.  Maybe that is the key, rather than listen simply learn to see

the anomalies.  It makes more sense that you can learn to identify different sounds that way, and when you find one it will be truly unique.

[JKH]

Since I last posted, I've been able to listen to several nights worth of recording that I did earlier this month, taking advantage of some calm dry weather. I really like the spectrograms, you can zoom through a lot of dead air. However, there's still no substitute for the ear. For instance, in one place here, there are waterfowl whose calls can look similar to percussive type sounds.

 

I found some cool barred owl calls. Some animal(s) have shown interest in my device, also. One of the nights contains a surprising variety of interesting sounds, including a distant possible whooing which could be important in one of my theories.

[Lake County Bigfooot]

I'm with ya JKH, recording is my best way to know if activity is possibly occurring in my area.  Of course I am talking about right in my dang

backyard, but with cooler temps I do not sleep with the windows open.  I have only some distinct tree knocking to show for my recordings

for this fall, having a bit of a problem with the software as previously mentioned, and I do not trust the recorder to give me a strong enough

level for the spectrographs to be noticeable in some situations, seeing I am only using the built in microphones and not a parabolic device.

Tascam DR 07MKII with stereo microphones with variable settings.   Maybe I will try the directional setting tonight to see if I get something

more distant.

Edited October 23, 2014 by Lake County Bigfooot

[JKH]

Just dropping off an article about birds I found of interest, which could (and does, IMO) apply to other species. Quoting one paragraph from it:

 

 

In most temperate places, whether originally forest or grassland, adapters and exploiters outnumber avoiders, so the number of unique species peaks in suburbs and then drops in both more developed and less developed nearby places. What's more, suburban diversity really soars where 30-60 per cent of the area includes some natural vegetation (typically scattered among parks, golf courses, shorelines, rugged slopes and other undeveloped parcels). These natural areas house some avoiders and many adapters, while adapters and exploiters are found in nearby grassy areas and water features, such as storm‑water retention ponds.

 

http://aeon.co/magazine/society/how-urbanisation-can-be-a-friend-to-birds/

[Lake County Bigfooot]

JKH the premise of the article is certainly interesting, and I too saw where you were heading.  I think that Sasquatch vary in their survival

methods.  Remote wilderness is ideal for seclusion, but not always for diversity of food sources.  Another example is the ever expanding deer

population that has soured with expansion of suburbia, and of course the growing number of coyotes in the same areas.  The western expansion

of our country eliminated many forests and oasis for wildlife, but as the environmental movement of the last 40 years has taken hold and the wildlife

continues to regain territory.  Other examples are the expanding range of the cougar and black bear.  Where I live our county has preserved and

bought 1000s of acres of open space, some farm, some wetland, all for the purpose of slowing sprawl and preserving open space.  The result is

a very mixed form of habitat ideal for many types of wildlife, apparently useful enough for Sasquatch in very limited numbers.  I suspect one or

two family groups live in my area and perhaps several more in the southern forest preserves of Chicago which are well documented for sightings.

My interest in the Urban Bigfoot subject stems from this growing body of information of which your article is included.  The fact that animals can adapt

to these environments successfully is well known, for a creature the size and nature of a Sasquatch to survive in such areas is indeed a commentary

regarding their cunning and hiding ability.  I always am amazed to realize this is not just fanciful thinking, but a living reality.  Not many people can

come to terms with the thought, but I can tell you first hand that it is a reality in at least the outlying urban areas of many cities. 

Edited October 27, 2014 by Lake County Bigfooot

[Lake County Bigfooot]

This certainly will not be much a surprise to anyone, but after recording for over a year, I have noticed two patterns, one that most of

the activity occurs in the fall months of September, October, and November, and on or just before or after a full moon.  Since that pattern

seems consistent I will be focusing my efforts at and around these times.  I guess anyone could have surmised that fall would spark

more activity and that it would be more likely to occur around a full moon.  But I find it remarkably consistent with the hits I have had

with my recording.  It seems that most of the activity occurred earlier in the night say before midnight as well.  It is too early to tell what

will become of this year, but the tree knocks and strange howls I captured fell accordingly in September, last year October yielded little.

Late into November last year I caught what I think was three whoops from the juvenile and that occurred in the very early morning hours.

My wife had said she had heard something like whoops outside several mornings and to get the recorder back out.  So now I sit and await

the full moon coming up this Friday, which makes me think that Wednesday thru Monday are peak times to record for this month, so ladies and

gentlemen man your recorders.

[JKH]

Last night was very quiet. I can now say that fog/mist drops splashing on leaves make lots of noise.

 

Regarding those small/near noises in the spectrogram, I've fine-tuned my method a little more. I select that 15 minute window, then use the Fit Selection. Then, I click the zoom in (+) icon two or three times. That makes nearly everything visible.

[Lake County Bigfooot]

JKH, I always magnify the wave, except on windy nights, I need a sock to make it even

worth recording in such situations. I have been recording as of late but have nothing

to show for it. The odd thing is no coyotes, no owls, I mean dead as a door nail. I

know the activity is somewhat cyclical with these species, but I am really surprised at

the lack at present. I am convinced that in my area it is only a blatant mistake for

a Sasquatch to vocalize, and the juvenile I had screwing up last year has learned by

now that it was not going to fly with Ma Ma, or Pa Pa. I was lucky to get to hear what

I did, unfortunately that was before I owned or thought of recording, none the less I think

I captured it in the later fall, but not clearly. The tree knocking sometimes timed right

with a coyote howl, well that is really the most convincing thing I have regarding behavior.

I think that it is imitation in order to solicit a response. In this case after a siren, and

I have all but completely ruled out any chance of a human doing this one.

Listen to the very beginning siren, then a coyote is barking away at something, then a coyote

type imitation of the siren coupled with tree knocking setting off the pack. I think that

initial howl is imitation. You can hear the strangeness of the tone, and well circumstantially

it is really odd for the howl and wood knock to coincide so quickly.

sirens coyotes tree knocks.mp3

Edited November 3, 2014 by Lake County Bigfooot