Batutut
Encyclopedia
The Batutut or Ujit, sometimes also known as "forest people", is a proposed hominid cryptid
, reputedly similar to the bigfoot
, thought to inhabit the Vu Quang
nature reserve and other wilderness areas of Vietnam
, Laos
and northern Borneo
. The Vu Quang has been the source of a number of newly discovered mammals by Dr. John MacKinnon. Mackinnon claims to have first observed tracks in 1970 that led him to believe that a hominid similar to the Meganthropus
lives there (instead, cryptozoologist Loren Coleman
believes that the Batutut are a surviving population of Homo erectus
or Neanderthal
.). Mackinnon's 1975 book In Search Of The Red Ape describes his experiences and findings. A 1947 sighting by a French colonist refers to the animal as a L'Homme Sauvage (wild man). Vietnamese scholars refer to the animal as the Người Rừng ("forest man").
It is described as being approximately 1.8 m (6 ft) tall and covered with hair except in the knees, the soles of the feet, the hands, and the face. The hair ranges in color from gray to brown to black. The creature walks on two legs and has been reported both solitary and moving in small groups. The creature is most often sighted foraging for food from fruits and leaves to langers and even flying foxes.
In Borneo
, witnesses describe it as four feet tall and very aggressive, occasionally killing humans and tearing out their livers.
book Very Crazy G.I. - Strange but True Stories of the Vietnam War
, veteran Kregg P. J. Jorgenson relates a sighting of such a creature by a team of LRRPs. The men refer to it as a "Rock Ape" reporting it as being small in stature, about 5 feet tall, and having a reddish tinge to its fur.
Two Người Rừngs were reportedly captured by tribesmen near Dak Lak Province in 1971. In 1974 a North Vietnamese general, Hoang Minh Thao, requested an expedition to find evidence of the creatures, but it was unsuccessful.
reported in 1982 finding similar footprints to those of MacKinnon in 1970, measuring 28x16 cm., of which he made casts. He had been making an extensive post-war inventory of natural resources, and while collecting specimens near Chu Mo Ray in Sa Thay District, he came across the prints. A photo of the cast of the print was later published by Fortean News of the World (Japan Fortean Information Society).
Cryptid
In cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, a cryptid is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely. Famous examples include the Yeti in the Himalayas and the Loch Ness Monster in...
, reputedly similar to the bigfoot
Bigfoot
Bigfoot, also known as sasquatch, is an ape-like cryptid that purportedly inhabits forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid...
, thought to inhabit the Vu Quang
Vu Quang
Vu Quang is a remote forested region of Vietnam, in which several new species of deer and antelope have been discovered since the 1990s. Some are so new that scientific description is still pending, although most have local names....
nature reserve and other wilderness areas of Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
and northern Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. The Vu Quang has been the source of a number of newly discovered mammals by Dr. John MacKinnon. Mackinnon claims to have first observed tracks in 1970 that led him to believe that a hominid similar to the Meganthropus
Meganthropus
Meganthropus is a name commonly given to several large jaw and skull fragments from Sangiran, Central Java. The original scientific name was Meganthropus palaeojavanicus, and while it is commonly considered invalid today, the genus name has survived as something of an informal nickname for the...
lives there (instead, cryptozoologist Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is an author of books on a number of topics, including cryptozoology, who was born in 1947 in Norfolk, Virginia and grew up in Decatur, Illinois.-Education:...
believes that the Batutut are a surviving population of Homo erectus
Homo erectus
Homo erectus is an extinct species of hominid that lived from the end of the Pliocene epoch to the later Pleistocene, about . The species originated in Africa and spread as far as India, China and Java. There is still disagreement on the subject of the classification, ancestry, and progeny of H...
or Neanderthal
Neanderthal
The Neanderthal is an extinct member of the Homo genus known from Pleistocene specimens found in Europe and parts of western and central Asia...
.). Mackinnon's 1975 book In Search Of The Red Ape describes his experiences and findings. A 1947 sighting by a French colonist refers to the animal as a L'Homme Sauvage (wild man). Vietnamese scholars refer to the animal as the Người Rừng ("forest man").
It is described as being approximately 1.8 m (6 ft) tall and covered with hair except in the knees, the soles of the feet, the hands, and the face. The hair ranges in color from gray to brown to black. The creature walks on two legs and has been reported both solitary and moving in small groups. The creature is most often sighted foraging for food from fruits and leaves to langers and even flying foxes.
In Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
, witnesses describe it as four feet tall and very aggressive, occasionally killing humans and tearing out their livers.
Sightings during the Vietnam War
In his 2001 BallantineBallantine Books
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann AG in 1998 and remains part of that company today. Ballantine's logo is a...
book Very Crazy G.I. - Strange but True Stories of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, veteran Kregg P. J. Jorgenson relates a sighting of such a creature by a team of LRRPs. The men refer to it as a "Rock Ape" reporting it as being small in stature, about 5 feet tall, and having a reddish tinge to its fur.
Two Người Rừngs were reportedly captured by tribesmen near Dak Lak Province in 1971. In 1974 a North Vietnamese general, Hoang Minh Thao, requested an expedition to find evidence of the creatures, but it was unsuccessful.
Footprints
A professor Tran Hong Viet of Pedagogic University of Hanoi, a researcher of Người Rừng,reported in 1982 finding similar footprints to those of MacKinnon in 1970, measuring 28x16 cm., of which he made casts. He had been making an extensive post-war inventory of natural resources, and while collecting specimens near Chu Mo Ray in Sa Thay District, he came across the prints. A photo of the cast of the print was later published by Fortean News of the World (Japan Fortean Information Society).
See also
- BigfootBigfootBigfoot, also known as sasquatch, is an ape-like cryptid that purportedly inhabits forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid...
- Ebu GogoEbu GogoEbu Gogo are a group of human-like creatures that appear in the mythology of Flores, Indonesia. In the Nage language of central Flores, ebu means 'grandmother' and gogo means 'he who eats anything'.-Appearance:...
- Homo floresiensisHomo floresiensisHomo floresiensis is a possible species, now extinct, in the genus Homo. The remains were discovered in 2003 on the island of Flores in Indonesia. Partial skeletons of nine individuals have been recovered, including one complete cranium...
- Orang PendekOrang PendekOrang Pendek is the most common name given to a cryptid, or cryptozoological animal, that reportedly inhabits remote, mountainous forests on the island of Sumatra....
- YetiYetiThe Yeti or Abominable Snowman is an ape-like cryptid said to inhabit the Himalayan region of Nepal, and Tibet. The names Yeti and Meh-Teh are commonly used by the people indigenous to the region, and are part of their history and mythology...
- AgogweAgogweThe agogwe is a purported small human-like biped reported from the forests of East Africa. It is tall with long arms and long rust-coloured woolly hair and is said to have yellowish-red skin under its coat. It has also been reported as having black or grey hair. Its feet are said to be about long...