COMPARISON OF BLACK BEAR PAWS TO HUMAN HANDS AND FEET

This tutorial written by Margaret “Cookie” Elizabeth Sims of the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon is a training tool used as an identification guide for Wildlife Law Enforcement.

This comparison shows the differences between a Black Bear paw and human hands and feet.

'Partial wildlife remains found out of context cause much concern over the possibility that the unidentified remains may be of human origin. Wildlife forensic scientists are often asked to identify unearthed bones found near human activity areas, such as new home construction, excavation sites, etc.
There have even been cases involving skinned bear paws that had been deliberately placed in public areas to startle those who mistaken them as human hands.
Gilbert (1993) suggests that paw bones discarded at taxidermy “dump” sites could also be confused with human remains. Because bear paws and human hands and feet are similar in overall size and shape, morphological examination of the skeletal elements are
required to enable forensic scientists to identify partial remains in cases where the skin and/or
claws are absent.'

Read entire report and view images here
http://www.lab.fws.gov/idnotes/IDG11_BearHumanFeet.pdf

This is relevant to Bigfoot research to know the anatomy and physiology of a bear paw since it has been used in the past by a certain hoaxer to try and pass it off as a Bigfoot hand.

We learn and grow from so many sources!