Gigantopithecus was the largest primate ever, standing 10 feet tall and weighing up to 1,200 pounds. Fossils have been found in China, Vietnam, and India, and it is believed to have been arboreal and vegetarian. Homo erectus coexisted with Gigantopithecus, and modern humans had yet to evolve. The existence of Bigfoot and Yeti sightings being explained by surviving Gigantopithecus is unlikely due to habitat and physical differences.
Gigantopithecus (meaning “gigantic ape”) was an enormous ape, the largest primate that ever lived, standing 10 feet (3 m) tall and weighing up to 1,200 pounds (640 kg). Its fossils have been dated between one million and about 300,000 years ago. Finds of Gigantopithecus, mostly fossil teeth or mandibles, have been located in present-day China, Vietnam, and India, suggesting that its range was Southeast Asia. No complete skeletons of Gigantopithecus have been found, but much has been inferred about its size and lifestyle from the teeth and jaws alone.
Like its closest living relative, the orangutan, Gigantopithecus is thought to have been arboreal and vegetarian. Like the orangutan, Gigantopithecus was a member of the family Pongidae, of which the former is the only survivor. If Gigantopithecus had the same color as the orangutan’s fur, it would have been reddish-brown, but this is speculation. However, most reconstructions of the animal favor the reddish-brown fur. The remains of two species were found: Giantopithecus blacki, the largest and most famous, and Gigantopithecus giganteus, which was half its size.
Fossils of Homo erectus, the ancestors of humans, have been found alongside Gigantopithecus, suggesting that the two coexisted. Homo erectus probably competed with Gigantopithecus and the two may have fought directly. Homo erectus has been implicated in the decline of Gigantopithecus, which would have occurred somewhat before the decline of Neanderthals in Europe due to modern humans. When Gigantopithecus and Homo erectus lived in China, modern humans had yet to evolve, only emerging about 250,000 years ago in East Africa.
Because Gigantopithecus was a giant ape, some consider it reminiscent of Bigfoot, and some cryptozoologists have proposed that sightings of Bigfoot and Yeti may be explained by the existence of surviving Gigantopithecus. However, there are several problems with this proposal, including that 1) Gigantopithecus inhabited bamboo forests exclusively, while Bigfoot and Yeti sightings almost always occur outside these forests, 2) Gigantopithecus would likely have been able to survive long out of the forest, much less cross the Bering Strait to North America, 3) Bigfoot and Yeti sightings refer to an animal that walks upright, whereas Gigantopithecus is believed to have knuckle-walked, as modern gorillas.
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