Want to Shoot Bigfoot? It's Legal in Texas

An artist's interpretation of Bigfoot. CREDIT: Karl Tate, LiveScience Infographic Artist View full size image

Anyone seeking ultimate proof of the existence of Bigfoot should head south. In Texas, it is legal to shoot and kill this legendary giant ape, known in other parts of the world as Sasquatch or Yeti, which has never been discovered.

According to an official with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, Bigfoot isn't listed as an endangered species, so you're free to kill as many as you want.

"If the Commission does not specifically list an indigenous, nongame species, then the species is considered nonprotected nongame wildlife," David Sinclair, direction of the law enforcement division at Texas Parks and Wildlife, wrote in an email response to a curious Bigfoot believer. "A nonprotected nongame animal may be hunted on private property with landowner consent by any means, at any time and there is no bag limit or possession limit."

John Lloyd Sharf of Salem, Ore., contacted Texas Parks and Wildlife to inquire whether Bigfoot was protected in Texas. As one of the 29 percent of Americans who believe Bigfoot inhabits the country's remote woodland areas and is just really difficult to find, Sharf was apparently motivated by the concern that the as-yet-undiscovered creature could face extermination in the state.

"So, it is the case all individuals of an unknown species … could be exterminated without criminal or civil repercussions — essentially causing extinction?" Sharf said he replied to Sinclair. At Cryptomundo, a popular "cryptozoology" discussion forum and blog, Bigfoot believers are forming a plan of action to deal with what they see as the potentially disastrous outcome of this loophole in the Texas hunting laws, which would allow Bigfoot to be hunted to extinction before a living specimen could be studied. [Hunter Captures UFO in Nevada]

"I would advocate a small group of trained hunters, under close supervision and observing all necessary safety precautions shooting a SINGLE individual to provide a type specimen," wrote a user who goes by the name AreWeThereYeti. "Then, once the existence of Sasquatch was proven, immediate steps could be taken to attach an endangered/protected status to both the species and its habitat."

What do you think? Would you shoot Bigfoot? [Vote here]

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