Hairy adventures in the snow with the monkey who looks like a yeti

By Mail Foreign Service


Hey there: A yeti capture in the Monkey Park in Nagano, Japan


This is the wild-eyed and crazy-haired character that made one photographer wonder if he'd stumbled across the Yeti.

But this creature isn't the abominable snowman, although he does have a bit of a temper.

He's a macaque, and he was photographed in Japan's famous Jigokudani (Hell's Valley) Monkey Park by a Briton.


Staring down the lens of this 'beast' in Nagano was intrepid snapper Brian Matthews.

Brian, 33, has just visited the site like so many others to see the animals so commonly pictured enjoying the warm water.

And he got more than he bargained for with this chap.

Brian said: 'Lots of people photograph the monkeys near Nagono because of the unique environment of the hot springs contrasting with the snow.

Snow joke: Photographer Brian Matthews thought the monkey resembled the fabled Yeti


'But when I looked at the shot of this one macaque I had taken I was really surprised how much the little fella looked like an abominable snowman.

'His hair seems really thick and with his pink face and human-like expression he looks just like something that's walked out of the legends.

'When I showed it to my friends they thought it was amazing and a few of them asked what animal it was?'

According to legend the Yeti is often described as a large human-like creature standing at up to seven feet tall and capable of using tools.


Come on in the water's lovely: Thousands of tourists travel to Nagano to watch the macaques bathe in hot springs


In contrast Japanese macaques stand just under two feet in height and weigh just 24lbs.

In local Himalayan Buddhist legend it is also said to have made a whistling sound and was known as the 'wild man'.

In 2011 at a conference in Russia, participating scientists and enthusiasts declared having '95% evidence' of the Yeti's existence.

Brian said: 'I don't think there's enough evidence to say the Yeti exists but I think if it did it might look a bit like this Japanese macaque.


source:dailymail