Did researchers find 'yeti' hair samples? Or is it something completely different?

According to new research from the journal ZooKeys, the so-called "yeti" hair samples as determined by a prior research, were only from brown bears. In the study's abstract, the researchers stated that they have no reason to conclude the samples came from any other than that or an unknown primate.

MUNTINLUPA, PHILIPPINES (Catholic Online) -  The hair samples were said to be from Central Asia and the Himalayas, where such species are usually found. Still, the previous research author from Oxford University, Bryan Sykes stood by his conclusion that they were from an "anomalous ursid."

The new research used the same sample that Sykes and his co-authors' used last year. They subjected the samples to the mitochondrial 12S rRNA sequencing.

Be the one who gives the perfect gift for your loved one's First Holy Communion

Dr. Eliécer Gutiérrez, the researcher from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, said that the problem with the earlier research is that they used a fragment of DNA, which makes it impossible to determine if they belong to any species of bear.

In their journal, they stated that "The molecular data obtained and analyzed by Sykes are not informative enough to suggest the possibility that a taxonomically unrecognized type of bear exists in the Himalayas."

The samples were not enough to tell apart from the brown bear and the modern-day Alaskan polar bear.

Despite the recent findings, Sykes is still holding to their conclusion last year. On their research last year, Sykes, et al., reminded that "the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence," and disclaimed that it had found supporting evidence.

He told Live Science that what mattered to them is that the hair samples were not from an unknown species speculated living in the Himalayas. However, he also said that the findings expound by Dr. Gutiérrez and Dr. Ronald Pine, a zoologist in the team, are purely statistical.

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'