Yowies are in the news again, with the recent discovery of fresh footprints by hikers in the Bungonia area. The tracks, about twice the size of an average modern human foot, are similar to others found in recent months in the Canyonleigh/Wollondilly and Kanangra Boyd wilderness regions.
Currently investigating these finds is noted “Yowie Man” Rex Gilroy the ‘father’ of Yowie research [ie relict hominology] throughout Australia, currently celebrating 50 years of research.
In 2000 Rex, and wife Heather, formed “Operation Yowie”, an on-going scientific-based investigation, with the purpose of gathering all manner of evidence throughout eastern Australia. Together with assistants based in various areas, they hope to gather enough absolute proof to place before sceptical scientists, that these ‘relict hominids’, rather than being the “big hairy Gorilla-like monsters” of popular myth, are in fact surviving remnant groups of Homo erectus, a tool-making, fire-making race and our immediate ancestor!
“Fossil skull-types of Homo erectus are known from Asia to Africa dating back over a million and more years. Our “Operation Yowie” teams have succeeded in finding fossil Homo erectus skull-types and fossil human footprints in many parts of eastern Australia dating from those times, and often in areas where local Aboriginal traditions say were, or still are Yowie habitats”, says “Yowie Man” Rex.
He points out that the name ‘Yowie’ means “hairy man” and alludes to the hairy marsupial hide cloaks worn by these primitive male and female hominids. “Our research teams have recovered apparent recent camp sites of these beings, where freshly-made crude stone tools reminiscent of Javanese Homo erectus have been found scattered about the scene. Lately rock overhang sites in the Blue Mountains and Wollondilly-Canyonleigh have revealed recently made crude cutting and scraping tools, showing these hominids are once again on the move”, added Rex.
The name ‘Yowie’ was used by Aboriginal people over a wide area of the south coastal, north coastal and inland mountain ranges to the central west, Rex points out. There were many more names for these beings across Australia, but all basically meant “hairy man”, “hairy women” or in the case of pygmy folk, “little hairy people” because of the animal hide garments they wore.
Early settlers tales of these beings date back to the first years of settlement, and the Gilroys have gathered stories from the Goulburn district alone dating from 19th century times.
Together Rex and his wife Heather operate the “Australian Yowie Research Centre” [PO Box 202 Katoomba NSW 2780; ph 02 4782 3441;Email:To Contact Rex & Heather:
New Email From September 2011rrandhgilroy1044@gmail.com].“If any readers have information helpful to our current investigations in the Goulburn district we would be pleased to hear from them”, said Rex.
