WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:03.240 If you take a town of ten thousand people in 2 00:00:03.240 --> 00:00:06.960 the Alaska Triangle, well fifty of them will vanish this year. Yeah, 3 00:00:07.080 --> 00:00:11.160 just to manage no trace, uh, no footprints, no goodbye nothing. 4 00:00:11.279 --> 00:00:15.759 Imagine you are standing in the vast, freezing frontier of 5 00:00:16.039 --> 00:00:20.559 you know, millions of acres of untamed wilderness, right dense forests, 6 00:00:20.600 --> 00:00:24.239 these massive, snowblind valleys, and people are just evaporating into 7 00:00:24.280 --> 00:00:27.039 a darkness that feels frankly incredibly heavy. 8 00:00:27.160 --> 00:00:29.440 It's staggering, it really is. 9 00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:32.520 So today we are looking at the exact biological threshold 10 00:00:32.560 --> 00:00:36.880 when natural wilderness ends and something entirely inexplicable begins. 11 00:00:37.000 --> 00:00:39.000 I mean that transition is exactly what we need to 12 00:00:39.000 --> 00:00:39.920 focus here exactly. 13 00:00:39.920 --> 00:00:42.359 Okay, let's untack this. Our deep dive today is taking 14 00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:45.520 us into a massive like just a huge stack of 15 00:00:45.679 --> 00:00:48.520 investigation records, field notes, and eyewitness accounts. 16 00:00:48.840 --> 00:00:51.159 And these were compiled by a very specific team. 17 00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:53.560 Right right, compiled by three men who went looking for answers. 18 00:00:53.640 --> 00:00:55.560 So we have Jax, who is a former. 19 00:00:55.439 --> 00:00:58.159 Police officer, being that forensic perspective exactly. 20 00:00:58.439 --> 00:01:03.159 Then there's Ken and strange phenomena, and Tommy, an expert 21 00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:05.840 on Alaskan legends, and I want to be clear to 22 00:01:05.840 --> 00:01:07.840 you listening, we aren't just going. 23 00:01:07.599 --> 00:01:09.319 On a monster hunt here, No, not at all. 24 00:01:09.359 --> 00:01:13.879 We are diving into the intersection of indigenous lore, modern biology, 25 00:01:13.920 --> 00:01:16.760 and the absolute limits of human perception when it meets 26 00:01:16.799 --> 00:01:21.159 the wild. We are examining unexplained disappearances and asking the 27 00:01:21.319 --> 00:01:25.040 ultimate question, like what is actually out there in the dark? 28 00:01:25.719 --> 00:01:28.480 And you know, we have to approach this with a rigorous, 29 00:01:28.799 --> 00:01:33.079 highly analytical mindset. Right, the source material we are examining 30 00:01:33.079 --> 00:01:37.719 today walks a very thin, very precarious line. On one side, 31 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:41.920 we have the very real, very harsh realities of extreme nature. 32 00:01:41.959 --> 00:01:43.280 Yeah, the elements out there are no. 33 00:01:43.319 --> 00:01:46.519 Joke, precisely, we are talking about elements and temperatures that 34 00:01:46.560 --> 00:01:49.640 can erase a human life in minutes, leaving virtually no 35 00:01:49.760 --> 00:01:52.400 evidence behind. But then on the other side, we have 36 00:01:52.760 --> 00:01:57.359 physical evidence and consistent accounts that frankly defy modern zoological 37 00:01:57.359 --> 00:02:01.040 classifications wild. It is, so my goal here is to 38 00:02:01.040 --> 00:02:04.280 look at this Impartially, we need to balance the natural 39 00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:10.599 biological explanations with the terrifyingly inexplicable evidence these investigators uncovered. 40 00:02:10.719 --> 00:02:13.400 Absolutely, so to lay the groundwork, I mean, we really 41 00:02:13.439 --> 00:02:15.879 have to look at the inciting incident that brought this 42 00:02:15.960 --> 00:02:18.080 specific investigation team together in. 43 00:02:18.039 --> 00:02:19.879 The first place, the twenty eleven case. 44 00:02:20.039 --> 00:02:23.520 Right, we are going back to a freezing winter's night 45 00:02:23.639 --> 00:02:27.039 in twenty eleven. The location is the northern edge of 46 00:02:27.120 --> 00:02:31.280 Denali Park in Alaska, which is incredibly remote, oh completely isolated. 47 00:02:31.280 --> 00:02:34.199 So we have three friends, Ben, Jones, Mark and Tom. 48 00:02:34.520 --> 00:02:37.280 They are heading out to a favorite overnight hunting spot 49 00:02:37.319 --> 00:02:40.840 to look for caribou. Okay, it is rugged terrain, sure, 50 00:02:41.000 --> 00:02:43.759 but these guys are experienced, they know the area well. 51 00:02:43.840 --> 00:02:45.439 They aren't amateurs, not at all. 52 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:48.520 So they stop to take a break, indulge in a 53 00:02:48.599 --> 00:02:50.639 quick smoke, and you know, have a couple of drinks 54 00:02:50.680 --> 00:02:52.439 from a flask, just to warm up in the sub 55 00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:56.639 zero temperatures. It is classic hunting trip camaraderie. 56 00:02:56.719 --> 00:02:58.879 It is a very ordinary setup. But I have to 57 00:02:58.879 --> 00:03:02.039 say the environmental cond text is crucial here. Well, when 58 00:03:02.039 --> 00:03:05.639 you are in Denali in winter, you were operating at 59 00:03:05.639 --> 00:03:11.280 the absolute edge of human biological tolerance. The darkness isn't 60 00:03:11.319 --> 00:03:14.080 just an absence of light. It's almost like a sensory 61 00:03:14.159 --> 00:03:15.280 deprivation chamber. 62 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:16.879 Wow, yeah, that makes sense. 63 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:20.400 Your vision is severely limited, sounds are dampened by snow 64 00:03:20.560 --> 00:03:24.000 or distorted by wind, and the cold forces your body 65 00:03:24.039 --> 00:03:27.439 to expend massive amounts of energy just to maintain a 66 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:28.800 core temperature. 67 00:03:28.360 --> 00:03:29.240 Just to stay alive. 68 00:03:29.520 --> 00:03:33.439 Exactly. Yea, it is the perfect recipe for cognitive strain. 69 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:36.280 Right, and that cognitive strain it comes into play almost immediately. 70 00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:39.639 So they're hanging out and Ben decides he needs a 71 00:03:39.639 --> 00:03:42.240 pit stop. Sure, he wants some privacy, so he trudges 72 00:03:42.280 --> 00:03:44.759 off into the tree line. But according to Mark, who 73 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:48.120 the investigators actually interviewed at this exact location years later, 74 00:03:48.520 --> 00:03:50.919 Ben walks much further into the woods than you normally 75 00:03:50.919 --> 00:03:52.360 would for a simple bathroom break. 76 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:53.280 That's odd. 77 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:55.599 Yeah, it was as if something caught his attention or 78 00:03:55.759 --> 00:03:57.479 I don't know, drew him deeper into the dark. 79 00:03:57.639 --> 00:04:00.520 And this is where the first sensory anomaly occurred. Right 80 00:04:00.680 --> 00:04:03.800 out of the darkness, Mark and Tom hear a distinct 81 00:04:04.120 --> 00:04:08.000 chilling sound. A howl, just a random howl, but not 82 00:04:08.080 --> 00:04:10.639 a gust of wind howling through the branches, and not 83 00:04:10.759 --> 00:04:14.120 a bird, a deep, guttural mammalian howl. 84 00:04:14.439 --> 00:04:18.199 They immediately scramble, I mean, the camaraderie breaks, Adrenaline spikes 85 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:21.399 and they hurry to check on Ben. But Ben is gone. 86 00:04:21.480 --> 00:04:22.120 What's gone? 87 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:24.560 Nowhere to be found, and instead of their friend, Mark 88 00:04:24.639 --> 00:04:27.120 looks out into the trees and sees something else, entirely 89 00:04:27.399 --> 00:04:30.680 the sighting. Yeah, let's look at the exact description from 90 00:04:30.759 --> 00:04:34.879 Jacks's interview notes, because it's nuts. Mark describes a monstrous 91 00:04:34.920 --> 00:04:38.199 beast standing among the trees. He estimated it weighed easily 92 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:39.519 nine hundred pounds. 93 00:04:39.600 --> 00:04:41.240 Nine hundred pounds, that's massive. 94 00:04:41.399 --> 00:04:44.199 Massive. He said, it looked like the biggest brown bear 95 00:04:44.279 --> 00:04:47.680 he had ever seen. But, and this is key, with nasty, 96 00:04:47.839 --> 00:04:52.000 matted gray fur and crucially, a wolf's snout. 97 00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:53.839 A wolf's facial structure. 98 00:04:53.560 --> 00:04:57.759 Exactly a wolf's nose and face on a massive bear's body. 99 00:04:57.959 --> 00:05:00.680 They ran for their lives and well, Jones hasn't been 100 00:05:00.680 --> 00:05:01.120 seen since. 101 00:05:01.199 --> 00:05:04.160 It's incredibly tragic. And if we break this down biologically, 102 00:05:04.279 --> 00:05:07.839 starting with the auditory evidence that how we immediately run 103 00:05:07.839 --> 00:05:09.439 into a behavioral contradiction in. 104 00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:11.040 The while, because of the bears. 105 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.480 Right, Howling is a behavior unique to wolves and some 106 00:05:14.560 --> 00:05:20.279 closely related canines. Bears, despite their massive size, their lung capacity, 107 00:05:20.319 --> 00:05:22.639 and territorial nature, they do. 108 00:05:22.519 --> 00:05:25.040 Not howl, wait, really never never. 109 00:05:25.120 --> 00:05:28.439 They growl. They huff they roar, but they literally do 110 00:05:28.519 --> 00:05:31.600 not possess the vocal cord structure or the instinctual drive 111 00:05:31.639 --> 00:05:34.839 to howl. Okay, wow, but here is the critical nuance 112 00:05:34.839 --> 00:05:39.199 of wolf biology. Wolves generally use howling as a rallying 113 00:05:39.240 --> 00:05:42.279 cry for the pack. Yeah, it is basically a biological 114 00:05:42.360 --> 00:05:45.759 GPS system to locate each other and coordinate movements across 115 00:05:45.879 --> 00:05:46.720 vast distances. 116 00:05:47.079 --> 00:05:49.079 So they aren't just howling at the moon for fun. 117 00:05:49.279 --> 00:05:53.079 Exactly. For solitary animal to make a deep guttural howl, 118 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:55.720 especially a mass of one holding its ground, it is 119 00:05:55.720 --> 00:05:59.399 almost exclusively a territorial warning. It is a broadcast and 120 00:05:59.399 --> 00:06:01.639 an intruder saying I am here and you are in 121 00:06:01.720 --> 00:06:02.240 my domain. 122 00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:04.480 Okay, but I have to push back here, or at 123 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:07.879 least challenge the baseline reliability of Mark's memory. Sure enough, 124 00:06:08.000 --> 00:06:10.199 we are talking about three guys who admitted they were 125 00:06:10.240 --> 00:06:13.079 drinking alcohol to warm up and freezing temperatures. It is 126 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:15.399 the dead of night. They are highly stressed, their friend 127 00:06:15.439 --> 00:06:17.879 is missing. We know how the brain works under dress 128 00:06:17.879 --> 00:06:21.560 big struggles. Yeah, when you are deprived of clear visual 129 00:06:21.680 --> 00:06:25.800 data in the dark, your brain engages in predictive processing. 130 00:06:26.040 --> 00:06:27.639 It fills in the gaps exactly. 131 00:06:28.079 --> 00:06:31.680 It hallucinates reality based on its deepest fears to keep 132 00:06:31.720 --> 00:06:34.759 you safe, like a game of telephone in the Pitch Black. 133 00:06:35.360 --> 00:06:38.399 Could the alcohol, the adrenaline, the hypothermic conditions, and the 134 00:06:38.399 --> 00:06:42.240 sheer terror of the situation have caused Mark's brain to just, 135 00:06:42.680 --> 00:06:45.959 you know, stitch together the two most dangerous predators he 136 00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:47.959 knows into one composite monster. 137 00:06:48.759 --> 00:06:52.680 That is the logical first assumption. And as an investigator, 138 00:06:52.800 --> 00:06:56.399 Jax points out exactly this concern in his field notes. 139 00:06:56.480 --> 00:07:00.000 Oh he does, he does. Eyewitness testimony is notoriously unreliable, 140 00:07:00.199 --> 00:07:04.360 even under perfect conditions. When you introduce extreme cold, low visibility, 141 00:07:04.519 --> 00:07:08.079 and alcohol, the cognitive filters don't just get muddy, they 142 00:07:08.120 --> 00:07:11.800 actively deceive you. As you mentioned with predictive processing, the 143 00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:15.759 brain abhors a vacuum. If it sees a massive dark 144 00:07:15.839 --> 00:07:19.079 shape and here's a canine sound, it might force those 145 00:07:19.120 --> 00:07:22.360 two data points into a single terrifying image just to 146 00:07:22.399 --> 00:07:24.000 trigger your fight or flight response. 147 00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:27.120 Exactly, And frankly, couldn't Ben have just walked off in 148 00:07:27.199 --> 00:07:28.199 hypothermic days? 149 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:28.879 What do you mean? 150 00:07:29.120 --> 00:07:34.480 Well, we know people experiencing extreme cold suffer from paradoxical undressing, 151 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:37.399 right they feel hot? That they take off their clothes, 152 00:07:37.480 --> 00:07:41.279 they wander aimlessly, they become profoundly confused. 153 00:07:41.439 --> 00:07:44.079 Yet is a well documented medical phenomenon. 154 00:07:44.240 --> 00:07:46.839 People vanish on flat ground and blizzards all the time 155 00:07:46.879 --> 00:07:50.040 without a monster being involved. Gravity doesn't need a cliff 156 00:07:50.079 --> 00:07:52.240 if the elements shut your brain down, that. 157 00:07:52.240 --> 00:07:55.560 Is the very grounded counter argument. But here is where 158 00:07:55.600 --> 00:07:58.680 the physical reality of the scene challenges the hypothermia theory. Okay, 159 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:01.199 lean On Jackson actually had Mark take them back to 160 00:08:01.240 --> 00:08:02.360 the exact spot. 161 00:08:02.199 --> 00:08:04.120 The same exact spot from twenty eleven. 162 00:08:04.480 --> 00:08:08.800 Yes, Mark called it the v It's a specific natural 163 00:08:08.920 --> 00:08:12.079 vantage point they use to survey the area for caribou. 164 00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:16.040 When the investigators mapped this location, they noted that beyond 165 00:08:16.079 --> 00:08:19.319 that vantage point, the terrain is incredibly flat and open 166 00:08:19.439 --> 00:08:22.240 for a significant distance before hitting dense brush. 167 00:08:22.360 --> 00:08:24.279 Okay, so it's a flat expanse right. 168 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:28.120 If Ben wandered off in a hypothermic state, it takes time. 169 00:08:28.439 --> 00:08:32.000 It is a slow, stumbling, confused process. His friends were 170 00:08:32.039 --> 00:08:35.320 only yards away and they responded to the howl almost immediately. 171 00:08:35.480 --> 00:08:38.840 Oh wow, this is the detail that completely derailed my 172 00:08:38.919 --> 00:08:41.639 logical timeline. I read this part of the field notes 173 00:08:41.720 --> 00:08:44.000 three times trying to find the missing variable. 174 00:08:44.159 --> 00:08:46.720 The math of the timeline just doesn't support a slow 175 00:08:46.919 --> 00:08:48.720 wandering disappearance. 176 00:08:48.440 --> 00:08:49.559 Right because of the speed. 177 00:08:49.799 --> 00:08:53.320 Exactly, for a human being to evaporate from flat, open 178 00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:56.279 ground in a matter of seconds or minutes implies one 179 00:08:56.279 --> 00:08:59.879 of two things. Either Ben Jones sprinted into the freezing 180 00:09:00.320 --> 00:09:03.559 with Olympic speed for absolutely no reason, which makes no sense, 181 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:07.919 or he was subjected to a predator of shocking silent efficiency. 182 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:09.159 Right because a bear attack isn't silent. 183 00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:12.799 A standard predator attack, even from a massive nine hundred 184 00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:16.639 pound grizzly, is chaotic. It is messy. There is a 185 00:09:16.720 --> 00:09:19.600 violent struggle, There are deep gouges in the earth, there 186 00:09:19.600 --> 00:09:20.440 are drag marks. 187 00:09:20.399 --> 00:09:21.320 Well, there was nothing. 188 00:09:21.360 --> 00:09:23.480 There was none of that. And when we look at 189 00:09:23.519 --> 00:09:27.919 Mark's specific, terrifying description of this hybrid creature, we realize 190 00:09:27.960 --> 00:09:31.600 he isn't the first person to describe this exact biological chimera. 191 00:09:31.759 --> 00:09:34.159 Oh far from it, And that brings us to the 192 00:09:34.200 --> 00:09:37.600 mythic context of the source material. We really need to talk. 193 00:09:37.399 --> 00:09:40.080 About the Amarok the demon wolf right. 194 00:09:40.320 --> 00:09:42.960 Also known in the region as the demon Wolf. According 195 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:46.039 to Tommy, the team's expert on Alaskan law, this creature 196 00:09:46.120 --> 00:09:48.679 isn't just a campfire ghost story. It has been a 197 00:09:48.679 --> 00:09:52.799 deeply embedded fixture of Inuit mythology for centuries, and the. 198 00:09:52.720 --> 00:09:57.279 Physical morphology described in the indigenous folklore is remarkably, almost 199 00:09:57.399 --> 00:09:59.960 uncomfortably consistent with Mark's modern sighting. 200 00:10:00.039 --> 00:10:01.840 It's eerie how closely it matches. 201 00:10:01.919 --> 00:10:05.080 The amarok is historically described as having the distinct facial 202 00:10:05.120 --> 00:10:08.120 structure of a wolf, the massive muscular body of a bear, 203 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:10.879 and standing up to nine feet tall when reared up 204 00:10:11.000 --> 00:10:14.600 nine feet tall. Furthermore, its behavioral profile in the lore 205 00:10:14.759 --> 00:10:17.879 is highly specific. It targets loane hunters at night. 206 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:21.639 The investigator spoke with a local expert named Ozzie, who 207 00:10:21.720 --> 00:10:24.919 shared a story from the Inupiate people that really illustrates 208 00:10:24.960 --> 00:10:26.720 the psychological weight of this legend. 209 00:10:26.840 --> 00:10:28.399 Yes, that story was intense. 210 00:10:28.600 --> 00:10:30.919 He told them about a father mourning the death of 211 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:33.399 his child, a child who is suspected to have been 212 00:10:33.440 --> 00:10:38.519 taken by the amarok. This grieving father, desperate for answers revenge, 213 00:10:38.919 --> 00:10:42.399 goes out into the freezing wild actively searching. 214 00:10:42.039 --> 00:10:45.360 For the beast, a dangerous decision very, and when. 215 00:10:45.200 --> 00:10:48.799 He finally finds it, the amarok doesn't retreat. It doesn't posture. 216 00:10:48.919 --> 00:10:52.120 It just kills him on the spot. Ozzie emphasized how 217 00:10:52.159 --> 00:10:55.759 incredibly mean, aggressive, and relentless this creature is. 218 00:10:55.919 --> 00:10:58.159 It doesn't behave like typical wildlife exactly. 219 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:01.159 It follows its prey, usually large large game like caribou 220 00:11:01.240 --> 00:11:03.639 or moose, but if it decides to hunt a human, 221 00:11:03.799 --> 00:11:04.639 it will track you. 222 00:11:04.559 --> 00:11:06.159 For miles just stalking. 223 00:11:06.279 --> 00:11:09.720 Yeah, and here's a psychological kicker, Ozzie said. The only 224 00:11:09.759 --> 00:11:11.919 defense if you ever find yourself face to face with 225 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:16.480 an amarok is to show absolute, unflinching dominance. You cannot 226 00:11:16.480 --> 00:11:19.559 show a single drop of fear. You have to prove 227 00:11:19.639 --> 00:11:22.480 you are the apex predator or, in his exact words, 228 00:11:22.559 --> 00:11:23.120 good luck. 229 00:11:23.440 --> 00:11:27.279 What's fascinating here is how this local Alaskan legend slots 230 00:11:27.320 --> 00:11:31.879 so perfectly into a much broader global tapestry of folklore 231 00:11:31.919 --> 00:11:35.080 concerning giant, terrifying canines. 232 00:11:35.159 --> 00:11:37.120 It really isn't just an Alaska thing. 233 00:11:37.080 --> 00:11:39.799 Not at all. This is not an isolated cultural phenomenon. 234 00:11:40.120 --> 00:11:42.320 If you look at Norse mythology, you have fen Rear, 235 00:11:42.639 --> 00:11:45.679 the massive wolf destined to devour the sun and the moon, 236 00:11:45.919 --> 00:11:47.720 effectively bringing down the cosmos. 237 00:11:47.799 --> 00:11:48.879 Right, Fenrare in. 238 00:11:48.840 --> 00:11:51.799 Western European traditions. The archetype of the big bad wolf 239 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:55.000 isn't just a fairytale obstacle for children. It was historically 240 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:59.559 viewed as evil incarnate, a literal monster haunting the fringes 241 00:11:59.559 --> 00:12:00.320 of civilisation. 242 00:12:00.559 --> 00:12:03.200 And it isn't just ancient metaphorical myths either. There are 243 00:12:03.279 --> 00:12:07.840 relatively recent historical accounts of these beasts causing actual, documented 244 00:12:07.879 --> 00:12:08.759 mass casualties. 245 00:12:08.799 --> 00:12:11.559 Precisely, look at France in the seventeen sixties with the 246 00:12:11.600 --> 00:12:14.639 Beast of jiavodant Oh. That case is wild. It really is. 247 00:12:15.200 --> 00:12:18.679 This was an exceptionally large wolf like creature, or perhaps 248 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:21.600 a pair of them, that killed and partially consumed over 249 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:25.639 one hundred people. It caused such widespread panic that Kingley 250 00:12:25.679 --> 00:12:28.440 the Fifth had to send the Royal Army to hunt 251 00:12:28.440 --> 00:12:28.759 it down. 252 00:12:28.879 --> 00:12:30.360 The literal royal army. 253 00:12:30.519 --> 00:12:33.559 Yes. Then you cross over to North America and you 254 00:12:33.639 --> 00:12:37.279 have the Wahila in Canadian lore, which operates identically to 255 00:12:37.320 --> 00:12:41.360 the Amorrock, a massive solitary wolf bear hybrid that hunts 256 00:12:41.360 --> 00:12:43.279 in the northern territories. 257 00:12:42.720 --> 00:12:45.039 Right next door to Alaska, exactly. 258 00:12:44.759 --> 00:12:47.480 Even further south in Michigan in the late eighteen hundreds, 259 00:12:47.600 --> 00:12:51.039 you have heavily detailed Lumberjack accounts of the Michigan dog man. 260 00:12:51.559 --> 00:12:56.360 The cultural through line of a giant anomalous canine is undeniable. 261 00:12:55.759 --> 00:12:58.080 Which forces you to ask why the fear of a 262 00:12:58.120 --> 00:13:02.720 giant canine is so universal across cultures that never interacted. 263 00:13:02.279 --> 00:13:03.600 Right, Why that specific form? 264 00:13:03.759 --> 00:13:06.840 Yeah? Are these stories just the ancient equivalent of a neon? 265 00:13:06.919 --> 00:13:09.799 Do not enter sign? You know, a cultural fable design 266 00:13:09.879 --> 00:13:12.679 purely to keep children from wandering into the dark woods 267 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:13.080 at night. 268 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:14.679 That's the anthropological theory. 269 00:13:14.759 --> 00:13:18.399 Sure. Or and this is the concept that is incredibly unsettling. 270 00:13:18.799 --> 00:13:21.240 Are they a shared biological memory. 271 00:13:20.960 --> 00:13:22.200 A genetic trauma? 272 00:13:22.279 --> 00:13:26.919 Exactly? Does humanity possess a collective subconscious trauma from an 273 00:13:27.000 --> 00:13:30.000 era when we were actively hunted by an apex predator 274 00:13:30.039 --> 00:13:31.320 that looked exactly like this? 275 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:36.000 It is a deeply compelling hypothesis. Evolutionary psychology suggests that 276 00:13:36.080 --> 00:13:40.480 folklore often acts as a vessel for ancestral survival data. 277 00:13:40.720 --> 00:13:42.320 Survival data. I like that phrasing. 278 00:13:42.639 --> 00:13:45.399 If a specific type of hyper aggressive predator posed an 279 00:13:45.480 --> 00:13:49.679 existential threat to early hominids across different continents, the visceral 280 00:13:49.720 --> 00:13:53.000 memory of that predator would absolutely be encoded into our 281 00:13:53.120 --> 00:13:55.559 oral traditions and perhaps even our DNA. 282 00:13:55.759 --> 00:13:56.200 Wow. 283 00:13:56.320 --> 00:13:59.919 The stories might exaggerate the supernatural elements over centuries of retelling, 284 00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:05.000 but the core biological warning beware. The giant solitary kenine 285 00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:08.399 remains perfectly intact because the people who didn't fear it 286 00:14:08.679 --> 00:14:10.559 didn't survive to pass on their genes. 287 00:14:10.639 --> 00:14:13.840 So if human memory across centuries and a modern eyewitness 288 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:16.600 account are pointing to a real physical creature in the 289 00:14:16.639 --> 00:14:19.360 Alaskan brush, we have to look at the hard science. 290 00:14:19.440 --> 00:14:21.679 We have to interrogate the biology exactly. 291 00:14:21.320 --> 00:14:23.639 What happens when we run these descriptions through the filter 292 00:14:23.759 --> 00:14:26.440 of modern zoology. Are we just dealing with a freakishly 293 00:14:26.679 --> 00:14:27.919 large normal animal. 294 00:14:28.080 --> 00:14:31.840 To interrogate that theory, the investigators consulted with experts in 295 00:14:31.919 --> 00:14:36.279 animal behavior, specifically focusing on the two halves of this 296 00:14:36.360 --> 00:14:38.519 supposed hybrid, the wolf and the bear. 297 00:14:38.639 --> 00:14:39.879 Okay, let's break that down. 298 00:14:40.240 --> 00:14:42.639 Ken visited a local wildlife center and sat down with 299 00:14:42.679 --> 00:14:46.200 two wolf experts, Stephanie and Channon. He needed to know 300 00:14:46.519 --> 00:14:51.399 biologically if a standard gray wolf could match the amarok's behavioral. 301 00:14:50.919 --> 00:14:55.159 Profile, and their answer was a pretty definitive no, right, 302 00:14:55.279 --> 00:14:57.600 I mean, the mechanics of wolf behavior just don't align. 303 00:14:57.600 --> 00:15:01.039 It all very definitive. The mechanics of wolf's survival are 304 00:15:01.200 --> 00:15:05.399 entirely dependent on social structures. Wolves are intensely social creatures 305 00:15:05.519 --> 00:15:09.360 right the pack. Their entire evolutionary strategy relies on the 306 00:15:09.360 --> 00:15:12.799 pack hierarchy. They hunt together to bring down prey larger 307 00:15:12.840 --> 00:15:16.320 than themselves. They live together, and their endochronology is literally 308 00:15:16.360 --> 00:15:17.320 wired for community. 309 00:15:17.360 --> 00:15:19.879 Their endochronology like their hormones. 310 00:15:20.039 --> 00:15:23.200 Yes, a wolf that is separated from its pack experiences 311 00:15:23.240 --> 00:15:27.039 severe spikes and cortisol, which are stress hormones. The popular 312 00:15:27.120 --> 00:15:30.399 idea of a badass lone wolf roaming the wilderness is 313 00:15:30.440 --> 00:15:32.440 mostly a misunderstanding of their biology. 314 00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:34.480 So a lone wolf is usually just stressed out. 315 00:15:34.840 --> 00:15:37.960 Exactly what a wolf is alone, It is usually a 316 00:15:38.000 --> 00:15:41.759 younger male leaving to distribute its genetics, and it doesn't 317 00:15:41.799 --> 00:15:46.000 thrive in that isolation. It actively desperately seeks out a 318 00:15:46.039 --> 00:15:46.440 new group. 319 00:15:46.679 --> 00:15:53.919 So an aggressive, massive, solitary stalker completely violates the baseline biology. 320 00:15:53.399 --> 00:15:57.200 Of a wolf completely. Furthermore, Stephanie and Shannon noted that 321 00:15:57.240 --> 00:16:00.399 wolves are naturally incredibly shy and cautious around you humans. 322 00:16:00.840 --> 00:16:01.440 They avoid us. 323 00:16:01.519 --> 00:16:03.480 Yeah, they don't want anything to do with us right. 324 00:16:03.799 --> 00:16:08.080 The Amarok, by contrast, is described as an enormous, highly 325 00:16:08.120 --> 00:16:11.559 aggressive stalker that actively seeks out human targets. 326 00:16:11.639 --> 00:16:14.639 So an ordinary wolf is out. The behavioral mechanics don't fit. 327 00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:16.279 What about an ordinary bear? 328 00:16:16.559 --> 00:16:18.000 That was the next logical step. 329 00:16:18.120 --> 00:16:21.039 Jackson Tommy talked to Mike, a big game hunter with 330 00:16:21.279 --> 00:16:24.799 decades of extensive on the ground knowledge of bears. Now, 331 00:16:24.840 --> 00:16:27.440 bears actually are solitary. They are they are massive, They 332 00:16:27.519 --> 00:16:30.559 hunt alone, and they are incredibly aggressive. If you trigger 333 00:16:30.639 --> 00:16:33.000 their prey drive, like if you run, they will chase you. 334 00:16:33.279 --> 00:16:35.919 So far, the mechanics of a bear match the Amarok's 335 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:37.759 profile much better than a wolf. 336 00:16:37.879 --> 00:16:40.559 It does align perfectly until you look at the forensic 337 00:16:40.559 --> 00:16:41.639 evidence of how they feed. 338 00:16:41.960 --> 00:16:43.440 Ah the feeding mechanics. 339 00:16:43.559 --> 00:16:48.200 According to Mike, bears are opportunistic omnivores, but when they 340 00:16:48.200 --> 00:16:51.440 do bring down large prey, they follow a very specific 341 00:16:51.879 --> 00:16:56.639 caloric prioritization pattern. Okay, and that pattern directly contradicts a 342 00:16:56.759 --> 00:16:59.559 terrifying piece of evidence provided by a witness named Nick, 343 00:17:00.080 --> 00:17:02.639 who hadn't encountered just a couple of weeks prior to 344 00:17:02.679 --> 00:17:04.200 the investigation team's arrival. 345 00:17:04.400 --> 00:17:07.480 Oh Man. Nick's story is wild, so It's two am, 346 00:17:07.759 --> 00:17:11.240 pitch dark, and Nick is driving down an isolated Alaskan 347 00:17:11.319 --> 00:17:14.799 road when he nearly hits a massive cariboo carcass, which 348 00:17:14.880 --> 00:17:18.079 is very dangerous. Very It's a common, highly dangerous hazard 349 00:17:18.119 --> 00:17:20.519 in Alaska. He pulls his truck over to call the 350 00:17:20.519 --> 00:17:22.799 state shoopers so they can clear the road before someone 351 00:17:22.839 --> 00:17:23.680 crashes into it. 352 00:17:23.759 --> 00:17:24.400 Responsible. 353 00:17:24.519 --> 00:17:27.000 Yeah, But while he's sitting there on the phone, a 354 00:17:27.079 --> 00:17:30.680 shadow detaches from the tree line. He says, it was huge, 355 00:17:30.839 --> 00:17:33.720 easily the size of a large brown bear, but the 356 00:17:33.759 --> 00:17:37.480 silhouette had the distinct elongated snout of a wolf. Here 357 00:17:37.640 --> 00:17:39.720 is again, and here is where the mechanics of the 358 00:17:39.720 --> 00:17:43.599 event get crazy. This beast drops down on the dead caribou, 359 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:47.359 violently disembowels it, but leaves the entrails, the soft organs 360 00:17:47.400 --> 00:17:48.079 lying in the snow. 361 00:17:48.160 --> 00:17:50.000 It just leaves them, leaves them. 362 00:17:50.400 --> 00:17:53.839 It grabs the heavy muscle mass the meat and sprints 363 00:17:53.920 --> 00:17:56.759 back into the woods with incredible, terrifying speed. 364 00:17:56.880 --> 00:18:00.880 And that specific detail leaving the entrails behind is the 365 00:18:00.920 --> 00:18:02.720 glaring biological red flag. 366 00:18:03.160 --> 00:18:04.759 Why is that so weird for a bear? 367 00:18:05.279 --> 00:18:08.559 As Jax pointed out during the investigation, when bears and 368 00:18:08.599 --> 00:18:11.680 even wolves make a fresh kill or find a fresh carcass. 369 00:18:11.920 --> 00:18:14.640 They go straight for the soft tissue first, the liver, 370 00:18:14.839 --> 00:18:16.279 the heart, the stomach. Fat. 371 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:17.400 Oh, because of the calories. 372 00:18:17.440 --> 00:18:21.480 Because in a subzero environment, chloric density is absolutely everything. 373 00:18:21.880 --> 00:18:24.599 The organs are the most nutrient dense, fat rich parts 374 00:18:24.599 --> 00:18:28.200 of the animal. Muscle is lean protein, which actually takes 375 00:18:28.240 --> 00:18:31.359 more energy for a predator to digest. For a massive 376 00:18:31.359 --> 00:18:34.720 predator to slice open a caribou explicitly ignore the high 377 00:18:34.759 --> 00:18:37.559 fat organs and expend massive amounts of energy to carry 378 00:18:37.559 --> 00:18:40.839 the heavy, lean muscle mass into the woods at top speed. Well, 379 00:18:40.880 --> 00:18:44.039 that completely contradicts basic bear forwarding behavior. 380 00:18:44.359 --> 00:18:47.000 Here's where it gets really interesting to me. If we 381 00:18:47.119 --> 00:18:50.559 rule out a normal wolf because of social behavior, and 382 00:18:50.599 --> 00:18:53.359 we rule out a normal bear because of feeding mechanics, 383 00:18:53.640 --> 00:18:57.079 could we be looking at a freak of nature genetic 384 00:18:57.079 --> 00:19:02.480 anomaly exactly. Ken started exploring the gigantism theory, and when 385 00:19:02.480 --> 00:19:04.559 I was looking through these notes, I was blown away 386 00:19:04.599 --> 00:19:07.799 by the natural precedence for this. We aren't talking about 387 00:19:07.799 --> 00:19:12.160 science fiction. Genetics and environment can create massive biological anomalies. 388 00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:17.200 They certainly can. Gigantism is a well documented physiological condition 389 00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:18.960 across the animal kingdom. 390 00:19:19.079 --> 00:19:22.400 Right. You look at hybrids like ligers, the offspring of 391 00:19:22.440 --> 00:19:26.640 a male lion and a female tiger in captivity because 392 00:19:26.640 --> 00:19:29.960 they lack certain growth inhibiting genes that normally come from 393 00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:32.880 a female lion, ligers just keep growing, sometimes topping one 394 00:19:32.880 --> 00:19:37.319 thousand pounds. Then you have environment driven gigantism. Look at 395 00:19:37.319 --> 00:19:41.039 the goliath frog, which grows to massive proportions because it 396 00:19:41.079 --> 00:19:45.200 exists in an isolated ecosystem with very few natural predators. 397 00:19:45.319 --> 00:19:47.680 Or deep sea gigantus, yes, where. 398 00:19:47.519 --> 00:19:50.440 The freezing temperatures and high pressure environment at the bottom 399 00:19:50.480 --> 00:19:53.799 of the ocean force invertebrates to grow incredibly large to 400 00:19:53.880 --> 00:19:57.920 conserve heat, creating nightmares like the Japanese spider crab. Very true, 401 00:19:58.039 --> 00:20:02.559