Mystery of the Florida 'bogeyman' - and the five places it's been 'spotted'

Most US states have their own versions of Bigfoot or other mythical creatures whose stories have been passed down through many generations.

Florida is no exception, but it does have the distinction of having one of the grossest names for its beast of legend.

The 'Bardin Booger,' as the cryptid has become known, has had several sightings in the landlocked Putnam County of northern Florida.

Its name, broken down into two parts, comes from the tiny town where it was first spotted named Bardin - and 'Booger,' which is a slang term for 'bogeyman.'

Like the Skunk Ape, another Florida-specific creature, the Bardin Booger is thought to be a regional twist on Bigfoot and Yeti myths, according to ClickOrlando.

Dave Shealy told DailyMail.com he's been doing Skunk Ape research all his life after he says he first saw one at the age of 10 in 1974.  

Shealy's lifelong efforts to convince the world of the creature's existence - a pursuit he's stepped up in recent months by touring the country with his evidence - have culminated in him opening Skunk Ape Headquarters in Ochopee, Florida.

The quaint museum recently won the honor of being the second best roadside attraction in the country as ranked by USAToday.

Shealy also listed five places where these enigmatic brutes are often seen.

Myakka State Park, Ocala National Forest, Kissimmee marshlands, the Florida Everglades, and Interstate 4 near Interstate 95 are all apparently the places to be if you want to lay eyes on them.

Shealy believes there are five to seven Skunk Apes in the Everglades and over the years, he has set up numerous elevated structures in the marshes hopefully to catch a glimpse.

He even claims they create nests in the trees, something he says other Skunk Ape researchers have noted.

When it comes to the Bardin Booger, which shares similarities with the Skunk Ape but is seen mostly in North Florida, tales about it first began popping up in the late 1940s, per The Florida Times-Union.

So the story goes, a woman was riding her horse through the woods of Bardin in the summer of 1947 when she thought she saw a very tall man with a long raincoat.

When she looked closer, however, she was shocked to learn the coat was actually fur and that the man was anything but.

Many of the 424 residents of Bardin claim to have seen the creature, with some describing it as a 10-foot-tall, furry, monkey-like creature.

'I see monkeys out here in our woods all the time,' said lifelong resident Karen Moore. 'But I've never seen one that's 10 feet tall.'

Another story about the Booger describes him as wearing torn, dirty clothes and having the face of a caveman. 

A third tale says the creature gave off a scent so foul that when a man raised his gun to try to shoot it, he couldn't fire accurately.  

Perhaps the most consistent detail across the countless stories is that the Booger is often reported to be carried a lantern.

Marie Dumont, the founder of the Mid Florida Bigfoot Research Group, tried to explain why this might be.

'As a Bigfoot researcher, that is a pretty common thin,' she told ClickOrlando. 'Whether it’s truly a creature that walks around with a lantern? Highly unlikely. But it could be that people are seeing a Bigfoot or Skunk Ape, or they’re seeing a light moving through the woods.'

Florida is a hotspot for Skunk Ape sightings, according to Dumont. Though reports from north and south Florida differ quite a bit.

She said Skunk Apes sighted in southern Florida are usually smaller - 5 to 7 feet tall. They're thinner, have less hair and only have four toes, at least based on the footprints some claim to have found.

Skunk Apes found north of Tampa, she said, are 6 to 9 feet tall with five toes.