Mystery Creature in California Could Be Ape

A strange creature caught swinging through the trees in La Crescenta, California, could be an ape, says the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

According to KTLA news, local man Jake Gardiner spotted the possible primate while taking a walk in the woods on his lunch break from work.

"At first, I heard a bunch of strange noises in the trees. Figured it was just some types of bird or something like that,” said Gardiner in an interview with KTLA.

Gardiner said he felt uneasy, so he began recording with his cellphone camera to capture anything out of the ordinary.

He didn't see anything immediately unusual, but upon further inspection he spotted something he couldn't explain.

“You can definitely see a torso and four limbs moving around and swinging around,” said Gardiner. “It’s a pretty obvious kind of motion.”  

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife hasn't determined exactly what kind of creature Gardiner saw, but they think it's possible it could be some sort of ape.

“We think that it's a pretty good possibility that it is some kind of ape,” said department spokesman Andrew Hughan. 

Although, he said, “It could be some kind of ape, it also could be a bear, it could be a large bird.” 

Hughan said that it's just too difficult to tell from the cellphone footage, and as of now no evidence has been found.

“It’s an interesting mystery right at the moment, and we'll see what happens,” said Hughan.

If it is an ape, then that could signify a public safety concern for locals, according to the spokesman.

"These animals are incredibly strong. And they can very easily kill or seriously injure a person because -- if it turns out to be an ape -- this animal is scared, hungry, out of its element,” explained Hughan.

Hughan is at a loss to explain the creature's presence in the area, but speculates it could be an exotic pet that escaped or was set free.

“People import the animals as illegal exotic pets. Now, that’s not great, but what happens is the animals can get out of control and they either escape or they get too unruly and the owners just let them go,” said Hughan.

Locals are being warned not to go looking for the creature, whatever it is.