Class A First-hand BFRO #12587

Daylight sighting by fishermen near Venice

Summer 1988 around 4:00 or 5:00 pm Venice, Sarasota County, Florida 2 witnesses

Account

Two brothers were fishing from a john boat when they noticed a tall, reddish-brown hairy figure at the edge of the palmettos crouched and drinking water from its hands. The figure stared at them without making any sound and then left quietly. The witnesses reported a musky odor, fled to shore, and never returned to the pond.

Summary drafted by AI from the source report and checked by code before I publish it. The witness's own words remain with the publisher — read the original report .

What was reported

Every kind of observation in the account. Select one to find other encounters with it.

Sightings

Other senses

Described appearance

In the source's own words, field by field. Hover a field's marker to see where it was read.

Height src
about 7' or taller
Build src
stocky with broad shoulders
Hair colour src
reddish brown
Face src
dirty, leathery brown
Eyes src
round and dark
Hands src
really large hands
Posture src
crouched like a baseball catcher

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date
Summer 1988
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Season
Time of day
around 4:00 or 5:00 pm
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Time And Conditions” section
Place
Venice, Sarasota County, Florida
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Location Details, Nearest Road
Map point
27.10, -82.45 (± 1000 m)
Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence
BFRO map layer point for report 12587 (3 decimals, no boundary)
Account type
First-hand
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses
2
Derived BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Figures reported
1
Derived BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness was
fishing for bass from a john boat
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness's word for it
this thing non human or not a bear
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Source classification
Class A
Stated BFRO report #12587 · BFRO classification label

Evidence & investigation

What the source says was found or done. Claimed evidence is listed as claimed; the Anomadex has not examined it.

Investigated by
Caroline Curtis (BFRO)
Follow-up

An investigator spoke by phone with the witness and a relative to collect additional details.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section

Source timeline

Every record this entry is built from, earliest known first. Records are versioned and never edited in place.

  1. Published 2005-09-16 Retrieved 2026-09-25 Version 1 Hash fb48093c7c09
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization
  2. BFRO map layer Reference
    Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash cfb8a3d423b7
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization