For generations, people in northern Argentina have told stories about a mysterious creature said to inhabit the remote forests and mountains of the region. Known as the Ucumar, or Ukumar, it is often described as a large, powerful, hairy humanoid – something remarkably similar to the Sasquatch or Bigfoot of North American folklore.
In May 2026, those old stories suddenly gained new attention when unusual footage reportedly emerged from Salta Province, Argentina. The video appeared to show a large, dark figure moving quickly across an open field, and witnesses watching from a considerable distance struggled to determine exactly what they were seeing.
The figure was reportedly approximately 300 feet, or about 90 metres, from the people recording it. From that distance, details were difficult to distinguish. What could be seen was a dark, apparently upright figure moving across the landscape.
Even the witnesses seemed uncertain. Rather than immediately declaring that they had filmed a mysterious creature, they reportedly questioned whether the figure might simply be a person.
But once the footage began circulating, another possibility quickly entered the conversation.
Could this have been an Ucumar?
The footage was reportedly shared through Ucumar Metán Salta, which collects and discusses reports of the legendary creature in and around the Metán region. According to reports surrounding the video, the people responsible for filming it did not want their identities made public and also asked that the exact location of the encounter remain confidential.
That secrecy inevitably added to the mystery, but it also made independently examining the circumstances of the sighting more difficult.
The Ucumar isn’t a creature invented because of this video. Stories about strange, hairy beings in this part of South America have existed for generations, particularly in the folklore of the Andes and northern Argentina.
Descriptions vary considerably depending on the source. The Ucumar is often portrayed as heavily built, covered in dark hair and capable of walking upright. Some traditions describe something much more humanlike, while others give the creature distinctly bear-like characteristics.
That last detail is particularly interesting.
The Andes are home to the spectacled bear, the only living bear native to South America. Spectacled bears can occasionally stand or move briefly on their hind legs, and sightings under poor conditions could potentially contribute to stories of upright, hairy creatures.
However, the modern Ucumar legend has increasingly become Argentina’s equivalent of Bigfoot. Reports of unexplained footprints, strange vocalizations and fleeting encounters with hairy humanoid figures have helped keep the legend alive.
The 2026 footage therefore arrived in a place where people were already familiar with exactly this kind of story.
There is, however, an enormous difference between an intriguing video and evidence of an unknown species.
The distance between the camera and the figure makes identification extremely difficult. Without clear anatomical details, accurate measurements or physical evidence from the location, there is no reliable way to determine the figure’s true size or even establish with certainty that it wasn’t an ordinary person.
A human being remains one of the simplest possible explanations.
Perspective can also be remarkably deceptive. A distant person filmed against an open landscape can appear unusually large depending upon the terrain, camera angle and absence of nearby objects that provide an accurate sense of scale.
There is currently no scientifically verified evidence demonstrating that an unknown large humanoid primate inhabits Argentina.
But that hasn’t stopped people from wondering.
The timing became particularly interesting when another Ucumar story surfaced in Argentina only a couple of months later. In July 2026, a doctor reportedly recounted an extraordinary story he said had been told to him by a patient.
According to the account, the patient claimed that he had once encountered, and killed an Ucumar.
It is important to emphasize that this was an anecdotal story rather than verified physical evidence. There is no publicly established specimen demonstrating that the creature existed, and extraordinary claims of this kind require much more than someone’s recollection before they can be treated as fact.
Still, appearing so soon after the Salta footage, the story brought even more attention to the old legend.
And the Ucumar isn’t South America’s only mysterious creature with similarities to Bigfoot.
Across the continent, Indigenous traditions and later folklore contain stories about unusual beings inhabiting remote wilderness areas. Brazil’s Mapinguari is perhaps the most famous example, although descriptions of that creature vary wildly and often include supernatural characteristics that bear little resemblance to a conventional unknown primate.
Other regions have their own stories of hairy forest beings, mysterious humanoids and creatures said to avoid human settlements.
Whether any of these traditions describe unknown animals is another matter entirely. Folklore can develop from encounters with known wildlife, misunderstood observations, cultural storytelling and generations of retelling. Different creatures can also become blended together over time as stories spread between communities.
That is part of what makes the May 2026 Salta video so intriguing.
If the figure was simply a person crossing a field, then an ordinary moment accidentally became attached to a centuries-old legend.
If it was an animal, distance and perspective may have transformed something recognizable into something mysterious.
But if it was neither?
That is the possibility that keeps cryptid enthusiasts watching the footage.
For now, there isn’t enough evidence to call the Salta figure an Ucumar, much less proof of a South American Bigfoot. There is no body, DNA sample, confirmed trackway or clear close-range photograph establishing the existence of an unknown humanoid species.
There is simply a distant figure running across an Argentine landscape, and an old legend waiting in the background.
Sometimes that’s all it takes to resurrect a mystery.
Sources: Coast to Coast AM; Ucumar Metán Salta; Argentine reporting on the 2026 Ucumar footage and subsequent Ucumar claims; and reference material concerning Ucumar folklore and South American cryptid traditions.
A little magic is always waiting. Subscribe and step inside the circle. 🖤🔮✨
The Cool Beans 
Leave a comment