A bear, a dog, a Yeti or an old woman's hair - will there finally be a DNA test of last year's finding in Azasskaya Cave? Picture: The Siberian TImes

One was spotted this month by an unnamed state inspector in the Shorsky National Park, says local government official Sergei Adlyakov.

'The creature did not look like a bear and quickly disappeared after breaking some branches of the bushes,' he was quoted as saying.

This case was in Tashtagolski district, close to the border with Khakassia, it was claimed.

It was highlighted by Trud newspaper but when The Siberian Times asked Adlyakov for more details, he said the sighting was 'private information' and he had not intended that the 'sighting' was made public.

The same official has claimed to be aware of yeti sightings in previous years.

Earlier in August, fisherman Vitaly Vershinin saw two creatures near Myski village, according to a local Siberian newspaper.

'Sailing up the river I saw on the bank what I thought were two bears,' he said. 'They were drinking water.

'When they noticed me, they easily stood straight upright and went away... I did not wish to chase them.'





Fisherman Vitaly Vershinin shows Russian Vesti TV crew where he saw the 'creature'; below - GV of the river by Myski village

In common with other sightings of supposed yetis, they are distinguished from bears - which are common in these areas - by running upright on two legs.

In a separate account, the fisherman took a Vesti TV crew back to the spot where he allegedly saw the yetis.

'We shouted to them - do you need help?', he said, initially thinking the creatures were humans. And they just rushed away, all in fur, walking on two legs, making way through the bushes with two other limbs, straight up the hill, right there,' he added, pointing.

'What did we think? It could not be bears, as the bear walks on all-fours, and they ran on two.... so then they were gone.'

It was reported that several days after this sighting 'local people saw a strange creature one more time'.

Finding a footprint and a hair - Russian TV shows footage from 2011 expedition to Azasskaya Cave in Kemerovo region

Officials in Kuzbass, Kemerovo region, told of another alleged sighting.'We were sailing in a boat without an engine. On the rock above the Mras-Su River we saw some tall animals looking like people,' said locals who have not been named.

'Our binoculars were broken and did not let us see them sharply. We waved at the animals but they did not respond, then quickly ran back into the forest, walking on two legs.'

He stressed: 'We realised that they were not in dark clothes but covered by dark fur. They did walk like people.'

Russia's leading 'yeti expert' Igor Burtsev, head of the International Centre of Hominology, said he believes the supposed Myski sighting to be 'significant' though was unaware of the later National Shorsky Park case.

Russia is to host a conference and expedition in search of the yeti next month, he said. In a similar hunt last year, Burtsev claimed that a team of international experts discovered samples of yeti hair. No DNA analysis has been released of the hair though it is understood tests are being undertaken.

Igor Burtsev, pictured during 2011 Yeti hunt in Kemerovo region. Picture: The Siberian Times

'We plan a scientific conference on the yeti in October,' Burtsev said.

'We shall explore new areas, to the north from the usual places yetis have been seen previously. The conference will start in Moscow and then we will travel with our guests to Kemerovo region.'

The exact location of the yeti-hunt in Kemerovo region is not known.

'The conference and a following expedition is organised by the administration of Kemerovo region. We are glad that local authorities support our work', he said. 'Yetis are seen in many places of Russia but here in Kuzbass we are given a chance to explore this properly'.

Burtsev claims the creature - also known as Bigfoot and Sasquatch - is a missing link between Neanderthal man and modern human beings.

Mainstream scientists say the creatures are entirely mythical and point out no remains have been found of them despite alleged 'sightings'.

Footage of yetis often turns out to be fake, they add. Burtsev has previously claimed a population of around 30 yetis are living in Kemerovo region.

'We have good evidence of the yeti living in our region, and we have heard convincing details from experts elsewhere in Russia and in the US and Canada,' he said. 'The description of the habits of the Abominable Snowmen are similar from all over the world'.

Three separate 'sightings of yetis' in Siberia ahead of new expedition to find the 'abominable snowman'