Holstonia Research Series — Established 2025

Holstonia Bigfoot Investigations is an independent research program examining anomalous biological reports through structured scientific frameworks. Holstonia Investigations does not promise discovery or validation. It promises disciplined inquiry, ethical restraint, and methodological transparency.

The papers presented here develop the methodological, ecological, perceptual, and inferential foundations necessary for responsible analysis under conditions of persistent uncertainty. Together, they form a coherent research series rather than isolated essays.

All publications are released as archival PDF/A documents to support long-term accessibility, stable citation, and scholarly use.

Domain Map

The Holstonia research corpus is organized across six conceptual domains:

Readers new to the project are encouraged to begin with the Foundations, where the intellectual posture guiding this work is defined. Others may enter through any domain.

Researchers are encouraged to replicate methods and challenge conclusions.

Foundations

Establishes the epistemic posture, evidentiary limits, and scientific framing required for responsible analysis under conditions of uncertainty.

Anomalous Biological Claims as a Scientific Problem

Defines anomalous biological reports as a tractable scientific question rather than a folkloric one.

Detection Limits and Biological Inference

Examines how observational limits constrain responsible biological interpretation.

Exit Criteria and Falsifiability

Establishes disconfirmation standards necessary for scientific legitimacy.

Doing Research Within the Holstonia Framework

Articulates procedural norms for conducting disciplined inquiry under uncertainty.

Government Records and Institutional Responses to Anomalous Biological Reports

Surveys official documents and agency reactions to anomalous biological claims, demonstrating that institutional awareness has historically preceded scientific resolution.

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Methods

Develops the analytical tools, detection frameworks, and modeling strategies necessary for extracting signal from structurally constrained datasets.

Non-Detection in Trail-Camera Surveys

Interprets repeated non-detections as analytically meaningful rather than null outcomes.

Structured Residual Patterns Across Modalities

Identifies recurring unexplained patterns across independent evidence streams.

From Residual Structure to Research Design

Transforms persistent anomalies into drivers of formal study design.

Comparative Signal Ecology and Rare Species Detection

Applies signal ecology to the detection challenges posed by low-density species.

The Ecology of Absence

Explores how sustained absence can inform ecological reasoning.

The Calibrated Observer

Positions observer calibration as foundational to evidentiary stability.

Calibrating Observers in Practice

Operationalizes observer training into repeatable field procedures.

Visibility Under Constraint: Road Crossings

Models roadside sightings through the lens of detection geometry.

Roads as Structured Survey Instruments

Formalizes road networks as scalable observational infrastructure.

Detection, Non-Detection, and Conditions of Observability

Examines the environmental and perceptual conditions that govern when biological presence becomes observable, clarifying the analytical relationship between detection and absence.

Geographic Patterning Across Four Reports of Anomalous Encounters in Southwest Virginia

Examines spatial relationships among four regional reports to evaluate whether localized clustering may indicate structured environmental or observational conditions rather than random distribution.

Edge Environments as Detection Amplifiers in Anomalous Biological Reports

Proposes that ecological transition zones enhance encounter probability by increasing visibility, contrast, and observer presence, positioning edge habitats as analytically significant detection environments.

Holstonia Image Differential Review: A Structured Methodology

Introduces a disciplined comparative framework for evaluating anomalous imagery through differential analysis, emphasizing falsification pathways, interpretive restraint, and repeatable review procedures.

Modeling Pattern Emergence Under Conditions of Structured Uncertainty

Develops a probabilistic approach to understanding how meaningful patterns may arise within noisy datasets without presupposing species confirmation.

Signal, Noise, and Analytical Readiness: A Metadata Audit of Opportunistic Encounter Datasets

Evaluates the structural limitations of opportunistic report corpora and assesses the degree to which current datasets support reliable signal detection.

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Evidence

Examines physical, acoustic, and observational materials through structured analytical frameworks to evaluate their probative value under conditions of uncertainty.

Comparative Gait Analysis

Evaluates locomotion claims against known biomechanical patterns.

Limits of Consumer Security Cameras

Assesses evidentiary constraints inherent in widely deployed camera systems.

Percussive Claims in Field Reports

Examines reported wood knocks within an acoustic interpretive framework.

Audio Evidence: Limits, Failure Modes, and Risk

Analyzes interpretive hazards associated with field audio.

Track Evidence: Substrate and Ambiguity

Situates footprint interpretation within substrate dynamics.

Photographic and Video Evidence

Evaluates visual media through the lens of evidentiary reliability.

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Perception, Cognition, and Cultural Transmission

Investigates observer processes, cognitive filters, and conditions influencing how anomalous events are experienced and reported.

Non-Encounters as Data

Reframes absence of experience as analytically informative.

Prior Exposure and Narrative Framing

Explores how expectation shapes experiential interpretation.

Paranormal Attribution and Interpretive Expansion

Examines mechanisms driving extraordinary attribution.

Evaluating Bear Misidentification

Assesses Ursus americanus as a recurrent explanatory candidate.

Modeling Hoaxing as a Structured Process

Treats deception as analyzable behavior rather than dismissal.

Cultural Transmission and Narrative Drift

Traces how reports evolve through social propagation.

Observer Skill Stratification

Differentiates observer capability as a variable in evidentiary weight.

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Ecology

Develops the analytical tools, detection frameworks, and modeling strategies necessary for extracting signal from structurally constrained datasets.

Terrain Convergence and Report Distribution in the Holston Region

Links landscape structure to spatial clustering of reports.

Disturbance Before Agency: Establishing Ecological Baselines

Prioritizes environmental disruption before behavioral inference.

Constraint Ecology: Why Recurring Environmental Structure Matters Before Species Confirmation

Argues that persistent environmental regularities may provide the earliest indicators of an undiscovered species, reframing absence of confirmation as an ecological modeling problem rather than a terminating condition.

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Genesis (Hypothesis Space)

Examines the conceptual origins and early theoretical boundaries of Holstonia while exploring the historical, ethical, and governance implications that would accompany recognition of a previously undocumented hominin.

Ecology and Population Modeling

Explores demographic feasibility within constrained habitats.

Conservation Biology, Ethics, and Human Dimensions

Considers stewardship implications under discovery scenarios.

Evolutionary Scenarios for a Relict Homo Species

Evaluates plausible evolutionary pathways.

Cognition, Communication, and Cultural Complexity

Examines the cognitive implications of a relict hominin.

Fossil Absence and Preservation Bias

Addresses taphonomic constraints on expected remains.

Behavioral and Ecological Coherence

Tests whether reported traits form a stable ecological pattern.

Ethological Coherence

Evaluates behavioral consistency across the report corpus.

Genomic, Forensic, and eDNA Approaches

Surveys molecular pathways capable of resolving the question.

State of the Scientific Field

Maps the current research landscape and its constraints.

After Confirmation: Historical Precedent, First Contact, and Ethical Governance

Explores the institutional, ethical, and historical frameworks that would guide responsible response following the confirmation of a relict hominin.

How to Cite These Papers

Papers published under Holstonia Bigfoot Investigations are released as stable public documents and may be updated periodically to correct errors, clarify methods, or incorporate additional references.

When citing a paper, please include:

Example citation (APA-style)

Kegley, D. (2025). From presence-only reports to testable inference: A monitoring framework for rare and elusive species (Version 1.0). Holstonia Bigfoot Investigations. https://holstonia.org/research

If citing a specific paper, use the direct document link when available.

Versioning

Minor revisions that do not affect conclusions are issued as point updates (e.g., v1.1, v1.2). Substantive revisions are released as new major versions (e.g., v2.0) and are clearly indicated in the document.

Earlier versions may remain accessible for transparency.