Bigfoot hair samples are being gathered, collected, and processed as part of a new study that will help determine if such a creature actually exists. So if you or anyone you know has random Yeti hairs just lying around the house, be sure to let the folks over at Oxford University and the Lausanne Museum of Zoology know about your findings. They’re looking for any and all specimens, even if you’re not 100% sure where the samples came from.

“If the Yeti is real and somebody has found bits of their hair, you should be able to tell from the DNA in the hair if this is actually a Yeti,” said University College London professor Mark Thomas.

Scientists have already received a wealth of potential specimens, including hair, blood, and items thought to have been gnawed upon by the fluffy cryptid. The new tests will allow researchers to determine how close the creature in question is to apes or humans, even if they sample is from an unidentified animal. Of course, the chance that someone out there actually has a few strands of hair plucked from the backside of a Bigfoot is relatively low.

Of course, not everyone feels that this sort of endeavor is valid. Kansas University professor David Frayer, for example, seems to think the project is a phenomenal waste of time. “No serious scientist (would) treat Yeti as a worthy research project,” he told the Associated Press.

Even if the results of these DNA tests prove that none of the provided samples belong to a Yeti, will that stop people from believing in the beast? Don’t count on it. Part of the public’s fascination with Bigfoot is the fact that no one has managed to get a good, hard look at the creature, despite the efforts of countless individuals. Our fascination with the legend is rooted in the mystery that surrounds it. While scientists shuffle through random blood and hair, many folks will be wandering around the forest, cameras and imaginations in-hand.