[5] Folk belief in the almas in Ovorkhangai and Bayankhongor has resulted in a name-avoidance taboo there, wherein the entities may be referred to as akhai, meaning 'uncle-brother'.
[5] The folk traditions of Darkhad include the Almas khara Tenguer, meaning 'Almas the Black God' and associated with highland prairies and mountain forests.
[6] Nikolay Przhevalsky describes the almas, as related to him under the name kung-guressu ("man-beast"), as follows:"We were told that it had a flat face like that of a human being, and that it often walked on two legs, that its body was covered with a thick black fur, and its feet armed with enormous claws; that its strength was terrible, and that not only were hunters afraid of attacking it, but that the inhabitants removed their habitations from those parts of the country which it visited".
[7]Heaney suggests that the almas should be identified with the Arimaspi, a group of legendary humanoid creatures said to inhabit the Riphean Mountains.
[9] A 2014 study concluded that hair samples attributed to the almas were from species which includes Ursus arctos, Equus caballus and Bos taurus.