>>>/x/ here, they are the same as chupacabrasThere are entities that exist in the same space and time as we do, but rarely interact with particles, neutrinos are a notable example. We are like a gas, in a manner of speaking, stars have several orders of magnitude and mass, and there are massive distances between stars, which would destroy our bodies in a split second.
Why am I talking about physics? Because this is how "skinwalkers" function. They cannot influence the material world much, so they do so in small ways, altering DNA, redirecting synapses in the brain. These entities are extremely intelligent such that it is incomprehensible to humans, they can figure out exactly what DNA to modify and how to influence neural networks to pass information to someone. Changes to DNA gives them the reputation of changing shape, but these aren't doppelgangers, they are the original human or animal. Neither are they possessed, they are more like students.
Someone else here mentions medicine men and their rituals, they are basically trying to contact these entities for one reason or another. Usually it is material concerns, to save a child with a fever, however very quickly however it changes their nature, they stop caring about material concerns. In some cases the medicine men seek immortality or fortune or something, similarly the entities do not view this as evil, as to them even the greatest of human evils are petty and insignificant, like toddlers fighting over who gets to play with a toy, however because of the nature of the student affects how the entity influences them.
They are like "you want this body to live forever, ok, but we'll have to make some drastic changes". As a result these skinwalkers tend to be the most populous, as most usually accept the inevitability and harmlessness of death. They stray across this particular region of the world engaging in chicanery.
