Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.
The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.
Unlike some of our competitors we are not going to try and blackmail you into donating by saying that we won't continue if you don't. That would just be vulgar, but our lives, and those of the animals which we look after, would be a damn sight easier if we receive more donations to our fighting fund. Donate via Paypal today...
In the past eighteen months a teenage bug enthusiast we met at the Yeovil Bugfest in February last year has become increasingly important both to the CFZ, and to Corinna and myself.
We have been in contact with Jan for ages, and it is with great pleasure that we welcome her aboard, not only as a guest blogger, but as a Co. Durham representative for the CFZ. With Davy Curtis already at the helm in the county, the two of them will make a dream team par excellence.... 
What would you do if you were suddenly responsible for a few acres of woodland? A week ago we didn’t have a wood. Today we have just over three and a half acres of prime mixed woodland, barely half a mile from home. I never would have dreamed that it was possible... but Farplace Animal Rescue now own a wood.
Currently, there is a tree preservation order on it (but we don’t want to damage the trees anyway) and the most we would ever want to build there is a bird-hide. There has recently been some controversy about the place. The previous owner wanted to build a small number of log cabins as holiday homes, without damaging the woodland, other than the felling of a few already dead trees. Locals objected (unfairly, we feel) but as a direct result of him losing planning permission, we were 
given the chance to buy it.
There are roe deer, badgers, occasional foxes... lots of birds including owls and hawks... woodpeckers... lizards... adders...
It's a wonderland, with hidden surprises such as lords & ladies and a fairy ring of toadstools.
We will be using it as a wildlife rehab and release area, as well as conservation of the wildlife, trees, plants... And I personally will be using it as a chilling out area when 
life gets tough. The dogs like it too – pictured is Casper, the 2-year-old brain-damaged Rottie, admiring his new playground.
Some months ago Alan Friswell, the bloke who made the CFZ Feegee Mermaid and also the guy responsible for some of the most elegantly macabre bloggo postings, wrote me an email. 
http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/
Time for a song, I think. Yesterday ‘The Beatles; Rockband’ arrived in the post and I spent most of the night trying to master various songs on bass, the one I had most fun with was the following:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_fSLuWwS2c
And now, the news:
Fiji Petrel found at sea – pungent fish attracts “lost” species
Llamas Take On New Burden In Laboratory
UFO or pterodactyl over Argentinian lake?
Fast And The Fur-ious: Cheetah Breaks Record
Dachshund from Shrewsbury 'may be world's oldest dog'
Hope he has a nice birthday when it comes round, with a nice dog friendly cake (pate instead of icing?) and that he doesn’t get ‘hounded’ by paparazzi.
Posts
