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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.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy C, scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

THE BEST UK FORTEAN EVENT OF THE YEAR - DON'T MISS IT

Numbers are limited and we would hate you to be disappointed.. SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED SO FAR: Richard Freeman: 20 Cryptids you have never heard of; Neil Arnold: Mystery Animals of Kent and LondonRichard Muirhead:The Flying Snake of Namibia; Richard Thorns: The search for the Pink Headed Duck; Silas Hawkins: Bedtime stories; Jon Downes and Richard Freeman: Intro to Cryptozoology; Nick Wadham: TBA; Carl Portman: TBA; Harriet Wadham: Book signing; Kevin Goodman: Is UFOlogy a new religion? Glen Vaudrey: Scottish sea monster carcasses; Book Launch: Scottish sea monster carcasses; Jan Bondeson: Greyfriars Bobby; CFZ Awards; Richard Freeman et al: Sumatra 2011; Paul Screeton: The Hexham Heads; Lars Thomas: Danish Cryptozoology; Ronan Coghlan: Sinbad the Sailor; Jon Downes: Keynote Speech

More attractions will be announced soon... Buy Your tickets in advance at the special discount price of £20. If you want to pay by cheque payable to `CFZ Trust` please send it to: The Centre for Fortean Zoology,Myrtle Cottage,9 Back Street,Woolfardisworthy,Bideford, North Devon, EX39 5QR

See you in August...
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Wednesday, January 04, 2012

SIMON REAMES NOTIFIES US ABOUT THE WORLD'S FIRST HYBRID SHARK

Hello Jon,

Saw this article and thought you might be interested

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/world-first-hybrid-shark-found-off-australia-070347259.html

Simon



Posted by Jon Downes at

1 comments:

Retrieverman said...

It's really an amazing find.

The introduction of common blacktip genes might "pollute" the Australian blacktip's gene pool, but that might not be the best way to think about it.

The discovery that modern humans mated with Neanderthals and Denisovans has led to a possibility that we might have inherited some beneficial traits from these species.

There is some evidence that some of our MHC (Major Histocompatibility Complex genes came from Neanderthals and Denisovans. MHC genes control our immune response. New MHC genes could mean that would would have become more resistant to disease, thereby allowing us to colonize Eurasia, Australia, and North America more effectively:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/priya-malhotra/sex-with-neanderthals-the_b_954883.html

Although this study has been attackd, the possibility that some of our superiority as a species may have come through hybridization should lead us to question whether hybridization in wild species is always a bad thing.

Species that can hybridize sometimes do in the wild-- like wolves and coyotes and Canada lynx and bobcats. And these hybrids can be more fit.

Of course, it doesn't always work this way. You can get hybrids that do have health and fertility issues-- not always the result of Haldane's rule. Campbell's and winter white dwarf hamster often are bred together in captivity, and real health problems do result.

But one should not assume gloom and doom when a hybrid pops up.

In this case, the Australian blacktip might be able to colonize other parts of Australia besides the northern regions.

1:58 PM

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